Carrie Mumford

Carrie Mumford

What is your latest release and what genre is it?
All But What’s Left
Literary / women’s fiction

Quick description: All But What’s Left is at once an emotionally triumphant coming-of-age story, a rumination on the nature of family secrets and memory, and a novel that reminds us first love(s) are never forgettable.

Brief Biography: Carrie Mumford has lived on both the East and West coasts of Canada, and many places in between. Carrie’s most recent publication, None of These Are True, is a collection of short stories co-authored with Rachel Small. Previous publications include a collection of short stories, Magpie (2018), and Carrie’s first novel, All But What’s Left (2018). Carrie now lives in Calgary, Alberta.

Links to buy Carrie’s book:
All But What’s Left can be found as an ebook, audiobook, or paperback using this link.

Carrie’s promo links:
Website
Instagram

What are you working on now?
Novels! Always novels.

Carrie’s reading recommendation:
The Book of Delights by Ross Gay

Michael Tyne

Michael Tyne

What is your latest release and what genre is it? My latest is The Final Resort. Loosely speaking, it’s a supernatural murder mystery, with a twist of history and a strong dash of humour.

Quick description. Laura Sterling, a hard-working young hotel-worker in a fading English seaside resort, is mourning the death of her best friend, ‘Nell’ Kowalska, who was brutally murdered exactly a year ago. No clues have been found as to the identity of the killer, no motive – nothing: just Nell’s shattered body in a back-alley. Nell’s cousin, Alexandr Janowski, and his buddy, an ineffably shady bar-manager named Chas, have lost faith in the police and are conducting their own investigation into the death.

Then another, exactly similar, murder takes place at the battered old Grand Hotel, Laura’s place of work – and she finds the body. As a brooding horror begins to take over the winter town, Laura, Janowski and a mis-matched bunch of local characters find themselves confronted with a terrifying force from the past; one which threatens to destroy not just them, but everything they hold dear.

At the heart of it all is the old Grand Hotel, its dark history the key to everything…

 Brief biography:
I was born near Manchester, England, in 1964, and I’ve been praying for a quiet life ever since. I’ve worked as a stock market analyst, a van-driver, a labourer, a head waiter and a charity mugger, and I’m now employed as an accountant for a car rental company – all of which has mitigated against the ambition mentioned above. I’ve been writing since I was a teenager and, after a brief and disastrous flirtation with Young Adult fiction in the early 2010’s, returned to my first love, urban fantasy, in 2014. I’ve now published six novels in this genre, including my best-seller, Sharkey, which was recently featured on BBC Radio. I’ve lived, in the past, in London, Norfolk and Bermuda, but have now settled in a small town on the edge of the Derbyshire Peak District, where I’m very happy. I’m engaged (second time around) and have a 23-year-old son from my first marriage.

Links to buy Michael’s book:
Mybook.to/finalresort should take you to your local Amazon sale page for both print and eBook formats

Michael’s promo links:
My webthing
Facebook
Twitter

What are you working on now?
I’m working on an ambitious urban fantasy entitled Osaka. It takes place over fifty years and deals with the possibility of an evolutionary shift in humanity. I’ve been working on it for almost exactly a year, and I’m about 20,000 words from the end.

Michael’s reading recommendation:
Lately, I’ve been reading a lot of Alison Weir, who is an English historian. She writes about the Tudor period and has a knack of bringing to life the characters and lives of the kings and queens about whom she writes, making them feel very human. She’s a splendid writer, with a warm and elegant style.

In fiction, I’ve been a Terry Pratchett (RIP) fan for about thirty years. Unfailingly clever, compassionate and very, very funny. He’s as close as I have to a literary hero.

Roy Dimond – update on a new novel

Roy Dimond has be featured previously on Reading Recommendations here and here. He’s back now to tell us about a new novel.

I, Bully
by Roy Dimond
Published by Motivational Press

I, Bully addresses the serious issue of cyber bullying. What makes this story unique is that it is told from the perspective of both the bully and the victim.
 The two main characters, the victim, Hannah, and the bully, Eric, learn from each other in ways they could never have imagined.
 Hannah is a typical young girl in grade 8. She’s completely focused on friends and feels her family doesn’t understand. Hannah also feels invisible and her perception is that her older sister gets all the attention. It’s a good, middle-class family, but struggling. 
Eric is also in grade 8, but his family is dysfunctional. Dad drinks and mom is barely keeping it together. Eric is filled with rage and takes it out on everyone.
 Eventually, spirit quests and restorative justice help build relationships that lead to enlightenment and reconciliation.
 Roy Dimond’s exciting new novel I, Bully will empower and touch all who read it.

Where to purchase Roy’s book:
Amazon Canada
Amazon US
Motivational Press

Antony Millen

Antony Millen

What is your latest release and what genre is it? The Chain – Young Adult dystopian

Quick description: The year is 2043. Empowered by the anti-encryption program, ICALL, and the world-wide wireless Blanket, the Global Domain reigns over all colocation centres with its Connectivist ideology, enforcing mandatory online activity for every eartizen and disabling attempts to secure privacy. The Domain’s slogans are: “Secrecy Threatens Security” and “Privacy Prevents Prosperity and Peace.”

From his death-bed in New Zealand, Fenton Ouvert commissions his sons, Topia and Lukan, to locate a flash drive containing the files of Jeremy Winterton, files stolen thirty years earlier from international surveillance agencies. A former investigative journalist, Ouvert hid the flash drive at the end of a chain of clue-bearers around the world. Contacted by the resistance movement known as Arachne, Ouvert believes the drive contains original plans for the ICALL program and thus, hope for a free world.

Travelling the globe, the Ouvert boys locate the links, but what will their journey reveal about their father and the effects of the Global Domain’s dominance? And what will their quest mean for the world when they reach the end of the chain?

Brief biography:
Antony Millen lives and writes in New Zealand, but is originally from Pictou County, Nova Scotia, Canada. Since 2013, he has published three novels and seen short stories featured in literary journals and competitions. He blogs regularly at antonymillen.com.

Links to buy Antony’s book:
Amazon US
Amazon Canada

Antony’s promo links:
Website/Blog
Facebook
Twitter

What are you working on now?
I’m nearing the end of a draft for my fourth novel. It is also intended for young adults, but will not be as complex as The Chain. A simpler story about friendships, co-dependency, dreams and re-assessing our heroes.

Antony’s reading recommendation:
The North Water by Ian McGuire, longlisted for the 2016 Man Booker prize. A faster-paced Moby Dick in a sort of thrilling historical fiction way.

Della Dennis

Della Dennis

What is your latest release and what genre is it? Something Unremembered – Historical fiction/contemporary realism/magic realism

Quick description: The narrator of the story is Janine LaFoy, a late 20th-century woman living in Alberta, with roots in French-Canadian Catholic culture. One would hardly think an outlying college town on the prairies would be the place a woman from the 15th century would choose to reveal her story, but when Janine begins to discover the story of Madeleine of Beauvais interpolated in the pages of her beloved books about the history of art and culture, an enigmatic presence begins to form. Mystified by references to Madeleine which seem to appear in her books only to disappear again, and unhappy with her own restless ever-aftering, Janine becomes preoccupied with uncovering the secrets of Madeleine’s life.

This book began by imagining how a subjugated history, a story that could not keep peace with being forgotten, bubbles up between the lines of 20th-century Janine LaFoy’s art and cultural history books.

Brief biography:
Della Dennis is a music educator and historian. As a missionary kid in Africa, she grew up in the shadow of a protestant ethic where fiction ranked among the lower orders of creation. As an adult she returned to her birthplace and settled in Edmonton. When her children were safely grown and on their own, she fell from grace and began to write. She wrote and privately published the story and documents relating to her grandmother’s early life and journey (as an 11-year old without her parents) to Canada in 1904. Something Unremembered is her first novel.

Links to buy Della’s book:
Stonehouse Publishing
All Lit Up
Chapters/Indigo
Amazon Canada
Amazon US

Della’s promo links:
Facebook
Goodreads

What are you working on now?
I am just beginning a second novel that takes place at the same time as Something Unremembered and features many of the same characters. In this story, the narrator, Janine, makes different choices. As a result, her interests and challenges and the course of her life turn out quite differently.

Della’s reading recommendation:
I have been reading Charissa’s Shoes by David Gay, a satiric, dystopian novel that is both absurd and prophetic. It is a startling reflection on the potential for cyber terrorism in the modern era. It was written before the Trump era, and mostly takes place in Canada, but some of the ludicrous behaviour of people seeking power could have been taken from today’s news. Next up, for a change of pace, I am looking forward to reading Evelina, an 18th-century novel recently reissued by Edmonton’s Stonehouse Publishing.

Susan Calder

Susan Calder

What is your latest release and what genre is it? Ten Days in Summer, murder mystery

Quick description: While Calgary, Alberta, celebrates its 10-day Stampede festival, insurance adjuster Paula Savard investigates a suspicious building fire that caused the death of a hoarder.

Brief biography:
I am a Calgary writer, who grew up in Montreal. I have published two mystery novels, Deadly Fall (Touchwood Editions) and Ten Days in Summer (Books We Love Ltd.), books 1 & 2 of my series set in Calgary, Alberta. My short stories have won contests and been published in magazines and anthologies. I have taught fiction writing courses and workshops at the Alexandra Writers Centre Society. I’m a member of Crime Writers of Canada and serve on the board of Calgary’s When Words Collide Festival for Readers and Writers. When I’m not occupied with writing, you’ll likely find me travelling or hiking.

Links to buy Susan’s book:
You can purchase Ten Days in Summer online through:
Chapters/Indigo Books
Amazon
In Canada, you can also find the novel at your local bookstore, or place an order for it there.

Susan’s promo links:
Website
Blog
Twitter
Facebook
Facebook Page Ten Days in Summer
Linkedin

What are you working on now?
Book 3 of the Paula Savard Mystery Series. In the depths of a Calgary winter, Paula investigates a hit and run accident that killed a woman and seriously injured her husband.

Susan’s reading recommendation:
The Bloodline Artifacts: Extraterrestrial Connections by Howie Erickson. I am not a big reader of sci-fi adventure novels, so I was surprised by how much I was drawn into this book. Once I got used to the character and place shifts, I could follow the story easily. I found the characters sympathetic and interesting and loved the varied settings and the historical connection to the first Christian apostles. The story held my interest to the end and left me looking forward to the sequel when it is published. I recommend this book to readers, like me, who enjoyed The Da Vinci Code.

And here’s Susan with “books by two Susans” from July 2012 … Here’s what Susan had to say in her email then: I took the picture at the start of Stampede and was looking for a mix of Island and Calgary Stampede – hence the island shirt and straw cowboy hat, purchased in Mexico. As you had suggested, I included both of our books.

Thanks, Susan!

Stonehouse Publishing

Alberta-based Stonehouse Publishing began operations in 2016 and I promoted their first 5 publications here on Reading Recommendations shortly after a very successful company launch. I thought readers would be interested in hearing more about this new publisher and the direction they are taking their company, so I asked Netta Johnson to provide us with details.

Stonehouse Publishing
Co-owners, Netta Johnson & Julie Yerex
Intern, Olivia Latta
Design team, Janet King and Anne Brown

Introducing Stonehouse Publishing History and Founding of Stonehouse Publishing

After years of being avid readers, writers, book collectors, and overall literary enthusiasts, friends and colleagues, Julie Yerex and Netta Johnson, took a brave plunge into the publishing world, founding Stonehouse Publishing. Netta brings to the house a work ethic unmatched, a passion for historical literature, and an unabashed entrepreneurial spirit. Julie adds to this with a background in copyediting, a taste for adventure, and a love for the written word that runs deep. Bolstered by the support offered to them from within the industry, and just a touch of naiveté, they have been humbled by the success of the launch of their first 5 titles, released in May 2016.

Stonehouse Publishing Mandate

Stonehouse Publishing is a small press publishing 3-5 titles per season, 5-8 titles per year, specializing in literary, trade, and historical fiction. The Stonehouse mandate is to increase the internationally-themed historical fiction published in Canada. Although historical fiction is the primary passion and focus of the Publishing house, Stonehouse is also committed to bringing budding new Canadian authors into the literary realm. Stonehouse Publishing’s final objective is to broaden the readership of some of the lesser-known classic authors, via their forthcoming Classics line, beginning with one classic title in the start of their second season.

First Year, First Titles, Upcoming Seasons

Stonehouse’s inaugural list is an eclectic selection of European-themed literature (the house’s special interest) and Alberta-themed literature from new authors. The first five Stonehouse books range from European-based fiction set in the 18th Century (Mary Green, League of the Star) to thrillers (Course Correction, Edge of Wild), rounded out by Kalyna, a historical novel dealing with Canada’s policy of interning Ukrainian settlers during the First World War. All 2016 books are authored within Alberta, reflecting both Stonehouse’s commitment to local literature and the inspiring degree of undiscovered talent located in our province. All books have been positively reviewed, and thus far, Mary Green and Kalyna have appeared on the weekly Bestsellers list in Edmonton and Calgary.

Looking ahead to their second season, Stonehouse will be augmenting the Stonehouse Originals list with Stonehouse Classics, designed to breathe new life into the range of classical works available in most bookstores. Spurred by a passion for historical fiction, contemporary and otherwise, Stonehouse is excited to place their favourite classical novels alongside classical sections already well-stocked with Jane Austen and Charles Dickens. The Stonehouse Classics imprint will begin with Evelina, by Fanny Burney. The Stonehouse Originals imprint will continue to release compelling original works, starting with Encountering Riel, by David Orr and Something Unremembered, by Della Dennis in February 2017. In August 2017, Stonehouse will publish two additional titles, including the already announced, Jesus on the Dashboard, by Lisa Murphy-Lamb August.

For more information about Stonehouse Publishing, please view their website.

Here are links to their authors’ promotions already featured on Reading Recommendations.

Pam Clark
N.R. Cruse
Melanie Kerr
Douglas Morrison
Danika Stone

John W. Howell

John W. Howell

What is your latest release and what genre is it? I am re-releasing my first book My GRL due to my desire not to re-new my publisher’s contract. It is Thriller Fiction

Quick description: The first book in the John J. Cannon Trilogy where John J. Cannon, successful San Francisco lawyer, takes a leave of absence from the firm and buys a boat he names My GRL. He is unaware that his newly-purchased boat had already been targeted by a terrorist group. John’s first inkling of a problem is when he wakes up in the hospital where he learns he was found unconscious next to the dead body of the attractive young woman who sold him the boat in the first place. John now stands between the terrorists and the success of their mission.

Brief biography:
John began his writing as a full-time occupation after an extensive business career. His specialty is thriller fiction novels, but John also writes poetry and short stories. His first book, My GRL, introduces the exciting adventures of the book’s central character, John J. Cannon. The second Cannon novel, His Revenge, continues the adventure, while the final book in the trilogy, Our Justice, launched in September 2016. All books are available on Amazon in paperback and Kindle editions.

John lives in Port Aransas, Texas, with his wife and their spoiled rescue pets.

Links to buy John’s book:
Amazon Author Page
Print edition
Kindle edition

John’s promo links:
Blog: Fiction Favorites
Facebook
Twitter
Authors db
LinkedIn
Google +
Goodreads

What are you working on now?
I am currently editing my next book titled Circumstances of Childhood and will be launching it in September of 2017. I have begun a yet unnamed thriller which will available in 2018.

John’s reading recommendation:
I have finished reading Letting Go Into Perfect Love by Gwendolyn Plano. The story of Gwen’s personal challenge is very uplifting.

Kimmy Beach – update on the release of a new book

Kimmy Beach was featured previously on Reading Recommendations in June 2014, and is back now to tell us about a new publication just released!

Nuala, A Fable
Robert Kroetsch Series
by Kimmy Beach
Published by The University of Alberta Press
Genre: Literary Fiction, Magical Realism

“Shh, my Nuala. I am with you. Today I shall teach you the newness of you.”

As the Engine breathes life into Nuala, her gaze falls on Teacher-Servant, the chosen one. He alone will be able to hear her thoughts and interpret her emotions. But soon Teacher-Servant starts to worry that Nuala will be able to give away her thoughts freely. Set in an atypical dystopian world, Nuala is startlingly original and inventive, echoing the work of Margaret Atwood, José Saramago, and Kazuo Ishiguro. Beach’s dark, fearless imagination has created a time and space that are at once remote and strange, but absorbing and deeply credible. Nuala leaves the reader with much to consider about the nature of love, possessiveness, jealousy, envy, and autonomy.

Where to purchase Kimmy’s Book:
The University of Alberta Press
Amazon
Chapters/Indigo
Independent Bookstores

Betty Jane Hegerat recommends Dianne Harke

Book title and author: Incognito: The Astounding Life of Alexandra David-Neel by Dianne Harke

What genre is it? Fictional biography, with a foreword by the author explaining the rationale behind adding and imagining detail about both the subject and the time and place.

Quick description:
“This is the biography of Alexandra David-Neel (1868-1969), spiritual seeker, opera singer, feminist, journalist, intrepid explorer, Buddhist scholar and prolific author of over thirty books.” – from Sumeru Books

David-Neel travelled incognito all over Asia, spent several long periods in Tibet, and lived as a hermit in a cave in the Himalayas.

Why I recommend this book:
This is the beautifully rendered story of an extraordinary woman whose wanderlust and deep seeking spirituality took her across vast territories, sometimes under arduous conditions, and danger so extreme that she survived by travelling “incognito.” The author captures the voice with eloquence and provides astonishing detail that speaks to years of research.

Although the book is designated “Young Adult Fiction” and I believe there are young readers who would find this a fascinating life to explore, I feel even more strongly that there is a broad adult audience who will engage with every aspect of Alexandra David-Neel’s “journey.”

Betty Jane interviewed Dianne Harke on her blog, which is how I found out about the book. After reading An Interview with Dianne Harke, author of: Incognito, The Astounding Life of Alexandra David Neel. (Sumeru Books 2016) I asked Betty Jane to also recommend the book to you, the readers of my blog.

Links for people to buy it:
Available from Chapters/Indigo
Amazon
Even better, check with your local indie bookstore to see if they can order for you.
And of course, it’s always a good idea to contact your local public and suggest a title you’d like them to order.

Guest reviewer’s latest title or project: My most recent book is a Young Adult novel, Odd One Out (Oolichan Books, 2016). Currently, I have returned to short fiction and have been rewriting, editing, and venturing into a new story.

Betty Jane Hegerat has been a frequent guest on Reading Recommendations, beginning in April 2014 and with updates in Jan. 2016 and May 2016, as well as news about being the 2015 Recipient of the WGA Golden Pen Award in April 2015. She is also listed among the All-Star Authors on this site.