Words: Author Anthony Bidulka discusses his return to the popular mystery series
- by Michele Karlsberg
- Sunday, July 26, 2026
Anthony Bidulka has long been celebrated for crafting mysteries that balance compelling crime plots with warmth, wit, and emotional depth. Best known for his groundbreaking Russell Quant series, the Saskatchewan author has built a loyal readership by creating stories that are as much about the people behind the mysteries as they are about solving the crimes. After a 15-year absence, Bidulka has reunited readers with his beloved detective in Quant, a novel that explores family, legacy, resilience, and the changing face of rural communities.
The return of Russell Quant is more than the revival of a familiar character; it is also a reflection of the author’s own journey. Bidulka speaks candidly about reconnecting with a protagonist who has grown older alongside him, drawing from his own experiences while allowing Russell to chart his own path. The result is a novel that blends heartfelt introspection with the page-turning suspense that has become Bidulka’s signature.
In our conversation, Bidulka discusses the personal inspirations behind Quant, the joy of revisiting an iconic character, weaving connections across his fictional universe, and the leap of faith that transformed him from accountant to award-winning author. Throughout the interview, his passion for storytelling shines through, revealing why readers continue to come for the mystery, and stay for the heart and humor.
Michele Karlsberg: After fifteen years away from Russell Quant, what was the moment when you realized it was finally time to bring him back?
Pretty much since the day I announced the final book in the series (“Dos Equis,” 2012), readers have been contacting me about a follow-up book. At first, I worried it meant readers would not accept anything else I published, instead of realizing it was nothing more than a wonderful compliment to the world of Russell Quant.
The Russell Quant books have always been about more than the mystery. They’re about people and relationships and providing a space to tell stories about people and places underrepresented in crime fiction. I was happy with where I’d left Russell at the end of Dos Equis, felt the story had been told, and although I never say never, I didn’t really think about bringing him back.
When I was wrapping up the Merry Bell trilogy, my mind naturally turned to: what’s next? That’s when it struck me; it had been almost 15 years since I last wrote about Russell, when he was a young man starting out his career as a fledgling PI. Today he would be in his mid-fifties. His good friend Anthony would be in his seventies. I wondered about his mom, his dogs Barbra and Brutus? Where were they now? I didn’t know. I hadn’t thought about it. The characters would have changed. Their lives had changed. My interest was piqued. Maybe there was more story to tell.
In “Quant,” Russell returns to Howell, Saskatchewan and confronts both family history and community secrets. How important was it for you to root this story in rural Saskatchewan rather than an urban setting?
One of the pieces of advice I give to new writers is to ask themselves one question: Why do I write? My answer is this: I write to tell stories about underrepresented people and underrepresented places in a way that is both accessible and, hopefully, entertaining. The underrepresented place I typically focus on in my work is Saskatchewan, and often the rural environment. It’s where I grew up, it’s what I know, and in terms of contemporary crime fiction, it certainly counts as being underrepresented.
Even readers from other parts of Canada often know little about life in Saskatchewan. In truth, writing about Saskatchewan is part of my secret sauce. So few people do it. And in a competitive industry like ours (and, I believe, in life in general), standing out and being different is a good thing.
Russell Quant was one of the first openly gay Canadian private investigators in mainstream mystery fiction. Looking back, how do you think the literary landscape has changed since “Amuse Bouche” was first published in 2003?
In 2003 there were so few of us writing LGBTQ2S+ characters as lead protagonists in crime series in Canada. My joke at the time – and still, I must admit (a version of it is on the cover of “Quant”) – was that Russell Quant was the first and only wine-swilling, wise-cracking, world-travelling, ex-cop, ex-farm boy, gay, Canadian prairie private eye being written about by anyone anywhere! No one could prove me wrong. Today we have much greater representation of queer lead characters in all genres of fiction. We have an expanding collection of wonderful new and young writers doing great things out there. It’s a joy to see.
There is of course more work to be done. There are still stories about underrepresented people and places to tell. It was when I revisited my ‘Why do I write?’ that I conceived and wrote the Merry Bell trilogy, featuring a female trans PI living in, you guessed it, Saskatchewan.
“Quant” explores themes of family legacy, resilience, and change in small farming communities. Were there personal experiences or observations that shaped those themes?
Absolutely. I think many writers will agree that part of our DNA can always be found in our work. Russell Quant is not me. We are different in many ways. With fifteen years having passed since I last wrote about him, I worried about whether I could find his voice again. Writing those first pages, I was jittery. I needn’t have been. He was right there all along. We are different, it’s true, but I know who he is. I did what I’d always done before. I gave him experiences, challenges, issues to deal with, and background details that matched some of my own, then put the Russell Quant spin on it.
Russell is now an older man. I’m now an older man. We’ve been though stuff. Maybe, I thought to myself, we have something interesting or important to say. Which, as I mentioned earlier, is what initially fueled my interest in writing about him again.
Your work consistently highlights underrepresented people and places in crime fiction. Why has that remained such an important part of your storytelling?
Significant progress has been made over the past few decades in the LGBTQ2S+ community’s struggle for understanding, acceptance, release of prejudice and damaging stereotyping, and representation. There continue to be challenges, regressions and setbacks. Representation in the literary arts matters for many of the same reasons representation matters anywhere – visibility, recognition, understanding, inclusion, cultural memory. To play even a small role in that is an honor.
American readers are increasingly discovering your work. What aspects of Saskatchewan life and Canadian culture do you think resonate most strongly with U.S. audiences?
One of the hallmarks of the Russell Quant books is that in each one he travels somewhere beyond Saskatchewan, places like New York City, the French Riviera, and Africa. I did this to place Saskatchewan on an even playing field with other exotic foreign locations we more typically find in novels. It wasn’t done to illustrate that one is more or less attractive than the other, but rather to highlight that perhaps we are all more alike than we expect.
I was reminded of this lesson with the release of “Going to Beautiful” (2022). This is a book firmly rooted in a rural Saskatchewan setting, but it has resonated with readers around the world, becoming one of my most successful books to date. People would ask me if Beautiful, the town I wrote about, was actually based on their own hometown.
I have always loved the Mauricio Macri quote: “There is more that unites us than divides us.” The concept of ubuntu in the fifth Russell Quant book, “Sundowner Ubuntu” (2007) says much the same thing. I believe US audiences resonate with the world of Russell Quant because they can easily see themselves in it. It’s what we all want, to see ourselves reflected in the world (literature) around us. Representation matters. Representation is powerful. Its importance is universal.
Michele Karlsberg Marketing and Management specializes in publicity and marketing for the LGBTQ+ community. This year, Karlsberg celebrates 37 years of successful campaigns. www.michelekarlsberg.com
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