Delilah, My Woman
M.F. Sullivan
Painted Blind Publishing (2018)
Thriller
A tragic exploration of the relationship between art, the artist, and its audience, Delilah, My Woman follows Richard Vasko, a troubled artist whose obsession with two women leads him down a depraved and bloody path. When a sizzling older woman walks into young Richard’s workplace, he begins to yearn for a larger world and to question the one he's always known. When the consequences cause his life to spiral out of control and the real woman of his dreams appears as if from nowhere, his own dark appetite rises to the forefront and he learns that the line between dreams and nightmares is as thin as the blade of a razor.
On the cover, the small red dot used to tag acquired pieces of art in a gallery is replaced by an ominous bloodstain that introduces both the title of the book and the painting. The bold use of red also signifies imminent danger as the young woman in the painting, the artist's victim, seductively gazes towards the audience.