The Unthinkable has devastated the west coast, turning thriving towns into debris-filled wastelands. Lorry Martens, a former special operations medic struggling with PTSD and living in a reclusive barge community, has long repressed her lethal combat and interrogation skills. All she wants is a simple, peaceful life, but after Neil is murdered, she uncovers his role in an ancient conspiracy. Lorry is pursued into the shattered landscape by the deadly shadows of his secret life, and is forced to rediscover—and confront—the darkest parts of herself.

Brent van Staalduinen lives, works, and writes in Hamilton, Ontario. He is the recipient of both the 2015 Bristol Short Story Prize and the 2015 Short Works Prize, his work appears in The Sycamore Review, The Bristol Prize Short Story Anthology 8, EVENT Magazine, The Dalhousie Review, The New Quarterly, and The New Guard Literary Review. A graduate of the Humber School of Writers, he also holds an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of British Columbia and teaches writing at Redeemer University College.

Brent Van Staalduinen's profile page

"An intelligent, propulsive chase, a must for the smart thriller reader.” - Roz Nay, author of The Hunted

“Brent van Staalduinen’s gritty and masterful storytelling ensnares with its visceral intensity. Through vibrant characters, he reveals poignant truths, while the suspense keeps your heart racing. Not reading this book would be ‘unthinkable.’ ” — H&A Christensen, authors of STEALING JOHN HANCOCK

"Unthinkable isn’t just a well-paced action/thriller. It’s also a tense tour of the apocalypse-in-progress; the detailed character study of a highly trained killer; and – most surprisingly – an illustration of the way grief can shock us to the core, even if we believe ourselves unshockable." - Jamie Tennant, author of River, Diverted