Seeking Salvador: A Paranoid, Romantic Caper

Helen McTaggart never imagined her obsession with Salvador Dali could turn her into a thief. When Helen shows Dali nudes to sixth graders in her little New Mexico backwater, the local religious lunatics start building a cross. Fired from her job and threatened with arrest, Helen flies off to Spain and lays low on the Costa Brava waiting for them to chill. At the Dali Museum in Figueres, she meets Andre, a seductive Frenchman. Before you can say "surrealism," she's getting banged in Barcelona in his fabulous flat lousy with masterpieces by the likes of Matisse and Picasso. Mounting legal troubles at home and an overdue divorce make staying with Andre a no brainer. The affair that follows would void the warranty on a cheap mattress. Helen is shocked to find Andre's canvasses listed on Interpol's website as stolen. She confronts him about it but doesn't like the smell of his elaborate excuses. Formally charged with a sex crime, Helen knows she'll need a boatload of cash for legal fees. Exhausted, with nowhere else to turn, she agrees to join Andre in his next little caper - stealing that long lost Dali from the museum where they met. Helen may not be ready to run with crooks, but Andre definitely underestimates the ability of this plucky young teacher to learn. Lied to one too many times, Helen invents a clever double-cross that almost costs Andre his life. Now she must decide what price she's willing to pay to keep him alive.

About the Author :
Max Mitchell's play Life Support was called "a tour de force achievement ... and unforgettable" by the Los Angeles Times. Life Support is published in The Best American Short Plays along with such distinguished playwrights as Elaine May, Steve Martin, David Mamet and Thornton Wilder. Get Your Stuff, his first feature film, was honored in North Carolina as best feature and in Portland, Oregon, with the coveted audience award. The Santa Fe New Mexican called Max's sci fi parody, Horror In The Wind "hilariously subversive." Mitchell's short documentary, The Spirit & the Earth, about the mission at Laguna Pueblo, won the top prize at Pahfest. The Maxmobile, his next documentary, chronicles the life of Max's great uncle, David Maxwell, who invented one of the first Canadian cars in 1900. Max began as an actor/singer and appeared in theatres across his native Canada. He received a Canada Council Award to study acting with the legendary Uta Hagen in New York City where he appeared in several plays and cabarets. Winner of an Edward Albee Fellowship, Max was also a two-time finalist in the prestigious Writers Film Project. Seeking Salvador is Mitchell's first novel. Currently writing his second book and performing stand-up comedy, Max can be found at www.maxmitchell.ca or on Facebook and Twitter (@themaxmitchell).