Fiction Literary Fiction Fiction/Crime/Mystery Speculative Mystery Paperback
One summer’s day, a man is lured out of his garden for a private conversation. Ms. Teller, the daughter of his mentor, gives him the task of tracking down Modal, a suspect in the eyes of the Non-Crime Unit. The former agent (with a telltale “M” monogrammed on his pajamas) gives himself “the name of a famous detective” and sets out on his local odyssey, leaving his wife and daughter behind.
The agent’s first steps put him in touch with PQ, a disgraced police clerk, CM, an alluring harpsichordist, Dr. VK, a travelling psychiatrist, and Barbie, a surprisingly resourceful realtor. He takes up lodging with an eccentric family in their “complex” and soon finds himself spending time with an actress, a linguist, a transcriber, and a Shakespeare professor, all with something to share about Modal.
Still haunted by a botched operation and the memory of his fellow infiltrator, Esme, the agent persists in using the method detailed in Teller’s procedural guide, Scent of a Non-Crime. Yet his overidentification with Modal is the least of his worries as the anticipated conflict inches dangerously close to home.
“Garry Thomas Morse’s fiction is a force field of delight and innovation. It’s continually breaking out of its book-born mold and flying off as art, taking you with it.”
– M.A.C. Farrant, author of ‘The Strange Truth About Us’, a Globe & Mail Best Book
“Incalculable, engaging, and exhilarating.”
– Marina Endicott
This book was made with the generous support of the Manitoba Arts Council and the Canada Council for the Arts.
A metafictional feast in 3 helpings, emphasizing the “double realm” that bridges reality and art, and its power to draw people into it.
