DA NANG
CONFIDENTIAL
Tales from Paradise
“Paradise has beautiful beaches, inexpensive cocktails, and absolutely no shortage of secrets.”
At sixty-three, Marcus thought he had finally retired to paradise with his partner Thanh. Then Manhattan real estate diva Deborah Pussywillow, her Chihuahua Coco, and retired NY detective Harry blew into town — dragging Marcus right into the electric heart of the infamous Incorrigibles Bar.
DA NANG
CONFIDENTIAL
“Because in paradise, everybody has a past. And nobody gets through life without a little drama.”
The Story of Da Nang Confidential
Where the beaches stretch for miles, the motorbikes never sleep, and the past is never quite as far away as you hope.
“At sixty-three, Marcus has finally found his version of heaven: Da Nang, Vietnam, where the beaches stretch for miles, the motorbikes never stop, and life with his younger Vietnamese partner, Thanh, is anything but ordinary.”
After escaping a turbulent past in America, Marcus intends to spend his retirement doing what any sensible man in his sixties would do: soaking up the tropical sunshine, swimming in the warm waters of the East Vietnam Sea, and doing as little as humanly possible.
Then he meets Deborah Pussywillow.
A flamboyant former Manhattan real estate diva with a razor-sharp tongue, an uncanny talent for outrageous observations, and an imperious Chihuahua named Coco, Deborah is determined to make her golden years anything but dull. By her side is her husband, Harry — a retired New York homicide detective with a questionable toupee, thirty years of hard-won sobriety, and the exhausting job of being the occasional voice of reason.
The Expat Sanctuary
Together, they introduce Marcus to the infamous Incorrigibles Bar — where ice rattles in glasses, secrets trade faster than currency, and trouble is rarely more than a drink away.
Old Wounds Resurface
Enter Finn, an Irish-Vietnamese bartender searching for his lost father; Lindey, his formidable mother; and Khanh, a Vietnamese police officer whose past with Marcus refuses to stay buried.
As old wounds resurface, unexpected truths emerge, and friendships are tested, Marcus discovers the universal truth of the expat dream: paradise doesn’t erase life’s complications. It simply provides a more beautiful setting in which to confront them.
By turns irreverent, poignant, provocative, and unexpectedly tender, Da Nang Confidential: Tales from Paradise is a story about second chances, chosen family, the secrets we carry, and the surprising ways love finds us.
Story Dossier
“In paradise, everybody has a past. And nobody gets through life without a little drama.”
From the bustling street stalls of My An to quiet morning swims off My Khe, the novel captures the heart and contradictions of modern Vietnam through the eyes of those who chose to call it home.
The Incorrigibles
Meet the misfits, divas, detectives, and dreamers who make paradise anything but tranquil.
Marcus
The Reluctant Retiree (Age 63)
After fleeing a turbulent past in the United States, Marcus thought he’d spend his sixties swimming in the East Vietnam Sea and doing as little as humanly possible. Life, however, had louder plans.
“I moved ten thousand miles just to find out that peace of mind doesn't come with the lease.”
Deborah Pussywillow
Former Manhattan Real Estate Diva
Flamboyant, unapologetic, armed with outrageous observations and her royal Chihuahua, Coco. Deborah refuses to allow retirement to be anything less than a Broadway show.
“Darlings, if God wanted us to be humble, he wouldn’t have invented diamond studs and rooftop martinis.”
Harry
Retired NY Homicide Detective
Deborah's devoted husband. Armed with a questionable toupee, thirty years of hard-won sobriety, and the exhausting full-time occupation of keeping Deborah out of international incidents.
“I worked thirty years on the New York beat, and none of those murderers were half as scary as my wife before coffee.”
Thanh
Marcus's Younger Vietnamese Partner
Compassionate, quick-witted, and deeply rooted in Da Nang. Thanh offers Marcus unconditional love and patience, while navigating the cultural tightropes of modern Vietnam.
“In Vietnam we don't run from family. Even when they drive motorbikes straight into your living room.”
Finn
Irish-Vietnamese Bartender
The handsome bartender at the Incorrigibles Bar. Charismatic and easy-going behind the wood, but quietly tortured by his relentless search for the Western father he never met.
“A good drink won't solve your existential crisis, but at three dollars a glass, it’s a lot cheaper than therapy.”
Lindey
The Formidable Matriarch
Finn’s mother. Unyielding, fiercely protective, and guardian of long-buried truths that could either shatter her son’s world or finally set them both free.
“The truth is like chili paste. Put too much in at once, and everyone starts crying.”
Officer Khanh
Da Nang Police Officer
Sharp, disciplined, and observant. Khanh’s complicated history with Marcus refuses to remain locked in the past, threatening the fragile paradise Marcus fought so hard to build.
“You think Da Nang is a playground for foreigners. But every alley here has eyes, Marcus.”
Welcome to Da Nang
More than just a backdrop — the city is a living, breathing character in the novel.
My Khe Beach & The East Vietnam Sea
Where Marcus starts every day at dawn: wading into the warm, turquoise swell before the tropical sun scorches the sand. Miles of unbroken coast where old sins feel temporarily washed away.
The Incorrigibles Bar
Dimly lit, cooled by humming wooden fans, and alive with clinking ice cubes and unvarnished truths. The unofficial town hall for foreign wanderers, romantics, and escape artists.
The Motorbike Symphony
A thrilling, choreographed chaos of millions of scooters threading through neon boulevards, carrying everything from three generations of family to live bonsai trees and crates of fresh mangoes.
The Dragon Bridge & Han River
Spanning the dark expanse of the Han River, breathing bursts of real fire and water on weekend nights while expat rooftop lounges gaze out over the glittering skyline.
“Da Nang had that rarest of tropical charms: it gave you the room to reinvent yourself without demanding to know who you were yesterday.”
— Da Nang Confidential: Tales from ParadiseRead an Excerpt
Chapter One: The Saint of Incorrigibles
The heat in Da Nang did not arrive gradually; it fell like a heavy velvet curtain the moment you pushed open the glass door of the airport.
At sixty-three, Marcus had learned to measure life not in calendar years, but in quiet morning hours before the sun turned the asphalt into a frying pan. His daily ritual was religious in its simplicity: a fifteen-minute swim in the mild turquoise swell of My Khe Beach, followed by two cold coconuts, a bowl of piping hot mì Quảng noodles at the plastic table on An Thuong 4, and the comforting knowledge that no one in three continents expected a damn thing from him.
He had Thanh to thank for that. Thanh, with his infectious laugh, his battered Honda Wave scooter, and his extraordinary knack for pretending Marcus wasn't a slightly creaky foreigner clinging to paradise with both sun-spotted hands.
“You swim like a turtle, Marcus,” Thanh had told him that morning with an affectionate grin. “A very slow, handsome turtle who drinks too much iced coffee.”
It was an idyllic existence. Until two o'clock on a Tuesday afternoon, when the swinging wicker doors of the Incorrigibles Bar flew open with enough velocity to startle every expat within a three-kilometer radius.
Framed in the doorway stood Deborah Pussywillow.
She wore an enormous woven sunhat that could have shielded a small family sedan, oversized cat-eye sunglasses dripping in Austrian crystals, and a raw-silk caftan in a shade of fuchsia so vibrant it bordered on a public safety hazard. Tucked securely under her left arm was Coco, a trembling, apple-headed Chihuahua wearing a miniature pearl collar and glaring at the barroom with undiluted contempt.
Behind her trudged Harry. Harry looked exactly like what he was: a retired South Bronx homicide detective who had spent thirty-five years listening to people lie to him, topped off by a chestnut-brown toupee that seemed to have its own independent zip code.
“Sweet mother of pearl,” Deborah announced to the tavern at large, adjusting the rim of her hat. “Is this the only joint in central Vietnam that doesn't smell like fish sauce and motorbike exhaust? Barkeep! Pour me something with gin and an attitude, before I melt into the floorboards.”
Finn, stationed behind the polished mahogany counter, flashed that effortless half-Irish, half-Vietnamese grin that had broken hearts from Dublin to Hoi An. “Gin we have in abundance, ma'am. The attitude is complimentary.”
Marcus caught Harry's tired, knowing gaze across the room. Harry gave a tiny, nearly imperceptible nod that conveyed thirty years of marriage, thousands of crime scenes, and complete resignation to whatever storm Deborah was about to unleash upon Da Nang.
Marcus took a slow sip of his Tiger beer and smiled into the glass. He had come to Vietnam to escape the drama of his past. But sitting here in the warm afternoon breeze, watching Deborah inspect the cocktail shaker like a diamond merchant, Marcus had an inkling that paradise was about to get wonderfully, hopelessly complicated.
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What Readers Are Saying
Praise for Da Nang Confidential: Tales from Paradise
“By turns irreverent, poignant, provocative, and unexpectedly tender. A masterclass in expat storytelling that will make you pack your bags for Vietnam tomorrow morning.”
“Deborah Pussywillow and her Chihuahua Coco belong in the pantheon of unforgettable literary eccentrics. Hilarious, sharp, and brimming with heart.”
“A story about second chances, chosen family, the secrets we carry, and the surprising ways love finds us when we thought our lives were already settled.”