Amuse Bouche: A Russell Quant Mystery #1
2003 Arthur Ellis Award for Best First Novel Finalist
2003 ReLit Award shortlist
2nd Printing Mass Paperback (2005)
2004 CNIB version, narrated by John Lane
2010 Translation into Turkish: Ara Sicak (Sel Yayincilik)
2011 Release of New Edition (with Author's foreward) ISBN: 978-1-55483-020-6
ISBN: 1-894663-91-8; ISBN 13: 978-1-894663-91-5
A gay wedding gone bad. A missing groom. An unsullied reputation at risk. Enter Russell Quant, cute, gay and a rookie private detective. With a nose for good wine and bad lies, Quant is off to France on his first big case. From the smudgy streets of Paris, he cajoles and sleuths his way to the pastel-coloured promenade of Sanary-sur-Mer.
Back in Saskatoon, Quant comes face to face with a client who may be the bad guy, a quarry who turns up in the most unexpected place and a cast of colourful suspects: the vile sister, the best friend, the colleague, the ex-lover, the lawyer, the priest, the snoopy neighbour—are they involved? Or is someone else lurking in the shadows? As he works through his case, Quant juggles his detective gig with the responsibilities of a personal life brimful of captivating personalities.
First Launch - 2003
First Launch - They Came!
This is my first ever book launch. It was held at McNally Robinson Bookstore in my hometown of Saskatoon. I really worried (and still do, to this day) that no one would show up. I was flabbergasted (still am, to this day)that they did. In droves. Love em!
My Editor Catherine Lake
My Editor Catherine Lake
Catherine flew in from Toronto to introduce me at the Amuse Bouche launch in Saskatoon. It made the whole event even more special - and nerve wracking.
Signing Line
Saskatoon Launch Signing Line
The signing line at Saskatoon launch. I called Dori,Dwayne and Brenda the rose brigade because they each brought me a single red rose as they came up to have their book signed.
Flight of Aquavit: A Russell Quant Mystery #2
2004 Lambda Literary Award for Best Men’s Mystery Winner
2004 Saskatchewan Book Award Finalist for Saskatoon Book of the Year
2nd Printing Mass Paperback (2006)
2007 CNIB version, narrated by Geoffrey Paterson
2011 Release of New Edition ISBN 13: 978-1-55483-030-5
ISBN: 1-897178-09-3; ISBN 13: 978-1-897178-09-6
At the dead end of desolate country road, a late night meeting suddenly becomes an ambush. Gay private detective Russell Quant is faced with personal threats he can’t ignore, a friend who may be a foe and a cagey client with a treacherous monkey on his back. As Quant trails a menacing blackmailer known only as Loverboy, he finds himself immersed in the midnight world of e-dating and parking lot romance. Lured to New York City, Quant tests his wit, wisdom and wiles from the Old World grandeur of Fifth Avenue to the kaleidoscope world of Broadway’s electric nightspots.
The fast pace continues when Quant returns to Saskatoon where he grapples with decoys and deceit, realizing that no one is as they appear. Threat turns into deadly reality and the need to uncover the identity of Loverboy becomes increasingly desperate. Quant deftly maneuvers through the twists and turns of a perilous case and a personal life rife with its own mystique and mayhem.
Saskatoon Launch - 2004
Saskatoon Launch - They Came Back!
Still thinking no one would show up - first time was probably a fluke - good old Saskatoon did it again for the Flight of Aquavit kick off launch at McNally Robinson.
EY Reunion for Book Launch
EY Reunion for Book Launch
With my editor Catherine, partner Karen, and my ex-Ernst & Young boss, Shelley. Shelley threw and awesome pre-launch book party at the Saskatoon Club with my former accounting-days colleagues. How great is that?
Signing books at Saskatoon launch
Signing books at Saskatoon launch
I tend to write a fair bit when I'm signing books - more than just my name. People ask me if my hand gets tired. If it does - so what! This is one of my favourite things to do.
Tapas on the Ramblas: A Russell Quant Mystery #3
2005 Saskatchewan Book Award Finalist for Fiction
2008 CNIB version, narrated by Al Redmond
ISBN: 1-894663-97-7; ISBN 13: 978-1-894663-97-7
Charity Wiser, matriarch of the Wiser clan by virtue of her wealth and power, is an indomitable provocateur…and private detective Russell Quant’s newest employer. There is more than a single rotten apple on this family tree, and Quant has been hired to discover which one is intent on murdering his client. To help him sleuth out the evil culprit, Charity Wiser arranges a family reunion aboard the opulent Friends of Dorothy Cruiseliner as it tours the most exotic ports of the Mediterranean. But smooth sailing is short-lived as undercurrents of clashes—local and tourist, gay and straight, trendy and traditional—offer Russell insight into the Wisers and reveal a family simmering with rage and greed. He begins to wonder: Who doesn’t want Charity Wiser dead?
Shifting from his Prairie stomping ground to a sea undulating with murder, Quant’s smarts, senses, and sea legs are challenged. In this captivating yet captive environment, family tensions mount and suspicions build. And Russell must balance his detective duties with safeguarding his client and protecting his own life. From the delight of tapas and sweet sangria in Spain to the bitter taste of death in Sicily, Quant connects and clashes with friends and foes in a series of unforgettable locales. Come aboard a sensual journey of sun and sea brine, caviar and champagne on a cruise replete with the luxury of murder.
Saskatoon Launch-2005
Saskatoon Launch-They Came Again
Saskatoon rocks! They came out again in full force for the launch of my third Russell Quant book, Tapas on the Ramblas.
Speaking at Saskatoon Launch
Speaking at Saskatoon Launch
Those first few minutes when I address the hometown crowd are heady ones indeed. The jacket was a hit too.
Saskatoon Flamenco
Saskatoon Flamenco
Terri, a talented flamenco dancer, performed two numbers for us, getting everyone into the Spanish mood for Tapas on the Ramblas. Prairie Ink restaurant did an outstanding job serving tapas too. That's events co-ordinator Deneen in the background. She'd just left her position, but generously came back specially for this event.
Herb Reading at Saskatoon Launch
Herb Reading at Saskatoon Launch
To give people a break from listening only to my voice, I asked Herb to get up and read his favourite passage from any of the three (to that date) Russell Quant books. He was an unqualified hit.
Saskatoon Launch Audience
Saskatoon Launch Audience
Nice shot of some of the crowd that turned up for the Saskatoon launch of Tapas, including my sister Hope, nephew Kell and James.
Signing
Saskatoon Signing
That's my neice Kim in line for a signed book. The very first book I ever wrote (as a teen) was an illustrated fairy tale written for Kim when she was just a kid.
Saskatoon Signing 2
Saskatoon Signing
With Shelley (my hairdresser to the stars!), Jill, Carrie and Shawna.
Sister Fran at Launch
Sister Fran at Launch
My sister Fran hopped around the signing table for a hug and photo - she drives a couple hours to be at each one of my launches and oftentimes other appearances as well.
With Bev and Sandi
With Bev and Sandi
Bev and Sandi, at the Saskatoon launch signing table, are neighbours and good huggers too.
Stain of the Berry: A Russell Quant Mystery #4
2007 Saskatchewan Book Award Finalist for Readers Choice Award
2007 Lambda Literary Award Finalist for Best Men’s Mystery
2009 CNIB version, narrated by Michael Saperia
ISBN: 1-897178-24-7; ISBN 13: 978-1-897178-24-9
Everyone has their Boogeyman. But who—or what—is scaring Saskatoon locals to death? Private detective Russell Quant is roused from his sleep only to fall into a nightmare case when the family of a suicide victim hires him to uncover the real cause of death. But what is real and what is imaginary? Quant works to narrow his list of suspects only to find the number of victims growing. Russell is mystified as a trail of fear connects him to a vast landscape of people including an elegant potash miner, dubious trailer park denizens, reticent farm folk, the Pink Gopher choir and a gaseous psychiatrist.
Compounding Quant’s bewilderment is the complete and perfect disappearance of his once very real friend—Sereena—who has become a ghost he simply can’t find. With the Boogeyman always a few paces ahead, Russell struggles to keep the hounds of failure from baying. From Saskatchewan’s summer storms to the menacing Lotus Land of Vancouver, Quant finally touches down in the Canadian Arctic where tragic hope resides. Russell returns home to bully attacks, a desperate chase through midnight woods and a sadistic abduction. As Russell Quant penetrates the truth of the Boogeyman, he finds himself on a perilous suspension bridge between idyllic childhood and grown-up violence.
Saskatoon Launch - 2006
Saskatoon Rocks Launch Signing Line up
For the fourth time, Saskatoon comes out in style and size for a Russell Quant launch.
Ian of Saskatoons McNally Robinson
Saskatoon McNally Robinson's Ian Goodwillie introduced the launch of Stain of the Berry.
Author Rob Harasymchuk
Author Rob Harasymchuk did me the great honour of being my special guest at the Saskatoon launch of Stain of the Berry. Before he read from his terrific 'The Joining of Dingo Radish', he surprised me by reading an excerpt from the first Russell Quant, Amuse Bouche.
Saskatoon Signing with Edna
Signing a book for librarian friend, Edna, who almost always has a pencil stuck in her hair and is famed for the food she serves at her annual Christmas party.
CBC Cameras at Saskatoon Launch
The hard-working Britainy Robinson of CBC interviewed me earlier that day, then taped the Saskatoon launch of Stain of the Berry that night for a CBC TV arts & entertainment piece. This is Dan and Debbie in the signing line up.
Saskatoon Launch with Family
I consider myself extremely fortunate to always have loads of family show up for my launches. Here are my niece Amy, aunt Jean, sister Fran and my mom Johannna
Sundowner Ubuntu: A Russell Quant Mystery #5
2008 Lambda Literary Award Finalist for Best Men's Mystery
2009 CNIB version, narrated by Hank Lobbenberg
ISBN 13: 978-1-897178-43-0
A mother’s pain. A million dollars. A missing son. Desperate to right old wrongs, a new client hires Russell Quant to locate her son, Matthew, lost to her for twenty years. But can money relieve remorse? Through good old-fashioned detective work, Russell peels away the layers of a carefully-concealed life, grown from seeds of traumatic childhood and violence. Tracking Matthew’s life from the schoolyard drug culture of a pleasant prairie city’s underbelly to the stunning vistas, vibrant townships and tinderbox safaris of Africa, Russell finds much more than what he was looking for.
Ever adept at making both friends and foes, worlds collide as Quant runs a gauntlet of uncharted danger. Thrust into the unfamiliar role of bad guy, stymied by seemingly insurmountable distrust and base fear, Russell cuts a blistering swath through covert threats and overt bullets. But as he searches for his Canadian needle in an African haystack, the brutality escalates. Confronting his own role in the cause and effect of scars and anger, retribution and revenge, Russell Quant faces a difficult question: What happens when the prodigal son resists the return?
Saskatoon Launch 2007
One of the things I feel badly about on launch night in Saskatoon, is that people have to stand - some of them don't get seats in the reading venue, then they stand in the signing line. But they blow me away, every time, by doing so with cheerfulness and smiles and good will. Lucky guy, am I.
EY Alumni Launch Pre Party
EY Alumni Launch Pre Party held at the Saskatoon Club and hosted by Shelley. This Herb with my former co-workers Janet, Laurie, Nikki and Karren.
Launch Pre Party-Shelley Murray Bev
The pre party for the launch of the book was - as has become a bit of a tradition - hosted by my former boss, Shelley Brown and her husband Murray. With them is a former co-worker and now city councillor, Bev Dubois.
More EY Alumni
More EY Alumni at Pre Launch Gathering - Trina, Ken, Gail, Gail's husband Rob, and Shaye.
Pre Party
Rhonda arranges the EY Alumni Pre Party launches and always does a fantastic job. Janet and Laurie were among the group of people who were there when I first started working at EY - they both taught me a lot!
With editor Catherine Lake's son, Nigel on Launch Night HerbNigelTony
With editor Catherine Lake's son, Nigel on Launch Night - just outside the Saskatoon Club where the EY alumni pre party was held. Nigel was our official photographer (when he wasn't in the photos himself).
Allison of McNally Robinson Bookstore
Allison Fairbairn, events coordintor for McNally Robinson Bookstore welcomes the crowd and introduces Catherine Lake.
Editor Catherine Lake
Editor Catherine Lake greets the crowd and introduces me.
Reading from Sundowner Ubuntu
This being my fifth time launching a book in my hometown, I really tried to take the time to savour the experience, really look out at the crowd, see people, have fun. It was a bittersweet evening in some ways in that for the first time in five years, I could not say: See you same time, same place, next year. But I gave everyone an update on my new writing project and promised the sixth Russell Quant was on the drawing board.
African Dancers
Our African Dancers - Nyasembe Watutu - which means, in Swahili, Mothers Three. The troupe was led by Kahmaria Pingue (in the middle) with Kristen and Kristy on either side. Not pictured, is drummer Marnie. They did a fantastic job of bringing even more African atmosphere to the Saskatchewan prairies, and had the crowd clapping.
Signing Line
Peggy, Diana, Bob, Ken in the signing line. Peggy, at the front, came to every one of my events in the city until she passed away in 2011.
Reading in line
Rob - already reading while waiting in the signing line. The one thing that worries me about these launches - how long people have to wait to get a book signed. We've tried entertaining them and feeding them. That kinda works. But really, they are the most patient people in the world to do this.
Signing Sundowner Ubuntu
Signing Sundowner Ubuntu in Saskatoon - it was another long line, but as I always say, I could've signed all night. What a gift.
Signing for fellow author, comic strip writer & adventurer Marie-Pierre
I think I signed MArie-Pierre's book with something like that I thought her the most adventurous person I know. Not only has she written books and comic strips, but she's been a bush pilot and has sailed wee boats (from my perspective) from Hawaii to San Francisco (among other destinations). That's something.
A Hug From Mom
Much was said that night about my dear mother having to not only buy the book, but wait in line to have it signed! Although a bit hard on her feet, I think she loved every minute of it, and I love that she loved it! This is our big hug when she made it to the front of the line.
African Princess or Mother-in-law Muriel?
Throughout the evening, we had face painters mingling through the crowd offering a touch of African tribal face makeup. The idea and designs, in part, were inspired by a restaurant I visited in Johannesburg that did the same thing with its customers during dinner. Muriel looked smashing!
Aloha, Candy Hearts: A Russell Quant Mystery #6
2009 Saskatchewan Book Award Finalist for Book of the Year Award
2010 Arthur Ellis Award for Best Crime Novel Finalist
2011 American Library Association GLBT Round Table Over The Rainbow Top Mystery
ISBN 13: 978-1-897178-76-8
From Pacific to Prairie, a teasing treasure hunt turns into a frightening game of cat and mouse. PI Russell Quant is plunged into the vagaries of a shocking hometown murder and the blasphemous blackmail of one of the literary world's most esteemed writers.
Russell can’t be sure whether a dead man’s surprising last gift is a treasure map or wild goose chase. With a series of clues that beckon Russell into the annals of suppressed Saskatoon history, he revisits the harsh realities of early homesteaders, investigates an infamous local sports heroine, escapes a second-run movie house, and digs for clues beneath the site of a never-forgotten scourge. As past reveals future, the hunter become the huntee.
Attempting to keep pace with his latest mystery, Russell balances his professional life with the demands of a wedding, a memorial, and at least one home-cooked meal at Mom’s. With the Hawaiian sand barely shook free from his hair, Russell is confronted, professionally and personally, with the harsh consequences of indecision. Saying hello and good-bye is never easy.
EY Alumni Pre-Launch Party
EY Alumni Pre-Launch Party in Saskatoon with Laurie & Shaye
Pre-Launch Party in Saskatoon
EY Alumni Pre-Launch Party in Saskatoon - Debbie, Gail, Rhonda
Party in Saskatoon
EY Alumni Pre-Launch Party in Saskatoon-Sherri-Lynn and Janet
Shelley Brown
EY Alumni Pre-Launch Party host: Shelley Brown
Random Acts of Poetry
Saskatoon Launch-Random Acts of Poetry by Taylor Leedahl
I had two local, up-and-coming, talented poets, Taylor Leedahl (pictured) and Wes Funk, performing random acts of poetry for the pre- and post- launch crowd. They both did an awesome job.
Attentive crowd
Saskatoon Launch - the attentive crowd part I (thank you!)
Mango tarts & Mai tais!
Saskatoon Launch-pre launch noshing and visiting
Saskatoon Launch - pre launch noshing and visiting - the Prairie Ink Restaurant went all out with a three foot tall tropical fruit kebab tree, mango tarts, pina colada icecream, ahi tuna on pastry, and mai tais!
Still attentive
Saskatoon launch - the attentive crowd Part II
Listening and smiling
Saskatoon launch - the attentive crowd Part III
Nicole Berard
McNally Robinson Events Coordinator Nicole Berard under the Tiki Hut
Events Coordinator Nicole Berard - McNally Robinson rented a Hawaiian Tiki Hut for the evening - looked great and really added to the ambiance
Auntie Pat
The Signing Line - planting one on Auntie Pat, next to my mom
The Signing Line - last year I got some (humourous) grief over the fact that my own mother had to buy a book, then stand in line for over an hour to get it signed. This time I had her sit next to me and help me greet guests - she was a rock star!
Signing Line
The Saskatoon Signing Line
Signing bridesmaids
Saskatoon Signing from Above with my 'bridesmaids' - my mom and auntie Jean
Aloha Signing Line
Saskatoon Signing Line
Family signing
Saskatoon Signing for Family - Maddy, Kim, Syd & Hope
Saskatoon Signing for Family - Maddy, Kim, Syd & Hope - the girls, Maddy & Syd, made me sign books - so what if they were children's books I hadn't actually written
The collection
Saskatoon Launch - with my collection, alongside sister Fran and mom
Saskatoon Launch - with my collection - kind of a n Artie-Johnson-Laugh-In moment
Date With a Sheesha: A Russell Quant Mystery #7
2010 Rainbow Award for Best Gay Mystery/Thriller
2011 American Library Association GLBT Round Table Over The Rainbow Top Mystery
McNally Robinson Saskatoon #1 Fiction Bestseller for 2010
ISBN 13: 978-1-897178-90-4
Neil Gupta travelled to the Middle East to buy carpets. Instead, in a dim corner of an exotic spice market, his lifeless body is found wrapped up in one.
From the glitzy, flamboyant, mega-high rises of Dubai, to the frankincense fields of Oman and scorching sand dunes of Saudi Arabia, PI Russell Quant is on one heckuva magical carpet ride; one that skids to a deadly halt on the frozen surface of a Saskatchewan pond.
Never one to shy away from a challenge, Russell prepares to face the killing heat, choking sand storms, and pungent, dead-black nights of Arabia. Attempting to find out why Neil Gupta was killed, Quant embarks upon a perilous journey that pits him against a deceitful Bedouin sheikh, shifty souk merchants, a snooty museum curator, quirky antique carpet enthusiasts, and an underground club for “fabulous men”.
As Russell’s spicy foreign adventure heats up, he learns valuable lessons about love, life, and learning to seize the moment…before it all disappears like smoke from a genie’s lamp. On the verge of solving his sizzling mystery, Russell finds himself making the biggest personal decision of his life, and discovering that sometimes, bitter endings pave the way for new beginnings.
Arabian appetizers
Trying out some of the Arabian themed appetizers at Date With a Sheesha Launch
All food prepared by the chef and kitchen at Prairie Ink Restaurant
Cousins
John, Tim, Gloria & others getting set for the reading
Date With a Sheesha hometown launch - Saskatoon
Waiting for it to start
Lynn & Garry
Date With a Sheesha launch
Filling up
Margaret & Candy
Date With a Sheesha Launch - April 15, 2010
Nicole Berard-McNally Robinson
Nicole Berard-McNally Robinson Saskatoon Events Coordinator
Introducing me at the lecturn decorated with lovely Arabian fabric
First reading
First reading from Date With a Sheesha
McNally Robinson Saskatoon, April 15, 2010
Getting some love
Getting some love from the home town crowd
Date With a Sheesha launch
DanceEgypt Dance Co.
Performance by DanceEgypt Dance Co.
Date With a Sheesha Launch
Belly dancing
Performance by DanceEgypt Dance Co.
Date With a Sheesha launch
Not so typical
The terrific belly dancers got the crowd clapping and even had a few people get up and show their stuff!
A typical Russell Quant launch....
Arabian feeling
More belly dancing
Getting that Arabian feeling going...
Seductive
Belly dancer or seductress?
Date with a Sheesha launch
Arabian night
Atmosphere of an Arabian Night in Saskatoon
Date With a Sheesha book launch
Lessons learned
Stay off thin ice & stay in school!
Two lessons learned from the final two Date With a Sheesha readings
A laughing family
Uncle Stan, Aunt Lois, my Mom, sister Hope and niece Amy
We're a laughing family
Finishing up
Reading
Finishing up.
Herb
Herb, ever supportive spouse.
Date With a Sheesha
Onwards
Event coordinator Nicole Berard closing up the reading portion of the night - on to the signing
Gathering
Gathering in the signing line
My awesome Saskatoon peeps
Sidekick
Signing with my sidekick for the night
With mother-in-law Muriel
Patience
Patiently waiting in the signing line in Saskatoon
Thank you!
Signing line 2009
The sign up line in McNally Robinson Saskatoon
Date With a Sheesha Launch
Craig
Signing for Craig
Date With a Sheesha Launch - Saskatoon
Norma & her girls
Norma & her girls
Date With a Sheesha Launch - Saskatoon
Myrna & Stan
Myrna & Stan
Date With a Sheesha Launch - Saskatoon
Sheesha
Quant books with a Sheesha in the middle
Three sheeshas were provided for the evening by Amy & Lily's Kashmir Handicrafts
Baby on board
Sarah (due in 2 weeks!) & Pat
Date With a Sheesha Launch - Saskatoon
Once upon a balcony
Bob, Lucy, Ken (whose balcony shows up in Stain of the Berry)
Date With a Sheesha Launch - Saskatoon
Happiness is...
Happily signing books - a favourite activity for sure
Date With a Sheesha Launch - Saskatoon
EY Alumni gang
Back-Murray, Bev, Herb, Noreen, Gail, Vic, Shaye, Me, David...Front-Rhonda, Janet, Laurie, Nikki, Trina, Shelley
EY Alumni gang - Book Signing at The Saskatoon Club
Murray & Shelley
With Murray & Shelley
Shelley was my boss in my Ernst & Young days and has hosted a signing event for every new book
Shaye & David
With Shaye & David
EY Alumni Book Signing
Bev
With Bev
EY Alumni Book Signing event - Bev is now a city councillor
Dos Equis: A Russell Quant Mystery #8
ISBN 13: 978-1-55483-067-1
After a year-long, self-imposed exile, ten whispered words on a cryptic telephone message change everything. Returning to his life as a prairie private eye, Russell Quant comes face to face with the greatest horror of his career.
Finding the body wasn’t the worst of it. Realizing it belongs to someone he knows, thrusts Russell Quant into his most personal and dangerous case. Risking everything, including the lives of those he loves, Russell fights to right a wrong at the hands of a nameless, faceless killer.
Up against a Machiavellian villain, Russell recruits his entire entourage of family and friends in an unforgettable caper that races from the frigid winterscapes of Saskatchewan to the pristine beaches of Mexico’s Costa Grande, in a tale of love, loss, lies, and coming home.
Nail biter
My first glimpse of Dos Equis! Always a special moment.
It was a nail-biting moment with the shipment of books arriving only the morning of the Saskatoon book launch.
Arrivals
Arrivals at the Saskatoon book launch. So many wonderful faces.
As guests arrived they were greeted by Spanish guitar music and their choice of a Dos Equis beer or a Dirty Banana frothy cocktail.
Rodolfo Pino Robles
Rodolfo Pino Robles, our talented Spanish guitar player
Setting the mood for the Mexican-themed latest Russell Quant adventure which takes place, in part, in Zihuatanejo, Mexico.
Mexican buffet
A buffet of Mexican delights at the Saskatoon launch
Prepared by Clint, the always creative chef of Prairie Ink Restaurant
Prepared
Preparing to be read to!
Getting started
Preparing to address the crowd
With Event Coordinator Marcy to the right, and Videographer Stacy to the left
