The Solitary Friend: A Joanne Kilbourn Mystery
$22.99-
Amateur sleuth Joanne Shreve finds herself caught in the middle when her friend Vera Wang, the owner of a discreet escort service, The Right Woman, calls in a favor. Howard Dowhanuik, another long-time friend of Joanne’s and the former premier of Saskatchewan, has been a loyal client for years. That is until he started badgering Vera’s employees, trying to discourage them from performing their “meaningless” work. Given his recent verbal attacks against any and all opponents on his podcast, Joanne knows his erratic behavior must be part of a larger issue. Can Joanne talk Howard down and make him see sense before he goes too far?
To complicate matters, the release of scandalous photos with threatening demands targets both Howard and Calista Wallace. Having quit the escort service, Calista is now engaged to Noah Wainberg, a close member of Joanne’s inner circle, but the past could put their future together in jeopardy. Is this hate mail from a heartbroken ex-client or a disgruntled listener of Howard’s podcast? Or worse, could the culprit be someone closer to home? With her loved ones’ happiness — and their very lives — at stake, Joanne races to find the source of the mysterious messages before they make good on their menacing ultimatum.
Available October 14, 2025. PRE-ORDER NOW!
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Gail Bowen’s Joanne Kilbourn Shreve mysteries have entertained a generation of readers. She has been acclaimed as the “queen of Canadian crime fiction” (Winnipeg Free Press). An author, playwright, and teacher, she has received numerous writing awards, including a lifetime achievement award from the Crime Writers of Canada. She lives in Regina, SK, with her husband, Ted.
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Published: October 2025
ISBN: 9781770418158
Dimensions: 5.5 x 8.5 in.
Pages: 304
Reviews
“Reading a new Gail Bowen book is like attending a reunion of family and friends, with every bit of warm familiarity, chilling dysfunction, love, lies, and laughter mixed with tears you’d expect. The Solitary Friend is a finely balanced portrayal of family dynamics, political intrigue, social consciousness, and the brutal consequences of tragedy.” — Anthony Bidulka, author of Going to Beautiful and the Merry Bell Mysteries
“A crime that takes place in a Gail Bowen mystery gathers force like a distant storm. And by the time you know what’s going on, you can’t turn away. This is Regina. Everybody knows everybody, and soon you know them too. And you start to care for them, and you hope against hope that everything will turn out well and that your new friends will get through this one too. Over time, these stories reveal a Regina layered with contradictions — sharp, warm, political, funny. The characters don’t just live in this city — they wrestle with it, celebrate it and reflect its depth. That complexity stays with you. The Solitary Friend is a standout story in a standout series.” — Jennifer Brewin, artistic director of Globe Theatre Regina
“Politicians and sex trade workers make for uneasy bedfellows at the best of times, but these are hardly the best of times. Filled with Bowen’s trademark laughter, light and love, The Solitary Friend brings the two together memorably in what we are told is — gasp! — the next-to-last Joanne Kilbourn novel. Say it ain’t so, Jo! But, if it is, thanks to you and your gang and all that has flowed from author Gail Bowen’s mighty pen!” — Jeffrey Round, award-winning author of the Dan Sharp mysteries
“Full of all the foibles and nuances that make up real human nature, The Solitary Friend has a cast worthy of a Dickens on the Prairie. Gail Bowen has long ago stopped writing mysteries and instead shares a novel that is a meditation on grief, family, faith, forgiveness and hope. She has created a world where so-called progressives can find comfort in tradition, family comes in every form and art, music and kindness will always peek through the darkness. Joanne Shreve has no problem calling a spade a spade (and a bitch a bitch!), but with a heart as big as Saskatchewan itself, there is always room to grow, change and welcome all the stragglers home. The Solitary Friend stayed with me long after I finished the last page.” — Peter Hawkins, SVP & managing director of MELLOHAWK Logistics