First Book

Dirty Birds by Morgan Murray*

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In late 2008, as the world’s economy crumbles and Barack Obama ascends to the White House, the remarkably unremarkable Milton Ontario – not to be confused with Milton, Ontario – leaves his parents’ basement in Middle-of-Nowhere, Saskatchewan, and sets forth to find fame, fortune, and love in the Euro-lite electric sexuality of Montreal.

Lightness by Fanie Demeule, trans. by Anita Anand

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According to one source, 90% of all anorexics are females. They lose a few pounds but are still not satisfied. They become obsessed with reaching the "ideal" weight, but it's a moving target, practically unattainable. Such is the case with the unnamed young woman in Lightness by Quebec author Fanie Demeule, which has been translated into English by Anita Anand.

Tacet by Suzanne Chiasson

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Guernica Editions has published Vancouver author and poet Suzanne Chiasson's first novel, Tacet which at under 200 pages flirts with the novella classification, and as such, leaves more questions unanswered than answered. It is the story of Charlotte, a singer (of the cabaret type) and Theo, a twentysomething actor who works in a restaurant to pay the rent to his good friend and roommate Curtis.

Reproduction by Ian Williams

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Novels, like love and family, take many forms. On every page of Reproduction, his debut novel, Ian Williams finds ways to resist and defy conventional narrative practice while constructing an audacious and uniquely challenging story that crosses generational lines. In the process, he has written a poignant, resonant tale about intersecting lives and the ways that seemingly trivial decisions can have unexpected and far-reaching consequences.

Terror in High Water by Joe Powers

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Joe Powers is a Canadian horror writer who lives in New Brunswick, and Terror in High Water is his first full-length novel. It is a twist on the typical western novel where a bad bunch of hombres ride into a town, terrorizing it until the Marshall arrives with his deputies and cleans up the town.

A Medic’s Mind by Matthew Heneghan

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First-time author Matthew Heneghan is a former Canadian Armed Forces Medic, a former civilian paramedic, and a sufferer of PTSD and a former alcohol abuser. He is also a blogger and podcaster, sharing his story of recovery and day-to-day struggles to cope with his afflictions. Wintertickle Press has now published A Medic's Mind, his memoirs and they are as good as they come when it proceeds to 'baring all".

The Great Divide by Conor McCarthy

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Ottawa-based author Conor McCarthy's self-published debut novel cleverly resurrects the Sasquatch (or in their language, Mm'tor) idea and puts them (yes, there are more than one) squarely in a story about survival, wilderness exploitation, property development and environmental issues, so that there's more to this adventure-thriller than meets the eye.