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With howling of a dog frost-bitten, The moon will freeze on iron heels, And stuffed like liar’s jaws with lava Of breathless ice each mouth congeals.
Boris Pasternak, from Winter Skies, translated by Eugene M. Kayden

Author’s acknowledgements

In the US, to Marion Rosenberg for reading and reading and for her unwavering support from day one. To my Los Angeles writing posse: particularly Janet Fitch, Rita Williams and Julianne Cohen for their ongoing input and guidance, and to Mark Sarvas for his friendship and literary know-how. To Jane Smiley for her encouragement, wisdom and humour, and to Les Plesko, who helped me find a voice in the first place. To Elaine Markson for embracing this book with such unflinching enthusiasm and to my friends at Macadam Cage—Scott Allen, Julie Burton, Kate Nitze, Melanie Mitchell, Dorothy Smith, Khristina Wenzinger, and especially David Poindexter for his contagious commitment to literary fiction. Sincerest thanks also to Don Hunt, Lisalee Wells and all the folks at Fulbright for their enduring support.

In France, to Madame Felix Brunau and the Cite International Des Arts where this story first found its legs; to Penelope and Jobic Le Masson and the Red Wheelbarrow Bookstore for a home away from home; also to Marie Gaulis, George Walker Torres and Christel Paris, and to Jenelle Sanna and Greg Simpson and their lovely house in Barbizon.

In Australia, to the legacy and indelible memory of my mother Judy, my father Derry and to all who help on the farm at Tooradin, to my dear sister Sally and brother Peter, his wife Peta, and to Tristan, Josephine and Tim at Jeetho. To my aunt Margaret Street, Clare Gray and the burnished Hugo inspiration, Anna Sharpley (lest we forget!) and Wendy Abey, and also to Jane Turner for her friendship and for inviting me to Moscow in 1984. My deepest gratitude to the Literature Fund of the Australia Council and the Nancy Keesing Fellowship; to Jane Palfreyman at Allen & Unwin, who saw this book for what it might become; and to Barbara Mobbs who wasn’t afraid to represent it. Also to Ali Lavau and Alexandra Nahlous for their insightful and meticulous edit.

To my friend Caz Love for her counsel, spirit and art, and also to Jean Wingis, Peter Paige, Jane Nunez, Marta Ross and all those who help me find my way—you know who you are.

Praise for Stray Dog Winter

‘Elegantly written and grippingly suspenseful, David Francis’s Stray Dog Winter takes readers right into the heart of Graham Green country.’

– JANET FITCH, author of White Oleander and Paint it Black

‘David Francis has a surgeon’s cold eye and a poet’s heart; his prose is powerful, masterful.’

– SAMANTHA DUNN, author of Failing Paris and Faith in Carlos Gomez

‘This is a wonderful book, the work of a full-fledged talent who deserves to be read widely and well.’

– DARIN STRAUSS, author of More Than it Hurts You and Chang and Eng

‘Moscow, with its icy splendour and bald brutality, is seductively evoked in the pages of Stray Dog Winter. David Francis has created a credible, parallel universe in which nobody, particularly those with whom his protagonist is the most intimate, is what he or she seems. His hero, Darcy, is vulnerable and unfailingly sympathetic; a gay, antipodean answer to Arkady Renko.’

– GABY NAHER, author of The Truth About My Fathers

‘Permeated with a brooding unease, powerfully matched by the palpable cold of winter in Moscow… sinister, suspenseful and beautifully written.’

– DEBORAH ADELAIDE, author of The Household Guide to Dying

‘Francis’ gorgeous prose is passionate and pressure filled. His masterful writing delivers a rare kind of delicious suspense, the kind that’s only found in the most riveting of novels.’

– Yannick Murphy, author of Sea of Trees and Matahari

‘If Alan Furst and Edmund White were ever to collaborate, the result would be something like Stray Dog Winter. Written with style and intrigue, David Francis’s new novel is a genuine Cold War thriller, and a work of art.’

– David Ebershoff, author The 19th Wife and The Danish Girl

Praise for Agapanthus Tango

‘A spare, dark, brilliant book.’

– MARTIN CRUZ SMITH, author of Gorky Park

‘Lyrical and lapidary. Arresting and mysterious. A most promising debut.’

– JANE SMILEY, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of A Thousand Acres

‘Loneliness and loss well up like groundwater in this spare, haunting novel. David Francis is a master of elegant understatement.’

– JANET FITCH, author of White Oleander

‘A compelling dance across a stark and evocative landscape. Each step reveals a new perspective on the characters’ humanity and, at times, their brutality.’

– MANIL SURI, author of The Death of Vishnu

‘One of the best I’ve read lately… It is almost painfully Australian, yet it transcends all ideas of regionalism… Francis’ subtle and spare prose is lyrical and compelling, such beautiful writing I read it all in one go.’

Sydney Morning Herald, ‘Best of the Year’ edition

‘There is a beautiful filmic quality to this novel… a testament to Francis’ skill.’

The Age

Agapanthus Tango harks to the images of outback Australia by writers such as Tim Winton… a surprisingly easy read.’

News Mail (Australia)

‘[Agapanthus Tango] is a bowl of ripe cherries: graceful and unaffected… we should be grateful for stories of this scale, crafted by writers of this skill.’

Washington Post

‘A stark, enigmatic novel, as unforgiving and seductive as The Riverina itself.’

The Los Angeles Times

About the author

David Francis is an Australian lawyer and former international equestrian who lives in Los Angeles. He is the author of the acclaimed novel Agapanthus Tango, which was published in seven countries. David received the Australia Council Literature Fund Fellowship in 2002.