Nothing in the air Saturday evening in May of 1950 predicts that from Naomi Hollister's kitchen at the Tysen Hotel to the pulpit of the First Baptist Church, few will be left unscarred in body or spirit by the conflict that erupts at Tysen's Annual Pie Supper. Certainly, Naomi can't know the fight that begins between Sample Forney and Ray Redeem will be one she takes up. She can't guess her opponent will not be Sample Forney, who lusts after young Alice Tolney, or Alice's father, Webster Tolney, who agrees to barter her away to Sample. But the challenge is Naomi's own Baptist preacher, Busby Howard, a man who likes wearing his mantle in Tysen; it marks him as the leader of his com-munity. In small Missouri towns, most of the folks know the Trinity is made up of God, the Father; God, the Son; and god, the Baptist preacher. Howard is no exception, and he makes sure his flock understands. The Tysen Hotel presents a novel of the struggle for love and faith against an onslaught of greed, lust, and a preacher's damnation in a small town in the foot-hills of the Ozarks.

"The Rift would be a very good beach book, if you could put it down long enough to get into the water." —— The San Diego Union Tribune FRACTURE LINES PERMEATE THE CENTRAL UNITED STATES. Some comprise the New Madrid fault, the most dangerous earthquake zone in the world. Other fracture lines are social—— economic, religious, racial, and ethnic. What happens when they all crack at once? Caught in the disaster as cities burn and bridges tumble, young Jason Adams finds himself adrift on the Mississippi with African-American engineer Nick Ruford. A modern-day Huck and Jim, they spin helplessly down the river and into the widening faults in American society, encountering violence and hope, compassion and despair, and the primal wilderness that threatens to engulf not only them, but all they love... " A breakout book that you'll swear the author lived" —— SF Age "I don't like disaster novels. I would not have even glanced at The Rift if it weren't backed by Walter Jon Williams' reputation for excellence. And I definitely would not have kept reading if Williams hadn't demonstrated on every page that he deserves his reputation. The result? I was so engrossed in—— and engaged by ——The Rift that I forgot that I don't like disaster novels. This book is an impressive achievement.” —— Stephen R. Donaldson, New York Times bestselling author of The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant "The Rift is bloody wonderful! Williams brings an historic disaster back for an encore and metaphorically flattens it again. This is the stuff for which sleep is lost--and awards are made." —— Dean Ing "The Rift shakes up the world like it's never been shaken before." —— Fred Saberhagen "[For fans of the disaster novel] Williams delivers the requisite thrills and setpieces—— but he also, to paraphrase Conrad, offers a bit of that truth for which they forgot to ask." —— Locus

Outlines ten lessons for maximizing creativity and personal satisfaction after the age of fifty and shares advice on such topics as confronting change, renegotiating one's relationships, and setting boundaries.