A Decent Ransom is a fascinating first adult novel from Ivana Hruba that takes us deep into the psyches of the main protagonists. It is the story of a simple kidnap plan that goes horribly . . . more
Ivana Hrubá is a lovely, lovely girl and a writer of some notable talent, the sum of which, for lack of other options, will very modestly be noted here. Specializing in writing bold, quirky and outrageously entertaining fiction, Ivana is what we call an undiscovered gem, an exotic island waiting to be explored or, as some people say, a territory best left uncharted.
Ivana devised her first novel at the tender age of twelve when she was but a wee little girl wearing out her brother's hand-me-downs, chasing the geese off the village green in her native Czech Republic which was then under communist rule. Filled with poultry and very long sentences, Ivana's idyllic childhood came to an abrupt end in 1983 when she and her family crossed the Alps on foot to seek a new life free of communists and their blasted queues. After a year spent frolicking in a West German refugee camp, the family finally had a gutful of that sort of adventure, and they settled in Australia in 1984 where they've been living it up ever since.
Following the publication of 'A Decent Ransom', Ivana has developed the habit of talking about herself in the third person, a skill that comes in particularly handy when writing biographies. To this end, Ivana has also conquered her fear of appearing ridiculous due to excessive bragging as can be seen in this intro right here. In the tradition of all gifted folk, working for a living has never appealed to our author; therefore, Ivana has largely given up on that idea, preferring to spend her time writing books. How long she can keep it up will depend on how well her books sell... Bearing this in mind, Ivana, always one to look on the bright side, has been busy putting her fingers to the keyboard writing a new novel, a work of such monumental significance it has to, for the time being, remain shrouded in mystery.
At the close of each day, Ivana likes to unwind with a vat of wine (at times even two vats), drawing cartoons for her own amusement. To unwind from that pleasure, she takes her dogs, cats, mice, lice, ponies, chickens and goldfish for a walk down the beach. It's a good life for everyone involved.
