Beauty, Sex, and Terror is a captivating collection of stories that explore the human condition through the ups and downs of a man's life. Inspired by his own experiences, Malik Touré has written a moving collection that highlights the juxtaposition and duality of life, entrenched in pain, suffering, and hopelessness, as well as love, joy, and hope. Narratively rich and emotionally evocative, these stories explore themes of despair, homelessness, spirituality, fantasy, hope, and the resilient nature of the human spirit. Touré layers his stories with poignant commentary about society and the human condition, which adds depth and makes them even more thought-provoking for the reader. I thoroughly enjoyed this collection, and if you love short stories too, I highly recommend it.

                                                                                                                      -Reader's Favorite Review

"Let everything happen to you. Beauty and terror. Just keep going. No feeling is final." The poignant words of Austrian poet Rainer Maria Rilke are the titular inspiration for this collection of immersive stories on the complexity of the human experience. Life presents us with a grave and often precarious journey that compels us to simultaneously navigate both the intoxicating rapture of wish fulfillment and self-actualization, as well as the devastating, soul crushing avoirdupois of failure, death and abandonment.
Follow Malik Touré through six gripping stories of pain, pleasure and perseverance, spanning the literary spectrum from chilling true stories of personal loss to provocative fantasies of sexual love and critical examinations of humanity's most prominent existential questions. Touré's uniquely poetic prose guides readers through the tawdry tale of a religious cult, a day in the desolate life of the homeless, a titillating erotic escapade and emphasizes the pivotal necessity of holding on to hope in the face of the most agonizing adversity. A must read for fans of both literary fiction and social exposition alike.


                       Stories

1. Dark Clouds & Ominous Dreams

After the brutal murder of his father on a hotel parking lot, Malik and his home bound mother brave a fusillade of bitter suffering, from grief and destitution to health failure and treachery from kin in a harrowing struggle to survive. 

2. Homelessness: A Short Story

During a trip into an impoverished district, Malik observes the horrors faced by the homeless and has a life-changing encounter with a woman living in a local park.

3. Silk Ties & Holy Ghosts

After seeking refuge inside of a mysterious temple during a violent thunderstorm, Malik witnesses a bone-chilling exorcism. When a minister insists that he participate in the church’s initiation rituals to escape looming terrors in the afterlife, he is taken on a winding journey, peopled by raging clerics, eccentric fanatics, and powerful supernatural forces. 

4. Night Lights, Short Skirts & Erotic Fantasies: Part One

Malik is beguiled by a gorgeous young clerk working the register at an upscale boutique. After arranging an impromptu date, the two set out on the town for an erotic adventure that takes them from the inside of a muscular, lightening quick super car to a smoky, titillating bar and into the luxurious bedsheets of a sprawling mansion. But just as the passion begins to heat up, a sexy, scantily clad siren shows up at the front door with lecherous intentions. 

5. The Divine Tragedy

In the aftermath of a sudden assassination on a park trail, Malik is forced to come to terms with humanity’s most pressing existential problems. Aided by the wisdom of ancient philosophers, he wrestles with questions pertaining to purpose, the inevitability of suffering, the existence of God and the great tragedy of human existence. 

6. The Curious Power Of Hope

In the final episode, Malik finds himself laying on the floor inside of a public restroom stall after an elongated bout of homelessness. Seeing no relief in sight, an epiphany leads him to the source of all human resilience and power.