β Scribed by Kathe Koja
No coin nor oath required. For personal study only.
"Koja can pack a lot Dickensian humor into a sentence."--"The Plain Dealer" Under the Poppy is a brothel owned by Decca and Rupert. Decca is in love with Rupert but he in turn is in love with her brother, Istvan. When Istvan comes back to town, louche puppet troupe in tow, the lines of their age-old desires intersect against a backdrop of approaching war. Hearts are broken when old betrayals and new alliances--not just their own--take shape, as the townsmen seek refuge from the onslaught of history by watching the girls of the Poppy cavort onstage with Istvan's naughty puppets. When the war gets too close, Istvan and Rupert abandon the Poppy and find a place in high society where they try to avoid becoming more than puppets themselves in the hands of those they have helped before and who now want to use them again. From its explosive beginning to the final climax, "Under the Poppy" is a vivid, sexy, behind-the-scenes historical novel as delicious and intoxicating as the best guilty pleasure.
""Under the Poppy" is unlike anything I've ever read, a world unto itself, spun out of fevered, sensual prose and vivid, compelling characters."--Lewis Shiner "Koja has a ventriloquist's skill when it comes to inhabiting the voices of her characters . . . A gothic, glam-rock take on love and sex and death that reads a little like what would happen if Sarah Waters and Angela Carter played a drunken game of Exquisite Corpse in a brothel, "Under the Poppy" will make you want to get out your very finest crushed velvet, drink a couple bottles of wine, and do something a little bit illegal with someone very good-looking. In other words, it's a winner."--Tor.com "All the elements of a great novel are present in Koja's work: from suspense and intrigue to undying love and toxic jealousies, this highly developed read is brimming with imaginative flair and originality."--Lambda Literary "This book is different, magical, seductive, and strange. However, there are books to which "Poppy" has ties, however wispy: think "The Unbearable Lightness of Being" by Milan Kundera mixed with "The Piano Teacher" by Elfriede Jelinek lightened with "Fanny Hill" by John Cleland and layered with "The Satanic Verses, A Passage to India, " and "Mrs. Dalloway.""--Bethanne Patrick, "Beyond the Margins" "People will probably love this book or hate it-possibly both. But let me just say that it would take an author of extraordinary talent to open with a scene of a woman being sodomized by a ventriloquist's dummy and make me want to keep reading."And Kathe Koja is that talented. Five stars."--"Speak Its Name" "The velvet and brocade, the rips and tears, the music and theater, you see it all as you read about what the denizens of the Poppy do to stay in business, stay ahead of the tide, stay alive."--Colleen Mondor, "Chasing Ray" "Frequently changing viewpoints and fluid segues in and out of flashback illuminate actions readers have al
Kathe Koja's books include "The Cipher, Skin, " and "Extremities"; YA novels include "Buddha Boy, Talk, Kissing the Bee, " and "Headlong." Her work has been honored by the ALA, the ASPCA, the Parents' Choice Award, and the Bram Stoker Award for Best First Novel. Her books have been published in seven languages, and optioned for film. She is a Detroit native and lives in the area with her husband, artist Rick Lieder, and their cats. Koja is working on a series of staged events based on "Under the Poppy."
Adult
π SIMILAR VOLUMES
From a wartime brothel to the intricate high society of 1870s Brussels,*Under the Poppy*is a breakout novel of childhood friends, a love triangle, puppetmasters, and reluctant spies. Under the Poppy is a brothel owned by Decca and Rupert. Decca is in love with Rupert, but he in turn is in love
Love: it's a triangle. War: is coming. Betrayal: is inevitable. Sex: watch out for the naughty puppets.;Act One: The Flowers of the Street; 1.; 2.; Act Two: The Garden Path; 3.; 4.
Decca, runs a Victorian brothel, Under the Poppy, and is in love with co-owner Rupert, who, in turn, is in love with Decca's brother, Istvan. When Istvan appears, louche puppet troupe in tow, their desires play out against a backdrop of approaching war and the townsmen seek refuge watching the girls
### Review "The brothel of Kathe Koja's _Under the Poppy_ requires no time and space coordinates. It is a fictional universe unto itselfβrich and bawdy and violent and sad, with a beating human heart underneath. I love Kojaβs daring and flair." βLouis Bayard, author of _The Black Tower_ "Koja
Decca, runs a Victorian brothel, Under the Poppy, and is in love with co-owner Rupert, who, in turn, is in love with Decca's brother, Istvan. When Istvan appears, louche puppet troupe in tow, their desires play out against a backdrop of approaching war and the townsmen seek refuge watching the girls
**"I have no doubt this will end up being the best fantasy debut of the year [...] I have absolutely no doubt that [Kuang's] name will be up there with the likes of Robin Hobb and N.K. Jemisin." -- Booknest** A brilliantly imaginative talent makes her exciting debut with this epic historical milita