Steal My Heart

What's a New York thief doing in Guatemala?Practicing his craft.The Manhattan pickpocket Carlton James has come to Guatemala to reform. Alas, he can't help himself: He soon begins to steal the wallets, purses, cameras and other valuables of the international tourists who visit Panajachel, a beautiful lakeside town under volcanoes. One night, he is caught in the act -- by his maid, Rosario, whose history is as murky and tragic as her country's. Initially wary of Rosario, Carlton soon finds himself inexplicably drawn to her.Meanwhile, to catch the thief who threatens local tourism, the police department calls in Ramiro Caal, a detective who proved entirely too successful in solving his last case (evidence in a murder pointed to a high-ranking American official). Retired to his farm, Ramiro has no choice but to accept his latest assignment, and is assisted by his American friend, Ed Shell, a Peace Corps volunteer.In a country where justice is a relative term -- where stealing also applies to indigenous culture and language -- neither Ramiro nor Ed feels comfortable with the task at hand.STEAL MY HEART is written with the same insight into Guatemalan culture as Brazaitis' highly acclaimed short story collection, THE RIVER OF LOST VOICES. STEAL MY HEART is both a literary mystery and a quirky, endearing love story.And Carlton James is unlike any American expatriate you've ever seen.KIRKUS REVIEWS (9/1/00): "Delightful debut novel about American innocents abroad . . . and the Guatemalans whose lives they inevitably change. . . . A gently assured, low-key pastoral of lost souls who find, in banal evil and thwarted altruism, the inspiration for human kindness."PUBLISHERS WEEKLY (9/18/00): ". . . a vividly drawn tragicomedy. . . . The intense finale showcases Brazaitis' keen prose style and ends this Guatemalan love adventure on a luminous, dramatic note."AMERICAN BOOK REVIEW (Nov./Dec. 2000): "Mark Brazaitis' STEAL MY HEART, a first novel set in Guatemala, is a good example of the [expatriate] genre. MARIE CLAIRE (Nov. 2000): "A jaded Manhattan pickpocket moves to Guatemala in search of fresher pastures in Mark Brazaitis' romantic debut novel, STEAL MY HEART." (MARIE CLAIRE recommends/Read It)