Renowned Jewish vocalist and writer Elizabeth Schwartz's first book of fiction, "The Sweet Fragrance of Life & Other Stories" is a meditation on historic European Jewish Culture seen through the lens of a woman's point of view. As if Sholem Aleichem and Angela Carter had a child, The Sweet Fragrance of Life & Other Horror Stories explores European Jewish history, culture, and real world events through a feminist, shtetl perspective. This is an eerie collection of new Jewish themed horror stories from a world that was. A Rabbi commits the gravest of sins as he lusts for a younger wife, evil is lurking in an apartment building in pre-war Germany and a young girl experiences hell at sea. These are thrilling and dark stories, but also political reflections about racism and misogyny. "The author weaves in rich historical particulars, from the political climate of decades past to an account of a real-life incident that inspired one of the tales herein. Smooth, descriptive prose makes these short stories fly by. This exceptional collection's brevity is sure to leave readers wanting more. A set of mesmerizing stories that wraps up way too soon." "Schwartz excels at word-painting the social environments she writes about-the small town where the rebbe holds forth, the German apartment building, the shipboard. Whether or not any sense of cleansing is possible in the aftermath of horror is not her concern. Readers will have to figure that out for themselves."
