Wars of the Flesh / Pale Fire Press (ePub)

Wolf. Penetrating descriptions of political brutality and the prepossession of romantic love, an ever present theme in classical ballet, make for a page-turning, impelling read." Janet Panetta, ballet master Tanztheater Wuppertal Pina Bausch

¿Germaine Shames¿ beautiful depiction of the life of Margit Wolf and Pasquale Frustaci is told with such vivid and haunting detail, it's as if the reader is propelled back in time to witness a devastating journey of shattered dreams, juxtaposed with the strength and courage of the human heart. A tragic story, beautifully written.¿ Susan Jaffe, ¿America¿s quintessential ballerina"

"An epic story and a true story. This woman's life is the kind of character journey that makes for great movies." Howard Allen, "the Script Doctor"

"Shames captures the essence of a ballerina with such expertise in her riveting story. Dancers succeed by creating beauty from effort; this book, too, shows that exquisite art can be made from history's hardships." Elana Altman, soloist dancer, San Francisco Ballet

¿In this heartbreaking and original novel based on the life of Hungarian ballerina Margit Wolf, Germaine Shames has crafted a story that will absorb readers fascinated not only by history and art, but romantic obsession. From Wolf's touching point of view, we see a valiant Jewish artist swept along by a combination of political horrors and her unfailing passion for her husband, famed Italian composer Pasquale Frustaci, who refuses to help her and her son escape from brutal life under the Nazis occupying Hungary. Shames' faithful, carefully researched portrayal of Wolf's blindness and history's cruelty makes this a compelling read.¿ Elizabeth Evans, author of The Blue Hour

¿Compelling, heart-wrenching, and heroic.¿ Jim Bencivenga, Christian Science Monitor

Reviews of Between Two Deserts:

¿Shames, a former Middle East correspondent, handles the complexities of Eve¿s visit to war-torn Jerusalem with a subtlety seldom seen in this genre. She is careful not to pass judgment on either side of the political equation as she skillfully intertwines the lives of this diverse cast of characters to produce a tightly executed, emotion-filled work.¿ Publisher¿s Weekly

¿(The novelist) creates the intense atmosphere of an unstable world with grace and a sort of lyric power.¿ National Public Radio

¿One might expect the journalist and novelist to approach this story quite differently, but in Between Two Deserts, foreign correspondent Germaine Shames has realized a combination of these crafts, lucidly capturing those immutable qualities that speak to our souls.¿ Rain Taxi

¿In Jerusalem where rhetoric and revenge rule, Shames shows us humanity and insight.¿ Bloomsbury Review