This is not just a luminescent work, it is a transcendent and transformative one. Jill Malone finds and plays the desperate times of the teenaged years like an old Gibson. The reader is instantly, effortlessly, back in those halls of high school, the auditoriums and locker rooms and gyms, the whispered conversations in the library, solving math problems on the phone, sneaking out late at night, wondering, always wondering, if you have gone too far this time, or not far enough. . . . Malone continues to delight with each new book. Her writing reveals a sure, deft skill at the subtleties and ever-changing emotions of characters as they grow and progress. . . . Malone is the real thing, a novelist of great touch and tone, like a fine musician, the kind who play because they love the music and look up at the end of a song, surprised to find an audience.” Lesbian.com, June 4, 2013 Between God and the army, fifteen-year-old Cole Peters has more than enough to rebel against. But this Chaplain’s daughter isn’t resorting to drugs or craziness. Truth to tell, she’s content with her soccer team and her band and her white bread boyfriend. And then, of course, there’s Meghan. Meghan is eighteen years old and preparing for entry into West Point. For this she has sponsors: Cole’s parents. They’re delighted their daughter is finally looking up to someone. Someone who can tutor her and be a friend. But one night that relationship changes and Cole’s world flips. Giraffe People is a potent reminder of the rites of passage and passion that we all endure on our road to growing up and growing strong. Award-winning author Jill Malone tells a story of coming out and coming of age, giving us a take that is both subtle and fresh. 
Praise for Jill Malone's debut Red Audrey and the Roping:
"A lyrical, passionate novel about desire, about danger, and about the need for self-forgiveness. A wonderfully impressive writing debut."Sarah Waters
"With its lyrical dialogue, complex characters, and atmospheric setting, this is a dazzling and dramatic debut."Richard Labonte, Book Marks Reviews
"Finely tuned, daring, and perceptive, Malone's auspicious debut leaves us wanting more."Booklist
Praise for Jill Malone's A Field Guide to Deception:
"This gem of a book avoids the second-book blahs and gives us a poignant, real story of relationships and all they cost."OutSmart Magazine
"An absolutely gripping and beautifully written story."AfterEllen.com
"Beautiful, essential reading."Outinprint.net
Jill Malone's second novel, A Field Guide to Deception, won the Lambda Literary Award for Lesbian Fiction and was a finalist for the Ferro-Grumley Literary Award. Her first novel, Red Audrey and the Roping, won the Bywater Prize for Fiction and was a finalist for the Lambda Literary Award for Debut Fiction. Jill Malone is a regular blogger and her following is moving beyond the queer reading community. She lives in Spokane, Washington.

Giraffe People

Literature & Fiction

Malone, Jill

United States

Bywater Books

“This is a literary gem . . . one of the best books I’ve read this year.”—Ellen Hart"This raw and convincing first novel is narrated by a woman who can’t help testing the limits of her ability to endure pain in her intimate relationships with men and women... the vivid characters and potent emotions keep the pages turning."—The AdvocateOccasionally a debut novel comes along that rocks its readers back on their heels. Red Audrey and the Roping is one of that rare and remarkable breed. With storytelling as accomplished as successful literary novelists like Margaret Atwood and Sarah Waters, Jill Malone takes us on a journey through the heart of Latin professor Jane Elliot.Set against the dramatic landscapes and seascapes of Hawaii, this is the deeply moving story of a young woman traumatized by her mother’s death. Scarred by guilt, she struggles to find the nerve to let love into her life again. Afraid to love herself or anyone else, Jane falls in love with risk, pitting herself against the world with dogged, destructive courage. But finally she reaches a point where there is only one danger left worth facing. The sole remaining question for Jane is whether she is willing to accept her history, embrace her damage, and take a chance on love.As well as a gripping and emotional story, Red Audrey and the Roping is a remarkable literary achievement. The breathtaking prose evokes setting, characters, and relationships with equal grace. The dialogue sparks and sparkles. Splintered fragments of narrative come together to form a seamless suspenseful story that flows effortlessly to its dramatic conclusion.Winner of the Bywater Prize for Fiction, Red Audrey and the Roping is one of the most memorable first novels you will ever read.

Red Audrey and the Roping

Praise for Red Audrey and the Roping by Jill Malone:
“Luminescent writing. . . . Finely tuned, daring, and perceptive, Malone’s auspicious debut leaves us wanting more.”—Whitney Scott, Booklist
“A lyrical, passionate novel about desire, about danger, and about the need for self-forgiveness. A wonderfully impressive writing debut.”—Sarah Waters, author of Tipping the Velvet and The Night Watch
“First-rate writing and characterization.”—Cecelia Martin, Diva
“Malone’s nonlinear novel jitterbugs through time and place—the splintered chronology is a rewarding challenge. . . . A dazzling and dramatic debut.”—Richard Labonté, BookMarks/Q Syndicate
In Jill Malone’s second novel, A Field Guide to Deception, nothing is as simple as it appears: community, notions of motherhood, the nature of goodness, nor even compelling love. Revelations are punctured and then revisited with deeper insight, alliances shift, and heroes turn anti-hero—and vice versa.
With her aunt’s death Claire Bernard loses her best companion, her livelihood, and her son’s co-parent. Malone’s smart, intriguing writing beguiles the reader into this taut, compelling story of a makeshift family and the reawakening of a past they’d hoped to outrun. Claire’s journey is the unifying tension in this book of layered and shifting alliances.
A Field Guide to Deception is a serious novel filled with snappy dialogue, quick-moving and funny incidents, compelling characterizations, mysterious plot twists, and an unexpected climax. It is a rich, complex tale for literary readers.
Jill Malone’s first novel, Red Audrey and the Roping, won the Bywater Prize for Fiction.

A Field Guide to Deception

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Malone, Jill. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by Malone, Jill

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Malone, Jill. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Giraffe People

Red Audrey and the Roping

A Field Guide to Deception