Stories to Delight And Entertain
Immerse Yourself in My Tales of Human Connection
THE FICTION AUTHOR WHO DOESN'T TAKE HIMSELF VERY SERIOUSLY
. . . but does appreciate a well-crafted sentence. My pen name is w w goss—friends and family call me Wayne—and I’m a literary fiction writer. I create stories that aim to engross my readers and bring to life characters and worlds that excite and fascinate me. I write in a couple of genres: thriller and whatever-the-heck the genre is for How I Learned French or Certain Events in the Life of Otto Pulaski.
BOOKS
How I Learned French or Certain Events in the Life of Otto Pulaski was released 12/22. RED MONKEY and CLAVE (‘klä-(,)vā) were published in 3/23. The next title in the Stonecrop series is slated for release 1/24.
How I Learned French or Certain Events in the Life of Otto Pulaski
A disorderly literary romp in which Otto Pulaski, while in the course of a Covid-era Thanksgiving dinner at which he is an unwelcome family member, remembers, regrets, and relishes his moving and at times risqué and violent history of how he learned French, as well as how, in the present, he is drawn to reconnect with family in the form of a curious and insistent grand-daughter with gender identity questions.
RED MONKEY
Max Stonecrop, a venture capitalist, and Federica Ratzow, a pre-med student and polyglot, meet on an overnight train to Venice and then re-connect seven years later when Stonecrop turns up as her patient at Universitätsspital, Zürich.
As Stonecrop recovers from a climbing accident and a violent, traumatic experience in Mozambique, they grow close.
Federica suddenly vanishes, prompting Stonecrop and Federica’s criminal father to team up against Yakuza gangsters, double-dealing business associates, and dangerous men from Federica’s past.
CLAVE
Max Stonecrop, a venture capitalist turned courier, and Federica Ratzow—physician, polyglot, and Stonecrop’s lover—find themselves engaged in an escalating imbroglio that starts with a comedic Zürich counterfeit cheese scandal and leads to illegal e-waste trade and sex trafficking.
Complications compound as Stonecrop deals with the unexpected arrival in Zürich of his daughters and rumors about a man Stonecrop had murdered in Maputo.
READER REVIEWS
Here’s what people think of How I Learned French or Certain Events in the Life of Otto Pulaski.
"An anti-memoir, Otto’s story is grounded in truth and love and risky choices and challenging families, though rarely do facts get in the way. The reader is so much the better for it, traveling along with a grand storyteller who might be telling a whopper. Or maybe not."
—Holly Lorincz, author of the bestselling Crown Heights
“Otto Pulaski’s zany characters sing indeed of real lives. Mix in as foreground the hellscape of a Thanksgiving in a family of divorce and remarriage, and you have the setting of this book. Reader, if you can then grieve with Otto as a philosopher over the anguish of a child bright if not brilliant reaching out for life’s mysteries, then this book is for you. I enjoyed it thoroughly.”
—Jay Zebrowski, former reporter, FORTUNE magazine
“Tag along with Otto Pulaski on an eventful romp through life, from his coming of age to finding the wisdom of age. After a series of deftly recounted (mis)adventures, Otto finally finds his place in the family by offering a type of understanding that his own life’s journey has made possible.”
—Emily Hackett, author of Ghost Years
"A short, endearing tale of one man's linguistic coming-of-age."
—Kirkus Reviews
"Finished book! Couldn’t put it down! Read with headlamp last night! At times I wanted to smack Otto and then he’d say something to make me laugh out loud and I forgave him! Enjoyed the descriptors as well—some bordering on Poetry! The format of weaving in French grammar was very satisfying to this Francophile! You are a really good writer Wayne! I look forward to your next book!"
—Lisa, Cannon Beach, OR
A recent review of CLAVE.
"In Goss’ thriller sequel, a former venture capitalist in Switzerland gets unwittingly entangled with illegal waste disposal and sex trafficking. American Max Stonecrop leads a simple life in Zürich. It should stay that way, as long as no one becomes aware of the violence in his past—namely, his offing of a couple of killers. Max agrees to do a favor for a Swiss cop friend and assist in buying out a woman’s contract with sex traffickers. Max wants to help both the woman, Lomi, and her little sister, but that requires more money. He’ll have to do another favor for that—this time for his girlfriend Federica’s “reformed Bulgarian thug” father Gregor Ratzow. Max, who works as a courier for Gregor, will take part in a shipment to an “e-waste” disposal site where raw materials are extracted from discarded electronics. More specifically, Max will aid in “laundering” the profitable goods. It’s not as easy as it sounds; not only must he work with a dangerously nosy CIA liaison officer, but he must also deal with a menacing figure from his own past. Goss gleefully complicates his protagonist’s life in this follow-up to Red Monkey (2022): Max must care for his teenage daughters while his ex-wife is in Paris on business; it’s revealed that Lomi may be responsible for a recent murder; and Max must interact with a handful of very untrustworthy people. This measured tale ably develops its outstanding supporting cast, from polyglot physician Federica to sleazy embassy rep Harry Chum, who seemingly knows of Max’s earlier crimes. Many of these characters add to the narrative’s unwavering tension, as Max, even with his Glock 19M at the ready, worries that certain people will try to take him out. Passages throughout offer vibrant details; a local barman’s studio apartment, for instance, provides a visual feast, with a case of hunting rifles, classic Italian furniture, and a glass wall displaying a “panoramic view of the Engadine valley.” A taut, compelling, and wonderfully constructed crime story."
—Kirkus Reviews
GRAB A COPY
My books are available at Amazon.com, Bookshop.org, and your independent bookseller.
LET'S TALK
Contact me if you have any questions, comments, or concerns about my books, stories, and characters. I’d be delighted to hear from you.
Thank you! —Wayne
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