All Lit up did a nice write-up on my novel Wrist, you can read about it on the All Lit Up Blog here:
https://alllitup.ca/Blog/2016/First-Fiction-Fridays-Wrist
Or see copy & paste below:
First Fiction Fridays: Wrist
Sneak-peek alert! Wrist, Nathan Adler’s debut novel releasing in July from Kegedonce Press, is a “fusion of horror genre, urban fantasy and Indigenous storytelling methods.” Sounds amazing, right? Well, we can sweeten the deal a little further: sign up for a release notification for Wrist and receive a special promo code to get 10% off the book Lee Maracle calls “captivating from beginning to end.”
What:
Wrist (Kegedonce Press, 2016)
Who:
Nathan Adler is a writer and an artist who works in many different mediums. Nathan won the Canadian Aboriginal Writing Challenge in 2010, and is currently working on a second novel and collection of short stories. He is a member of Lac Des Mille Lacs First Nation. You can read his blog here.
Why you need to read this now:
Wrist is unlike anything you’ve ever read. With a fusion of horror genre, urban fantasy and Indigenous storytelling methods, Adler crafts a tale that lives somewhere between The Addams Family and paintings of Norval Morrisseau. As with gestalt theory, the whole is more than the sum of its parts, and with Wrist, Adler has crafted something wholly unique and captivating.
Wrist follows the story of dinosaur hunters who, in 1872, become embroiled in a battle over the discovery of fossils in Northern Ontario as their excavation crews are driven mad by a bizarre and terrifying illness. Over a hundred years later, Church and his family show signs of the same monstrous affliction. As he begins to unravel his family’s dark history, Church must race to protect the secrets buried deep in bones and blood.
Written from the monster’s perspective, readers get a taste of the insatiable hunger that drives Wiindigo mad, while sharing a human-ness to which we can all relate. Fans of traditional horror genre books – think Frankenstein and Dracula – will enjoy the descriptions of old-world medicine and science while exploring the intricate lives of the Indigenous monsters described by Adler.
While a work of fiction, readers may feel a sense of familiarity in the imagery crafted by Adler. Wrist is set in the fictional communities of Sterling and Ghost Lake Reserve – both of which are influenced by Ontario geography, in particular Lac Des Mille Lacs First Nation and Neyaashiinigmiing (Cape Croker).
Suspenseful, dark and deliciously horrifying at times, there are also gentler threads of family connection, human struggle and love entwined throughout the story. Readers will also notice the refreshingly LGBTQ2-positive storyline.
What other people are saying:
“I love how Adler solicits the assistance of the natural world in weaving his magical tale – fantastic, captivating from beginning to end.” – Lee Maracle, author of Celia’s Song
“Nathan Adler writes exceptionally well. His words weave together and tell a haunting story that leaves you wanting more.” Christine Smith (McFarlane) – Freelance Journalist
“Nathan Adler blends poetic imagery and Anishinaabe story to create something totally new and completely beautiful.” – Cherie Dimaline, author of A Gentle Habit, The Girl Who Grew a Galaxy, and Red Rooms
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Thanks so much to Allison at Kegedonce Press for sharing Wrist with us! We can’t wait until it comes out: remember, sign up here to receive a nudge and promo code when the book releases. For more great debut fiction, click here.
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