Work of fiction examines reality of violence against women
Broken Through is the sequel to Paulson’s best selling work of fiction Adam’s Witness.
A violent car crash, a dog shot dead in an alley and then a terrible murder…
Saskatoon author Joanne Paulson loves a good mystery. Now, the veteran journalist is following the huge success of her first mystery novel Adam’s Witness with the sequel Broken Through.
Reporter Grace Rampling and Sergeant Adam Davis are back in this Saskatoon-based, crime thriller as the lovers race against time to catch a serial killer. The story is rooted in local events.
Paulson launches Broken Through November 21st at McNally Robinson Booksellers in Saskatoon. (Photo provided)
“About 10 years ago of a woman was found dead in her basement,” says Paulson. “Many of her friends and neighbours thought she was murdered in a domestic situation, but nothing ever came to light. It got me thinking: was she alone? Who was looking out for her.”
From this real-life incident Paulson has crafted a story that deals with the very real issues of missing and murdered women in our country. Paulson consulted female Indigenous leaders right here in Saskatoon to discover the realities facing some of the community’s most vulnerable people.
“We all have a responsibility in this world to respect and keep each other safe.”
“We all have a responsibility in this world to respect and keep each other safe,” she says, “We are all living in this human condition, but some in conditions that are infinitely worse. We need to think about who gets to wield the power and how we as a society can do better.”
Saskatoon audiences will once again be delighted by the people and places they will recognize in the novel, which advances the love story between Adam and Grace and allows the city and its landmarks to take centre stage. Paulson says tapping into local people and places helps her find truth fiction. The novel is a way of commenting on social issues here and around the world.
“I find my books are a way for me to participate in the writing of the history of my own city,” explains Paulson. “It’s much easier to reach people on such sensitive issues with a work of fiction. There’s a deeper connection when you’re not being preached at.”
