Kenneth Zak

The Poet's Secret Kenneth Zak

Publisher Marketing: The Poet's Secret is an upmarket romantic suspense exotic adventure novel powered by two remarkable yet fractured characters: Elia Aloundra, a young lit student, and Cameron Beck, the reclusive, suicidal poet she is on a quest to find. Decades earlier, Beck penned his acclaimed masterwork inspired by an anonymous muse, only to thereafter disappear. Elia always found sanctuary within the works of the literary greats and considered Beck worthy of that pantheon. Hoping that the poet will unveil the secret to eternal love, Elia faces off with Beck's protective circle on an exotic island hideaway, the same island where decades earlier a Spanish shipwreck entombing mystical Aztec relics was found. What Elia cannot fathom is that Beck's secret will change both of their lives forever. Selected as a Golden Heart Finalist by the Romance Writers of America (romantic suspense); "A Beautifully Crafted Gem" - Dirk Cussler; "Exotic Mystery and Romance" - Judy Reeves. The Poet's Secret is filled with aquatic imagery and also subtle conservation and slow movement themes. The author wrote the novel while on a three-year personal pilgrimage while traveling abroad, writing, reading, surfing and slowing down his existence. Thus, the original manuscript was conceived in a hovel perched atop a one-table taverna in the hillside village of Avdou, just a scooter ride from the blue waters of the Aegean Sea on the island of Crete. Each chapter begins with brief excerpts of poetry from the reclusive poet before moving into the narrative prose. The author's influences include Pablo Neruda, Rumi, Wallace Stevens, Paulo Coelho, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Haruki Murakami, John Steinbeck, A. S. Byatt, Milan Kundera, Carlos Ruiz Zafon, Jorge Luis Borges, Carl Safina and others. Penju Publishing is a member of 1% For the Planet, dedicating 1% of sale proceeds from The Poet's Secret to conservation causes. In addition, the author, an avid surfer, will donate $1 for every book sold to the Surfrider Foundation, an organization dedicated to preserving our oceans and beaches. The early campus scenes are set at a fictionalized version of the author's alma mater, The Ohio State University. The exotic island scenes take place on and around a fictional Caribbean island, drawn from the author's island travels. Hellenized by the Cretans as "Kostantinos Zakides," the author pays homage to the novel's Greek roots via the reclusive author's masterwork, entitled "Secrets of Odysseus." Born in Parma, Ohio, author Kenneth Zak is an aquatic nomad of Bohemian-Polish descent. As a lad, he dove into Lake Erie in search of a silver coin. Decades later, he surfaced off the island of Crete with a tale filled with mystical sea turtles, mermaids, sunken treasure, and a young woman's search for a reclusive poet, his muse and the secret to eternal love. Zak now resides in San Diego, California. The poem "Two Bits" from The Poet's Secret previously appeared in Kelp Magazine. Zak's short fiction "A Promise" appeared in A Year in Ink, San Diego Writers, Ink Anthology, Volume 4 and his short fiction "Thea" appeared in A Year in Ink, San Diego Writers, Ink Anthology, Volume 8. The Poet's Secret is his debut novel. For more information, please visit www.kennethzak.com.