Postmark: Paris - Destination: Unknown

by Gary Paul Corcoran

It is the summer of 1969 and Eva Gabriele, a young woman of privilege, is off touring the Continent with several of her friends. Paul Daly, her boyfriend from the wrong side of the tracks, has been left behind to work and pine and count the days until Eva's return. When a telegram arrives, announcing that Eva is pregnant, Paul rushes off to intercept her, barely a hundred dollars to his name and no return ticket, but with dreams the two of them will build a happy life together with the help of Eva’s rich uncle in Italy—hopes that are soon dashed when Paul learns that Eva’s pregnancy has been aborted. Eva shares a brief, whirlwind tryst with Paul in Paris, then jets home, leaving him abandoned in Europe, nearly broke, filled with suspicion and with the reasons for his headlong journey rendered utterly pointless. Having been swept across the Seven Seas by mere caprice, or so it would seem, and with few choices left before him, Paul forges ahead on his unexpected journey, from Paris to Pamplona, Barcelona to the Balearic Islands and on to the coast of Cinque Terra, one wondrous adventure leading to another, Paul's youthful dreams of travel fulfilled, yet with the mystery behind Eva's purported pregnancy continuing to haunt him. Was she ever with child? And, if not, why had she engaged in her cruel deception? Postmark: Paris—Destination: Unknown. At once a tale of young love, a sixties' odyssey across the globe, all set in motion by one young woman's thoughtless indiscretion.

224 pages, Paperback

First published June 19, 2016

About the author

The product of an Irish/Italian family, Mr. Corcoran was transplanted as a boy from the clapboard New England of his youth to the cookie cutter, stucco subdivisions that began to litter the disappearing ranches and orange groves south of Los Angeles in the 1960s.

True to his rebellious nature and the folk music/coffee house idealism that helped shape his early worldview, Mr. Corcoran chose to resist the Vietnam War, was a man without a country for several years and can count incarceration in a Mexican prison as one of his many colorful experiences during that era.

Having pursued a love of reading and writing in various forms all his life, Mr. Corcoran finally took this passion seriously around the turn of the millennium and has dedicated the remainder of his days to authorship.

The author of eight previous novels, Mr. Corcoran’s rough and tumble early experiences animate all of his literary works, from his Michael Devlin crime series to his special forces adventures to his tales of romance. Mr. Corcoran is currently working on a sequel to Afghan’s Lipstick Warriors and expects to publish it by the end of 2021.

In completing the karmic circle, the author recently returned to the New England of his youth and now resides along the coast of Rhode Island.

Reviews

[Eli · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wonderful weekend escape to Europe without ever leaving the house!! Oh to be Paulo...

[Carrie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won this book from Goodreads Giveaways. Thank you.

[Claire Barfell · Rating 3 out of 5]

I won this book on Goodreads Giveaways. It was also autographed. This was the story of Paul Daly in Europe when his girlfriend abandons him and how he survives with no money. It was a quick read and a good lesson for someone who has no ambition or discipline in his life. It was just a wild, carefree trip. The women he meets, the drinking, drugs, etc. It did not really have any substance. It was his love for Eva that gets him in this situation. It was a light-hearted fantasy. I know that young people do go to Europe and travel around hitchhiking, etc. I just could not relate to this story. It did not take me away.

[Jeanne Grace · Rating 3 out of 5]

I received an autographed of the copy book from Goodreads giveaway for my honest opinion of the book. It is a quick read. I somewhat enjoyed the book. It seems that every couple of chapter's when the main character went to a new locale, it was the same situation over and over again, with few variations. I was reading groundhog day in book form. The main character was too predictable.

[Joan · Rating 3 out of 5]

About the wanderings of a young man and the things he leaves behind.