'After The Angels' is Zoe Marie Bel's debut novel.

Zoe's debut novel 'After The Angels' is three interrelated stories about survival and rising again in Los Angeles.

A street entrepreneur determined to escape homelessness must escape Los Angeles instead, after the criminals in his life threaten his already fragile future. A female surgeon whose wife suddenly dies is struggling to raise their young son alone, until an impromptu road-trip around the city compels new honesty in mother and son. A Hollywood actress, publicly unraveling under the weight of a terrible secret, is challenged by the reappearance of an old face in town. These are the three characters of 'After The Angels', with each of their stories rippling into the others in ways large and small.

A cinematic literary drama (think: David Benioff's 'The 25th Hour' meets Jennifer Egan's 'A Visit from the Goon Squad'), 'After The Angels' is a portrait of striving, resilience and love in its many colors, amid a city whose angels can sometimes seem elusive.

A website for the novel is forthcoming. You can sign up there to be notified when the novel publishes. After publication, the site will feature background information and multi-media related to the novel.

To follow developments with 'After The Angels' in its approach to publication, sign up to the Zoe Marie Bel newsletter below.

Novella 'Valérie' is available now, wherever books are sold

Zoe's debut novella 'Valérie (or, Red Velvet Nothing)' published in paperback on December 1st 2024 and is now available for purchase around the world.

'Valérie' is a love story between two French women whose very different incomes and cultures make happiness together seem impossible. The story follows the courage and growth demanded from them both as they negotiate a combined future, and confront this question: can star-crossed lovers actually work in real-life?

This is a standalone special edition of the second of the two novellas in Zoe's story collection 'Hard Place Rock'. The storyworld in 'Valérie' was inspired by the three years Zoe lived as a writer and artist in Paris.

For more about 'Valérie (or, Red Velvet Nothing)', including where to buy it, see the novella's page at Scatterpunk Press. The official website for the novella, featuring photos and background pieces on the real-life people and places in the story, is RedVelvetNothing.com.