Sri Lanka - by Stephen Holgate (Paperback)

About the Book

"The fallout from an unlikely friendship can last a lifetime. A chance meeting at a dinner party in Paris turns the life of Philip Reid, an aging and cynical American diplomat, upside down, sending him back more than twenty years to when he had been a younger and better man. In those days, for a brief moment, Bandula, scion of the island's most powerful family, had been one of Philip's closest friend. Now, he finds his onetime companion bitter and humbled by life. In a tale marked by terrorist bombings, political assassination, romance, and intrigue, we follow the tragedies that lead Bandula to a life in exile and Philip to the attainment of dreams that lose their meaning even in the moment of their fulfillment. In their serendipitous meeting, can either man find a way to redeem their past?"--

Book Synopsis

A diplomat's past collides with a nation's future in a web of intrigue and betrayal.

When Philip Reid, an aging American diplomat, attends a Paris dinner party, a chance encounter catapults him back to his time in Sri Lanka. Twenty years prior, he befriended Bandula, heir to the island's most powerful family. Now, Bandula is a bitter shadow of his former self. As Philip navigates a landscape of terrorist bombings, political assassinations, and forbidden romance, he uncovers a plot that could shatter Sri Lanka's future, forcing him to confront his own long-buried ambitions and betrayals.

For readers of literary thrillers seeking political intrigue, exotic settings, and complex characters, Sri Lanka explores the high price of ambition and the enduring power of the past.

Review Quotes

- MADAGASCAR received a STARRED review from Publishers Weekly: "Holgate has created a memorable lead character and made Madagascar, where the "implausible is not only possible, it is mandatory," palpable. Le Carré fans won't want to miss this one." - MADAGASCAR reviewed in BookReporter: "More than a mystery/thriller, MADAGASCAR verges on literary fiction. Following his debut, TANGIER, mystical Madagascar comes to life in Stephen Holgate's thoroughly satisfying thriller." - TANGIER reviewed in Publishers Weekly: "Holgate's thoughtful first novel generates suspense by alternating between two related stories... an adventure that is truly transformative and convincing."

About the Author

A native Oregonian, Stephen Holgate served for four years as a diplomat with the American Embassy in Morocco. In addition to his other Foreign Service posts, Mr. Holgate has served as a Congressional staffer; headed a committee staff of the Oregon State Senate; managed two electoral campaigns; acted with the national tour of an improvisational theater group; worked as a crew member of a barge on the canals of France; and lived in a tent while working as a gardener in Malibu. Holgate has published several short stories and a successfully produced one-man play, as well as publishing innumerable freelance articles. Following Tangier and Madagascar, Sri Lanka is his third novel.