8 Alberta Books for the Speculative Fiction, Mystery, and Thriller Reader
Alberta-published and packed with thrill-seeking adventures, high stakes, and mysteries to decipher – these 8 books are perfect for the speculative fiction, mystery and thriller readers on your holiday shopping list.
FLICKER
By Lori Hahnel
Cass Reisender doesn’t enjoy her psychic abilities. They appeared after her parents were killed in a tragic accident and led her to Madame Freyja, a travelling fortune teller and all-round terrible person. Swearing to leave both her psychic sensitivity and Madame Freyja behind, Cass starts again in Calgary, Alberta, a city with nothing supernatural about it at all. Then Cass touches a strange antique device and her new life is blown apart. Flicker is a playful, fast-paced romp through the golden age of invention, mythology, and the supernatural.
Flicker Lori Hahnel
Published: Sep 15, 2023 by University of Calgary Press
Lori Hahnel 
Published: Sep 15, 2023 by University of Calgary Press
ISBN: 9781773854687
Available as an accessible eBook
MIDNIGHT STORM MOONLESS SKY
By Alex Soop
Alex Soop, of the Blackfoot Nation, meticulously voices each and every one of the stories in this collection from the First Nations Peoples’ perspective. While striving to entertain readers with his bloodcurdling tales, Alexander imaginatively implements the numerous issues that plague the First Nations people of North America, by way of subliminal and head-on messages. These specific matters include alcohol and drug abuse; systemic racism; missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls; foster care; Residential School aftereffects; and over-incarceration. He also deals with legends of Indigenous folklore, such as Wendigo, ghosts, and the afterlife.
Midnight Storm Moonless Sky: Indigenous Horror Stories Alex Soop
Published: Oct 31, 2022 by Durvile Publications
Alex Soop
Published: Oct 31, 2022 by Durvile Publications
ISBN: 9781990735127
Available as an accessible eBook and audiobook
THE UNWORTHY
By Michael Prelee
Book Three in the Milky Way Repo Series, The Unworthy follows a captain and his crew as they attempt to keep their starship repo business afloat, amidst a galaxy controlled by powerful corporations and crooked government officials. If you love gripping stories packed with suspense, intrigue, and high-stakes space adventures; then The Milky Way Repo Series is a journey you can’t afford to miss.
The Unworthy
Michael Prelee
Published: 2023 by EDGE Science Fiction & Fantasy Publishing
ISBN: 9781770532298
Available as an accessible eBook
LIVINGSKY
By Anthony Bidulka
Merry Bell needed to get out of Vancouver. Fast. Returning to her home town of Livingsky, Saskatchewan was a desperate step. Living with plenty of secrets, but no money, friends, or place to live during a prairie winter, all while trying to start her own PI business proves to be more of a challenge than she imagined. With a first case that quickly turns more dangerous than it first appeared, Merry must deal with a dodgy client, the murder of the surgeon who performed her gender affirming surgery, and more than one mysterious stranger.
Livingsky Anthony Bidulka
Published: Jun 01, 2023 by Stonehouse Publishing
Anthony Bidulka
Published: Jun 01, 2023 by Stonehouse Publishing
ISBN: 9781988754475
LIFE BEYOND US
Edited by Julie Nováková, Lucas K. Law, and Susan Forest
Dive in as the European Astrobiology Institute presents fifty-four original SF Stories and Science Essays on life on Earth and beyond, from microbial to macro, from automatic to sagacious. Each speculative fiction story is followed by a professional essay illuminating the scientific underpinnings of the story and providing a new window into the cutting-edge knowledge about exploration for life on Earth and in the universe.
Life Beyond Us
Edited by Julie Nováková, Lucas K. Law, and Susan Forest
Published: 2022 by Laksa Media
ISBN: 9781988140483
SUPERNATURAL CHRISTMAS GHOST STORIES
By Barbara Smith
Bestselling author and trusted storyteller Barbara Smith delves into the heartwarming but sometimes sinister stories at that time of year when people may encounter the specters of those who have passed on to the other side.
Supernatural Christmas Ghost Stories Barbara Smith
Published: Oct 15, 2015 by Lone Pine Publishing
Barbara Smith
Published: Oct 15, 2015 by Lone Pine Publishing
ISBN: 9781551059198
Available as an accessible eBook
SECRETS OF JARROW
By Bill Slavin
In the early 22nd century, tech scavenger Mordecai Crow barely escapes a group of bandits by reaching Jarrow, a castle-like community wealthy in food. Rare in a world ravaged by climate change, it’s one of the mysteries Crow tries to unravel as he works with Jarrow’s archivists. Unfortunately for Crow – and society – most digital information we take for granted has been lost. Crow helps restore old devices and navigate ancient file formats to uncover information. Meanwhile, the murder of one of Jarrow’s food experts – central to its dominance of the local economy – is pinned on Crow. How and why this happened are two questions he must solve before the real culprit kills him too. Mordecai Crow must solve a mysterious murder to clear his name in a world ravaged by its past.
Secrets of Jarrow Bill Slavin
Published: May 17, 2023 by Renegade Arts Entertainment
Bill Slavin
Published: May 17, 2023 by Renegade Arts Entertainment
ISBN: 9781989754269
Available as an accessible eBook