East of Mourning

About the Book

"Sex, Drugs, Booze, Rock and Roll, Suicide, Murder and .......... Hockey"

Brian, stuck in his hometown of Mourning, Ontario, slipping down the wrong side of thirty, can never win. Not as a hockey player or a coach. Not at his career. Not at anything.
Then, he meets Kyle Clark, a hockey prodigy, who joins his team. And life in Mourning begins to change. Kyle is good at everything. He can't lose.
As they grow closer and their lives entwine, Brian hopes that some of Kyle's magic will rub off on him.
But tragedy follows Kyle around, threatening to ruin the best laid plans. This time, however, Brian is not going to stand to the side and watch his dreams melt away.

"Michael Markus' East of Mourning is a superbly crafted dark comedy about the Great Canadian Dream gone bad for a frustrated hockey coach and the young, talented hockey payer upon whom he pins the last of his bitter deams. Sex, Drugs, rock & roll, suicide, murder, and of course, hockey all lurk within the eerily inviting pages of this dynamic and sharply framed literary tableau. Aptly written in a literary style as fast-moving as the sport of hockey itself, East of Mourning captures the imagination and holds the reader's interest in its shadowy and wryly malefic way. Highly recommended."

from the Wisconsin Bookwatch, The Midwest Book Review, December, 2001

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About the Author

East of Mourning is Michael Markus' second novel. His first, a popular children's novel, Lumps, Bumps and Bodyslams, was published by Scholastic.

The lifelong resident of Pembroke, Ontario in the heart of the Ottawa Valley has decided to branch off into Adult fiction. In East of Mourning, Markus has relied on his educational background in Social Work and his years of experience as a volunteer in Minor Hockey to provide the dynamics and details for the novel. His knowledge and appreciation of the culture of the Ottawa Valley, its speech patterns, its unique way of life, are central to all his work. Recently he has finished a screenplay, a collaborative effort with the front man, Jordon Zadorozny of the musical group, Blinker the Star, about Elvis Presley.

Also, Markus and several friends have formed Philistine Records an independent recording label and talent management company.

Click here to visit the author's web site, Mike Markus