Democratic Insecurities focuses on the ethics of military and humanitarian intervention in Haiti during and after Haiti's 1991 coup. In this remarkable ethnography of violence, Erica Caple James explores the traumas of Haitian victims whose experiences were denied by U.S. officials and recognized only selectively by other humanitarian providers. Using vivid first-person accounts from women survivors, James raises important new questions about humanitarian aid, structural violence, and political insecurity. She discusses the politics of postconflict assistance to Haiti and the challenges of promoting democracy, human rights, and justice in societies that experience chronic insecurity. Similarly, she finds that efforts to promote political development and psychosocial rehabilitation may fail because of competition, strife, and corruption among the individuals and institutions that implement such initiatives.

Promises you make to yourself are the hardest to keep ...

Maggie Storm,
who spends her days cleaning houses for people who often have more money than manners, promises herself that from now on she's going to stand up for herself. Married to a man with as much sex appeal as a recliner, she dreams about someone who can sweep her off her feet.

Ella Moore,
an artistic interior designer, promises herself that after seven wasted years with the
man she thought she'd marry, relationships won't derail her life again.

Ethan Edwards,
a repeat offender when it comes to turning to women for sexual consolation, promises himself there will be no more women.

But when Ella appears unexpectedly in Ethan's life, he find s himself turning to her for very different reasons. And when Maggie's romantic hero appears on her doorstep, she wonders which path she's really supposed to follow. International bestselling author Erica James weaves a delightful tale of three people daring to challenge their dreams.

What readers are saying:

"Endearing ... pure escapism. Loved it!"

"It grips you right from the start."

"Brilliant book; could not put it down."

What happens when your best hope for the future is through the past?

Voice-over artist Alice avoids telling the truth. It's not lying, exactly, and the freedom of reinvention makes those tough years in the past a little easier to bear. So when she meets writer Clayton Miller, she recognizes the suspicious signs of someone who wants to shrug off his old life. Untangling the web of secrets they've constructed creates an unlikely friendship-until Alice discovers that Clayton has betrayed her in the worst possible way.

The author of fifteen international bestsellers, Erica James deftly explores infidelity, bereavement, and the bonds of family with a sparkling voice that will resonate long after the book is finished.

Praise for Erica James

"Intense, compelling stuff."
-OK! magazine

"The author writes with a sturdy, feel-good optimism."
-Sunday Times

"It is a captivating read: beautifully written."
-Daily Telegraph

"You know you have made it as a storyteller writer when readers simply cannot put your book down...Erica James has this page-turning ability in abundance...I wouldn't have thought this writer could get any better, but she has!"
-Welsh Country

Saskia ist mit ihrem beschaulichen Leben als Buchrestauratorin in einem kleinen Dörfchen in Suffolk zufrieden. Ihr Vater und ihre Opas, mit denen sie nach einem Schicksalsschlag zusammenwohnt, wollen allerdings, dass sie endlich die Welt entdeckt. Saskia lässt sich davon nicht beirren. Vor allem nicht, als sie einen interessanten Auftrag erhält: die Veräußerung einer wertvollen Bibliothek. Dabei findet sie nicht nur ein geheimnisvolles Notizbuch, sondern trifft auch den charmanten Matthew ...

Democratic Insecurities focuses on the ethics of military and humanitarian intervention in Haiti during and after Haiti's 1991 coup. In this remarkable ethnography of violence, Erica Caple James explores the traumas of Haitian victims whose experiences were denied by U.S. officials and recognized only selectively by other humanitarian providers. Using vivid first-person accounts from women survivors, James raises important new questions about humanitarian aid, structural violence, and political insecurity. She discusses the politics of postconflict assistance to Haiti and the challenges of promoting democracy, human rights, and justice in societies that experience chronic insecurity. Similarly, she finds that efforts to promote political development and psychosocial rehabilitation may fail because of competition, strife, and corruption among the individuals and institutions that implement such initiatives.