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For romance enthusiasts, Love from A to Z and its sequel, Love from Mecca to Medina, by S.K. Ali are the perfect choice. Adam and Zayneb’s relationship is heartwarming and entertaining, but there are many questions the two must face. Was their meeting just an oddity? Or, like the greatest marvels of the world, can their love transcend anything? Journey through the story of their relationship, and adventure through Qatar and Saudi Arabia as the backdrop of their love story.

Nancy Lam’s The Loyal Daughter is a novel in stories, told from the perspective of mother, daughter and granddaughter; spanning through generations from the 1940s to modern day. Following a young woman in Communist China to her life in Toronto, the book is filled with heart-breaking sacrifices, struggles and secrets, and provides a thought-provoking portrayal of a woman’s resilience.

In Toronto, I Love You, Didier Leclair explores various perspectives of Toronto, from the friendly and welcoming ideal to the darker, hidden struggles of the Afro-Caribbean community. After fleeing unrest and misery in Benin, protagonist Raymond Dossougbé is initially enamored with Toronto as a new home, but he soon uncovers complex social dynamics in a community unwilling to adapt. Part love letter, part social critique, this book is a great gift for the literary readers in your life.

Thomas King’s books are a gift that always keeps on giving. Deep House, the sixth book in the DeadfulWater series, sees Thumps DreadfulWater entangled in a new mystery when he unexpectedly finds a dead body. It throws his peaceful, post-pandemic life in small-town Chinook into a puzzling adventure. With King’s usual wit and wry humour, it’s a perfect choice for those looking for a cozy mystery.

A perfect gift for detective fiction fans, The Dark Flood features two superstar detectives on a pursuit to clear their names after an unauthorized investigation threatens to reveal corruption in South Africa’s halls of power. Deon Meyer is a South African author known for writing with a powerful punch, full of twists and sharp prose. This spotlight on state capture and corruption lends political weight to an already intriguing story.

Inside the Montreal Mafia leaves no stone unturned with an exclusive inside look at the North American Mafia through the secret confessions its authors perilously collected from high-ranking Mafioso Andrew Scoppa between 2014 and 2019. This investigative work will appeal to true crime readers everywhere.

The visceral collection of personal essays, Run Towards the Danger, was announced as the 2022 Toronto Book Award winner in November. Toronto-based, Oscar-nominated screenwriter, director and actor Sarah Polley delves into her past to illuminate powerful truths about post-traumatic memory, our relationship to the body and how we tell our stories. It’s an honest, humorous and inspiring read for anyone brave enough to confront the constant human state of becoming, learning and changing.

As a finalist of the Atwood Gibson Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize, Saeed Teebi’s short story collection is a must-have for readers this year. Teebi offers compelling reflections on the Palestinian diaspora with grace and deep insight. From the perspectives of a doctor, professor, student, refugee and more, these intense and compelling stories share diverse perspectives of the immigrant experience.

Tsering Yangzom Lama came onto the literary scene with a bang with her debut novel, We Measure the Earth with Our Bodies, making the shortlist for the 2022 Scotiabank Giller Prize, and the longlists for the Center for Fiction First Novel Prize and Toronto Book Awards. The book is a poignant meditation on colonization, displacement and rebirth, recounting a Tibetan family’s 50-year journey through exile and their struggles to shape new lives.

A perfect gift for the banana and dinosaur-loving child in your life; Benny the Bananasaurus Rex is a fun, beautiful and wholesome book about a kid named Benny. Benny loves bananas. He eats them morning, noon and night. He even rides a bike with a yellow banana seat. In fact, Benny has a secret, he hopes one day he will turn into a banana! And if there is one thing Benny knows, it’s that with a little imagination anything is possible. This is a great gift for kids aged 3 and up.

The Global Ocean is a stunning book that explores the ocean’s enormous influence on the planet, as well as humans’ often detrimental influence on the ocean. It may seem like Earth’s five oceans are separate and distinct, but they are actually a linked system of circulating water that is one single ocean: the global ocean. This book provides young readers with the knowledge about inspiring initiatives that are underway to restore and heal Earth’s most important feature. This gift is recommended for children aged 8 and up.

Give your YA reader Louisa Onomé’s latest novel, Twice as Perfect, this year. The novel follows 17-year-old Ada and her struggle of putting everyone else first, from school and the debate team to her Nigerian parents and even her cousin. Amid parental pressure, reconnecting with her estranged brother and her cousin’s enormous wedding, Ada faces the question, what makes her happy? This book is recommended for readers aged 12 and up.

Drawing on both lived experience and cultural memory, Norma Dunning brings together six powerful new short stories centred on modern-day Inuk characters in Tainna: The Unseen Ones, Short Stories. Norma Dunning’s masterful storytelling uses humour and incisive detail to create compelling characters who discover themselves in a hostile land where prejudice, misogyny and inequity are most often found hidden in plain sight. Tainna won the 2021 Governor General’s Award for literature. Also be sure to pre-order Dunning’s next book, Kinauvit?: What’s Your Name? The Eskimo Disc System and a Daughter’s Search for her Grandmother.

See Norma Dunning in the following event:

Critical Conversation: Continuing to Act: Reconciling, Not Reconciliation
October 2 at 7pm, Studio Theatre

In an urgent and visceral work that asks essential questions about the treatment of Native people in North America while drawing on intimate details of her own life and experience with intergenerational trauma, Alicia Elliott offers indispensable insight into the ongoing legacy of colonialism in A Mind Spread Out on the Ground. She engages with such wide-ranging topics as race, parenthood, love, mental illness, poverty, writing and representation, and in the process makes connections between the past and present, the personal and political. With deep consideration and searing prose, Elliott provides a candid look at our past, an illuminating portrait of our present and a powerful tool for a better future.

See Alicia Elliot in the following event:

The Re-Read: Tomson Highway on Indigenous Mythology
September 28 at 8pm, Harbourfront Centre Theatre

Laughing with the Trickster provides brilliant, jubilant insights into the glory and anguish of life from one of the world’s most treasured Indigenous creators. Trickster is zany, ridiculous. The ultimate, over-the-top, madcap fool. Here to remind us that the reason for existence is to have a blast and to laugh ourselves silly.

See Tomson Highway in the following event:

The Re-Read: Tomson Highway on Indigenous Mythology
September 28 at 8pm, Harbourfront Centre Theatre

A wildfire of a debut memoir by internationally recognized French/Cree/Iroquois journalist Brandi Morin set to transform the narrative around Indigenous Peoples. Morin is also a survivor of the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls crisis and uses her experience to tell the stories of those who did not survive the rampant violence. Our Voice of Fire chronicles Morin’s journey to overcome enormous adversity and find her purpose, and her power, through journalism.

See Brandi Morin in the following event:

Critical Conversation: Continuing to Act: Reconciling, Not Reconciliation
October 2 at 7pm, Studio Theatre

A daring post-apocalyptic novel from a powerful rising literary voice, blending action and allegory, Moon of the Crusted Snow upends our expectations. Out of catastrophe comes resilience. And as one society collapses, another is reborn. Moon of the Crusted Snow was the winner of the 2019 OLA Forest of Reading Evergreen award.

See Waubgeshig Rice in the following events:

A Different Page: Open Creation
September 30 at 12pm, South Lawn Tent

A Different Page Presented by Pratibha Arts
September 30 at 8pm, Lakeside Terrace

When the world entered pandemic lockdown in spring 2020, Robyn Maynard, influential author of Policing Black Lives, and Leanne Betasamosake Simpson, renowned artist, musician, and author of Noopiming: The Cure for White Ladies, began writing each other letters which grew into a powerful exchange about where we go from here. By articulating to each other Black and Indigenous perspectives on our unprecedented here and now, Maynard and Simpson create something new in Rehearsals for Living: an urgent demand for a different way forward, and a poetic call to dream up other ways of ordering earthly life.

See Leanne Betasamosake Simpson in the following event:

Leanne Betasamosake Simpson in Concert
October 1 at 7:30pm, Concert Stage

Capturing the chaos and wonder of a precarious childhood, Cody Caetano delivers a fever dream coming-of-age garnished with a slang all his own. Half-Bads in White Regalia is an unforgettable debut that unspools a tangled family history with warmth, humour, and deep generosity.

Magodiz (Anishinabemowin, Algonquin dialect): a person who refuses allegiance to, resists, or rises in arms against the government or ruler of their country.

Everything that was green and good is gone, scorched away by a war that no one living remembers. The small surviving human population scavenges to get by; they cannot read or write and lack the tools or knowledge to rebuild. The only ones with any power are the mindless Enforcers, a formless spiritual entity that has infiltrated the world to subjugate the human population.

With themes of resistance, of ceremony as the conduit between realms, of transcending gender, Magodiz is a powerful and visionary reclamation that Two-Spirit people always have and always will be vital to the cultural and spiritual legacy of their communities.

When the earth was new, words had the power to breathe life into the world. But when creating animals from breath, sometimes one does not get everything right on the first try! Based on a traditional Inuit story passed forward orally for generations in the South Baffin region of Nunavut, The Walrus and the Caribou shares with young readers the origin of the caribou and the walrus—and tells of how very different these animals looked when they were first conceived.

Mink is a witness, a shape shifter, compelled to follow the story that has ensnared Celia, a seer, and her village, on the West coast of Vancouver Island in Nuu’Chahlnuth territory. Celia’s Song relates one Nuu’Chahlnuth family’s harrowing experiences over several generations, after the brutality, interference, and neglect resulting from contact with Europeans.

Conceived in the same world as their acclaimed debut, Bones, Tyler Pennock’s Blood follows a Two-Spirit Indigenous person as they navigate urbanity, queerness, and a kaleidoscope of dreams, memory, and kinship. Pennock weaves longing, intimacy and Anishinaabe relationalities to recentre and rethink their speaker’s relationship to the living-never forgetting non-human kin. It is a reminder that Indigenous people carry the impacts of colonial history and wrestle with them constantly, exploring the relationships between spring and winter, ice and water, static things and things beginning to move, and what emerges in the thaw.

Morgan and Eli are Indigenous children who discover a portal at their foster home to another world, Askī; there they discover talking animal beings who connect them to traditional ways, as well as help them deal with the challenges in the real world. A fantasy for readers aged ten and up, the Misewa Saga (“misewa” is Cree for “all that is”) series reflects stories of the sky and the constellations held within its great canvas. Get your copy of Barren Grounds, Great Bear and Stone Child.

Based on her Atkinson Fellowship in Public Policy series, All Our Relations is a powerful call for action, justice, and a better, more equitable world for all Indigenous Peoples. In this urgent and incisive work, bestselling and award-winning author Tanya Talaga explores the alarming rise of youth suicide in Indigenous communities in Canada and beyond. The Indigenous experience in colonized nations are marked by the violent separation of Peoples from the land, the separation of families and the separation of individuals from traditional ways of life. But, Talaga reminds us, First Peoples also share a history of resistance, resilience, and civil rights activism.

Whitemud Walking is a genre-bending work of visual and lyric poetry, non-fiction prose, photography, and digital art and design. Using photos, documents, and recordings that are about or involve his ancestors, but are kept in archives, Weigel examines the consequences of this erasure and sequestration.

Born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Marie-Celie Agnant immigrated to Quebec when she was 17. She is the author of 17 books that have been published in Québec, France and Haiti, and translated into many languages. In her childhood, books were her refuge while the country was experiencing repression and writing has been a love of hers since a young age. Themes of racism, exile and the conditions of women have been popular topics in her works, drawing most of her inspiration from her time in Haiti. Agnant will be presenting A Knife in the Sky (translated by Katia Grubisic).

Marie-Celie Agnant will be appearing in the following event:

Histories of Resistance: Marie-Célie Agnant & Kim Leine
September 25 at 2pm

Dionne Brand was born in Trinidad and is a poet, novelist, non-fiction writer, filmmaker, educator and activist. She is the author of 23 books of poetry, fiction and non-fiction. Her writing has received many awards including the Governor General’s Award for English-Language Poetry, the Trillium Book Award, the Griffin Poetry Prize and the Toronto Book Award. In 2022, it was announced that Brand would be the editorial director for a new imprint with Knopf Canada, Alchemy. Brand will be presenting Nomenclature.

Dionne Brand will appear in the following event:

Nomenclature: Dionne Brand
October 1 at 1:30pm

Lorna Goodison is the author of 14 books of poetry, three short-story collections, and an essay collection. She was Jamaica’s Poet Laureate from 2017 to 2020 and was the recipient of The Queen’s Gold Medal for Poetry in 2019. In 2013, Goodison received the Order of Distinction, a national order in the Jamaican honours system. Lorna Goodison will be presenting Mother Muse.

Lorna Goodison will appear in the following events:

Lorna Goodison Poetry Reading
October 2 at 6pm

Mother Muse: Lorna Goodison
October 2 at 12:30pm

Didier Leclair (Didier Kabagema) was born in Montreal to Rwandan parents. He grew up in Africa—Gabon, Benin, Togo, Ivory Coast and Congo-Brazzaville—and returned to Canada in 1987. In 2000, his novel Toronto, I Love You won the Prix Trillium. He cites Chester Himes, James Baldwin and Carson McCullers as a few of his sources of inspiration. Leclair will be presenting Toronto, I Love You.

Didier Leclair will appear in the following event:

Toronto Through the Looking Glass: Didier Leclair & Mariam Pirbhai
October 1 at 1:30pm

Born in Douala, Cameroon, in 1973, Léonora Miano is one of the most important voices in francophone literature. She is a novelist, playwright and essayist, she is also the founder and director of Quilombo Publishing based in Lomé, Togo. The company’s mission is to provide a welcoming space for young writers, especially those from sub-Saharan Africa, make unexpected voices heard, reveal new imaginaries and promote oral literature. Miano will be presenting Twilight of Torment.

Léonora Miano will appear in the following event:

The Different Sides of the Story: Elise Levine & Léonora Miano
September 24 at 8pm

Shani Mootoo is a writer and visual artist. She was born in Ireland to Trinidadian parents and grew up in Trinidad before moving to Canada in her early twenties. She earned a Fine Arts BFA Degree at the University of Western Ontario, an MA in English and Theatre from the University of Guelph and was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Letters from Western University. Her artwork has been displayed around the world, including at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City. Mootoo will be presenting Cane | Fire.

Shani Mootoo will appear in the following events:

Poetry Reading: Pamela Mordecai & Shani Mootoo
September 25 at 4pm

Poetic Journeys: Shani Mootoo & Pamela Mordecai
September 25 at 1pm

Pamela Mordecai writes poetry, fiction and plays. Her collections of poetry include Journey Poem, de Man, Certifiable, The True Blue of Islands, Subversive Sonnets, de book of Mary, Up Tropic and A Fierce Green Place: new and selected poems. The first poem she ever wrote was when she was nine, about a hurricane that hit the island of Jamaica in that year. In 2013, she was awarded the Institute of Jamaica’s Bronze Musgrave Medal. Mordecai will be presenting A Fierce Green Place and de Book of Joseph.

Pamela Mordecai will appear in the following events:

Poetry Reading: Pamela Mordecai & Shani Mootoo
September 25 at 4pm

Poetic Journeys: Shani Mootoo & Pamela Mordecai
September 25 at 1pm

Born in Congo-Kinshasa, Téa Mutonji is a poet and writer based in Toronto. She holds a degree in Media Studies and minors in English Literature and Creative Writing from the University of Toronto Scarborough. Her debut collection of short stories, Shut Up You’re Pretty, won the Trillium Book Award and is the first title from Vivek Shraya’s imprint at Arsenal Pulp Press, VS. Books.

Téa Mutonji will appear in the following event:

Writing Short Stories, with Téa Mutonji
September 26 at 5:30pm

Louisa Onomé is a Nigerian-Canadian writer of books for teens and adults. She holds a BA in professional writing and a MA in counselling psychology. When she is not writing, she works as a narrative designer for video games. Onomé will be presenting Twice as Perfect.

Louisa Onomé will be appearing in the following event:

Bodies of Evidence with Louisa Onomé & Courtney Summers
September 30 at 6pm

Rollie Pemberton is a writer, rapper, producer, poet and activist who performs under the name Cadence Weapon. He won the 2021 Polaris Music Prize for his album Parallel World and was a former Poet Laureate in his hometown of Edmonton. When he was 17, he wrote an album review and sent it to Pitchfork, earning him a spot in the magazines year end book publication and a role as Pitchfork’s authority on hip hop. Pemberton will be presenting Bedroom Rapper.

Rollie Pemberton will appear in the following event:

Stories & Soundtracks: Michael Barclay & Rollie Pemberton
September 24 at 4:30pm

Jasmine Sealy is a Barbadian-Canadian writer based in Vancouver, BC. She is a graduate of the MFA program in Creative Writing from UBC and is the former Prose Editor at PRISM international. An Island of Forgetting is her debut novel and won the UBC/HarperCollins Best New Fiction Prize in 2020.

Jasmine Sealy will appear in the following event:

Legacy, Lore & Love: David A. Robertson & Jasmine Sealy
September 25 at 5:30pm

Drop in at the TIFA Kids tent any day of the Festival for endless fun at Storydrop! Presented in partnership with the Children’s Book Bank, Storydrop offers fun, hands-on activities for ages 4 and up. Dress up as your favourite character and bring a book to life at the Book Jacket Photobooth; contribute to the creation of the Great Collage Creature, a large crowd-created art piece to be displayed at the Children’s Book Bank; cozy up for an afternoon of reading in the book nook, where you’ll find books by featured authors and illustrators at the Festival. Plus, each weekend of the Festival from 2–4pm, there will be the chance to join in with an illustrator from the programme to create a giant piece of artwork.

Located on the west lawn at Harbourfront Centre, this space is part of the free, outdoor events at #FestofAuthors22.

Hear authors and illustrators talk about their latest books in person each day of the Festival. Don’t miss Rochelle Strauss and Natasha Donovan talking about the ocean or Joyce Grant exploring the importance of teaching kids to navigate the internet with a critical eye. As well, Michael Hutchinson, Nancy Vo, Kenneth Oppel and Sachiko Kashiwaba are just some of the authors joining us for conversations, Q&A and readings. Browse more events here.

The world’s supply of happiness is running low and The Happiness Collectors need your help! Pop on your headphones and join SAM (Special Agent M) on a journey of sounds and silliness to learn the best ways to collect happiness – and most important of all, how to pass it on! SAM will take your around the world to visit the jungle, the Antarctic, New York City, a beach, an Olympic stadium and the circus.

The Happiness Collectors is friendly for all neurodiverse people and families with children aged 5+. Each audience member will be given a set of wireless headphones to wear for the duration of the performance.

Registration is needed to attend. Book your tickets here. See Additional Performance Dates to select a time.

Located in the South Lawn Tent, this event is part of the free, outdoor events at #FestofAuthors22.

It wouldn’t be a book festival without some of the best storytellers reading books to you! Join your favourite authors reading their own books or even their favourite books. Author and illustrator Kevin Sylvester discusses the latest book in his Hockey Super Six series, In The Game, as well as Apartment 713. Linda Bondestam will take you under the sea in My Life at the Bottom to learn about one of the world’s rarest sea creatures with the chance to do some drawings of your own. On September 25 and October 2, Fay and Fluffy will be on the Stage in the Park spreading their message of inclusivity, kindness and being proud of yourself – and show that reading is FUN-damental! There is much more to see at the festival so be sure to check out all the TIFA Kids event listings.

The Big Create & Make is a drop-in session where you can linger for 10 minutes or 2 hours, and be part of making something big, beautiful and creative! Get in on the Festival fun and meet a published picture-book illustrator, while flexing your own creative muscles. Taking place September 24–25 and October 1–2, each day will feature a different illustrator:

September 24 @ 2pm ET: Linda Bondestam
September 25 @ 2pm ET: Ellie Arscott
October 1 @ 2pm ET: Barbara Reid
October 2 @ 2pm ET: Natasha Donovan

Located in the Storydrop space (Tent B), this event is part of the free, outdoor events at #FestofAuthors22.

Calling all aspiring authors and artists! TIFA Kids is offering a variety of free writing and illustration workshops with some of the authors appearing at the festival. Ashley Spires will be talking about how she came up with her character, Binky the Space Cat, and you’ll even get to create your own comic! Ireland’s Laureate na nÓg, Áine Ní Ghlinn will take your storytelling to the next level by offering a range of writing prompts to populate your blank pages. Let your creativity flow!

Have you ever wondered how one language translates to another? Do you think we come up with the same words? Oui ou non? Join us in translating some of the picture book La Petite Créature by French illustrator and graphic artist, Marjolaine Leray. Pick the page and whatever language you like and our translators will help! What will the book look like by the end? It all depends on the words you choose …

Located in Tent C, all day September 24 & 25. this event is part of the free, outdoor events at #FestofAuthors22.

Children’s books are often the first contact we have with literature and art, and they make a powerful impression. Regardless of age and culture, we have used stories both as entertainment and in search of knowledge, to strengthen our ties with others – both those who are like us and those who are unlike us – and not least in order to understand our own existence. The Swedish Academy for Children’s Books seeks to enable children to have access to powerful and enriching reading experiences and has produced this exhibition as a tribute to children’s literature. Learn more here.

TIFA is proud to partner with the Canadian Children’s Book Centre (CCBC) to present the 2022 CCBC Book Awards, celebrating the best Canadian books for young people. The winners for the English-language awards will be announced in this broadcast of the much-anticipated event in the world of Canadian books for young people. You can view the event in person or virtually!

Sit down with acclaimed authors and industry experts for a MOTIVE Masterclass, where hands-on lessons dive into crafting compelling stories and perfecting the art of editing. Each leading their own class, Torontonian Marissa Stapley, Scottish author Doug Johnstone and UK publisher Karen Sullivan will share a facet of their expertise in an intimate 90-minute session in Harbourfront Centre’s Main Loft. Whether you sign up for all or just one, be sure to bring your questions about plotting, writing and publishing for these experts to tackle. All writing levels are welcome.

Get tickets:

Masterclass: Marissa Stapley on the Heart of Character Development (Friday, June 3 at 6pm ET)
Masterclass: Doug Johnstone on Killer Editing (Saturday, June 4 at 4pm ET)
Masterclass: Karen Sullivan on the Path to Published (Sunday, June 5 at 4pm ET)

Pictured: Doug Johnstone.

Crime-writing experts Margaret Cannon and Sarah Weinman will take the MOTIVE stage to field your questions about writing tools and trends and Canadian reading recommendations. Don’t miss this chance to ask the experts your biting crime-genre queries at these free, outdoor presentations.

Events:

Ask the Expert: Sarah Weinman (Saturday, June 4 at 3:30pm ET)
Ask the Expert: Margaret Cannon (Sunday, June 5 at 3:30pm ET)

Pictured: Sarah Weinman.

Ever wonder what it’s like to pitch a book idea? TIFA and the Crime Writers of Canada invite you to be a fly on the wall to witness a live pitch session in action. Pitch Perfect is a showcase of writers pitching their ideas to a panel of judges. Be prepared to jot down some notes as the panel of publishing experts provide constructive feedback on their ideas. This event is free with registration.

Event:

Pitch Perfect (Sunday, June 5 at 6:30pm ET)

Pictured: Pitch Perfect judge Carolyn Forde, Partner, Senior Literary Agent and International Rights Director at Transatlantic Agency.

What better way to become a great writer than to learn from the classics? TIFA’s Re-Read series is back for MOTIVE, featuring award-winning writers , Kurdo Baksi, Mark Billingham and Val McDermid taking a look at famous books and authors who have captivated readers for decades and made a substantial impact on the crime and mystery genre. From Agatha Christie to Stieg Larsson, you’ll learn how prolific authors broke the rules to make the genre their own.

Get tickets:

The Re-Read: Val McDermid on Agatha Christie (Saturday, June 4 at 1pm ET)
The Re-Read: Kurdo Baksi on Stieg Larsson (Saturday, June 4 at 1:30pm ET)
The Re-Read: Mark Billingham on Dashiell Hammett (Sunday, June 5 at 1pm ET)

Debut authors were aspiring writers not too long ago, and are a great resource for learning about the publishing industry right now. Join debut authors Ramona Emerson, Wanda Morris and Nita Prose at MOTIVE to learn about their books and publishing process, and get advice on how to jump from aspiring to published.

Get tickets:

Secrets & Lies: Wanda Morris & Chris Pavone (Sunday, June 5 at 6:30pm ET)
The Maid: Nita Prose (Sunday, June 5 at 7pm ET)
Paranormal Plotlines: Ramona Emerson & Stuart Neville (Sunday, June 5 at 7:30pm ET)

Pictured: Ramona Emerson.

Meet your favourite authors in person throughout the weekend at MOTIVE book signings, which take place after most ticketed events and at the Crime Writers of Canada tent. It’s an opportune time to interact one-on-one and ask that quick burning question. Be sure to check individual event pages for details on book signings.

Events:

Crime Writers of Canada Tent (Saturday and Sunday starting at 11am ET)
In-Person Events (June 3–5)

Linwood Barclay is an American-born Canadian author whose New York Times bestselling novels have been translated into more than a dozen languages and sold millions of copies around the world. Notable books include No Time for Goodbye, which The Daily Express called “a fast-moving rollercoaster of a read,” and Trust Your Eyes, a finalist for the Crime Thriller Book Club Best Read from the Crime Thriller Awards. Barclay’s newest novel, Take Your Breath Away, delves into the cold case of Brie Mason, a woman who mysteriously disappeared six years ago. When Brie’s lookalike returns, her husband Andrew must uncover a trail of accusations, lies and murder. Join master of suspense, Linwood Barclay, as he discusses his infectious new thriller.

Linwood Barclay will participate in the following events:

Take Your Breath Away: Linwood Barclay
Sunday, June 5 at 1:30pm ET, Harbourfront Centre Theatre

Rabbit Hole: Mark Billingham with Linwood Barclay
Saturday, June 4 at 5pm ET, Harbourfront Centre Theatre

Ian Hamilton is the Canadian author of the acclaimed Ava Lee and Uncle Chow Tung series. The Water Rat of Wanchai won the Arthur Ellis Award for best first crime novel, The Disciple of Las Vegas was shortlisted for the Barry Award and The Wild Beasts of Wuhan was shortlisted for the Lambda Award for best lesbian crime/mystery novel of 2013. BBC Culture named Hamilton as one of ten mystery writers from the last 30 years who should be on your bookshelf. In The Sultan of Sarawak, Chinese-Canadian forensic accountant Ava Lee travels to Malaysia on the trail of the powerful Chong family, who have a criminal stranglehold over the province. Join Ian Hamilton as he discusses his brilliant heroine and intricately crafted plots.

Ian Hamilton will participate in the following event:

The Sultan of Sarawak: Ian Hamilton
Sunday, June 5 at 1:30pm ET, Brigantine Room in Harbourfront Centre

Robyn Harding is a Canadian author of many books, including The Party, which was an international bestseller, and The Swap, which reached #1 on both the Globe and Mail and Toronto Star bestseller lists. In The Perfect Family, Harding crafts a fast paced and character-driven thriller that explores the lives of Thomas and Viv Adler and their well-mannered children. When their Porsche is pelted with eggs, it sets off a cascade of attacks against the wealthy family. The police dismiss these as the work of bored teenagers, but the terrified Adlers begin to investigate on their own, only to discover family secrets better left hidden. Join Robyn Harding as she discusses her twisty, page-turner of a novel.

Robyn Harding will participate in the following event:

The Perfect Family: Robyn Harding
Saturday, June 4 at 2pm ET, Brigantine Room in Harbourfront Centre

Thomas King is the Canadian-American author of Green Grass, Running Water; The Truth About Stories; The Back of the Turtle; Indians on Vacation; and the DreadfulWater mysteries. He has won numerous awards, including the Governor General’s Literary Award for Fiction, the RBC Taylor Prize and the Stephen Leacock Medal for Humour. King’s latest crime novel, Deep House, continues the adventures of Cherokee ex-cop Thumps DreadfulWater, who has found peace in small-town Chinook, only to stumble upon a body at the bottom of a treacherous canyon. Join Thomas King as he lays out the clues with his signature wit and wry humour.

Thomas King will participate in the following event:

Deep House: Thomas King with Shelagh Rogers
Saturday, June 4 at 7:30pm ET, Harbourfront Centre Theatre

Canadian Shari Lapena is the bestselling author of The Couple Next Door, A Stranger in the House and An Unwanted Guest. Her books have sold seven million copies in 38 territories around the world. In her latest thriller, Not a Happy Family, Lapena delves into the lives of a rich and seemingly happy family in upstate New York. When Fred and Sheila Merton are brutally murdered the night after Easter Dinner, suspicion falls on their three adult children. Could one of them be a psychopath, and wouldn’t the other siblings know? Join Shari Lapena as she untangles this web of secrets, greed and revenge.

Shari Lapena will participate in the following event:

Not a Happy Family: Shari Lapena
Friday, June 3 at 6pm ET, Brigantine Room in Harbourfront Centre

Beverley McLachlin is a Canadian crime writer and #1 national bestseller for her book, Full Disclosure, which was shortlisted for the Arthur Ellis Best First Crime Novel Award. She is also Canada’s longest-serving Chief Justice. Her novels combine thrilling plot twists with realistic courtroom scenes that have been used in law schools to show how trials really work. In McLachlin’s latest bestseller, Denial, brilliant defence attorney Jilly Truitt must use all her legal acumen to untangle the truth in a bizarre “mercy-killing” case. Join Beverley McLachlin as she discusses her process for creating a gripping mystery.

Beverley McLachlin will participate in the following events:

Denial: Beverley McLachlin
Sunday, June 5 at 11am ET, Brigantine Room in Harbourfront Centre

Critical Conversation: The Ethics of Crime Writing
Friday, June 4 at 2pm ET, Outdoor Stage

Nita Prose is a Canadian author whose debut novel, The Maid, was a #1 national and New York Times bestseller, and was also a pick for the Good Morning America and Cityline book clubs. Molly Grant is a young woman who struggles with social queues. She takes a job as a hotel maid, delighting in her orderly surroundings. However, when Molly comes upon the body of rich and infamous Charles Black during her rounds, her unusual demeanor makes her the prime suspect for the police. Join Nita Prose as she lays out her Clue-like mystery and hear her unique perspective on the publishing world as an editor-turned-author.

Nita Prose will participate in the following event:

The Maid: Nita Prose
Sunday, June 5 at 7pm ET, Harbourfront Centre Theatre

Canadian Marissa Stapley is a journalist, magazine editor and bestselling author of The Last Resort, Things to Do When It’s Raining and Mating for Life. Her newest book, Lucky, was a New York Times and national bestseller, and was a Reese Witherspoon Book Club pick. Meet Lucky Armstrong, a talented grifter who is on the run from the police. When Lucky buys a lottery ticket on a whim, she discovers it is worth millions. Only problem, how to collect her winnings without being arrested? Join Marissa Stapley on this rollercoaster ride of a heist novel that interrogates the ideas of punishment, redemption and forgiveness.

Marissa Stapley will participate in the following events:

Lucky: Marissa Stapley with Hannah Mary McKinnon
Saturday, June 4 at 2pm ET, Harbourfront Centre Theatre

Masterclass: Marissa Stapley on the Heart of Character Development
Friday, June 3 at 6pm ET, Main Loft in Harbourfront Centre

After seeing your favourite Canadian mystery writers live on Harbourfront stage, sleuth out the Crime Writers of Canada (CWC) Tent and meet them in-person. CWC is a national non-profit for Canadian crime and mystery writers. All day Saturday and Sunday, authors will be signing books and chatting with fans. The tent and readings are some of the many free, outdoor events at MOTIVE this year, including readings, discussions and activities for the whole family.

Crime Writer of Canada Tent
Saturday, June 4 at 11am to 7pm ET, west lawn at Harbourfront Centre
Sunday, June 5 at 11am to 7pm ET, west lawn at Harbourfront Centre

Crime Writers of Canada Readings
Saturday, June 4 at 6pm ET, Outdoor Stage
Sunday, June 5 at 2pm ET, Outdoor Stage

Mark Billingham is an English writer known for his bestselling Inspector Thom Thorne novels, which Sky 1 adapted into a hit series. He has twice won the Theakston’s Old Peculier Award for Crime Novel of the Year. In his latest standalone thriller, Rabbit Hole, Billingham follows ex-cop and long-term patient Alice Armitage as she investigates a murder in her acute psychiatric ward. Will Alice be able unravel the mystery without succumbing to her lingering PTSD? Get the scoop on this latest novel as he sits down with Canadian bestselling author Linwood Barclay in person at MOTIVE.

Mark Billingham will participate in the following event:

Rabbit Hole: Mark Billingham with Linwood Barclay
Saturday, June 4 at 5pm ET, Harbourfront Centre Theatre

Fun Lovin’ Crime Writers in Concert
Saturday, June 4 at 7:30pm ET, Concert Stage at Harbourfront Centre

The Re-Read: Mark Billingham on Dashiell Hammett
Sunday, June 5 at 1pm ET, Main Loft in Harbourfront Centre

Winner of the Los Angeles Times Book of the Year Award and the CWA Golden Dagger Award, Scottish author Val McDermid has sold over 17 million books around the world. In her newest novel, 1979, McDermid introduces rookie reporter Allie Burns, who must navigate the newsroom boys’ club while investigating a terrorist plot close to home. Join Scotland’s Queen of Crime in person at MOTIVE for discussions about her writing, Agatha Christie and a special performance.

Val McDermid’s Festival appearance is generously supported by Scottish Books International.

Val McDermid will participate in the following events:

The Re-Read: Val McDermid on Agatha Christie
Saturday, June 4 at 1pm ET, Main Loft in Harbourfront Centre

Fun Lovin’ Crime Writers in Concert
Saturday, June 4 at 7:30pm ET, Concert Stage at Harbourfront Centre

1979: Val McDermid
Sunday, June 5 at 1pm ET, Brigantine Room in Harbourfront Centre

Irish author Adrian McKinty has written over a dozen crime novels and is the winner of the Edgar Award, the International Thriller Writers Award and the Ned Kelly Award. In The Island, his latest novel and soon to be Hulu series, McKinty explores a family vacation gone horribly wrong. Separated from her new husband and surrounded by murderous locals, what will one woman do to keep her step-children safe?

Adrian McKinty will participate in the following event:

The Island: Adrian McKinty
Saturday, June 4 at 11:30am ET, Lakeside Terrace at Harbourfront Centre

Winner of the Stuttgart Crime Fiction Award, Melanie Raabe is a German author and journalist whose work has been published in over 20 countries. Her latest novel, The Shadow, spent 18 weeks on the Der Spiegel bestseller list. After a homeless woman prophesises the date when Norah Richter will kill a man “with good reason and of your own free will,” Norah must decide whether she should hate someone she has never met.

Melanie Raabe’s Festival appearance is generously supported by Goethe-Institut.

Melanie Raabe will participate in the following event:

Chiller Killers: Melanie Raabe & Max Seeck
Saturday, June 4 at 11:30am ET, Brigantine Room in Harbourfront Centre

Book & Brötchen with Melanie Raabe & Elizabeth Renzetti
Sunday, June 5 at 11:30am ET, Goethe-Institut Toronto 

Lilja Sigurðardóttir is an award-winning Icelandic author, playwright and scriptwriter. The first novel in her bestselling Reykjavík Noir Trilogy, Snare, was shortlisted for the CWA International Dagger, while the third, Cage, won Best Icelandic Crime Novel of the Year and was a Guardian Book of the Year. Her latest thriller, Cold as Hell, follows Áróra as she returns home to find her estranged sister, who has gone missing in the midnight sun of the Icelandic summer.

Lilja Sigurðardóttir’s Festival appearance is generously supported by Icelandic Literature Centre.

Lilja Sigurðardóttir will participate in the following event:

Sisters in Search: Kellye Garrett & Lilja Sigurðardóttir
Saturday, June 4 at 2pm ET, Studio Theatre in Harbourfront Centre

Javier Cercas is an internationally acclaimed Spanish novelist and columnist. Cercas’s books have been translated into over 30 languages, while Soldiers of Salamis has sold more than a million copies worldwide. In his latest novel, Even the Darkest Night, convict-turned-cop Melchor Marín must uncover the truth about a brutal double murder in the remote town of Terra Alta. Learn from this master storyteller from the comfort of home as Cercas discusses his elegantly constructed thriller.

Javier Cercas will participate in the following event:

Even the Darkest Night: Javier Cercas
Saturday, June 4 at 8pm ET, Virtual Event

Bestselling Dutch crime novelist Tica Morgan brings her experience as a police-investigator to her acclaimed Inspector Zoe Janssen thrillers. In the series’ upcoming fourth novel, Hell’s Gate, Inspector Janssen must investigate a new mystery on the small islands of southern Netherlands. Join Tica Morgan for this special event, presented by Kobo Plus, as she discusses her new book, fascination with the crime genre and experience being published in multiple languages.

Tica Morgan will participate in the following event:

Hell’s Gate: Tica Morgan
Friday, June 3 at 5pm ET, Virtual Event

Fuminori Nakamura is a Japanese author best known for The Thief (2010), his critically acclaimed first novel to be translated into English. Winner of the prestigious Ōe Prize and David L. Goodis Award, Nakamura creates fascinating puzzle box narratives that feature tantalizing strangers and enigmatic acquaintances. “Turn this page, and give up your entire life,” he writes in his latest novel, My Annihilation, a disturbing dissection of what motivates a killer. Join the master of the literary noir virtually as he discusses this journey into the darkest corners of the human mind.

Fuminori Nakamura will participate in the following event:

My Annihilation: Fuminori Nakamura
Sunday, June 5 at 12:30pm ET, Virtual Event

Ilaria Tuti is an Italian author and winner of the Gran Giallo Città di Cattolica literary prize for her short story The Pagan Child. Tuti’s novels evoke her love of nature and Italy’s rich history. In The Sleeping Nymph, her highly anticipated next instalment of the Teresa Battaglia series, Superintendent Battaglia must travel to one of Italy’s most untouched regions to investigate a decades-old murder.

Ilaria Tuti’s Festival appearance is generously supported by Istituto Italiano di Cultura.

Ilaria Tuti will participate in the following event:

The Sleeping Nymph: Ilaria Tuti
Saturday, June 4 at 10am ET, Virtual Event

Critically acclaimed Australian author Emma Viaskic has won the Ned Kelly Award, five Davitt Awards and has twice been shortlisted for the CWA Dagger Award. Her books are published worldwide and are frequently listed among the best crime novels this decade. In Those Who Parish, the hotly anticipated conclusion to the Caleb Zelic series, Viskic places her Deaf protagonist on an isolated island community under threat from a sniper. Will Caleb find his drug addicted brother before the sniper does?

Emma Viskic will participate in the following event:

Those Who Parish: Emma Viskic
Sunday, June 5 at 8pm ET, Virtual Event