The Occult Persuasion and the Anarchist's Solution

by Lisa de Nikolits

Fiction. THE OCCULT PERSUASION AND THE ANARCHIST'S SOLUTION is about a couple experiencing a mid-life crisis. The husband loses his job as editor of a financial magazine. Neither are happy with their aging bodies. He seems to have gotten by with charm and frozen emotions. The wife has no idea how angry she is with him for his detachment. It is her idea to sell the house and just travel. But he is not coping well with retirement, so he simply walks off a ferry in Australia and leaves her. He steals a cat (well, he steals an expensive SUV that happens to have a cat onboard) and he flees Sydney, ending up in Apollo Bay, a few hours south-west of Melbourne, where he falls in with a group of anarchists and punk rockers in a tattoo parlour, planning revolution. Meanwhile, the wife sits tight in Sydney with no idea of where her husband might be or what happened. She moves into the red-light Kings Cross area, befriending the owner of the hostel, a seventy-year-old ex-cop drag queen from Saint John, New Brunswick, and waits to hear from her husband. When she learns that her husband is fine, consumed by wrath, she invokes the angry spirit of an evil nurse, a key player in the terrible Chelmsworth sleep therapy in which many patients died (historical fact). While Lyndon gets in touch with his original career ambition to become an artist and wrestles with anarchism and capitalism, Margaux gets in touch with her rage and meets people who can help her deal with it. A serio-comedic thriller about a post-retirement couple who embark on an unintentionally life-changing around-the-world adventure, THE OCCULT PERSUASION AND THE ANARCHIST'S SOLUTION is about the meaning of life, healing from old wounds, romantic love at all ages, and how with love and passion, we can make a difference, at any age.

Genres: Fiction

302 pages, Paperback

Published September 20, 2019

About the author

Lisa de Nikolits is the author of twelve traditionally published novels. That Time I Killed You is forthcoming in 2026 (Level Best Books).

12. “In her new book MAD DOG AND THE SEA DRAGON, Lisa de Nikolits lends her literary talents to noir, bringing wiseguy mobsters to the new millennium. She brings wiseguy mobsters to the new millennium. She's mastered spec-fic, thrillers, sci-fi, drama, and more; and now, with MAD DOG AND THE SEA DRAGON, Lisa de Nikolits turns to noir!” – AllLitUp.ca

Mad Dog and the Sea Dragon is noir thriller. Christopher Moore comes to mind, or Carl Hiaasen with a dash of Quentin Tarantino, all bundled up in a 50's-styled gangster novel set in modern day times.

The dropdead-gorgeous protagonist, Jessica, dresses like a Hollywood movie star but she's razor sharp. She likes to hang out with Daisy, her leafy sea dragon pal while she waits for her mob boss lover, Enzo Esposito, take her out on the town. Enzo's a big fan of Weegee, the 1940's true crime photographer, and what Jessica discovers, will shock her and put her life in danger. She'll need all her wits about her to get out alive.

11. Everything You Dream is Real: "In this darkly funny, politically charged follow up, de Nikolits, always a fearless writer, taking no prisoners. Whether you've read The Rage Room or not, Everything You Dream is Real is a searing, accessible fable for our collective fears and weaknesses, as fun as it is thought-provoking."

10. The Rage Room: “In her latest captivating book, Lisa de Nikolits proffers not only a roller coaster of entertainment, but also, sharp political commentary in complicated times. The Rage Room is an intricately woven dystopian world, rich in strong female characters who easily whisk readers to a world of futuristic follies. Move over George Orwell—De Nikolits shows us how the future can be scary, exciting, and above all, female.”
—Kelly S. Thompson, national bestselling author of Girls Need Not Apply: Field Notes from the Forces

“Wow, what a ride! Lisa de Nikolits has written a pulse-pounding thriller set in a troubled future that might just be ours. We see the seeds of The Rage Room in our own digital landscape. Mind-bending yet all too believable in the hands of a masterful storyteller.”
—Terry Fallis, two-time winner of the Stephen Leacock Medal for Humour

9. The Occult Persuasion and The Anarchist's Solution: "Lisa de Nikolits sets readers on a rollercoaster ride of clever twists and unexpected turns. The Occult Persuasion and the Anarchist’s Solution is a lot of fun and filled with some believable, yet zany characters. It bounces between the viewpoints of Lyndon and Margaux, a retired couple whose marriage speeds steadily downhill after Lyndon decides to call it quits and runs off. It’s the ultimate story of marriage meltdown told in a style all Lisa’s own, and this one should be on everybody’s must-read list." –Dietrich Kalteis, author of Zero Avenue

8. Rotten Peaches, "Wow. Just wow. Lisa de Nikolits’ Rotten Peaches blew me away. A dark, compulsive, and addictive story in which the characters’ secrets and needs conflict with each other and fold back in on themselves in an ever-tightening noose, Rotten Peaches will keep readers gripped until the very last page. Highly recommended!" —Karen Dionne, internationally bestselling author of The Marsh King’s Daughter

7. No Fury Like That, a murder mystery with excellent reviews by Metroland Media and high profile international crime writers. No Fury Like That will be published in Italian, under the title Una furia dell'altro mondo, in 2019.

6. The Nearly Girl was released to rave reviews by magazines, literary journals and readers.

5. Between The Cracks She Fell was released in August of 2015 and received excellent reviews in magazines as well as literary journals. It won the Bronze IPPY Award for Popular Fiction.

4. The Witchdoctor’s Bones launched in Spring 2014 to acclaim from Canadian Living magazine and many

Reviews

[Story · Rating 3 out of 5]

Retirees Lyndon (60) and Margaux (58) embark on a round-the-world trip to celebrate their 35 years of (seemingly?) happy marriage.

So far, so dream come true. But then the dream turns into Margaux's nightmare when Lyndon suddenly abandons her without warning, driving away in a stolen car without a backward glance. Thus begins Lyndon and Margaux's real but separate adventures as each re-discover who they are and what their lives--together and apart--really mean. They are helped on their respective journeys by anarchists and ghosts, tattoo artists and white witches.

What a joy to discover a unique and funny novel like this by chance and then to learn that the author has written lots and lots more interesting-sounding books! I can't wait to read more by de Nikolits.

[Carole Giangrande · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm not a person who's crazy about flying, so when it's time to fly, I look for a book to read that will make me forget I'm up in the air. On a recent trip, I took along Lisa de Nikolits' latest adventure, fastened my seat belt and "took off" before the plane did. It's that kind of book. Setting out on what should be an exciting retirement tour, Lyndon fakes his death in Australia, leaving his wife Margaux for aventures with new friends who turn out to be punk anarchist tattoo artists, set on overthrowing capitalism (which system knocked out Lyndon's job and forced his retirement) while Margaux, searching for him, is enraged enough to call forth the evil spirit of a demented nurse and the good spirits of various witches and fortunetellers. It's complicated, but it's fun, and at the same time, De Nikolits manages to make some cogent statements about capitalism and our messed-up planet while letting her amazing imagination wow the reader. Best of all, the characters are believable, and despite the plot twists, the book manages to avoid melodrama. Margaux and Lyndon come across as real people, and the conclusion of their story is an earned one that makes good sense. Oh yes, and when the plane landed, I kept right on reading. You will, too.

[Heather Babcock · Rating 5 out of 5]

After being abruptly fired from his job, sixty-one year old Lyndon fakes his own death and he and Margaux, his wife of 35 years, finally begin to really live.

Before they can come together though, they must fall apart first. Readers will thrill to Margaux and Lyndon’s respective adventures which include run-ins with Viagra pushing, cupcake chewing anarchists; a haunted tea party hosted by the demonic ghost of a sadistic nurse; wild nights at the glamorous drag bar Dames and through it all, the love of one very special kitty.

The Occult Persuasion and the Anarchist’s Solution is a very adult Alice in Wonderland with a dash of The Conjuring: readers will be smiling one moment and breaking out in goose bumps the next. As one character succinctly points out, “Things come to light in the darkness.”

Warm, witty, wildly imaginative and inspiring, The Occult Persuasion and the Anarchist’s Solution puts the “joy” in joyride!

Lisa de Nikolits is one of the most exciting authors in CanLit today and this funny, fearless new novel will not disappoint her fans.

[Cranky - The Book Curmudgeon · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 CRANKY STARS


Well, this book was quite the surprise. I thought it was going to be a story about love that went wrong. But it is way more than that. The cast of characters is quite quirky. There is even a very expensive Maine Coon cat involved in the adventure. Every turn of the page brings a new question and even had me wondering about my own beliefs. We are even introduced to the world of the occult.


The story is about a couple, Margaux and Lyndon from Toronto, Canada who are taking an around the world trip for as long as they want. Lyndon lost his job just before retirement and Margaux sees it as the perfect time to take this trip of a lifetime. However, Lyndon suddenly disappears. The story is told from each of their perspectives by alternating chapters. The situations they get into are both scary and funny. One minute you are crying along with them and the next laughing. For instance, Lyndon meets an aging anarchist who is a tattoo artist, becomes enamored with the art of tattooing and begs to be taught. Turns out he is quite good. In the meantime, Margaux is visited by the ghost of a former nurse at the former psych hospital. Her experience is rather frightening.


All in all, a really good read. I hated for the story to end as I miss these characters. Even though you must read the whole story to understand the title, it is an excellent title for this book.

[Lynda Dickson · Rating 4 out of 5]

While on a vacation to Sydney, Australia, Lyndon abruptly leaves Margaux, his wife of thirty-five years, stealing a car and the Maine Coon cat in the back seat. He travels down the coast of Australia, destination unknown, meeting a bunch of quirky characters along the way, the main one being Jason, “a six-foot-five, tattoo-headed bundle of lean muscle and coiled-up energy.” Together, they plan a non-violent anarchists’ protest involving a sh*t-load of toilet paper.

Meanwhile, Margaux moves into a hostel run by eccentric drag queen Tim and meets her own share of personalities. Her anger at Lyndon inadvertently leads her to summon the ghost of an evil psychiatric patient, thereby necessitating an exorcism with the help of her new friends.
In essence, Lyndon is running away from Margaux as well as himself, while Margaux is searching for Lyndon but might just end up finding herself. It will be a holiday that will change them both. And, while it will tear them apart, it will also bring them closer together.

The story is told from the points-of-view of Margaux and Lyndon in alternating chapters, with their disparate story lines eventually joining up. I found it hard to keep up with all the characters, as I read the book over a two-week period and kept forgetting who’s who. Some of the dialogue is stilted and unnatural due to the lack of use of contractions. In addition, the infidelity is off-putting, and the accident at the end feels contrived and unnecessary.

Still, the story is fun, as well as serious, and it’s interesting to read about places I’ve been and incidents based on fact. The toilet paper discussion is particularly amusing given the current situation in Australia with said commodity.

I don’t like this book as much as the author’s previous offerings, but it’s still a worthwhile and thought-provoking read.

Warnings: sex scenes, infidelity, suicide.

I received this book in return for an honest review.

Full blog post (13 March): https://booksdirectonline.blogspot.co...

[Allison · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is crazy! So incredibly unlikely that I pretty quickly fell into "okay, I'll just suspend my realistic mind and go with the flow here, and enjoy the ride." And I did! What a weird book, but wildly and oddly relatable, like a cartoon version of real-life. I liked the characters, and even saw bits of myself in the main two. I was invested and enjoying the book... right until the last 20 pages or so.

At that point, the whole thing switched. It got heavy. And serious. No more laughter. It felt like it was a different story by a different author. What happened!? Did she fall into a funk by the time she was closing the book? I really struggled with linking the ending with the rest of the story. Too bad! Overall, I definitely liked the book, but I really wish I'd ridden out the ending on the same carnival ride I ridden through it!

[Dietrich Kalteis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lisa de Nikolits sets readers on a rollercoaster ride of clever twists and unexpected turns. The Occult Persuasion and the Anarchist’s Solution is a lot of fun and filled with some believable, yet zany characters. It bounces between the viewpoints of Lyndon and Margaux, a retired couple whose marriage speeds steadily downhill after Lyndon decides to call it quits and runs off. It’s the ultimate story of marriage meltdown told in a style all Lisa’s own, and this one should be on everybody’s must-read list.

[Darcia Helle · Rating 5 out of 5]

When you read a lot, as I do, stories can sometimes bleed into one another, with content feeling too similar and predictable. I wanted to step off the rails into the unexpected, and this book provided exactly that experience in the best way possible.

I'd love to tell you all about this book, but I don't want to spoil any part of the adventure. It's crazy, fun, enlightening, insightful, and poignant. I laughed and cried. I felt it, understood it, related to it. I was inside the story with the characters every step of the way.

This book, and perhaps the author, is a little bit rebellious. It fights the status quo and laughs at itself, all while offering a quietly powerful message on our relationships with each other and with our planet.

I loved everything about this story, the characters, and the writing.

*I received a review copy via Partners in Crime Book Tours.*

[Jocelyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an entertaining and fun novel, full of surprises. Probably could have used a final line edit considering the spattering of typos throughout. The writing is engaging and the story moves at a lively pace, alternating chapters between the two protagonists: Margaux and Lyndon. Funnily enough I probably wouldn’t have given “The Occult Persuasion and the Anarchist’s Solution” a second glance if I’d been cold browsing, since for me the cover was off-putting. Don’t judge a book by its cover! So it is thanks to the recommendation from a fellow GoodReads avid reader that I didn’t miss this one. I will be looking out for more of Lisa De Nikolits books.

[Brenda Clews · Rating 5 out of 5]

Her creative powers at a peak, in The Occult Persuasion and the Anarchist’s Solution, Lisa de Nikolits, a sage wrapped in a cloak of language, offers us a crystal ball to gaze upon ourselves. With Lisa’s brand of camp and mysticism, the story zig zags, spirals with vortices, depths and explosive happenings as she weaves a tale of magnitude - a disappearance and a demonic spirit to a punk rock tattoo parlour and a protest of such vision it plays on the world’s stage. You come to love the characters, you want to remain in the book, which seems to read the reader on the inside. We become part of its structure. The Occult Persuasion will haunt and guide you long after you finish it. Lisa has written a masterpiece that places her as one of the best Canadian writers of our time.

[Myna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lisa De Nikolits’ The Occult Persuasion and the Anarchist’s Solution gallops off to a frantic start with a drowning off Sydney Harbour and a jeep and cat theft in Kirribilli. Margaux and Lyndon, a previously happy bourgeois couple from Vancouver, have embarked on an “Around-the-World-For-However-Long-We-Want” trip but Lyndon’s mid-life crisis derails their plans. A collision of accidental meetings brings more excitement into these two retirees’ lives than either could have reasonably imagined. They encounter anarchists, white witches, demon ghosts, tarot readers, tattoo artists, and more. De Nikolits grabs the reader by the scruff of their neck and pulls them along, willingly, for a wild, unexpected, and zany ride.

Myna Wallin, Anatomy of an Injury

[Jim Fisher · Rating 4 out of 5]

An Oakville couple having a mid-life crisis in Australia is the stepping off point of another off Ms. de Nikolits’ imaginative adventures, full of colourful characters and witty, but realistic dialogues about life, anarchy, capitalism and tattoos. Lisa de Nikolits’ imagination has a seemingly unlimited cast of colourful characters and she uses several of them to full effect in this, her latest look into her wondrous mind. Like rows of dolls on a shelf, Ms. de Nikolits picks a few at random, dresses them up and builds a fantastic story around them. Less rotten than Rotten Peaches, less furious than No Fury, TOPATAS has more fun than Fury, but has it's serious, introspective moments as well.

[Kimberly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lisa de Nikolits has delivered a resounding winner in The Occult Persuasion and the Anarchist’s Solution. I had no idea what to think about the novel from the title alone. However, after reading, it has become crystal clear to me just what Lisa is trying to convey.

I loved this novel. It is intelligent, witty, and downright different than anything I have ever read before. This tale is told from the perspectives of Lyndon and Margaux, who are a long-time married couple who thought that they were living the dream, yet both were unhappy with their lot. One thing leads to another, and the seemingly magical Jason enters the picture for both spouses in a way that defies reality.

The undercurrent that flows through this novel made a home inside my head. With every page I read, I kept thinking to myself, how is this going to work? What does this have anything to do with anything else? Yet, it all does come together and becomes entirely plausible. The writing is everything that writing should be and more.

I am purposely vague as I don’t dare give anything away. All I can really say for sure is that you will want to read this book. In that vein, I want to officially award The Occult Persuasion and the Anarchist’s Solution a full 5 out of 5 stars.

Thank you to Inanna Publications, Lisa de Nikolits, and Silver Dagger Book Tours for providing me with a copy of The Occult Persuasion and the Anarchist’s Solution in exchange for an honest review.

[Fee (Ebook Addicts) · Rating 4 out of 5]

With a title of The Occult Persuasion and the Anarchist’s Solution i wasn't really sure what to expect - is it going to be horror, thriller or something else completely? In actual fact it covers all those genre's with a little bit of dark humour thrown in.

When Lyndon is fired from.his job his wife Margauex announces they should sell up their home and go on a round the world cruise and start to live life, but little did Margauex know her husband was about to fake his own death during the trip!

We start with Margauex in bits saying her husband has jumped overboard, though she has no proof he has and when it turns out that he willing walked off the yacht she is filled with rage - which I have to admit is perfectly understandable considering the circumstances! Lyndon steals a car (which just so happens to have very expensive cargo - a Maine Coon cat!) after leaving the yacht and as the story unfolds from this point out you are met some very colourful characters, rage filled ghosts and an anarchist tattooist! Honestly like I say I wasn't sure what to to expect from this story but I really enjoyed the journey that Lisa de Nikolits took us on with Margauex and Lyndon, I did find myself chuckling sometimes throughout the book

4 stars

[Paul Butler · Rating 5 out of 5]

An absolutely perfect book for shut-ins this spring. frenetic and fun with a swiftly-moving, irresistible plot and entertainingly dysfunctional characters. I particularly like the way the prose abounds with colourful similes like skin which is "saggy and dimpled, soft, like cheesecake past its prime," yet somehow these embellishments don't seem to slow down the narrative steamtrain. A complete pleasure!

[Sylvia Warsh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lisa de Nikolits takes you on a wild ride through the disintegrating lives of a husband and wife who are lost, figuratively and literally, in Sydney, Australia. Told from the alternating points of view of Margaux and Lyndon, the narrative rolls out in a kind of stream-of-consciousness that grabs at your heart. On their volatile journeys, they each encounter people who change their lives. Lyndon meets an aging anarchist who tries to save the world; a woman’s tortured soul reaches out to Margaux in repeated visions. In this unique novel, De Nikolits explores the lives of desperate people struggling to find meaning in the modern world.

[Nate Hendley · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Lisa de Nikolits has penned a taut, tight thriller involving domestic violence, death and a wonderfully jarring book title. Along the way, there’s a stolen cat, a suspicious boating accident in Sydney Harbour, Australia, assorted crimes and a slew of quirky, compelling characters that will keep you reading. If you’re a fan of off-beat mysteries with a dash of dark humour, this novel is for you.”

-Nate Hendley, True-Crime Writer, Author of “The Boy on the Bicycle: A Forgotten Case of Wrongful Conviction in Toronto”

[Ursula Pflug · Rating 5 out of 5]

Somehow, Lisa de Nikolits makes marital meltdown sound fun. In The Occult Persuasion and The Anarchist's Solution, it means spending weeks exploring beautiful Australia meeting mysterious strangers not once but several times, mysterious strangers who quickly become friends, lovers, and unintentional life coaches. Overflowing with quirky characters, most of whom I'd be happy to have a drink with. Bring it on!

[Shelleen Toland · Rating 3 out of 5]

A couple are having a mid life crisis. They have been married for a long time and he lost his job and not handling retirement well. She decides they should sell the house and just travel. They are on a ferry in Australia and he just walks off and leaves her. She is frantic when she can't find him and things he fell overboard. He steals a SUV with an expensive cat in it.
I could not get into this book and found both characters very immature and acting like 20 year olds. I didn't even like their adult children.
Quite a few times I just wanted to slap these 60 year olds upside the head and tell them to grow the fuck up. Then they both break a marriage vow and they act with no thought to either spouse. I did not find anything funny except for the drag queens. Those were the only 2 who seemed real and I would hang out with.
I received this for review.

[Steff Fox]

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Uhm...okay? Haha, I have to admit this book sounds unintentionally hilarious? In an awkward, not my thing kind of way. I dunno. Maybe it's because I'm not at that age yet, but I just can't really bring myself to be all that interested in what this book has to offer. So, for now, to the lost interest shelf it goes.

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