
Males arts
Empúries, 2013 | Dark Arts
Translations
Spain / Carena Editores - Spanish World
Press
“Gasull has built a Kafkaesque castle through which his leading character roams: Miquel, an architect who has fallen prey to the crisis and the protagonist of a fast-paced and witty novel set in the here and now.” Anna M. Gil, La Vanguardia
“A writer’s sharp debut about the destruction left by a time of irresponsibility.” Josep Lambies, Time Out
“Males arts is not an account of the wheeling and dealing of real estate developers at the height of the bricks-and-mortar frenzy, but rather a portrait of the personal lives of its protagonists and the world around them at a very particular moment in our recent past.” Jordi Vilarrodà, El 9Nou
“I recommend this novel, which throws the reader headlong into a world of luxury and back-stabbing, an engrossing portrait of a society in thrall to success and the lure of a quick buck." Silvia Cantos, silviacantos.blogspot.com.es
“A fast-paced tale, told at a gallop. A moral novel, set at the dawn of the 21st century, an indictment of the craving for luxury and all its trappings brought about by corruption in all its guises, deftly handled by the author.” Enric Tubert
“A splendid first outing in noir fiction.” Mucho más que un libro blog
Synopsis
(Dark Arts) December 2004. Several years ago the property market was flooded with upstarts from all corners hoping to get rich from the situation. Investors, vendors and brokers at all levels appeared, along with a new emerging “species”: those who have started to build wealth and need to prove it. Surrounded by this fauna, a young couple, Miquel and Raquel, move into the house they have built in a village in Alt Empordà. Miquel is the architect who designed the house, and for Raquel the house is a dream come true. His work has gone very well in recent years and Raquel has become accustomed to expensive cars, luxury holidays, the best hotels and designer clothes. But she doesn’t know that everything is about to go horribly wrong: Miquel is ruined and they are in danger of losing their home.
With a dynamic plot and fresh language, Males arts gives an accurate account of a society eager for and dazzled by success, allowing itself to fall into the trap set by the illusions of a freak period. A recent past that has very quickly been left behind.
MB Authors Fiction
- Pepa AGUAR
- Pablo ARANDA
- Juan Luis ARSUAGA
- Manuel ASTUR
- Joan BARRIL
- Nuria BARRIOS
- María BASTARÓS
- Felipe BENÍTEZ REYES
- Joan-Daniel BEZSONOFF
- Juan BONILLA
- Emilio BUESO
- Leonardo CANO
- Pablo CARBONELL
- Martín CASARIEGO
- Nicolás CASARIEGO
- Paula CIFUENTES
- Juan CUADRA
- Elizabeth DUVAL
- Maria ESCALAS
- Cristina FALLARÁS
- Eneko FERNÁNDEZ
- Laura FERRERO
- Josep Maria FONALLERAS
- Albert FORNS CANAL
- Olivia GALLO
- Ignacio GARCÍA-VALIÑO
- José A. GARRIGA VELA
- David B. GIL
- Santi GIMÉNEZ
- Marcos GIRALT TORRENTE
- Ismael GRASA
- Javier GUTIÉRREZ
- Najat El HACHMI
- Alicia KOPF
- Use LAHOZ
- Lucía LIJTMAER
- Ignacio MARTÍNEZ DE PISóN
- Ana MERINO
- Luna MIGUEL
- Miquel OBIOLS
- Bruno ORO
- Miqui OTERO
- Vicenç PAGÈS JORDÀ
- Enric PARDO
- Concepción PEREA
- Juan Manuel DE PRADA
- Jordi PUNTÍ
- Llucia RAMIS
- Antonio J. RODRÍGUEZ
- Félix ROMEO
- Gemma RUIZ
- Màrius SERRA
- Ramon SOLSONA
- David TRUEBA
- Juan VICO
- Enrique VILA-MATAS
- Rosario VILLAJOS
- Rolando VILLAZÓN
- Pedro ZARRALUKI