Sometimes it’s not a singular bad guy that you need to worry about… sometimes it’s a whole institution. Join authors Katrín Júlíusdóttir and Yun Ko-eun as they discuss the antagonists in their books: greed and corruption. In Júlíusdóttir’s debut, Dead Sweet (translated by Quentin Bates), a detective solving murder of a wealthy businessman ends up […]
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Embark on a journey back in time with these immersive, page-turning historical reads that deliver the rush that comes with solving mysteries. In this conversation between two skillful storytellers of times gone by, S.G. MacLean brings The Bookseller of Inverness, a gripping thriller set in the wake of the 1746 Battle of Culloden. Jeffrey Round’s […]
Join us for a captivating conversation on women’s experiences with the judicial system, unreported missing women and the ongoing battle for equality with Elizabeth Flock and Sarah Weinman. In The Furies, Flock dives into the stories of three remarkable women who fought against oppressive systems, sparking vital discussions on women’s self-defence and the failures of […]
Calling aspiring authors! Join Lisa Highton, literary agent at Jenny Brown Associates, and Karen Sullivan, founder and publisher at Orenda Books, for a conversation filled with insights and advice from these international publishing industry experts. Get valuable tips and tricks on effectively pitching your book and standing out in the competitive publishing world. This informal […]
What mysteries can our blood reveal? From injury, intoxication and infection, our blood tells us a lot about a crime. Learn about presumptive blood testing at the scene, and analyze blood spatter pattern clues to unravel the ‘how’ and ‘why’ of a homicide. This interactive workshop includes a blood spatter assessment activity that allows participants […]
Learn how to craft compelling stories and bring captivating characters to life through hands-on lessons from acclaimed authors and industry experts. Led by Kimberley Howe, bestselling thriller author and Executive Director of ThrillerFest, this masterclass will dive into the art of crafting compelling dialogue. From the nuances of dialogue construction to mastering rhythm, it will […]
Join Kelley Armstrong and Drew Hayden Taylor for a spine-tingling event delving into the myth and supernatural of their latest novels! In The Boy Who Cried Bear, Armstrong takes readers to the eerie town of Haven’s Rock, where Detective Casey Duncan and Sheriff Eric Dalton encounter a chilling mystery involving a bear with human eyes. Meanwhile, […]
Our Critical Conversations series brings authors and experts together to examine the culture and politics that shape the world around us and the books we read. In this event moderated by Kevin Donovan (author and podcast host of Billionaire Murders and Death in a Small Town), panelists Kelly Bergstrom, Assistant Professor in the Department of […]
Join us for a captivating conversation between author Jon S. Dellandrea and OCAD University professor Charles Reeve as they delve into the intriguing world of art theft, forgery and famous Canadian art crimes. Dellandrea’s The Great Canadian Art Fraud Case uncovers a forgotten trial involving forgeries of Tom Thomson and the Group of Seven’s art, while […]
Join us to hear the latest in Canadian crime fiction! Crime Writers of Canada (CWC), a national non-profit organization for Canadian crime and mystery writers, will offer a thrilling glimpse into the latest scintillating stories by homegrown writers. The following writers will be reading from their work: Saturday Sunday Ann Lambert Alexis Stefanovich-Thomson John Hill […]
A MOTIVE Pass is your ticket to explore as much of the Festival as you wish. Come for a day or join for all three! Choose the type and duration that suits you best. Passes are required to attend author conversations and screenings, but are not required for events indicated as FREE on the schedule. […]
In 2022, The Maid by Nita Prose took the book world by storm as unconventional protagonist Molly captured the hearts of readers everywhere. While her awkwardness and unique perspective puts her at a disadvantage with coworkers, readers find her relatable and resilient. Join us as Prose spills the beans on the sequel, The Mystery Guest, […]
This talk given by forensic toxicologist, Dr. Karen Woodall dives into the evolution of Ontario’s opioid crisis, and how it ties into criminal behaviour, covering illegal distribution, contraband use in prison, and homicide. Dr. Woodall is an associate professor at the University of Toronto, has been an active scientist for the Centre for Forensic Sciences, […]
Two young women are trapped in a deadly chase through the beautiful, dangerous waters around Australia in the new thriller from the bestselling author of Our Little Secret—perfect for fans of The Woman in Cabin 10 and The Drowning Woman. Ivy is in trouble. A recent break-up has left her humiliated and raw, so when her best friend, Regan, […]
There’s a fine art to murder…Hal Mulberry has long dreamt of owning the iconic painting, Buttermere at Dawn. And now the entrepreneur has got his hands on it, he’s determined to bring it back to the Lakes where it belongs and put it on show, turning Penrith Village Hall into a cultural hotspot – with […]
Lights, camera, murderIn the Lake District, someone’s laying on a deadly welcome…The cast and crew of a popular TV crime drama are shooting in the Lake District – but behind the scenes, relationships are as tense as on-screen. The director’s reputation proceeds him, the two lead stars are feuding and rumours swirl. Meanwhile the locals […]
Elizabeth Flock is an Emmy Award–winning journalist and the author of The Furies: Women, Vengeance and Justice, about women who fight back. Her work has been featured in the New Yorker, the New York Times, the Atlantic, on the PBS NewsHour and Netflix. She is the host of Blind Plea, a podcast about criminalized survival. […]
S.G. (Shona) MacLean was born and brought up in the Scottish Highlands where her parents were hoteliers. She holds a PhD in History from the University of Aberdeen. She is the author of both the Alexander Seaton and the Damian Seeker series of historical mysteries, twice winning the CWA Historical Dagger for the latter. Her […]
Murray Clayton is the Program Officer and Outreach Coordinator for the Forensic Science Program at the University of Toronto, having graduated with a Master of Science in Evolutionary Anthropology in 2016, focusing on the use of elemental analysis on human bone for the purposes of assessing age-at-death in the identification process. He combines his forensic […]
Kelley Armstrong graduated with a degree in psychology and then studied computer programming. Now she is a full-time writer and parent, and she lives with her husband and three children in rural Ontario, Canada. She is the author of the Rockton mystery series featuring Detective Casey Duncan, which begins with City of the Lost, and […]
Laurah Norton is the writer, researcher and host of The Fall Line, a deeply researched podcast covering cold cases in the Southeast, and One Strange Thing, a show that looks at unexplainable stories from American news archives. Previously, she was a principal senior lecturer at Georgia State University, where she taught creative writing, podcasting and […]
Leonie Swann grew up near Munich and earned degrees in philosophy, communications and psychology from Munich University and the Munich School of Philosophy. Her debut novel, Three Bags Full, was published in 2005 and became an instant hit, leading the German bestseller charts for months. It has since been translated into 26 languages and won […]
Catherine Mack (she/her) is the pseudonym for the USA Today and Globe & Mail bestselling author of over a dozen novels. Her books are approaching two million copies sold worldwide and have been translated into multiple languages including French, German, Portuguese and Polish. Television rights to Every Time I Go on Vacation, Someone Dies and […]
