PRAISE FOR LYSSA STRATA
“Nelson’s deliciously laugh-out-loud spin on an ancient Greek tale shreds modern-day sexism with OG feminism.”
—Marta Acosta, award-winning author of the Casa Dracula series
“Fans of Parks and Recreation, rejoice—there’s a new Leslie Knope to be found in Martti Nelson’s Lyssa Strata. Packed with callbacks to the Greek myth on which it’s based, this book will make for a satisfying read for any woman who’s mad at hell at the patriarchy and isn’t going to take it anymore, but also wants a laugh a minute along the way.”
—Lana Schwartz, author of Build Your Own Romantic Comedy: Pick Your Plot, Meet Your Man, and Direct Your Happily Ever After
“A wickedly clever, sly take on the Greek classic that will have you rolling in the aisles of your own home as hard as the ancient Greeks rolled in the …aisles? Of their…. Ancient theaters??? Whatever, I didn’t read the original Aristophanes and neither did you. Save yourself the trouble and read this hilarious reimagination of it instead.”
—Emily Flake, Saint Nell’s Proprietrix & Cartoonist, New Yorker
“Martti Nelson has created a character in Lyssa the librarian who anyone could love, admire and relate to—one who has had enough of the BS and does something about it. This novel will make you feel alive, or at least awake.”
—Jessica Delfino, author of Amazon #1 bestseller Dumb Jokes For Smart Folks
Martti Nelson's Lyssa Strata is the funny novel of feminine rage you've been looking for. Between sexist politicians, horrifying laws, and no decent pockets in our clothes, how are the women of everywhere not on strike right now? Don't burn things down IRL; instead, live vicariously with Lyssa and her marauding gang of fed-up women!
—Kristina Wong, Performance Artist, Comedian, and Elected Representative of Koreatown LA
A diverse modern take on the classic comedy Lysistrata, out now from
Humorist Books!
READ AN EXCERPT HERE
GET A COPY HERE or HERE, we're not picky
She's mad as hell,
and she's not gonna give it up anymore.
Librarian Lyssa Strata has long begged the Town Council of Athena, Massachusetts, to repeal its disgusting old misogynist and racist laws. But the Council, an all-male entity for 400 years, has blown her off as a redheaded spinster—who, according to a 1673 law, should legally be run out of town at the end of a musket upon a poor fiscal year. So Lyssa seeks to invade the male bastion as the first woman ever on the Council. The men in charge treat her candidacy as a hilarious joke, which does not impress the female townsfolk.
The women are damn tired of being second-class citizens. For example, it’s illegal for them to use a toaster, as the manipulation of buttons is thought to impede brainwaves and cause menstruation. They decide to wield the only power left to them: Lyssa leads them on a sex strike as a revolt against inequality. The fellas are enthusiastic supporters! LOL no, they protest and issue death threats. Yet, when the national news shows up to cover the contentious election, everyone finally starts to listen to the ladies.
In retaliation against the motley crew of sex-strikers, the Council enacts the antique laws they assured Lyssa were merely charming historical trivia. She is accused of witchcraft and thrown in the stocks! Now this bookish dork, once content to hide in the stacks and distribute quiet feminism via checkout, is burning down her torture device and sending the evils of the past to the dustbin. When you want something done, do it yourself.
Or don’t do it—they’re on a sex strike, after all.
PRAISE FOR ATTACK OF THE ROM-COM
“I laughed, I cried, I peed a little. One part Thinner, one part Big, Attack of the Rom-Com is the perfect summer read for anyone who wants to ROBL (roll on the beach laughing)."
—Jessica Delfino, author of Amazon #1 bestseller Dumb Jokes For Smart Folks
"Martti Nelson’s trademark whip-smart snark gets cranked up to 11 in Attack of the Rom-Com. You’ll snort laugh and spew cliché crumbs as she shatters tropes with a refreshingly deranged voice that might make you believe in 'twue wuv' after all."
—Andy Spain, author of Cash Grab
"Nelson has done it again! In the battle of Sophie versus the Romantic Comedy genre, we are caught in the crossfire and go down in a fit of laughter."
—Keith James, author of Greg Maxwell's Inferno
READ AN EXCERPT HERE
GET A COPY HERE! or HERE!
She's just a girl.
Standing in front of four rom-coms.
Praying for death.
Sophie Sweet is a game programmer who adores three things: writing code; Doritos Surprise, the one thing she can cook; and her ride-or-die BFF Jodie Edwards. And only those three. To Sophie, people are a lousy bunch of jackasses who lie and leave when you need them most, so why bother? That goes double for “love,” a ridiculous fairy tale sold to women to keep them subjugated and cooking things besides Doritos Surprise, which is madness.
Sophie and Jodie have a tradition of getting their fortunes read at the carnival, but this year there’s a new surprise in town—Tiffani the Psychic. The bubbly psychic can see through Sophie’s tough-girl veneer to her squishy, hurt center. Tiffani tells Sophie she’ll prove that everlasting passion exists for everyone! Sophie tells Tiffani to screw off.
Big mistake. Huge.
Oh, yes—romance, and Tiffani, are coming for Sophie Sweet, whether she likes it or not. And she will Not. Like. It. Tiffani is an unstoppable force, and Sophie, an immovable object who cusses a lot. But Tiffani will prove to Sophie that love can heal her wounds. And it’s right in front of her oblivious face.