Drift (ePub)

“Patterson’s unflinching account of the seedy side of a real-life Xanadu is frightening, immersive and wonderfully realized.” —Publishers Weekly, starred review
 
“Set against the affluence of Newport Beach, Patterson’s debut collection often focuses on the enclaves’ outcasts—waitstaff, divorcees, alcoholics, and drug addicts—as her characters confront personal battles, the limits of friendship, and the bleary anticipation of a different life. Patterson’s 13 engaging tales offer keen perspectives on life lived on the fringe.” —Booklist
 
“If I could write just a single story as beautiful and heartbreaking and intelligent as the thirteen linked together in Drift, I’m pretty sure that I could die a happy man. Victoria Patterson makes me envious as hell, and I applaud her for it.” —Donald Ray Pollock, author of Knockemstiff
 
“Victoria Patterson has enormous talent and I suspect we’ll be hearing a lot more from her.” —James Lee Burke, author of Purple Cane Road
 
“Victoria Patterson’s beautiful stories break our hearts as they inform us. Through her characters we see the complications and trauma of not fitting into one’s surroundings, in a version of California we are rarely allowed to see. Haunting, affirming, and often comic, her stories make the reader grateful for this writer’s documentation of our human alienation—and our unexpected bonds. A gifted storyteller, a fresh, essential new voice.” —Dana Johnson, author of Break Any Woman Down