8 books by B.C. authors to kick off summer

British Columbians are starting the summer by cheering on locally-grown professional athletes during the 2026 FIFA Men's World Cup right here at home.

But once the final whistle has been blown, we'll be looking for other ways to support local talent, and what better way than with a stack of books by B.C. authors?

If your TBR pile has dwindled over the winter and spring, we've compiled a few recently-published local lit picks you might get a kick out of.

When the World Was Twice as Big by Aaron Cully Drake

In his follow up to Do You Think This Is Strange?, Aaron Cully Drake of Coquitlam, B.C., returns to Freddy, a young neurodivergent person grappling with his mother's disappearance and a strained relationship with his father in his latest novel, When the World Was Twice as Big.

The author describes his protagonist as "complicated, incredibly self-aware and incredibly self-unaware at the same time. He struggles with relationships, he struggles with communication and understanding, but he's resigned to it … and he does the best he can."

Cully Drake said so much was left unresolved at the end of the first book, and he wanted to know how it turned out for Freddy, and so, this second novel was born.

No matter the season, a cozy mystery really hits. Best-selling Nelson author Roz Nay's latest offering brings together three generations of women in the fictional community of West Elk, B.C., (based on Nakusp, Nay said) in the first book of the Madam Clerk series.

Nay says Maude Kirby finds a job in a courthouse, and finds herself in an interesting situation when an 18-year-old accused of poisoning a gym owner goes before the judge.

"She's the kind of person that can't stay out of things, she can't help but investigate a little bit when she's not meant to and before long she starts thinking that she might need to solve the crimes," Nay said.

Written from the perspectives of Maude, as well as her teen daughter and mother, All Rise for Murder connects a family that was once disconnected, Nay said, set against the backdrop of murder.

The Astronaut Children of Dunbar Street by Wiley Wei-Chiun Ho

Close your eyes and imagine: you're 12 years old and your parents are working in another country, leaving you and your older siblings to fend for yourselves. While it sounds like every kid's dream, it left Wiley Wei-Chiun Ho feeling a sense of longing for her parents and her culture.

"On the outside, I think everything looked quite normal because we had this nice house in this lovely neighbourhood, the Dunbar neighbourhood," she said.

"But inside, things were different. Things were definitely chaotic, overly quiet or slamming doors. That's what I remember. Myself and my siblings were older, but they were teenagers and they were going through their angst and their problems and they were missing our parents and nobody really knew what to do."

She details her experiences in The Astronaut Children of Dunbar Street, a memoir of her childhood and how it shaped her life today.

The character of Rhys has been with Vancouver author David Ly for more than six years, appearing in his poetry collection Mythical Man in 2020.

Now, Ly explores Rhys's story in Not All Dragons, a fantasy novel that follows Rhys and a mermaid named Delia on a dangerous journey.

Ly said his friends see Rhys as similar to the author when he was younger.

"I think that is partially true," he said. "I say this book was written for the child in me. But in doing so, I think I reverted back to that child."

Camping is a Terrible Idea by Kirsten Pendreigh

Now this is a story for the kids — but some grown ups could probably learn a little bit from it, too.

Camping always seems like such a good idea, but a lot can go wrong. In Camping is a Terrible Idea, young Cammie is plucked from her daily routines, sent into the chaos of the forest on a camping trip. But she soon realizes that routine can exist outside her own life, and she learns new things don't have to come with anxiety.

North Vancouver author Kristen Pendreigh's love of nature shines through in Camping is a Terrible Idea, illustrated by Tiffany Everett.

Okay, Endling has been on shelves for a year now, but it continues to win awards, which is why we're sharing it on this list now. Last year, it was longlisted for the Booker Prize, and won the Atwood Gibson Writers' Trust Fiction Prize. Just a few days ago, author Maria Reva, who grew up in Vancouver, won the First Novel Award — and $60,000 — for the book.

The story centers around Yeva, a scientist who lives out of her mobile lab breeding rare snails. Her work is funded by dating Westerners who have come to Ukraine on romance tours, hoping to find brides untouched by feminism. Meanwhile, two sisters pose as a hopeful bride and a translator while secretly searching for their missing mother, who vanished after years of activism against romance tours.

If you haven't read it yet, it's worth checking out in the next couple of months, if for no other reason than to know what all the buzz it about.

The Best of Roy Henry Vickers by Roy Henry Vickers

Although it's not so much a book you will curl up and read for a few hours under the sun, we have to give an honourable mention to artist Roy Henry Vickers' new book. It's one to flip through periodically to admire his work, which has spanned decades.

Vickers, who lives in Hazelton, B.C., just published The Best of Roy Henry Vickers, a collection of 80 of his brightly coloured pieces in honour of his 80th birthday.

He also shares a bit of background about how he ended up as an artist, and the teachings that have guided him through the past eight decades.

"If you can come to understand who you are and then create from that place of originality, you will create something no one else can do," Vickers said.

Strangers in the Villa by Robyn Harding

Vancouver thriller queen Robyn Harding never disappoints. The twists she comes up with, coupled with her snappy writing, make it tough to put her books down.

Strangers in the Villa, released this spring, is no exception.

Sydney and Curtis are repairing their marriage on a couples retreat, on an isolated property in the Mediterranean when a pair of travellers turns up at their door in need of help. Lonely and in need of free labour, the couple invites them to stay. But, as the publisher puts it, not everyone will leave the villa alive.

And if you get through all these, you can check out last summer's list here.