“The arch tone often verges on, or falls into camp, and it’s immediately apparent that the novel is a confection of such frothiness that any silliness can happen and often does in the loony movie world dominated by the conventions of Los Angeles where ‘perception was everything, reality just an annoying detail to get past.’” —Candace Fertile reviews Mystery in the Title, by Ian Ferguson and Will Ferguson (Toronto: HarperCollins Canada, 2024) $25.99 / 9781443470803
Book #11 in the series “scrutinizes a dark chapter in Canadian history while simultaneously charming her readers with the picturesque Kootenay locale and setting their teeth on edge as her heroine comes perilously close to an untimely end.” —Ginny Ratsoy reviews Lightning Strikes the Silence, by Iona Whishaw (Victoria: Touchwood Editions, 2024) $21.95 / 9781771514323
“Nay knows not only how to create suspense, but also how to maintain it. You have to keep reading to find out whose bloodied arm is detached, and you’ll want to.” —Jessica Poon reviews The Offing, by Roz Nay (Toronto: Viking, 2024) $24.95 / 9780735248250
A cutting edge psychiatrist faces her own traumatic past and the mysterious deaths of her clientele in a thriller where tension mounts page after page. —Valerie Green reviews High Society, by Daniel Kalla (Toronto: Simon & Schuster, 2024) $24.99 / 9781668032510
An entertaining, raucous, and deeply weird novel splices together a boxing comeback story, veganism, bout fixing, and… Sherlock Holmes. —Logan Macnair reviews Pet, Pet, Slap, by Andrew Battershill (Toronto: Coach House Books, 2024) $23.95 / 9781552454763
A retired criminal lawyer revisits his past and “the most significant trial of his career.” The results are engrossing. —Bill Paul reviews The Long-Shot Trial: An Arthur Beauchamp Thriller, by William Deverell (Toronto: ECW Press, 2024) $26.95 / 9781770417540
Sophomore YA novel offers “a beautiful, heartwarming story about memory and grief with a speculative twist and a sprinkling of romance that’s sure to delight teen readers.”—Greg Brown reviews The Space Between Here and Now, by Sarah Suk (Toronto: HarperCollins Canada, 2023) $24.99 / 9780063255135
In intriguing, complex layers a historical novel portrays queer lives during Europe’s witchomania. It’s a keeper, especially if you’re “of the camp that believes that metacommentary is captivating.” —Jessica Poon reviews Curiosities, by Anne Fleming (Toronto: Knopf Canada, 2024) $35.00 / 9781039004979
Political nail-biter spans three continents, delves into brutal realpolitik, and features a plot that requires a reader’s “concentrated effort.” —Valerie Green reviews The Black State, by John Delacourt (Surrey: Now or Never Publishing, 2024) $19.95 / 9781989689608
Grimness, marvellous one-liners, complex characterization, and expert pacing turn a crime thrillerl into “a good, downright scathing read.” —Jessica Poon reviews Ocean Drive, by Sam Wiebe (Madeira Park: Harbour Publishing, 2024) $24.95 / 9781990776694
Graphic novel set in grey-hued Raincouver examines “the strange and troubling inner workings of human beings.” —Zoe McKenna reviews What’s Fear Got To Do With It?, by Ivana Filipovich (Wolfville: Conundrum Press, 2023) $18.00 CAD / 9781772620887
This fast-paced murder mystery with a “wonderfully wry” tone is “great fun.” It’s also an “animated and sharp” glimpse of Vancouver’s social landscape, circa 1929. —W.H. New reviews Mr. Good-Evening, by John MacLachlan Gray (Madeira Park: Douglas & McIntyre, 2024) $34.94 / 9781771623957
An “archaeologist-poet” celebrates, honours, and meditates on a feminist pioneer. —Harold Rhenisch reviews Lady Bird, by Kerry Gilbert (Holstein: Exile Editions, 2023) $19.95 / 9781990773105
Quietly affecting novel delivers with an elegiac narrator recalling the “vibrant, creative and tragic world” of his youth. —Theo Dombrowski reviews The Marvels of Youth, by Tim Bowling (Hamilton: Wolsak and Wynn, 2023) $24.00 / 9781989496749
Full of lore, a “refreshing, earnest, and hopeful” debut for YA readers captivates and entertains. —Zoe McKenna reviews Why We Play With Fire, by Giselle Vriesen (Toronto: 100 Block Futures, 2024) $23.99 CAD / 9781955905312
From “the city to rural backroads, Siemens takes readers on an unforgettable journey.” —Valerie Green reviews Call of the Void, by J.T. Siemens (Edmonton: NeWest Press, 2024) $22.95 / 9781774390863
Reviewer enthralled by the tenth Émile Cinq-Mars murder mystery. —Ron Verzuh reviews A Patient Death, by John Farrow (Holstein, ON: Exile Editions, 2023) $32.95 / 9781550969856
“Crossland indeed supplies an intriguing way of learning about the communities of which he has been a member for over two decades; not by discussing social, political, or cultural features, but rather through the ends of many of the community members.” Matthew Downey reviews Death Calls: A Coroner’s Memoir by Robert Crossland (Victoria: FriesenPress, 2023) $21.99 / 9781039168329
With mesmeric effects, a debut novel blends the beautiful, surreal, and disturbing. —Daniel Gawthrop reviews The Invisible Hotel, by Yeji Y. Ham (Toronto: Bond Street Books, 2024) $34.00 / 9780385698054
Debut eco-thriller is “controlled, crafted, deliberate—and, to boot, utterly purposeful.” —Theo Dombrowski reviews Adrift, by Lisa Brideau (Naperville, IL: Sourcebooks Landmark, 2023) $25.99 / 9781728265681