We are excited to announce that Tristan Hughes’ Hummingbird, his highly-anticipated fourth novel, will be hitting shelves from June 1. A story of loss, life and redemption, Hummingbird shrouds an isolated Canadian hamlet in mystery and examines how the past can never be retrieved completely. Inspired by a mystery taken from Hughes’s own family history, this is a novel not to be missed, by those who have loved Hughes, and by those yet to experience this powerful and gripping literary voice.
The Western Mail interviewed Hughes on the inspirations behind this novel:
‘Several years ago, my mother was clearing out the attic of our family home when she discovered me first book […] I’d written it when I was nine years old and it had the catchy title of ‘Four Short Stories’ […] the last - and the longest - was about a man who walks into the wilderness of northern Canada and never returns. That one was based on a true story. Near the beginning of the last century, my great uncle wandered off into the forests of northern Ontario and didn’t come back […] I can see now how my nine-year-old self simply couldn’t comprehend that somebody could just disappear. The story must have haunted and bewildered me…’
Buzz Magazine reviews Hummingbird and aren’t shy with their kind words:
‘With nature acting as the predominant feature of the novel, even though it is difficult to envisage such a quiet retreat, the rich descriptions provide an effective backdrop and set the scene with intricate detail […] it manages to convey the ideal atmosphere. Themes of love, death, and hope combine to create an absorbing and composed tale, providing the perfect escapism.’
Kieron Smith of the New Welsh Review also had wonderful things to say:
'As he demonstrated in his earlier work [...] Hughes is a writer expert at capturing the emotional resonances of places. His latest work is taut, powerfully understated novel about coming to terms with the past and reconciling the self to the possibility of a future. Hummingbird shows that the thin soil of the Canadian Shield is rich with raw emotion.'
Steeped in Tristan Hughes’s remarkable imagery and world-building, veiled in mystery and suspense sure to ensnare and enrapture readers, Hummingbird is a thrilling novel from an author whose voice resonates from the lush hills of Wales to the arctic beauty of Ontario.
Hughes launches Hummingbird on June 22 at 7pm at Waterstones Cardiff.
Hummingbird is available from June 1, from Parthian Books.
