The Island Walkers - Brossura

The Island Walkers is a well-written, well-constructed novel. John Bemrose's characters are so firmly established they are permitted occasionally to act against type. They live as real people live. (Times Literary Supplement)

A closely knit family drama ... achieves a real lyrical power, bolstered by a delicately understated prose style (The Times)

The lyrical prose style wins you over. It's not often that you find writing as good as this ... Bemrose combines a fine storytelling talent with an evocative sense of place. (Daily Mail)

The surprise hit of Canada's fall fiction list (Ottawa Citizen)

A deeply atmospheric debut from John Bemrose. It stands for unspoken emotion, stoicism, occasionally contentment ... Bemrose's prose is elegant, his images well chosen ... Existential themes of endurance and anxiety are subtly woven into a languid narrative which is at the same time robust enough to examine issues of class, passion, betrayal and disintegration. (Literary Review)

In The Island Walkers, John Bemrose tells a compelling human story with such an unmistakable sense of place that the reader could be forgiven for wondering why we haven't heard of this clearly accomplished novelist before...[this] beautifully crafted debut novel...should earn [Bemrose] a place in the Canlit pantheon (Edmonton Journal)

The Island Walkers is a beguiling, melancholy ensemble piece which manages ... not to oversimplify the complex issues involved. (The Big Issue)

A compelling tale ... Peppered with poetic descriptions and loaded imagery, John Bemrose's novel is beautifully written ... It's not all doom and gloom, with moments of wild abandon and joy often bursting unexpectedly into the picture to ease the tension ... Moving, warm and ultimately positive (The List)

An extraordinary debut novel . . . an exceptional storytelling talent (Toronto Globe and Mail)

The storyline is taut, almost unbearably so at times, from the opening pages (Maclean's)

John Bemrose is a well-known arts journalist in Canada. He grew up in Ontario, the place that inspired the setting for The Island Walkers, and now lives in Toronto. He has also lived in London. The Island Walkers is his first novel, and he is at work on his second.