Sussex Drive

Advance praise for Sussex Drive by Linda Svendsen “In Sussex Drive, Linda Svendsen takes us deep behind the lines of Ottawa’s politics, polls and pomp, and into the lives of Canada’s two most powerful women. By turns shocking, funny, sizzling and illuminating, this story is brilliantly written with an unnerving authenticity that makes it seem all too real. You’re going to want to read this.” Terry Fallis, author of Canada Reads winner The Best Laid Plans and Up and Down “Sharp and funny. . . . An insider’s book with great gossip and surprising plot twists, it will keep Ottawa talking for months.” Stevie Cameron, author of On the Farm and On the Take “In our times Sussex Drive seems far from Camelot and so near to the Sunday service in Red Deer. In her rollicking novel, Linda Svendsen invents misbehaving Mounties, separatists in Rideau Hall, an opposition leader named Monsieur Triste, an African-born governor general caught up in her country’s tragedy, a prime minister’s wife determined to run her own show, and a prime minister marked by his ‘lumpen sourness.’ These are the unforgettable characters who hilariously rewrite our recent history.” John English, author of Citizen of the World: The Life of Pierre Elliott Trudeau: 1919–1968 and Just Watch Me: The Life of Pierre Elliott Trudeau: 1968–2000 “Sparkling, witty and insightful! In this edgy and terrific satire we see Linda Svendsen’s eye for revealing detail, ability to create real characters, and crisp prose—everything that made those who read Marine Life want more. She targets politics in a way recognizable even to people who live not in Ottawa but Washington, D.C. Blending the political and personal, Sussex Drive shows us the brutality of political life and the essential humanity of those in it. Trollope might have written a book like this—if he’d collaborated with Jane Austen.” Robert A. Lehrman, novelist and former chief speechwriter to U.S. Vice President Al Gore “Can Ottawa possibly be this out of control? It can be if it’s dominated by two fabulous women who happen to be the wife of the PM, and the Governor General herself. Sussex Drive, funny, chilling and addictive, gets my vote.” Judith Timson, author and journalist

Praise for Linda Svendsen's Marine Life:

"Linda Svendsen's stories are stunning-so easily embodying such terrific power. The last story left me shaking." --Alice Munro

"Astonishing...as seamless as a fine piece of music." --Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times

"Eight powerful stories... The final story, about the one successful marriage in this...troubled brood, stays with you long after you've shut the book." --The New Yorker

"Marine Life is a cut gem that catches the light at any angle you hold it. A lovely book." --The Washington Post Book World

"It is hard to imagine that writing can be better than this-simpler, sharper, more pure. Or, more delightfully inventive." The Globe and Mail