Maggie is a discouraged lawyer, Dillon, a heart-broken vagabond, and Phillip, a frustrated writer. Their stories are told by the mysterious Jillian, part purveyor of spirits and part spiritual guru. Inside the walls of cafe rembrandt, where whipping fresh cream is an act of poetry and pouring a drink an act of faith, we fall under Jillian's spell. With a voice that is lyrical and immediate, she artfully trails her Ariadne thread to lead her devotees back into the light.
Waking Up at Rembrandt's is a fresh take on the tale of awakenings. It celebrates the sensual, as well as the spiritual, effortlessly bridging the two worlds.
Author Thomas Lloyd Qualls combines prose and poetry, fiction and spirituality, and dreams and reality in a manner that is at once unconventional and irresistible. Blending the epicurean delights of Peter Mayle, the travel adventures of Hemingway, the spiritual teachings of Krishnamurti, and the magical realism of Isabel Allende, Waking Up at Rembrandt's takes literary fiction into new territory.
Praise for Thomas Lloyd Qualls and Waking Up At Rembrandt's:
"Waking Up At Rembrandt's is an impressive debut novel showcasing an undeniably talented and imaginative author... The text is lyrical and engaging from beginning to end as author Thomas Lloyd Qualls demonstrates an ability to paint with words the way Rembrandt was noted to paint with pigments. "Waking Up At Rembrandt's" is highly recommended reading and will leave the readers looking eagerly towards the author's next literary project."
~Midwest Book Review
"Reno novelist Thomas Lloyd Qualls is a psychonaut. His luminous debut novel, Waking Up at Rembrandt’s, strikes literary gold, mining the depths of his character’s complex interior landscapes through an unlikely amalgam of poetry, prose and spirituality... The immediacy evoked by [the author’s] use of second person narration acts as connective tissue binding the reader to the plot lines... reminiscent of David Foster Wallace..."
~Reno Passport
"Thomas Lloyd Qualls is a writer of great sensitivity, passion and spirituality. His first novel — Waking Up At Rembrandt's — is an exquisite blend of fiction and poetry. He brings his characters to life as he takes them out of Rembrandt's Café into the greater world, lets them have their adventures, then brings them back enlightened. He breaks all the rules, but makes it work. It's a good read; I heartily recommend it.”
~Carol Purroy, TV Producer/Host, AUTHOR! AUTHOR!
"Waking up at Rembrandt's is an artful weave of metaphysical storyline with poetry; of awakenings and raw themes. It is not to be missed."
~Elle Marie Garfield, children’s author / Owner, Integrated Balance Solutions
"Dipping a toe into this work is pretty much impossible; once you open it, you get drawn in and it doesn't let you go. The range of creative effort on display here is a bit breathtaking...a skilled writer with an appealing way with words. This story is well worth sharing."
-Writer's Digest
Best Novelist Honors, Reno News & Review, Best of Northern Nevada — 2008, 2009, and 2010
