What do you really know about the people you love? This question is explored in two new psychological thrillers that spiral down rabbit-holes of lies and secrets to find what lurks behind even the closest relationships. Norwegian psychologist and author Helene Flood presents her debut novel, The Therapist. The novel follows Sara, a therapist who uncovers a chaotic web of deceit after her husband suddenly disappears. Bestselling Canadian author Catherine McKenzie presents Six Weeks to Live, a gripping psychological suspense novel about a terminal cancer patient who realizes she may have been poisoned, and her quest to find out who did it before her time runs out.
Interviewer: Nicole Lundrigan
Ticket Info:
Date & Time: June 4 at 4:30pm ET
Where: Brigantine Room in Harbourfront Centre’s main building
Duration: 60 minutes
Ticket prices: $16.50 – Regular; $12.50 – Youth; or Get the All-Access Pass
*This event will be followed by a book signing
Supported by NORLA, Nordic Bridges and Harbourfront Centre.
Family secrets abound in the latest action-packed thrillers from Nicole Lundrigan and Luca Veste. Toronto-based Lundrigan presents An Unthinkable Thing, which spins the tale of a tragedy that brings a young boy into the home of a seemingly perfect family in 1958, and the dark secrets that close in until a horrifying moment changes everything. British author Luca Veste brings us You Never Said Goodbye, detailing one man’s discovery of a 25-year lie, when his father’s deathbed confession reveals that his mother may not have been the woman he thought she was.
Interviewer: Steven W. Beattie
Ticket Info:
Date & Time: June 5 at 1:30pm ET
Where: Studio Theatre in Harbourfront Centre’s main building
Duration: 45 minutes
Ticket prices: $16.50 – Regular; $12.50 – Youth; or Get the All-Access Pass
*This event will be followed by a book signing
Who says crime novels need to be serious? Scottish author Chris Brookmyre and Finnish author Antti Tuomainen have each infused humour and warm characters in their latest thriller novels. Brookmyre’s The Cut pairs two unlikely sleuths on a journey across Europe, while Tuomainen’s The Rabbit Factor sees an insurance actuary inherit an adventure park with a mountain of troubles. Hear the authors discuss how they turn the thriller genre on its head and why they mix fun into the chaos of crime.
Interviewer: Lisa de Nikolits
Ticket Info:
Date & Time: June 4 at 4:30pm ET
Where: Lakeside Terrace at Harbourfront Centre
Duration: 60 minutes
Ticket prices: $16.50 – Regular; $12.50 – Youth; or Get the All-Access Pass
*This event will be followed by a book signing
This event is generously supported by FILI – Finnish Literature Exchange, Scottish Books International , as well as Nordic Bridges and Harbourfront Centre.
Join us as award-winning author Anna Porter presents Deceptions: A Helena Marsh Novel. This witty, sophisticated sequel to The Appraisal returns to art appraiser Helena Marsh, whose latest job becomes a dangerous assignment. When the appraisal of a possibly priceless Italian painting leads to another run-in with menacing eastern European gangsters, Helena must carefully navigate a world of seething corruption that underlies the lost promise of post-Soviet Hungary. Join us in person to hear from Anna Porter about how she approaches this complex, entertaining series, and where she might plan to take it next.
Interviewer: Heidi Reitmaier
Ticket Info:
Date & Time: June 5 at 2pm ET
Where: Lakeside Terrace at Harbourfront Centre
Duration: 45 minutes
Ticket prices: $16.50 – Regular; $12.50 – Youth; or Get the All-Access Pass
*This event will be followed by a book signing
Internationally bestselling author Shari Lapena graces the TIFA stage for a fascinating festival opener exploring the mayhem of one family’s gruesome secrets. In her latest thriller, Not A Happy Family, Toronto-based Lapena spins a murderous story of an upscale New York couple, and the twists and turns that pin their three adult children as prime suspects. Having sold more than seven million copies of her books in 38 territories around the world, Lapena is a master of suspense and will keep you on the edge of your seat.
Interviewer: Shinan Govani
Ticket Info:
Date & Time: June 3 at 6pm ET
Where: Brigantine Room in Harbourfront Centre’s main building
Duration: 60 minutes
Ticket prices: $16.50 – Regular; $12.50 – Youth; or Get the All-Access Pass
*This event will be followed by a book signing
Bestselling British author, radio and television contributor and guitarist for the Fun Lovin’ Crime Writers, Mark Billingham, graces the TIFA stage to present his latest novel, Rabbit Hole. This gripping standalone thriller follows ex-police officer Alice Armitage, a long-term patient in an acute psychiatric ward following a debilitating bout of PTSD. When a fellow patient is murdered, Alice spirals into an investigation that threatens to further unravel her life. As an acclaimed writer of crime fiction, with expansive book series and television adaptations under his belt, Mark Billingham is sure to offer an entertaining conversation for fans and aspiring writers alike.
Interviewer: Linwood Barclay
Ticket Info:
Date & Time: June 4 at 5pm ET
Where: Harbourfront Centre Theatre
Duration: 60 minutes
Ticket prices: $16.50 – Regular; $12.50 – Youth; or Get the All-Access Pass
*This event will be followed by a book signing
Fact and fantasy intertwine in the works of Murdoch Mysteries creator Maureen Jennings, and of Scottish husband-and-wife duo Chris Brookmyre and Marisa Haetzman (known by the pen-name Ambrose Parry). The historical fiction writers will come together to share how they meld mystery with history and apply research in the crafting of their tales. The event will dive into Except the Dying by Maureen Jennings (set in the cold Toronto winter of 1895), and A Corruption of Blood by Ambrose Parry (set in Edinburgh in the 1840s).
Interviewer: Janet Smyth
Ticket Info:
Date & Time: June 5 at 4pm ET
Where: Brigantine Room in Harbourfront Centre’s main building
Duration: 60 minutes
Ticket prices: $16.50 – Regular; $12.50 – Youth; or Get the All-Access Pass
Presented with support from Scottish Books International.
TIFA’s most provocative conversation series returns, exploring thrilling new themes for MOTIVE audiences. Each day of the Festival, authors and industry experts will come together to examine a new facet of the culture and politics that shape the world around us and the books we read.
The role of policing has transformed considerably over time and history, reflecting – or perhaps failing – the changing needs of society. The culture and politics that shape the western world’s police forces is evident in the news we see, the lives we live, and the stories we read every day. In recent years, these stories and lived experiences have prompted a collective call-out for increased transparency and accountability from those who “serve and protect”. This critical conversation will explore the complexities of policing in today’s society, by asking: what role must a 21st century police force serve for individuals and communities? What kind of reform is necessary? Who is being hurt the most? And, how might defunding strategies and non-policing alternatives help establish more effective and equitable policing practices?
Panelists Julius Haag, assistant professor of sociology at the University of Toronto Mississauga; Mohamed Shuriye, Manager, Policing Reform, City of Toronto; and Norman Taylor, Program Director, Global Studies Program for the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police (CACP), will discuss, in moderated conversation guided by Alyshah Hasham (Courts Reporter, Toronto Star).
Ticket Info:
Date & Time: June 3 at 7pm ET
Where: Studio Theatre in Harbourfront Centre’s main building
Duration: 60 minutes
Ticket prices: $16.50 – Regular; $12.50 – Youth; or Get the All-Access Pass
This series is presented in partnership with the Provocation Ideas Festival.
This enlightening discussion between Basque author Jon Arretxe (The Touré Saga) and White Earth Nation citizen Marcie Rendon (Sinister Graves) proves that crime fiction can an effective genre to confront barriers to social justice and give space to diverse voices. Rendon presents Sinister Graves, the final installment of the Cash Blackbear series, where Cash, a 19-year-old Ojibwe woman, searches for the truth behind the disappearances of Native girls and their newborns. Arretxe’s Detective Touré is an illegal immigrant for whom it is a daily struggle to survive in a neighborhood that abounds with criminality, prostitution and the bad life of the poorest classes. The authors will speak to the significance of their work, and why their characters’ stories are more important to share now, than ever before.
Interviewer: Martha Batiz
English-Spanish Translator: Celeste Bilbao-Joseph
Ticket Info:
Date & Time: June 4 at 5pm ET
Where: Studio Theatre in Harbourfront Centre’s main building
Duration: 60 minutes
Ticket prices: $16.50 – Regular; $12.50 – Youth; or Get the All-Access Pass
*This event will be followed by a book signing
Presented with support from Etxepare Basque Institute.
Since its 1987 inception, British-Canadian author Peter Robinson’s massively popular Inspector Banks series has captured a worldwide audience, having been published in 24 languages and adapted for UK television. This not-to-be missed conversation with Robinson will uncover how he crafts and sustains such suspenseful plots and enduring characters. Robinson will also present his latest book in the series, Not Dark Yet: a dark foray into one woman’s past, which plunges she and Banks into greater danger than ever before.
Interviewer: Mark Billingham
Ticket Info:
Date & Time: June 5 at 4:30pm ET
Where: Harbourfront Centre Theatre
Duration: 60 minutes
Ticket prices: $16.50 – Regular; $12.50 – Youth; or Get the All-Access Pass
*This event will be followed by a book signing