Blood Oranges (9781101594858)

Praise for the Novels of Caitlín R. Kiernan

The Drowning Girl

“With
The Drowning Girl
, Caitlín R. Kiernan moves firmly into the new vanguard, still being formed, of our best and most artful authors of the gothic and fantastic—those capable of writing fiction of deep moral and artistic seriousness. This subtle, dark, in-folded novel, through which flickers a weird insistent genius, is like nothing I've ever read before.
The Drowning Girl
is a stunning work of literature, and if I may be so blunt, Caitlín R. Kiernan's masterpiece.”

—Peter Straub

“In this novel, Caitlín R. Kiernan turns the ghost story inside out and transforms it. This is a story about how stories are told, about what they reveal and what they hide, but is no less intense or suspenseful because of that. It's a tale of real and unreal hauntings that quickly takes you down deep and only slowly brings you up for air.”

—Brian Evanson, author of
Immobility

“
The Drowning Girl
features all those elements of Caitlín R. Kiernan's writing that readers have come to expect—a prose style of wondrous luminosity, an atmosphere of languorous melancholy, and an inexplicable mixture of aching beauty and clutching terror. It is one of those very few novels that one wishes would never end.”

—S. T. Joshi, author of
I Am Providence: The Life and Times of H. P. Lovecraft

“This is a masterpiece. It deserves to be read in and out of genre for a long, long time.”

—Elizabeth Bear, author of
Range of Ghosts

“Kiernan pins out the traditional memoir on her worktable and metamorphoses it into something wholly different and achingly familiar, more alien, more difficult, more beautiful, and more true.”

—Catherynne M. Valente,
New York Times
bestselling author of
The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making

“Caitlín Keirnan is a master of dark fantasy and this may be her finest work. Incisive, beautiful, and as perfectly crafted as a puzzle box,
The Drowning Girl
took my breath away.”

—Holly Black,
New York Times
bestselling author of
Black Heart

“A beautifully written, startlingly original novel that rings the changes upon classics by the likes of Shirley Jackson, H. P. Lovecraft, and Peter Straub,
The Drowning Girl
brings Caitlín Kiernan to the front ranks of contemporary dark fiction. Chilling and unforgettable, with a narrator whose voice will linger in your head long after midnight.”

—Elizabeth Hand, author of
Available Dark

The Red Tree

NOMINATED
FOR
THE
SHIRLEY
JACKSON
AWARD

NOMINATED
FOR
THE
WORLD
FANTASY
AWARD

“You may find your mind returning frequently to this tale, attempting to reconcile the irreconcilable, and you may find yourself, like me, bowing to Kiernan's artistry, and her ability to create Mystery. This is her most personal, ambitious, and accomplished work yet.”

—
Locus

“Kiernan's chiller provides a strange and vastly compelling take on a New England haunting, and captures its spirit unnervingly well. Kiernan's still-developing talent makes this gloriously atmospheric tale a fabulous piece of work.”

—
Booklist

Daughter of Hounds

“Kiernan's handling of underworld figures is impressive, and this book proves she's as adept at writing crime as she is dark fantasy . . . a thrilling page-turner that also features the depth, complexity, and unflinching willingness to contemplate the dark that we've come to expect from her books.”

—
Locus

“A hell-raising dark fantasy replete with ghouls, changelings, and eerie intimations of a macabre otherworld. . . . The complex plot springs abundant surprises . . . on its juggernaut roll to a memorable finale . . . an effective mix of atmosphere and action.”

—
Publishers Weekly

Murder of Angels

“I love a book like this that happily blends genres, highlighting the best from each, but delivering them in new configurations. . . . Lyrical and earthy,
Murder of Angels
is that rare book that gets everything right.”

—Charles de Lint

“[Kiernan's] punk-rock prose, and the brutally realistic portrayal of addiction and mental illness, makes
Angels
fly.”

—
Entertainment Weekly
(A-)

Low Red Moon

“
Low Red Moon
fully unleashes the hounds of horror, and the read is eerie and breathtaking. . . . The familiar caveat ‘not for the faint of heart' is appropriate here—the novel is one of sustained dread punctuated by explosions of unmitigated terror.”

—
Irish Literary Review

Threshold

WINNER
OF
THE
INTERNATIONAL
HORROR
GUILD
AWARD
FOR
BEST
NOVEL

“
Threshold
is a bonfire proclaiming Caitlín Kiernan's elevated position in the annals of contemporary literature. It is an exceptional novel you mustn't miss. Highly recommended.”

—
Cemetery Dance

Silk

WINNER
OF
THE
INTERNATIONAL
HORROR
GUILD
AWARD
FOR
BEST
FIRST
NOVEL

FINALIST
FOR
THE
BRAM
STOKER
AWARD
FOR
BEST
FIRST
NOVEL

NOMINATED
FOR
THE
BRITISH
FANTASY
AWARD

“A remarkable novel.”

—Neil Gaiman

“A daring vision and an extraordinary achievement.”

—Clive Barker

“Caitlín R. Kiernan writes like a Gothic cathedral on fire.”

—Poppy Z. Brite

BOOKS BY CAITLÍN R. KIERNAN

Novels

Silk

Threshold

Low Red Moon

Murder of Angels

Daughter of Hounds

The Red Tree

The Drowning Girl: A Memoir

Writing as Kathleen Tierney

Blood Oranges

ROC

Published by New American Library, a division of

Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014, USA

Penguin Group (Canada), 90 Eglinton Avenue East, Suite 700, Toronto, Ontario M4P 2Y3, Canada (a division of Pearson Penguin Canada Inc.)

Penguin Books Ltd., 80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England

Penguin Ireland, 25 St. Stephen's Green, Dublin 2, Ireland (a division of Penguin Books Ltd.)

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Penguin Books India Pvt. Ltd., 11 Community Centre, Panchsheel Park, New Delhi – 110 017, India

Penguin Group (NZ), 67 Apollo Drive, Rosedale, Auckland 0632, New Zealand (a division of Pearson New Zealand Ltd.)

Penguin Books (South Africa) (Pty.) Ltd., 24 Sturdee Avenue,

Rosebank, Johannesburg 2196, South Africa

Penguin Books Ltd., Registered Offices:

80 Strand, London WC2R 0RL, England

First published by Roc, an imprint of New American Library,

a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.

Copyright © Caitlín R. Kiernan, 2013

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author's rights. Purchase only authorized editions.

REGISTERED
TRADEMARK
—
MARCA
REGISTRADA

LIBRARY
OF
CONGRESS
CATALOGING
-
IN
-
PUBLICATION
DATA

Kiernan, Caitlín R.

Blood oranges / Caitlín R. Kiernan.

p. cm.

ISBN 978-1-101-59485-8

I. Title.

PS3561.I358B58 2013

813'.54—dc23 2012032442

PUBLISHER
'
S
NOTE

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party Web sites or their content.

I
f your ears, eyes, and sensibilities are easily offended, this book is not for you. If you want a romance novel, this book is not for you. And if it strikes you odd that vampires, werewolves, demons, ghouls, and the people who spend time in their company would be a foulmouthed, unpleasant, unhappy lot, this book is not for you. In fact, if you're the sort who believes books should come with warning labels, this book's not for you. Also, please note: Siobhan Quinn is not a very good writer. Fair notice.

To paraphrase Ursula K. LeGuin, this is me taking back the language of the night. If only for myself.

The Author