"Once upon a time, I dreamed I was a butterfly."

This is how Chuang Tzu's famous anecdote begins. It is a short parable about the relativity of perception, written more than two thousand years ago. Many of us have experienced similar situations and wondered at times if we could tell dreams from reality. "Butterfly's Dream" expands Chuang Tzu's story into a surreal quest of adventure, romance, and self-discovery at the end of the 18th century. Despite the fantasy-like atmosphere, the novel accurately follows the laws of physics and would best fit into the "hard sci-fi" category.

Alberto is the second lieutenant on Excelsior, a military brig involved mostly on sea-patrolling missions. He has a keen interest in science and a mind inclined towards exploration and introspection. Most of his sailing trips are uneventful, with his ship transporting troops and ammunition to various locations managed by the navy.

But things are about to change. When the ship encounters a magnetic storm, the crew members find themselves sailing in uncharted waters. The next day, Excelsior casts anchor at the pier of a mysterious city that doesn't seem to be located on Earth. Soon, Alberto becomes involved in complex events that make him question the surrounding reality and even his sanity. The fabulous world he gets to explore looks nothing like the world from his space and time. And what are space and time, after all?

In this place so different from Earth, Alberto meets Nivit, a beautiful and accomplished physician, and falls in love with her. Soon, they are swept into an unexpected journey of adventure and self-discovery that carries them through stranger and stranger realms and realities.

Can the rational mind defy the irrational? Can love defend against extreme weather and death? Does time always flow in the same direction? What is real? What is a dream?

A mirror reflecting itself. What would it show?

A mirror reflecting another mirror. What would it see?

Look inside the mirror, open the door, step onto the path stretching beyond its surface, and you might find out.

Are you ready?

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This book is not a simple collection of random poems. Instead, it is an invitation to a journey, a journey that attempts to enclose the spirit of a full year into one hundred and eight haiku spread over as many pages. LessA long time ago, an emperor from China wanted to put on display in his palace the most beautiful painting in the world. He asked the best weaver-masters from the country to produce the finest silk fabric and mount it into a frame. Then, after a long and rigorous selection, he chose a young painter to create the masterpiece to be displayed in the throne room.

The painter apologized, saying he wasn't ready for the assignment. He needed more time to improve his technique. So he left the imperial court and returned to his home. The days turned to weeks. Then the weeks became months. Finally, after a lot of insistence from the emperor, the artist returned to the palace. He took a brush from his toolbox and, without any hesitation, drew two vertical lines on the silk fabric. One was white, the other blue. The painter examined the canvas for a final time, then turned around and declared his work done.

Angered by the artist's insolence, the emperor threw him into prison. However, some hours later, when passing through the hall after nightfall, he was surprised to find out that the two lines had transformed into a lively pair of dragons. One was white, the other was blue, and they were fighting against each other in the silvery light of the freshly risen full Moon. Amazed by the painter's skill, the emperor immediately freed him from jail and rewarded him generously for the masterpiece.

This book is not a simple collection of random poems. Instead, it is an invitation to a journey, a journey that attempts to enclose the spirit of a full year into one hundred and eight haiku spread over as many pages.

The poems were divided into four seasons, each with 27 haiku. Each poem was set to occupy a single page, the space surrounding it allowing the reader to contemplate its message for a while before moving to the next. The low number of words in this book can be deceiving, as the high concentration of ideas is more than making up for the text's brevity.

And so, my dear friend,
the journey awaits for you -
let's step on the road.


For a limited time, the book is FREE on:

It is also available on Amazonhttps://www.amazon.com/Tides-Amber-Marian-C-Ghilea-ebook/dp/B07NQRR43C/ for only 99c.

If you have enjoyed reading it, please post online a review about my book!


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