Toby Barlow Knihy

An ancient race of lycanthropes has survived to the present day, and its numbers are growing as the initiated convince L.A.'s down and out to join their pack. Paying no heed to moons, full or otherwise, they change from human to canine at will—and they're bent on domination at any cost. Caught in the middle are Anthony, a kind-hearted, besotted dogcatcher, and the girl he loves, a female werewolf who has abandoned her pack. Anthony has no idea that she's more than she seems, and she wants to keep it that way. But her efforts to protect her secret lead to murderous results. Blending dark humor and epic themes with card-playing dogs, crystal meth labs, surfing, and carne asada tacos, Sharp Teeth captures the pace and feel of a graphic novel while remaining "as ambitious as any literary novel, because underneath all that fur, it's about identity, community, love, death, and all the things we want our books to be about" [Nick Hornby, The Believer].

The year is 1959, and strange events are brewing in Paris, a city where nothing (and no one) is as it seems. We meet Will, who hails from Detroit and works at an international advertising agency, which is also a front for the CIA. Then there's the enchanting Zoya, who could cast a spell with her looks—and, as a witch, she often does (she also recently impaled her ex on a spike). Inspector Vidot, on the other hand, is a hardworking police detective who cherishes a quiet evening at home. Until he follows a lead on a particularly gruesome murder—and finds himself turned into a flea. And the adventure wouldn't be complete without Oliver, a fun-loving American patrician who has come to Paris to launch a literary journal with the support of certain secretive friends. Add a few chance encounters, a chorus of angry witches, and a weaponized LSD program, and you have Toby Barlow's Babayaga: a wickedly sharp tale of the City of Light that's part love story, part thriller, and pure brilliance.