Project and content management for Contemporary Authors volumes
WORK TITLE: Still Mine
WORK NOTES:
PSEUDONYM(S):
BIRTHDATE: 1975
WEBSITE: http://www.amystuart.ca/
CITY: Toronto
STATE: ON
COUNTRY: Canada
NATIONALITY: Canadian
http://www.simonandschuster.com/authors/Amy-Stuart/470979375
RESEARCHER NOTES:
PERSONAL
Born 1975, in Toronto, ON, Canada; married; children: three sons.
EDUCATION:University of British Columbia, M.F.A.
ADDRESS
CAREER
Writer.
AWARDS:Short Prose Competition for Developing Writers winner, Writers’ Union of Canada, 2011.
WRITINGS
Contributor to periodicals.
SIDELIGHTS
Amy Stuart is a Canadian writer. Born in Toronto, Ontario, she completed an M.F.A. at the University of British Columbia and won the 2011 Writers’ Union of Canada Short Prose Competition for Developing Writers. Stuart has published stories in various Canadian periodicals and journals.
Stuart published her first novel, Still Mine, in 2016. Clare O’Dey has run away from her husband and is laying low in the remote mining town of Blackmore. She is hired by Malcolm Boon to search for Shayna Fowles, a young woman who disappeared several weeks before Clare’s arrival. Clare sees many parallels between her life and that of Shayna, and she worries about who in town is trustworthy.
In an article on the CBC Web site, Stuart talked about how sticking with her narrator throughout the writing process was a risky choice, as she proved to not come across as a likeable character. Stuart said that her friends and other readers told her “that Clare is frustrating. And that was a choice that I made, knowing it was a bit of a risk, to have a protagonist that the reader isn’t necessarily going to like, or who’s going to cause them frustration as they read, but I was okay with that.”
Interviewing Stuart for the Big Thrill, April Snellings queried the author about her choice of setting in the novel, and why that came before the characters were even created. Stuart clarified, “By setting the town of Blackmore deep in the mountains, I was hoping to invoke a sense of isolation and starkness. Clare came from farmland and had never been to the mountains before page one of Still Mine. So they provoke an anxiety in her, and force her to rely on the locals in a way she might not have to do if she were in more familiar territory. … I wanted the setting to help shape the plot in the sense that Clare understands the mountains to be dangerous to her too.” In the same interview, Stuart talked about her choice to mix different elements and genres in her debut novel. She reasoned, “These days, I think writers have a lot of leeway in that they can set out to write a thrilling book but play with the methods they use to get there. There’s no set methodology or genre structure that binds us. I love detective stories, domestic noirs and literary novels, and I wanted Still Mine to have elements of all three.”
A contributor to Publishers Weekly insisted that “Stuart’s perceptive look at addiction, abuse, and obsession will resonate with fans of psychological thrillers.” In a review on the Big City Bookworm Web site, Maria Casacalenda commented, “Overall, I was left wanting to know more about Shayna and her life in Blackmore. Unfortunately, we don’t really learn much about her. Even with multiple journal entries written by her scattered in between chapters, I was left wanting more. This story had the potential to be amazing, but sadly, it just fell flat.”
Reviewing the novel in the Toronto Star, Tara Henley called it “a gripping page-turner, with a plot that takes hold of you and drags you through the story at breakneck speed. The characters are compelling, the setting chilling, and the suspense ever-present.” A contributor to the Infinite Curio blog reasoned that “in this post-Gone–Girl era, it was refreshing. With good suspense and an ending that left me thinking, Still Mine is a mystery I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend.”
A contributor to the Chapter by Chapter Web site recommended the novel “to readers who are fans of mysteries and thrillers. Readers who are looking for a novel that will hold their interest until the very end should also give it a read. Any readers who want a novel that deals with hard-hitting themes and has beautiful prose should also give Still Mine a shot.” In a review in Canada’s Globe and Mail, Robert J. Wiersema opined that the novel “works as a serviceable thriller, one which will satisfy while breaking little new ground for the form.” Wiersema contended, “It’s not always as smooth a process as it could be. … But for those who press on, Still Mine slowly reveals itself to be an impressive debut, rooted in character rather than trope, in fundamental understanding rather than rote puzzle-solving.”
A contributor to the I’ve Read This Web site pointed out that there are “lots of twists and turns in this plot line, which comes together to create the classic ‘thriller’ experience for the reader. I’m going to go ahead and call this book the 2016 Girl on the Train read for the summer. The characters are engaging, and Stuart keeps us guessing throughout.” A contributor to the Heather in Heels Web site admitted, “Even though I never fully knew if the story Clare was telling was the truth, I was totally invested in her. I wanted her to succeed at her task.”
A Novel Escapes Web site contributor declared, “I really enjoyed this book. … For a debut novel, it was pretty well thought out and had a lot of intriguing moments.” A contributor to Fictionophile found the novel to be “engrossing.” The same reviewer shared: “I loved how the title fit the novel perfectly with the double meanings of the words ‘still mine.’ With an ending that ties up this novel and segues into the next, it is an excellent debut and beginning of a series.”
BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
Globe and Mail, March 4, 2016, Robert J. Wiersema, review of Still Mine.
Publishers Weekly, May 9, 2016, review of Still Mine, p. 48.
Toronto Star, March 6, 2016, Tara Henley, review of Still Mine.
ONLINE
Amy Stuart Home Page, http://www.amystuart.ca (February 21, 2017).
Big City Bookworm, https://bigcitybookworm.com/ (April 22, 2016), Maria Casacalenda, review of Still Mine.
Big Thrill, http://www.thebigthrill.org/ (July 31, 2016), April Snellings, author interview.
CBC Web site, http://www.cbc.ca/ (May 23, 2016), Lisa Moore, “Amy Stuart on Writing a Thriller with an Unlikely Mentor.”
Chapter by Chapter, http://www.chapter-by-chapter.com/ (April 18, 2016), review of Still Mine.
Fictionophile, https://fictionophile.wordpress.com/ (April 11, 2016), review of Still Mine.
Heather in Heels, https://heatherinheels.com/ (February 1, 2016), review of Still Mine.
Infinite Curio, http://www.infinitecurio.com/ (March 31, 2016), review of Still Mine.
I’ve Read This, https://ivereadthis.com/ (July 6, 2016), review of Still Mine.
Novel Escapes, http://www.novelescapes.com/ (May 14, 2016), review of Still Mine.
Amy Stuart
Amy Stuart won the 2011 Writers’ Union of Canada Short Prose Competition for Developing Writers, and was a finalist for the 2012 Vanderbilt/Exile Award. She is a recent masters’ graduate from the University of British Columbia. Amy lives in Toronto with her husband and her three sons. Visit AmyStuart.ca.
Amy Stuart’s 2016 debut novel, Still Mine, was an instant national bestseller in Canada. Winner of the 2011 Writers’ Union of Canada Short Fiction Competition, Amy's writing has previously appeared in newspapers and magazines across Canada. In 2012, Amy completed her MFA in Creative Writing through the University of British Columbia. She is currently working on the sequel to Still Mine.
Amy was born in Toronto where she still lives with her husband and their three sons. Aside from writing, she loves hockey. Ice hockey.
Monday May 23, 2016
Amy Stuart on writing a thriller with an unlikely mentor... Lisa Moore
Amy Stuart's debut novel is Still Mine.
Amy Stuart's debut novel is Still Mine. (Paige Lindsay)
Listen 13:01
Amy Stuart wrote her debut novel, Still Mine, on a bit of a dare. She was working on her Masters degree in fine arts when a friend suggested she should try her hand at genre writing. Amy took up the challenge, and came up with a story about a woman on the run who is hired to look for another woman who's gone missing in a small mining town.
ON FIGURING OUT HOW TO WRITE A THRILLER
I had read a few thrillers growing up, but I switched into more literary reading in my 20s. It wasn't until I started writing this book, ten or so years later, that I went back and explored the genre, which I now love. My thesis advisor was Lisa Moore, and together we embarked on reading as many thrillers as we could so that we would have some sense of what we were attempting. I was writing and then she edited a few drafts with me. She was just magnificent to work with. We worked on it together for about a year, so her hand is very much on this book. She had a lot to do with building the characters in particular, which I think is one of her really strong points as a writer.
ON A TRUE STORY ABOUT A MISSING WOMAN THAT GOT UNDER HER SKIN
About five years ago, I found an article about this woman who had disappeared from a relatively public place — I think it was a park. She wandered into the woods. There was a search party, but it wasn't much of one. And then her family felt that the town and the police had given up too easily, and they were pleading in the news story for more support around her case. It was shocking to me that that was possible, that someone could go missing and there's this effort to find her but if they don't find her quickly people just go back to their lives and leave the family to deal with it themselves.
WHY SHE STOOD BY HER UNLIKEABLE, UNRELIABLE NARRATOR
When I was working with Lisa Moore, at some point she said, the narrator, Clare isn't very likeable — you're frustrating your reader. And I thought about that for a long time, about what I could do. Should I throw in a few lines where she's funny? But then I just determined that it's okay. Her back story is one of struggle and trauma and a lot of pain, so for her to arrive in this story, on page one, and from there make decisions that seem silly or unreliable or reckless actually suits her. I've heard from readers, including my friends, that Clare is frustrating. And that was a choice that I made, knowing it was a bit of a risk, to have a protagonist that the reader isn't necessarily going to like, or who's going to cause them frustration as they read, but I was okay with that.
Amy Stuart's comments have been edited and condensed.
Still Mine by Amy Stuart
JULY 31, 2016 by APRIL SNELLINGS
57 0
still mineBy April Snellings
Hard-boiled detective fiction and domestic suspense are two genres that, at least historically, have rarely intersected. With some notable exceptions, the former has long been the province of macho, lone-wolf antiheroes; the latter, by contrast, is dominated by protagonists wrestling with relationships that bind to the point of suffocation.
But the most exciting genre writers delight in obscuring or altogether obliterating such distinctions, and that brings us to Amy Stuart. With her debut novel, STILL MINE, Stuart has delivered a powerful thriller that blurs the lines between the hard-drinking detective and the fragile abuse victim. Stuart’s protagonist is both, and the novel is just as concerned with unraveling the mystery of her past as uncovering the fate of the missing woman she’s trying to find.
STILL MINE centers on Clare, a woman who has carefully engineered her own disappearance. Fleeing from her husband, Clare arrives in the insular mountain town of Blackmore on the trail of Shayna Fowles, another woman who has vanished under mysterious circumstances. As Clare uses her resemblance to Shayna to endear herself to Blackmore’s secretive, often violent residents, she’s forced ever closer to revealing – and perhaps succumbing to – her own demons.
Stuart is part of a new breed of thriller writers who have internalized the seismic shifts in crime fiction’s post-Gone Girl landscape. In her first Big Thrill interview, she talks about her road to publication, marrying two genres that have rarely even been on speaking terms, and crafting a thriller that’s equal parts page-turner and character study.
STILL MINE had an interesting genesis in a writing marathon. Can you tell us a little about your path to publication?
I started the novel at a writing marathon and wrote fifty pages in a weekend. At the time, I was working on my MFA and needed a thesis project. I was leaning towards a short story collection, but then this thriller sort of poured out of me at the marathon and I was eager to keep going with it. My thesis advisor was happy to oblige.
It took me about a year to write a full draft, during which time I won a short fiction contest. That win landed me an agent who was keen on my burgeoning novel project. It was another year of rewrites before the book went on submission, and I was lucky that Simon and Schuster Canada was interested right away. When the book showed a lot of early buzz in Canada, a US publisher jumped on board. It landed on the bestseller list the week it was published in Canada and has remained there for four straight months, so it feels like it’s gaining steam prior to the US release, which is wonderful.
In this whole process, what’s amazed me most is how unbelievably skilled and generous and dedicated everyone I’ve worked with has been, from my editors to the publicists to the marketing team to the booksellers. I see their unwavering commitment as a very heartening indicator of the health of the book industry.
After you marathoned those first pages, what was your writing process like? Did you outline the rest, or stick with the spontaneity of that first chunk?
There were a lot of fits and starts. This was my first novel, and I think I underestimated the complexity of plotting required to effectively pull off a book with a strong mystery element. I knew the ending all along, but in hindsight I might have benefitted from mapping my route a little more clearly to save myself wandering down the wrong paths as frequently as I did. But I also think that those meanders off track are an important part of the writing process, because they might teach us something about our characters we wouldn’t have otherwise learned.
You also won the Writers’ Union of Canada’s Short Prose Competition for Developing Writers. Can you offer any advice for other writers on using contests to hone their craft and build their careers?
There are a lot of differing opinions on writing contests, but I think they can play an important and helpful role in an emerging writer’s career. That was certainly the case for me. My advice to writers is to do research on contests and the literary magazines that run them, because there’s a niche for all genres and for stories or even novellas or novels of all shapes and sizes. Target contests that best suit what you write and submit your very best effort. Most importantly, never rule out the smaller literary magazines. Often their contest entry fees come with a yearlong subscription, and the number of entrants is likely lower, increasing your chances of making a shortlist or even winning. Writing obviously is about way, way more than winning contests, but they can have a place in the process. Early on, I kept my writing life motivated and organized by working to meet specific contest deadlines. There was a lot of rejection, and finally a win that launched my career.
The protagonist of STILL MINE is as much a puzzle as the mystery she’s trying to solve. How did Clare take shape for you?
A big part of writing STILL MINE was about building Clare. With each new draft, I tried to layer in more depth to Clare’s history and to her personality. I also worked on the puzzle element, on not giving the reader all the details right away. I wanted her to be a bit tough to figure out. I wanted the reader to question her motives and her actions. A major goal for me all along was to create a complex female character full of strength but full of foibles too. As I think many writers will say, once you’ve built a character up enough, they spring to life on the page, and that’s a wonderful feeling. By the last drafts, I understood pretty well how to stay true to Clare as I wrote.
I understand that the setting came to you before the characters. How did that setting influence other elements, such as character and tone?
By setting the town of Blackmore deep in the mountains, I was hoping to invoke a sense of isolation and starkness. Clare came from farmland and had never been to the mountains before page one of STILL MINE. So they provoke an anxiety in her, and force her to rely on the locals in a way she might not have to do if she were in more familiar territory. The reader learns in the early pages that Clare is looking for a woman who’s gone missing in Blackmore. I wanted the setting to help shape the plot in the sense that Clare understands the mountains to be dangerous to her too. A single wrong turn and she could end up lost herself.
The setting is powerful, and your prose is so evocative. Any tips on bringing a place to life and transporting readers to it?
I start by writing everything I can possibly conjure about a setting. Then the trick is to pare it back so only the most evocative details remain. My wonderful editor’s rule is to start with five points of description then pick the best two to keep. She calls them beats. Over the course of a novel, you might drop in two beats about the setting every page or so, dispensing the details bit by bit. Hopefully the effect is that a strong sense of place develops over time without the reader ever feeling bombarded by too much description at once.
STILL MINE plays with genre in fascinating ways, combining elements of hard-boiled detective stories and domestic suspense. Can you tell us a little about your approach to twisting and melding those conventions?
While I was writing STILL MINE, I read as many of the greats as I could. I tried to study the elements of different thrillers and mystery novels and to really pay attention to how the writers used structure, character and dialogue to move the plot forward and toy with the reader’s sense of what might happen next. In particular, I found books by Dennis Lehane, Gillian Flynn, PD James and Stephen King to be very instructive. These days, I think writers have a lot of leeway in that they can set out to write a thrilling book but play with the methods they use to get there. There’s no set methodology or genre structure that binds us. I love detective stories, domestic noirs and literary novels, and I wanted STILL MINE to have elements of all three.
You’re working on a sequel to STILL MINE. What makes you eager to revisit these characters?
I knew setting out that Clare’s story would not be done at the end of STILL MINE, that her past was something she could only begin to grapple with over the course of a single novel. While STILL MINE is a thriller, at its core I see it as a character study of Clare. I see the next book as an opportunity for the reader to watch her evolve and come to terms with her past, all the while navigating her strange dynamic with Malcolm. As I work away at the second book, these two characters in particular no longer feel like strangers to me, and that certainly makes the writing process fun. They’ve got a long way to go before they’re done.
*****
amyAmy Stuart won the 2011 Writers’ Union of Canada Short Prose Competition for Developing Writers, and was a finalist for the 2012 Vanderbilt/Exile Award. She is a recent masters’ graduate from the University of British Columbia. Amy lives in Toronto with her husband and her three sons.
Still Mine
Publishers Weekly. 263.19 (May 9, 2016): p48.
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2016 PWxyz, LLC
http://www.publishersweekly.com/
Listen
Full Text:
Still Mine
Amy Stuart. S&S/Touchstone, $15.99 trade paper (320p) ISBN 978-1-5011-5123-1
In Canadian author Stuart's dark and deliciously disturbing debut, enigmatic Malcolm Boon hires Clare O'Dey, who has run away from her husband, to come to the remote mining town of Blackmore (in what could be either Canada or the U.S.) and search for Shayna Fowles, who disappeared three weeks earlier. Clare and Shayna have much in common. Both women were drug users and trapped in loveless, violent marriages; they even resemble each other, and their husbands are likewise similar. Vanishing and using another name was easy for Clare, who wonders if Shayna did the same. Moving into a ramshackle trailer next to Shayna's parents' home, Clare becomes involved with local drug dealer Charlie Merritt, single mom Sara Gorman, and Shayna's ex-husband. Secrets abound in this mountain town, which has been dying since a tragedy shuttered the local mine. Clare doesn't know whom to trust, including Boon, who's working on behalf of an unknown client. Stuart's perceptive look at addiction, abuse, and obsession will resonate with fans of psychological thrillers. Agent: Chris Bucci, McDermid Agency (Canada). July)
Book Review: Still Mine by Amy Stuart
April 22, 2016Maria Casacalenda (Big City Bookworm)
still-mine-9781476790428_hrStill Mine
Author: Amy Stuart
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Genre: Fiction, Thriller, Mystery
Release Date: March 1st 2016
Page Count: 320
Format: ARC
ISBN: 9781476790428
Author Website | Book Depository | Amazon |
Chapters/Indigo | Goodreads
Maria's Rating - 3.5-01
“And you’ll think back to this moment, the first sign of trouble, and wish you’d killed it when you had the chance.”
Still Mine was one of those novels where I genuinely had no idea where the story was going. I had my theories, but I had them early on within the novel before I learned more details about the characters and their stories. I tend to be completely off course when I start guessing early on in the story and I definitely was by the time I reached the end.
Still Mine tells the story of Clare, a young twenty-something who shows up in the small town of Blackmore unannounced, a town in which no one ever stops by to just visit. Clare sticks out like a sore thumb and the townspeople are quick to notice her. A woman by the name of Shayna, who shares similar features and who is roughly the same age as Clare, has recently gone missing and the regular citizens of Blackmore are quick to jump on Clare and accuse her of being an undercover cop or reporter who is just there to try and get more information out of them.
Still Mine took a while to pick up and get going, but once it did I was hooked and eager to continue reading. The more I read the story, the more I learned about the characters and their backstories. The plot kept thickening and it felt as though it was building up to something intense and shocking. Unfortunately, that shock never came. I was expecting some sort of twist, but nothing really happened. The story kept building up, but it never reached anything. It kind of just fell flat. I wasn’t shocked or surprised by anything, I mostly just felt let down.
The way the characters were interacting, with Clare especially, made it seem as if these characters lives were more intertwined than they actually were. I found that the story focused a lot on Clare. I understand that she is the main character, but there was also the important storyline of Shayna’s disappearance and the mystery behind what happened to her that got less attention than I would have liked. I found that this aspect of the story was overshadowed by Clare and her interactions with the rest of the people of Blackmore. I don’t think the focus on Clare would have bothered me as much if we were able to find out more about her and her past. We get quick mentions of her mother, father, brother and husband, but none of it was very detailed. I wish I could have learned more about her, as well as the other characters for that matter. There were so many of them, it was almost hard to keep track, especially with similar names like Sara and Shayna or Jared and Jason. None of them were particularly interesting, but with just a bit more detail and insight into their lives, they could have been great.
I did like the interactions and tensions between some of the characters. A traumatic event that occurred 5 years ago has caused a lot of problems between residents of Blackmore which created great moments of anger and drama between these characters. Overall, I really enjoyed the writing style. It was fast paced and kept me wanting more, it’s just unfortunate that there wasn’t really anything more to give once the story came to a close.
Overall, I was left wanting to know more about Shayna and her life in Blackmore. Unfortunately, we don’t really learn much about her. Even with multiple journal entries written by her scattered in between chapters, I was left wanting more.This story had the potential to be amazing, but sadly, it just fell flat.
A gripping page-turner that takes on domestic abuse
Toronto writer Amy Stuart debut novel, Still Mine, is a suspenseful psychological thriller.
Still Mine by Amy Stuart, Simon & Schuster, 320 pages, $24.99.
Still Mine by Amy Stuart, Simon & Schuster, 320 pages, $24.99. (SIMON & SCHUSTER)
Amy Stuart, author of Still Mine.
Amy Stuart, author of Still Mine. (JESSICA WITTMAN / SIMON & SCHUSTER)
Still Mine by Amy Stuart, Simon & Schuster, 320 pages, $24.99.
Still Mine by Amy Stuart, Simon & Schuster, 320 pages, $24.99. (SIMON & SCHUSTER)
Amy Stuart, author of Still Mine.
Amy Stuart, author of Still Mine. (JESSICA WITTMAN / SIMON & SCHUSTER)
By TARA HENLEYSpecial to the Star
Sun., March 6, 2016
When Amy Stuart signed up for the 2010 Muskoka Novel Marathon in Huntsville, she likely never imagined it would end in a two-book deal with Simon & Schuster Canada.
But during the 72-hour fundraiser for literary initiatives, inspiration struck, and the Toronto teacher penned 50 pages about a woman on the run from her abusive husband, winning first place in the competition’s fiction category. Several years later, the manuscript landed the book deal for a thriller series, and now Stuart’s debut novel, Still Mine, is hitting shelves.
And what a debut it is. Still Mine follows Clare O’Dey, a young, small-town wife with a brutally violent husband. Six months after escaping her abusive marriage, she finds herself in Blackmore, an eerie mining town in the mountains, investigating a missing woman her age, Shayna Fowles.
Clare moves into a ramshackle trailer on the property next to Shayna’s parents’ home, and starts spending time with her mother Louise, who’s suffering from dementia, and her father Wilfred, an angry miner who’s never without his shotgun. As the story unfolds, Clare delves deeper and deeper into town life, drinking at the local bar with her landlord Charlie, a volatile drug dealer, his girlfriend Sara, a junkie single mom, and Shayna’s husband Jared, a charismatic flirt. In the background, always lurking, is the man who brought Clare to Blackmore, who may or may not be worthy of her trust.
Article Continued Below
As she uncovers the truth about Shayna’s disappearance — navigating hostile locals, heated family feuds, dangerous suspects and more than a few temptations — Clare is forced to face the past she fled.
Will she find Shayna? And before she herself is found out?
Still Mine is a gripping page-turner, with a plot that takes hold of you and drags you through the story at breakneck speed. The characters are compelling, the setting chilling and the suspense ever-present. Add to that, Stuart has an ability to tap into the dark psychology behind addiction and abuse, and to bring these complex struggles to life in a way that stays with you for days.
You might be interested in
Beyoncé pregnant with twins, star tells public via Instagram
What happened the night of the Quebec mosque attack
Donald Trump plants the seeds of his demise: Burman
This book marks the arrival of a new talent on the Canadian thriller scene. Readers will no doubt find themselves chomping at the bit, impatiently waiting for the next book in the series.
Tara Henley is a writer and radio producer.
Review : Still Mine by Amy Stuart
Posted by Kay on March 31, 2016 3:21 am in 4 stars reads | 7 comments
still mineStill Mine by Amy Stuart
Pages : 320
Genre : Thriller
Stand alone
My Rating : 4/5
About the Book :
Clare is on the run.
From her past, from her ex, and from her own secrets. When she turns up alone in the remote mining town of Blackmore asking about Shayna Fowles, the local girl who disappeared, everyone wants to know who Clare really is and what she’s hiding. As it turns out, she’s hiding a lot, including what ties her to Shayna in the first place. But everyone in this place is hiding something, from Jared, Shayna’s golden-haired ex-husband, to Charlie, the charming small-town drug pusher, to Derek, Shayna’s overly involved family doctor, to Louise and Wilfred, her distraught parents.
Did Shayna flee? Was she killed? Is it possible she’s still alive?
As Clare uncovers the mysteries around Shayna’s disappearance, she must confront her own demons, moving us deeper and deeper into the labyrinth of lies and making us question what it is she’s really running from.
My Thoughts :
I hadn’t heard much about Still Mine before I got interested in reading it, meaning for once, I went in with no expectations, good or bad. I’m happy to report Still Mine pleasantly surprised me, both for its story and its writing.
First of all, I love “on the run” characters. I love finding out about their motivations and their secrets, and try to understand why they chose to flee rather than confront their life. On that front, I thought Clare was a very interesting and very well constructed character. I immediately empathized with her and wanted to find more, both about her own mystery and the one she was investigating.
From the very start, I found the town of Blackmore to be such a compelling setting. It was intimidating like only small towns can be, with an intriguing set of unfriendly characters. The place felt real. It was a character in itself, creating a very eerie atmosphere that I really appreciated. With the writing, this was probably my favorite part of the book : how Blackmore came to life, its past enfolding every character and place, a constant presence around Clare.
Side note : the cover, to me, is a perfect representation of the book’s atmosphere. Love it.
The story itself was good, and I found Clare to be an okay character to follow around. She wasn’t perfect, which is always a plus for me, though at times I wished she’d been a little stronger in her decisions. But, to give credit to the author, her decisions were realistic considering who she was, and where she was from. So that worked well.
Still Mine is a book that surprised me greatly, and made me wish I could read more from Amy Stuart right away. The third person/present tense narration won’t be for everyone, I know, but I personally welcomed it. I also appreciated that the story focused on the town and the characters rather than on a constant train of twists. In this post-Gone-Girl era, it was refreshing. With good suspense and an ending that left me thinking, Still Mine is a mystery I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend.
APRIL 18, 2016Review: Still Mine by Amy Stuart
Review: Still Mine by Amy Stuart
The Girl on the Train meets The Silent Wife in this taut psychological thriller.
WHAT HAPPENS IF YOU VANISH FROM YOUR LIFE AND LEAVE NO STORY BEHIND?
SOMEONE WILL MAKE ONE UP FOR YOU.
Clare is on the run.
From her past, from her ex, and from her own secrets. When she turns up alone in the remote mining town of Blackmore asking about Shayna Fowles, the local girl who disappeared, everyone wants to know who Clare really is and what she's hiding. As it turns out, she's hiding a lot, including what ties her to Shayna in the first place. But everyone in this place is hiding something from Jared, Shayna's golden-haired ex-husband, to Charlie, the charming small-town drug pusher, to Derek, Shayna's overly involved family doctor, to Louise and Wilfred, her distraught parents.
Did Shayna flee? Was she killed? Is it possible she's still alive?
As Clare uncovers the mysteries around Shayna's disappearance, she must confront her own demons, moving us deeper and deeper into the labyrinth of lies and making us question what it is she's really running from. Twisting and electrifying, this is a get-under-your-skin thriller that will make you question what it means to lose yourself and find yourself in the most unlikely places.
add to goodreads
Still Mine by Amy Stuart
Published by: Simon & Schuster on March 1, 2016
amazonkoboibooksTBDB&N
This title was provided to us by the Publisher/Author. We were in no way compensated for our review(s).
I couldn’t find a trailer, so here’s a song!
Chapter-by-Chapter-header---Review
GabbyNewInitially, it was the title of author Amy Stuart’s Still Mine that caught my interest. Add in the mysterious cover, and I knew that I was in for a novel that was oozing with thrills and chills. This is a novel whose premise absolutely drew me in and had me beyond excited to get reading. A woman trying to escape a violent past while trying to search for another woman who is similar to her in more ways than one? It sounded like the makings of an awesome story! And, luckily enough, Still Mine was the kind of book that I couldn’t put down.
Having finally managed to leave and escape from her abusive husband, Clare ends up on the run. Working with a mysterious man whose job is to find people that the world has deemed lost, Clare finds herself in the small town of Blackmore. Shayna Fowles, one of the locals, has been missing for days and the town’s citizens have begun pointing fingers as to who might have wanted Shayna gone for good. Clare sets her sights on the people closest to Shayna in a desperate attempt to become accepted as one of their own and get closer to finding out Shayna’s whereabouts. As Clare delves deep into Blackmore’s dark secrets, she will have to face the lies crafted by the people around her, and the ones she has been telling herself in order to hide the truth.
I think that Still Mine tackled themes like drug addiction, PTSD, and domestic abuse masterfully. There was no victim blaming or biased presentation to the themes. Stuart manages to weave a story where you don’t pity the characters for the tragedies that they have experienced, but instead understand that these things are simply a part of who they are.
Most of the characters in Still Mine are unforgettable. From Clare’s abusive husband—Jason– to Charlie, to characters like Louise and Malcom, the majority of the novel’s cast are immensely well-written. There were certain characters who terrified me, and others who made me feel intense swells of emotion. But, there were also some characters who felt contrived and made up a small percentage of the novel’s cast who weren’t as fleshed out and, as such, felt unmotivated and unrealistic.
Still Mine was a novel that, upon going into the novel, I hadn’t thought I would like. I thought that the novel would be one that I would flip through and find myself disappointed with. It’s very difficult (for me, at least) to become invested in novels that deal with disappearances, as most authors suffer from poor execution. Amy Stuart is not one of these authors. Still Mine is a novel that had me on the edge of my seat and caught up in the novel’s intricacies. I needed to know what would happen to Clare and the people around her, I needed to find out what secrets Blackmore was hiding, I needed to know what had happened to Shayna Fowles—the town’s golden girl. Still Mine is the definition of a compelling read.
I would recommend Still Mine to readers who are fans of mysteries and thrillers. Readers who are looking for a novel that will hold their interest until the very end should also give it a read. Any readers who want a novel that deals with hard-hitting themes and has beautiful prose should also give Still Mine a shot.
Review: A young woman’s disappearance is investigated in Amy Stuart’s impressive debut, Still Mine
ROBERT J. WIERSEMA
Special to The Globe and Mail
Published Friday, Mar. 04, 2016 11:44AM EST
Last updated Thursday, Dec. 01, 2016 1:59PM EST
0 Comments
Print
Title Still Mine
Author Amy Stuart
Genre fiction
Publisher Simon & Schuster Canada
Pages 311
Price $24.99
When Clare O’Dey arrives in Blackmore, a remote mountain community, in the opening pages of Toronto writer Amy Stuart’s debut novel Still Mine, she is greeted with suspicion. The residents don’t believe that the young woman is a nature photographer. Rather, they assume she is a police officer or detective, sent to infiltrate the community to try to find Shayna Fowles, a young woman who has disappeared under suspicious circumstances.
They’re half right.
Clare O’Dey isn’t a nature photographer, but she isn’t any sort of trained investigator either. And her name isn’t Clare O’Dey.
Clare has actually disappeared herself, fleeing from a violent marriage into a half-life of assumed names, motel stays and short-term jobs, trying to stay one step ahead of the husband she is sure is pursuing her. She has come to Blackmore to try to find Shayna Fowles, whose background – a volatile marriage, a history of substance abuse problems – bears a striking resemblance to her own.
As Still Mine unfolds, Clare finds herself drawn into the life of the community, once prosperous, now dying in the wake of a disaster that shuttered the mine and created deep rifts between once-close families. Clare throws herself into the heart of this division, becoming acquainted – to varying degrees – with people on opposing sides, including Shayna’s parents; the curiously, and perhaps dangerously, charming local drug dealer; the noble town doctor, whose attentiveness begins to seem disconcerting, and others.
While Clare’s investigation into Shayna’s disappearance is the main through-line of the novel, it is also the weakest, and least significant, portion of Still Mine; as a mystery, it’s familiar territory, with a solution that is loudly telegraphed through the novel (signals even a casual mystery reader will receive loud and clear). As a thriller, Still Mine is fairly perfunctory, with familiarity breeding a sense of comfort, rather than tension: Clare gets into trouble, and the reader never feels much doubt that she’ll get out of it. Read solely on the level of a mystery or thriller, Still Mine satisfies, but only just.
That seems, however, to be by design: The heart of Still Mine isn’t the mystery of Shayna’s disappearance, but the mystery of Clare herself. As she investigates the citizens of Blackmore, the reader is investigating Clare, piecing together snippets and hints to uncover not only the story of her marriage and her flight, but also the truth of her character.
Clare is not only difficult to like at times, but is – more significantly – difficult to relate to, a cardinal sin for a fictional character. There are several points in the novel when Clare’s actions in her investigation are so ridiculously wrong-headed, most readers will be stunned. Why the strange intimacy with Charlie Merritt, for example, who is introduced as resembling the husband from whom she is running? Why, more generally, does she take the risks she does, risks even the most amateurish of amateur sleuths would know to avoid? The answers, when they come, are subtle and disconcerting, forcing the reader to reframe their experience and understanding of the previous sections of the novel.
It’s a risky approach to storytelling, and considerably to Stuart’s credit: Still Mine manages to have it both ways. It works as a serviceable thriller, one which will satisfy while breaking little new ground for the form, while simultaneously subverting those forms in service to a deeper mystery, one which in turn casts new light not only on Clare’s actions, but on Shayna’s disappearance itself. It’s not always as smooth a process as it could be: There are points in the early pages where Clare’s actions defy not only understanding but acceptance, and if some readers abandon the book at that point, it’s hard to fault them. But for those who press on, Still Mine slowly reveals itself to be an impressive debut, rooted in character rather than trope, in fundamental understanding rather than rote puzzle-solving.
Robert J. Wiersema’s most recent novel is Black Feathers.
Book Review: Still Mine by Amy Stuart
Once again, no cats in this photo, I finished this book while travelling
Once again, no cats in this photo, I finished this book while travelling
Date: July 6, 2016Author: annelogan17 6 Comments
The mountain landscape pictured on Amy Stuart‘s breakout thriller Still Mine has crossed my computer screen many times this year-it was a buzz book for 2016, so I was super excited to crack it open. Apparently it isn’t available in the U.S. until August, so my American readers are getting a jump start! I’ll make it easy on them and just state up front that it’s worth picking up when it comes out.
Once again, no cats in this photo, I finished this book while travelling
Once again, no cats in this photo, I finished this book while travelling
Having experienced a remote mountain town similar to the book’s setting Blackmore, I easily found myself absorbed in the life of its protagonist, Claire O’Day (not her real name). Stuart does an amazing job of placing us right into the damp, isolated town right alongside her characters, and we experience everything for the first time just like Claire does. We are introduced to her in bits and pieces as the story progresses, quickly learning that she was sent to this strange community to find a missing woman named Shayna, but at the same time, is a missing woman herself. The reader is forced to question Claire’s motives, and her dialogue is usually full of lies, so the reader is forced to play detective for both mysteries. What makes things worse is that Claire was at one point addicted to drugs, as was Shayna, so her actions are far from admirable, and her perspective is untrustworthy. In addition, the small left-over population of this mining town are all struggling with deep-rooted issues, many of them being addicts as well, so the cast of characters is not pretty, to say the least. This of course all leads to a brilliant Twin Peaks like atmosphere, which really appealed to me.
I don’t believe men would enjoy this novel as much as women. I know I’m stereotyping here, but Claire finds herself attracted to all the wrong kind of guys in this town (she hardly has much choice, in her defense), but I think other women would be able to relate to this common love of ‘the bad boy’. I read a review of Still Mine by a male writer, and he found Claire’s behaviour unbelievable, which illustrates my point perfectly. Females will read this book and nod their head internally: we’ve all been there. But don’t read too much into what I’m writing here, this book is hardly a romance, this minor plot line simply progresses the story forward, which I can appreciate as a long-time Murder She Wrote fan. Nothing ever comes of these romantic interests, much like Jessica Fletcher’s adventures back in the 80s and 90s.giphy
So there’s lots of twists and turns in this plot line, which comes together to create the classic ‘thriller’ experience for the reader. I’m going to go ahead and call this book the 2016 Girl on the Train read for the summer. The characters are engaging, and Stuart keeps us guessing throughout-what could be better?
Book Review: Still Mine by Amy Stuart @SimonSchusterCA
Book Review: Still Mine by Amy Stuart
Book review of Still Mine by Amy Stuart by @heathernheels blog
From Simon & Schuster:
WHAT HAPPENS IF YOU VANISH FROM YOUR LIFE AND LEAVE NO STORY BEHIND?
SOMEONE WILL MAKE ONE UP FOR YOU.
Clare is on the run.
From her past, from her husband, and from her own secrets. When she turns up alone in the remote mining town of Blackmore asking about Shayna Fowles, the local girl who disappeared, everyone wants to know who Clare really is and what she’s hiding. As it turns out, she’s hiding a lot, including what ties her to Shayna in the first place. But everyone in this place is hiding something—from Jared, Shayna’s secretive ex-husband, to Charlie, the charming small-town drug pusher, to Derek, Shayna’s overly involved family doctor, to Louise and Wilfred, her distraught parents.
Did Shayna flee? Was she killed? Is it possible she’s still alive?
As Clare uncovers the mysteries around Shayna’s disappearance, she must confront her own demons, moving us deeper and deeper into the labyrinth of lies and making us question what it is she’s really running from. Twisting and electrifying, this is a get-under-your-skin thriller that will make you question what it means to lose yourself and find yourself in the most unlikely places.
WHOA!
What a page turner! The first line, “Sometimes I dream of my escape…” just hooked me and in one sitting the book was done. Granted it was -25c outside and I was armed with a latte and a fire, so it was easy to do:)
book review Still Mine by Amy Stuart by @heathernheels
From the very start the suspense begins and doesn’t end until you’re done. Even then I was left a bit breathless for a moment letting the conclusion sink right in.
Following Clare through an eight day journey filled with deceit, brutal honesty, jealousy, and torment from herself and the very interesting cast of characters she joins in the small town of Blackmore was riveting and totally engaging. Throughout the entire story I was left wondering who if anyone was telling the truth, including Clare.
Even though I never fully knew if the story Clare was telling was the truth, I was totally invested in her. I wanted her to succeed at her task, for her to win. The story was full of mystery and so many questions that needed to be answered. (hence the page turning!) It was suspenseful and thoughtful all at once. Looking at a small town, the dynamics of the families, and how we all carry around our own wounds and versions of stories had me reflecting on the stories we all tell ourselves and others – the image that forms in your absence. But it also had me turning the page to find out more, to dive deeper into their secrets and reveal the truth. And on the final page…..WHOA.
And I feel like the story was just beginning. Which is why I was SO excited to see on Amy Stuart’s website that she is already working on the next book in this series.
The book is in stores and online March 1, 2016.
Disclosure: Being a Simon & Schuster Advance Reader means I receive uncorrected advance reader proof copies of books every so often. And every so often I really enjoy one of those books, so I decide to write a review post. I’m not asked to do so, and I don’t get paid. I do it because we should all read more:)…and it’s my website and I can do what I want:)
Saturday, May 14, 2016
Still Mine by Amy Stuart
4 Star
WHAT HAPPENS IF YOU VANISH FROM YOUR LIFE AND LEAVE NO STORY BEHIND?
SOMEONE WILL MAKE ONE UP FOR YOU.
Clare is on the run.
From her past, from her ex, and from her own secrets. When she turns up alone in the remote mining town of Blackmore asking about Shayna Fowles, the local girl who disappeared, everyone wants to know who Clare really is and what she's hiding. As it turns out, she's hiding a lot, including what ties her to Shayna in the first place. But everyone in this place is hiding something from Jared, Shayna's golden-haired ex-husband, to Charlie, the charming small-town drug pusher, to Derek, Shayna's overly involved family doctor, to Louise and Wilfred, her distraught parents.
Did Shayna flee? Was she killed? Is it possible she's still alive?
Amazon Barnes & Noble Kindle Nook Kobo
Sabrina-Kate- 4 Star
I truly enjoy a good suspenseful book and this one was quite well written. I really dislike it when I can figure a book out before the ending and this one kept me guessing until the very end. I kept making assumptions about things and was not able to quite figure things out. I kept trying to guess, especially about the relationship between Clare and Shayna. One assumes that they were connected somehow or that they knew each other due to the way Clare speaks and thinks about her.
I still don't fully understand everything that happened or maybe I question why certain things happened as they don't necessarily make sense to me. I am not sure why Clare was so easily persuaded to go on this mission but I could definitely understand her need to escape her abusive husband.
The book was pretty dark and even made me feel uneasy at times. I was never quite sure who had what intention and even who could be trustworthy. To be honest, I even had my doubts still after finishing the book. I enjoyed that aspect because it makes me continue to think and ponder and hopefully that also means that there will be a sequel.
For a debut novel, it was pretty well thought out and had a lot of intriguing moments. Some parts were not as straightforward as I could hope that they would be so that is why I didn't give it a perfect rating. However, I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it for anyone who likes this genre of story.
Thank you to Simon & Schuster for our review copy. All opinions are our own.
“Still Mine” by Amy Stuart
Posted on April 11, 2016 by Fictionophile
Clare O’Dey is a runaway wife. She has taken very little with her, but she has tons of ‘baggage’. still mineClare is running from her abusive husband – and running from herself… On the road in an old, unreliable and unregistered car – she heads west. She takes a temporary job waiting tables in a diner. Where she is ‘found’ by Malcolm Boon.
Malcolm had been hired to find her, but after hearing her story, he agrees to her working for him to find another woman who is missing. She has one week to find Shayna Fowles. A woman with many similarities to Clare. A woman of her age, who resembles her in looks, who has a drug problem.
She is to go to the town where Shayna lived and was last seen. Blackmore, a town aptly named due to the dour atmosphere of a mining town without a mine. An insular mountain town poisoned by the very mine that was its lifeblood. A town as black as the coal it once mined. Five years ago there was a mine explosion which claimed the lives of many of the town’s men. Now the mine is ‘still’. An atmospheric setting – rife with tension, tragedy, and family feuds – the town shares its sense of desperation and hopelessness with the reader.coal and miner hat
When Clare arrives in the town she finds that the motel is no longer in business so she rents an Airstream trailer in the woods. As the days pass she finds herself to be drawn into the community. She seems to ‘fit’ in this town that, like her, has a tragic history. Curiously, not only does she resemble Shayna in looks (even Shayna’s mother who is suffering from dementia sometimes mistakes her for her missing daughter); but Charlie Merrit, the local drug dealer (who just happens to be her landlord), reminds her of the abusive husband she left behind… Can she resist temptation?
airstream
The reader gets to know a little of the missing Shayna’s story through periodic journal entries scattered throughout the novel. The mystery of Shayna’s fate is eclipsed only by the mystery that is Clare. As she parties around the campfire at the mountain gorge where Shayna was last seen will she discover what happened to Shayna, or, will she put herself in mortal danger?campfire
Still Mine is an engrossing, character-driven psychological thriller. It was a study in how people cope with the unimaginable tragedy that is life and the accuracy of memory. Also, it examined the idea that one impetuous choice can affect the rest of your life. Clare’s character is mysterious throughout. The reader keeps turning pages to discover little clues to her very damaged past.
I loved how the title fit the novel perfectly with the double meanings of the words ‘still mine’. With an ending that ties up this novel and segues into the next, it is an excellent debut and beginning of a series!