At its best, a debut collection of 15 stories is deeply unsettling, anxiety-inducing, and memorably character-driven. —Zoe McKenna reviews I Will Wander On: Terrifying Tales of Life, Love, & Death, by Ron Prasad (Acheson: iUniverse, 2024) $30.95 / 9781663266477
Debut novel immerses readers “in the infested Gothic stream of the American South” and portrays memorably obsessive characters “nurtured on beer and cigarettes.” —Michael Greenstein reviews After We Drowned, by Jill Yonit Goldberg (Vancouver: Anvil Press, 2024) $22.00 / 9781772142273
“Myth is the only truth, says Eros, echoing Jung, and perhaps we would be better served by a novel that focused more on myth and less on boring humans.” —Sheldon Goldfarb reviews A Bouquet of Darts: A European Travel Mystery, by Reed Stirling (Drayton Valley: BWL Publishing, 2024) $18.99 / 9780228631309
Captivating historical novel set on the BC coast features diplomatic posturing, a restless crew, a Nuu-chah-nulth chief, and a dash of magic realism. —Ron Verzuh reviews The Wind from All Directions, by Ron Thompson (Toronto: Double Dagger Books, 2024) $22.99 / 9781990644900
“If you’ve grown weary of heterosexual couples… [and] like the idea of a Sapphic romance involving literate characters,” then this dark fantasy will keep you enthralled. —Jessica Poon reviews Serpentine Valentine, by Giana Darling (BC: Giana Darling Publishing, 2024) $24.95 / 9781774440469
A brooding hero gives a centuries-spanning novel gravity, but too many characters “create a pacing that is reminiscent of old ‘monster of the week’ television, à la Scooby Doo, or Doctor Who, without the levity that makes these shows so digestible.” —Zoe McKenna reviews The Mona Lisa Sacrifice, by Peter Darbyshire (Hamilton: Wolsak & Wynn, 2024) $24.00 / 9781998408054
“Once again, as with his previous graphic novels, he offers readers a lesson in ‘history from below’ about how ordinary people can rally against tyranny.”—Ron Verzuh reviews Revolution by Fire: New York’s Afro-Irish Uprising of 1741, A Graphic Novel, by David Lester and Marcus Rediker with Paul Buhle (Boston: Beacon Press, 2024) $18.95 / 9780807012550
Nigeria-set sophomore novel “has enough tangly relationships for a soap opera, ample tension for a psychological thriller, and meaningful, if slightly under-explored sociopolitical commentary on race, religion, and gender.” —Jessica Poon reviews Every Drop of Blood Is Red, by Umar Turaki (New York: Little A (an Amazon Imprint), 2024) $24.99 / 781662508110
At a glance a standard police procedural, this debut novel “offers an extra layer of depth that examines deeper truths of the human condition.”
—Trish Bowering reviews Barcelona Red Metallic, by Christine Cosack (Toronto: Second Story Press, 2024) $22.95 / 9781772603910
A note from Richard Mackie, publisher, The British Columbia Review. * Dear friends, supporters, and readers, On behalf of the Board of Directors and Advisory Board of The British Columbia Review, I must mention our pressing need for continuing financial support from our reading community. We make this request for private donations annually to keep the… Read more BC Review Annual Fundraiser, 2024
“At times, the novel feels—and this is praise—like a couple of opinionated art students kvetching while wearing designer clothes—or latex—in Geneva.” —Jessica Poon reviews Bold Strokes, by Jane Boon (Toronto: Regan Arts, 2024) $22.00 / 9781682452288
With “each new offering, Van Camp reminds us of his remarkable gift for storytelling. ‘Beast’ is no exception.” —Zoe McKenna reviews Beast, by Richard Van Camp (Madeira Park: Douglas & McIntyre, 2024) $24.95 / 9781771624145
Veteran mystery writer returns with an intriguing case, a “captivating, enigmatic” style, and a chase for clues across England. —Valerie Green reviews Bad Boy (A Jason Davey Mystery), by Winona Kent (New Westminster: Blue Devil Books, 2024) $19.99 / 97817390418
Vancouver Island author’s sophomore novel is “a tightly plotted, ambitious work of historical fiction that has fast-paced thriller elements and, at other times, the makings of a slow burn romance.” —Jessica Poon reviews The Last Secret, by Maia Caron (Toronto: Doubleday Canada, 2024) $25.00 / 9780385688826
“Newland’s talent with the architecture of sentences never detracts from the exhilaration of his plot, with its strange events and estranged sense of time.” —Peter Babiak reviews The Marysburgh Vortex (Volume 1: Jack Wenland, Time Guardian), by Trevor Newland (Vancouver: Simply Read Books, 2024) $22.99 / 9781772291001
Sisters who happen to be creatures of myth offer wit and wisdom, cynicism and love in a breezily written and beguiling novel. —Jessica Poon reviews Roxy and Coco, by Terese Svoboda (Morgantown: U West Virginia Press, 2024) $29.99 / 9781959000068
Infectiously fun, rapid-fire novel recounts tales from the golden age of charismatic criminals, and ushers readers into “into a fictional world of real-life events that is grippingly good reading.” —Ron Verzuh reviews Crooked: A Crime Novel, by Dietrich Kalteis (Toronto: ECW Press, 2024) $22.95 / 9781770417076