Ranging from Australia to Greece, England to a Pacific island, the stories in Fiona McFarlane’s story collection journey across continents, eras and genres, charting the pivotal moments of people’s lives. In “Mycenae,” a middle-aged couple embarks on a disastrous vacation in the company of old friends. In “Good News for Modern Man,” a scientist conducts research on a small, remote island, where he is haunted by a colossal squid and the ghost of Charles Darwin. And in the title story, an Australian farmer turns to Old Testament methods to relieve a fatal drought. All are confronted with events that make them see themselves and their lives from a fresh perspective --- and what they do as a result is as unpredictable as life itself.

Ranging from Australia to Greece, England to a Pacific island, the stories in Fiona McFarlane’s story collection journey across continents, eras and genres, charting the pivotal moments of people’s lives. In “Mycenae,” a middle-aged couple embarks on a disastrous vacation in the company of old friends. In “Good News for Modern Man,” a scientist conducts research on a small, remote island, where he is haunted by a colossal squid and the ghost of Charles Darwin. And in the title story, an Australian farmer turns to Old Testament methods to relieve a fatal drought. All are confronted with events that make them see themselves and their lives from a fresh perspective --- and what they do as a result is as unpredictable as life itself.

Ranging from Australia to Greece, England to a Pacific island, the stories in Fiona McFarlane’s story collection journey across continents, eras and genres, charting the pivotal moments of people’s lives. In “Mycenae,” a middle-aged couple embarks on a disastrous vacation in the company of old friends. In “Good News for Modern Man,” a scientist conducts research on a small, remote island, where he is haunted by a colossal squid and the ghost of Charles Darwin. And in the title story, an Australian farmer turns to Old Testament methods to relieve a fatal drought. All are confronted with events that make them see themselves and their lives from a fresh perspective --- and what they do as a result is as unpredictable as life itself.

Chas is a detective who can get the goods on anyone with the tap of a keyboard, and it’s all to make sure that superstar Las Vegas mind reader Wallace the Amazing stays amazing. Thanks to Chas’ steady stream of stealthy intel, Wallace’s mental “magic” packs houses every night. But when someone threatens to call the psychic showman’s bluff, the sweet gig takes a sour --- and sinister --- turn. Who’s the clean-cut couple gunning for Wallace with an arsenal of dirty tricks? Why does Wallace keep upping the ante instead of backing down? And just how much does Chas really know about his mysterious boss’s life…or his own?

Chas is a detective who can get the goods on anyone with the tap of a keyboard, and it’s all to make sure that superstar Las Vegas mind reader Wallace the Amazing stays amazing. Thanks to Chas’ steady stream of stealthy intel, Wallace’s mental “magic” packs houses every night. But when someone threatens to call the psychic showman’s bluff, the sweet gig takes a sour --- and sinister --- turn. Who’s the clean-cut couple gunning for Wallace with an arsenal of dirty tricks? Why does Wallace keep upping the ante instead of backing down? And just how much does Chas really know about his mysterious boss’s life…or his own?

Chas is a detective who doesn’t stake out cheating husbands, track down missing persons or match wits with femmes fatales. Instead of pounding the pavement, he taps a computer keyboard. He can get the goods on anyone, and it’s all to make sure superstar Las Vegas mind reader Wallace the Amazing stays amazing. Thanks to Chas’s steady stream of stealthy intel, Wallace’s mental “magic” packs houses every night.

But when someone threatens to call the psychic showman’s bluff, the sweet gig takes a sour --- and sinister --- turn. Who’s the clean-cut couple gunning for Wallace with an arsenal of dirty tricks? Why does Wallace keep upping the ante instead of backing down? And just how much does Chas really know about his mysterious boss’s life…or his own? The tangled truth --- of blackmail, kidnapping and false identities --- quickly becomes the biggest case of his strange, secret career.