Staff Picks
At FriesenPress, we celebrate each and every book we help our authors publish. Here are some of our team’s recent favourites – happy reading!
The Black Walnut Tree
by
Elizabeth Brasier
Sylvie Linden has endured a lifetime of family and intimate partner violence both in her young life in Montreal and her marriage relationship in Waterloo. Her six-year-old daughter Dana, a witness to the violence in their household, is Sylvie’s greatest concern. When a series of crises—including a natural disaster and ensuing homelessness—brings them to an Old Order Mennonite farming family in rural Ontario, new challenges unfold. Members of the Thomas Martin family try to maintain their usual home and faith life while striving to help these outsiders suddenly in their midst. Distraught and vulnerable, Sylvie grapples with fear as she struggles to recover from trauma. Sylvie fights ghosts of chaos, mistrust, and secrecy in this unfamiliar setting of orderly household tasks, farm chores, livestock, and farm equipment—feeling beckoned at times by family warmth and affection, patience, generosity, and gentle teasing—while watching Dana find her own way. Henry Martin develops a strong friendship with both mother and daughter, which brings him face to face with anguish of his own. Feeling called to help Sylvie and Dana, Henry must deal at the same time with mistaken assumptions, scorn, and misunderstanding within both his family and his wider Mennonite brotherhood. The Black Walnut Tree will touch the minds and hearts of adult and young adult readers of any background—including those who have survived trauma and those who are trying to support others healing from it. Many readers will relate to the struggles of living a life of faith while trying to deal with others' judgment of, or assumptions about their choices.
Lucifer's Rose
by
A. E. Chenier
LYSANDER Lysander Whitlock was trained to kill monsters—not to become one. A Slayer bound to an ancient, volatile power. But when a mission gone wrong awakens something far older than the Corps ever intended, Lysander begins to question whether obedience is salvation… or a lie. KIAKO Kiako is not what the world expects. Feared, desired, and endlessly underestimated, she carries a power that does not bend easily to gods or men. She has loved before. She has lost before. And she has no intention of surrendering herself again. TOGETHER Drawn together by frost, Lysander and Kiako find themselves at the center of a war where Slayers, demons, and gods all want the same thing: control. But some power cannot be owned. And some love is dangerous enough to rewrite the fate of heaven and hell.
Sleep Walk
by
Charles Johnston
Jamie Brock is trying to put his life back together. After being horrifically burned in a welding accident and enduring months of rehab, nightmares, and sleepwalking, he returns to Ron’s Auto, his longtime employer, and the site of his disfigurement. A skilled mechanic and the garage’s resident “good guy,” Jamie is welcomed back by its owners, Ron and Rosemary, their daughter Lena—who has long nursed a crush on Jamie—and wise-cracking mechanic, Mike. The garage resumes its old rhythms and Jamie’s connection with Lena blossoms. But all is not as it seems. Before long, people begin to disappear in the small town of Pincher Creek, Alberta. People connected to Ron’s Auto. Suspicion falls on Jamie, whose sleepwalking becomes increasingly disorienting. Disturbed by his inability to account for what he does during the night, Jamie, with the help of Lena, starts to investigate himself. What he discovers is darker—and more tragic—than he could have imagined. In Sleep Walk, Charles Johnston gives us a story reminiscent of early Stephen King: an ordinary man in a working-class milieu confronted by the unimaginable. Blending elements of mystery, Gothic horror, and psychological realism, and written with urgency and suspense, Johnston asks how well we can ever know each other—and ourselves.
Celestial Bonds
by
Patricia Morrison
How do you tell someone you’re half angel, the guy you like is a full angel, and you are learning to fight so you can defeat your dad, who is a fallen angel? Shayla Hart has always felt different. On paper, her life is like anyone else’s: quality time with her mom, Kyra, in their picturesque home of Campbell River, and high school with her zany best friend, Karina. But when a mysterious new student enters the picture, her darkest suspicions are confirmed. Tory is Shayla’s guardian, sent to protect her from her father, Ryder, a malevolent being whose fall from grace has put her whole world in danger. Under Tory’s guidance—with help from a ragtag group of archangels—Shayla must learn to harness the light within to resist Ryder’s magnetic darkness. Easier said than done when volleyball practice, bff drama, and a certain sexy angel are living rent-free in her subconscious. A tribute to the power of mothers, daughters, female friends, and the importance of staying true to yourself, Celestial Bonds is the first in a series of heavenly reads with just enough teen drama to keep things down to earth.
At Your Side
A Collection of Final Days by
Gabriella Forbes
Take a closer look at the unpredictable world of elder care, and you will see people who cannot speak suddenly find their voices. They will not sit together but will happily sing together. They will not look at each other but share a prolonged hug after the meal is done. Take a closer look and you will see the beauty and the dignity of those in their final days. In these sixteen vignettes, Forbes moves beyond the clinical charts and first impressions. She stands, sits and squats at the side of her elderly charges, in their homes, in hospitals and everywhere in between. Blending her love of the elderly with that of writing, the author honours the intimate moments of humour and humanity that arise when caring for society’s sometimes forgotten treasures. Moving beyond the power of the vignettes, Forbes then brings together the threads of aging and humility as she seamlessly weaves in interviews, diverse sources and imagined lectures. These extra layers bring depth and understanding to what it means to age -- and to serve others. At Your Side: A Collection of Final Days offers valuable insights and reflections on lives lived and the impacts that anyone can have on others at any stage of life. It will appeal to anyone who has cared for others, who seeks to, or expects to do so in future.
My Powell River
Growing Up In A Mill Town by
Ron Olsen
Living in Powell River, British Columbia back in the 1950’s and 1960’s was a boyhood dream. Powell River was and is like a jewel in the crown. It had everything, mountains, lakes, forests, the ocean, and so much more, and it gave me a childhood that allowed me to explore everything about myself with parent guidance, but without parent interference. My childhood allowed me to find myself with friends my own age and to discover what the rules of the game were without interference, with the outcome being an independent, well-rounded person. Meet the Powell River of my youth, my family, the streets where I grew up, my mill experience, and the wonderful people who influenced my life, and travel with me through some of the best memories ever.
Fair of Face
by
Rosemary Hurren
Welcome to Edenvale, a small town … with big secrets. When Private Investigator Kit Kotcka arrives in Edenvale, Ontario, to look into the background of a teenage mother whose infant child recently died of starvation, an ethereal smell of smoke haunts her. Kit’s task should be straightforward: to find the family and friends of the young mother, Fiona Orth, and find out what sort of person she is. Could Fiona be lying about how she was let down by social services who failed to recognize her child wasn’t thriving under his mother’s care? Kit quickly discovers that the perfect small-town life is not as it seems in this tourist hotspot. Interviewing family, former teachers, and classmates, she starts to colour a mental portrait of Fiona, a brilliant but strange child with a checkered past. Kit teams up with Jack, a journalist who is doing his own research on a murder investigation within the same family in Edenvale. By combining their skills, they uncover a complicated web of family secrets that are threaded throughout the community. With Kit sniffing around town and asking questions about events that were buried long ago, she disturbs a snake’s nest and becomes a target for someone who needs to ensure her silence. Kit soon finds herself in a race to uncover the truth about the tragedies this town has faced—before she becomes the next victim.
Chuck and Bobbi
Meet Peter by
Tracey Walsh
Bobbi’s mom calls her the boss of the house. Bobbi loves having her mom’s attention. So, when her mom decides to foster Peter, a rescue pup from Lebanon, Bobbi is unsure whether there’s room for him in the family. She doesn’t like sharing her mom’s attention with Peter. Peter is shy, scared, and nervous in his new home. He needs a lot of patience and love. Mom takes good care of him. Chuck, Bobbi's brother easily forms a friendship with Peter, but Bobbi is still jealous. Can she learn to accept Peter? One day during a walk in the forest, Bobbi, Chuck, Peter, and Mom are surrounded by a pack of coyotes. They all feel scared. What will they do? Who will protect them? The answer is surprising!