Terry Fallis grew up in Toronto and earned an engineering degree from McMaster University. Drawn to politics at an early age, he worked for cabinet ministers in Ottawa and at Queen’s Park. His first novel, The Best Laid Plans, began as a podcast; then was self-published; won the Stephen Leacock Medal for Humour; was re-published by McClelland & Stewart to great reviews; was crowned the 2011 winner of CBC’s Canada Reads as “the essential Canadian novel of the decade;” and was adapted as a CBC television series and a stage musical. His next two novels, The High Road and Up and Down were finalists for the Leacock Medal, and in 2015, he won the prize a second time, for his fourth book, No Relation. His other novels include Poles Apart, One Brother Shy, Albatross, and Operation Angus, which were all bestsellers. A skilled public speaker, he lives in Toronto with his wife.
“It’s a comic thriller—a thromedy?—that teems with Fallis’ trademark wit. But the thrills of the thriller are there as well in this tale of a Canadian writer, James Norval, who dives headlong into the middle of a coup in the West African country of Mali. Norval’s voice is the most endearingly irksome one I’ve heard in quite some time.” –Wayne Johnston (Jennie’s Boy)
James Norval has built a successful career crafting the thrilling adventures of his fictional hero, Hunter Chase, a character admired by readers and movie-goers worldwide. But despite his fame and fortune, Norval has always harboured a secret dream of living the life he only writes about—a life as a field operative for CSIS, Canada’s Security Intelligence Service. In fact, nearly 30 years earlier, he washed out of the CSIS recruitment program, and it’s haunted him ever since.
But that long-held dream becomes a reality when a series of unfortunate events lands Norval in a foreign prison. Rescued by CSIS, he is given an unexpected opportunity: to use his unique position as the favourite writer of Mali’s newly installed president to assist in a delicate and dangerous mission. With the help of agent Lauren Cooper, Norval must infiltrate the Malian government and execute a daring plan to exfiltrate 15 Canadian nationals before the corrupt powers that control the country uncover their true intentions.
Jack McMaster seemingly has it all. A beautiful house, a loving son of many talents (including cooking, which is great news for Jack, if not for his waistline), even a special bond with his buddies in his ball hockey league. But he’s also learning to live with loss, leaving a gaping hole in his life—a life that will never be the same as before. Jack passes his days knowing he has the support of his family and his friends, but he can’t shake the feeling that his life has gone gray, and that time is slipping by so quickly.
Then, a short and shocking video from an unexpected source gives him the gumption to make a change and maybe even haul himself out of his melancholia. Inspired by his lifelong fascination with 1920s Paris, Jack finally visits the City of Light, following in the footsteps of Hemingway and Fitzgerald, and wandering the Left Bank. Slowly, the colour seeps back into his life, aided by a chance encounter in a café that leads Jack into the art world, and a Paris mystery nearly a century old.
Full of sincerity and warmth, A New Season shows us all that sometimes, making a change in your life can save your life.
Adam Coryell is your average high-school student—well, except for that obsession with fountain pens—when his life changes forever. Based on a study by a quirky Swedish professor that claims that every human being, regardless of athletic inclination, has a body that is suited to excel in at least one sport, it turns out that Adam is good—very good, in fact—at golf. Even though he’d never even picked up a golf club. Almost instantly, and with his coach, hard-nosed Bobbie Davenport by his side, Adam and his new-found talent skyrocket to a prodigy-level stardom that includes tournament titles, sponsorship deals, throngs of fans following his every move, and fodder for tabloids. But here’s the catch: Adam doesn’t really like golf. And as the life he once knew slips away—including the love of his life, the dream of being a writer, and everyday normalcy—he can’t help but wonder if all this success and fame is worth it . . . or if it’s enough for him. Heartwarming and funny, sweeping and entertaining, Albatross takes readers on a journey of self-discovery.
Starring Terry Fallis, Will Ferguson, Emily Austin & Natalie Sue
In the spirit of reconciliation, we acknowledge that we live, work and play on the traditional territories of the Blackfoot Confederacy (Siksika, Kainai, Piikani), the Tsuut’ina, the Iyarhe Nakoda Nations, the Otipemisiwak Métis Government of the Métis Nation within Alberta District 6, and all people who make their homes in the Treaty 7 region of Southern Alberta.
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