A former foreign service officer, Mark Jacobs has published more than 170 stories in magazines including The Atlantic, Playboy, The Baffler, The Kenyon Review, and The Southern Review. His story “How Birds Communicate” won The Iowa Review fiction prize. He has stories forthcoming in several magazines including The Hudson Review. His story “Dream State” won the Dr. T.J. Eckleburg Kafka Prize. His five books include A Handful of Kings, published by Simon and Shuster, and Stone Cowboy, by Soho Press, which won the Maria Thomas Award.

“If John le Carré were an American, his name would be Mark Jacobs.”—Kinky Friedman“Haunting, subtly imagined . . . a feat of bravura storytelling from a dauntless writer at the peak of his powers.” —A. Igoni Barrett, author of Blackass“Smart but never cynical, humane and utterly human, this is an ode to the wretched of the earth and the angels that walk among them. Welcome a great American writer.” —Marita Golden, author of The Wide Circumference of Love"Here is a novel of consequence, an intrepid foray into dark hearts seeking light, its storytelling sensibility so assured, so dignified, it makes you marvel.."—William Giraldi, author of Hold the Dark“Harrowing, humorous, youthful, and, in the end, wise.”—Richard Wiley, author of Soldiers in Hiding"Silent Light is a violent immersion into the heart of darkness"—Post and Courier“Jacobs brings the reader face to face with the legacy of European imperialism in the heart of Africa . . . a story about a man who realizes you don’t have to travel to another country to get lost, nor do you have to go home to be found.”—Midwest Book ReviewPraise for A Handful of Kings:“No writer is as brilliant as Mark Jacobs at exploring the rich fictional realm of the American abroad. He blends the literary traditions of Henry James and Graham Greene in work that is truly his own and truly wonderful. A Handful of Kings is his best book yet."—Robert Olen Butler“With [A Handful of Kings], Mark Jacobs has written . . . a novel rich with feeling for the mysterious world his characters inhabit, and he has put them, and us, through hell in a very small space. The novel is thrilling not for its action or some vestigial obedience to its supposed genre, but for its moments of human recognition and harrowing yet still human surprise.”—Tom Bissell

A former foreign service officer, Mark Jacobs has published more than 170 stories in magazines including The Atlantic, Playboy, The Baffler, The Kenyon Review, and The Southern Review. His story “How Birds Communicate” won The Iowa Review fiction prize. He has stories forthcoming in several magazines including The Hudson Review. His story “Dream State” won the Dr. T.J. Eckleburg Kafka Prize. His five books include A Handful of Kings, published by Simon and Shuster, and Stone Cowboy, by Soho Press, which won the Maria Thomas Award.

“If John le Carré were an American, his name would be Mark Jacobs.”—Kinky Friedman“Haunting, subtly imagined . . . a feat of bravura storytelling from a dauntless writer at the peak of his powers.” —A. Igoni Barrett, author of Blackass“Smart but never cynical, humane and utterly human, this is an ode to the wretched of the earth and the angels that walk among them. Welcome a great American writer.” —Marita Golden, author of The Wide Circumference of Love"Here is a novel of consequence, an intrepid foray into dark hearts seeking light, its storytelling sensibility so assured, so dignified, it makes you marvel.."—William Giraldi, author of Hold the Dark“Harrowing, humorous, youthful, and, in the end, wise.”—Richard Wiley, author of Soldiers in Hiding"Silent Light is a violent immersion into the heart of darkness"—Post and Courier“Jacobs brings the reader face to face with the legacy of European imperialism in the heart of Africa . . . a story about a man who realizes you don’t have to travel to another country to get lost, nor do you have to go home to be found.”—Midwest Book ReviewPraise for A Handful of Kings:“No writer is as brilliant as Mark Jacobs at exploring the rich fictional realm of the American abroad. He blends the literary traditions of Henry James and Graham Greene in work that is truly his own and truly wonderful. A Handful of Kings is his best book yet."—Robert Olen Butler“With [A Handful of Kings], Mark Jacobs has written . . . a novel rich with feeling for the mysterious world his characters inhabit, and he has put them, and us, through hell in a very small space. The novel is thrilling not for its action or some vestigial obedience to its supposed genre, but for its moments of human recognition and harrowing yet still human surprise.”—Tom Bissell

A former foreign service officer, Mark Jacobs has published more than 170 stories in magazines including The Atlantic, Playboy, The Baffler, The Kenyon Review, and The Southern Review. His story “How Birds Communicate” won The Iowa Review fiction prize. He has stories forthcoming in several magazines including The Hudson Review. His story “Dream State” won the Dr. T.J. Eckleburg Kafka Prize. His five books include A Handful of Kings, published by Simon and Shuster, and Stone Cowboy, by Soho Press, which won the Maria Thomas Award.

“If John le Carré were an American, his name would be Mark Jacobs.”—Kinky Friedman“Haunting, subtly imagined . . . a feat of bravura storytelling from a dauntless writer at the peak of his powers.” —A. Igoni Barrett, author of Blackass“Smart but never cynical, humane and utterly human, this is an ode to the wretched of the earth and the angels that walk among them. Welcome a great American writer.” —Marita Golden, author of The Wide Circumference of Love"Here is a novel of consequence, an intrepid foray into dark hearts seeking light, its storytelling sensibility so assured, so dignified, it makes you marvel.."—William Giraldi, author of Hold the Dark“Harrowing, humorous, youthful, and, in the end, wise.”—Richard Wiley, author of Soldiers in Hiding"Silent Light is a violent immersion into the heart of darkness"—Post and Courier“Jacobs brings the reader face to face with the legacy of European imperialism in the heart of Africa . . . a story about a man who realizes you don’t have to travel to another country to get lost, nor do you have to go home to be found.”—Midwest Book ReviewPraise for A Handful of Kings:“No writer is as brilliant as Mark Jacobs at exploring the rich fictional realm of the American abroad. He blends the literary traditions of Henry James and Graham Greene in work that is truly his own and truly wonderful. A Handful of Kings is his best book yet."—Robert Olen Butler“With [A Handful of Kings], Mark Jacobs has written . . . a novel rich with feeling for the mysterious world his characters inhabit, and he has put them, and us, through hell in a very small space. The novel is thrilling not for its action or some vestigial obedience to its supposed genre, but for its moments of human recognition and harrowing yet still human surprise.”—Tom Bissell