Linda Holeman Books In Order

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Publication Order of Short Story Collections

Linda Holeman is a successful published author.

She has written over a dozen works to this point and also has written two adult collections of literary short stories. She wrote a first chapter book as well called Frankie on the Run. Her writing has been translated into many languages to be available to readers all of the world, from French to Spanish to Russian, German, Dutch, Greek, Polish, Danish, Norwegian, and many more.

Her writing has appeared in a variety of journals and periodicals and has also been anthologized in Canada (particularly in The Journey Prize Anthology) as well as abroad. She also was a guest editor for Prairie Fire Magazine’s young adult issue, and was given the Vicky Metcalf Short Story Editor Award. When it comes to her young adult work, she has received many different honors and awards.

She belongs to the Manitoba Artists in the Schools Program as well as CANSCAIP. She has toured with the Canadian Children’s Book Center, been a mentor as part of the Manitoba Writers’ Guild Mentor Program, served on juries such as the Governor-General’s Award for children’s literature, taught creative writing as part of the Continuing Education program with the University of Winnipeg, created and looked over different writing workshops, held a nine-month term at the Millennium Library in Winnipeg as the Writer-In-Residence, and has been part of the editorial advisory board for Turnstone Press as well as served on the board of the Manitoba Writers Guild. She also belongs to The Writers Union of Canada.

She attended the University of Winnipeg, where she graduated with her BA in psychology and sociology. She also holds a Bed in early childhood education as well as a Med in educational psychology from the University of Manitoba. She resides in Toronto, Ontario.

Linda says that she has a childhood that went from color to black and white. She spent her first eleven years of life living in the North End of Winnipeg. She loved it, living with her four siblings, her parents, and her Russian grandmother in the basement of that house. Eventually her mother had enough of the noise and safety issues and they moved to a new suburb.

The move changed quite a bit and the sounds and color of Linda’s life disappeared. Her grandmother remained in the former home. Linda missed the noise, the shouting neighbors, and the trees. She brought her books and the old piano to the new house, but Linda remained homesick for what she had left. She recounts that reading voraciously helped save her and she would later record her life in detail in adolescence.

Her brother Greg passed away when he was fifteen and she was thirteen and the author had to contend with her feelings over that. She says that she became a bibliophile ever since reading the first book she ever purchased and since then has been collecting books. She had vowed to be a writer when her first story was read on a CBC school program at ten years old. She promised with her best friend to write together in a castle in England.

Later she had three small children and had not yet started writing. She had done a variety of jobs all over the world and lived in many different places seeing different parts of the world. Still, being a writer continued to be her secret dream, desire, and fantasy. She decided it was time to start to write. Even though she had only took brief writing courses (a one day course and a weekend workshop), Linda learned writing by studying it on her own.

Linda kept up with sending out her writing once she got started. At first, she got rejections, but eventually some of her pieces were published in journals. One of her short stories would go on to win a contest, giving her a break, and was published in a magazine all over Canada. It was not too long before a collection of short stories for young adults was accepted for publication by a Canadian publisher. She would write adult short story collections and novels for young adults before moving on to writing stories of historical fiction.

Today she travels as much as she can to as many different places as possible. She likes the feeling of being in new surroundings, even if it can be ‘hard work’ to travel. Holeman says that real travel requires ‘patience and energy and perseverance’ as well as the ability to ‘accept whatever unexpected events occur’ as well as occasionally letting go of the concept of control. She likes airports and says that she’s ‘never more alive’ than when she is facing the challenge of a new experience.

Linda describes travel as being similar to beginning a new book. She also says that she would question any writer that says that they enjoy writing ‘day in and out’. For the author, creative writing is a long hard slog, and self-doubt and insecurity that come along with it can often make this life one that is not recommended if you are faint of heart.

She has three children who she says fill her life and are all travelers and storytellers who have made her life richer. She lives in Toronto but also spends much of her time in Vancouver. She says that a lot has changed, but some things remain the same and she still loves reading and collecting books, remains curious about the human condition, and continues to dream about what is beyond the borders of her life.

The Lost Souls of Angelkov is a recent book from Linda Holeman. If you’ve been searching for a new voice in fiction, check out this work and see what you think!

Antonina is married to a wealthy Russian landowner and everything seems fine. But things fall apart on a spring afternoon when her husband goes out riding with their son Misha. They are overtaken by kidnappers on horseback. The boy is abducted and the count is wounded in the process.

The beautiful Antonina is horribly affected by this, and then grows even more distressed as the count gets sicker and dies. Antonina has all manners of serfs and servants around them who are unsettled by this. She turns to the estate steward Grisha in order to get help when it comes to getting her son back.

She knows that he is strong and ambitious, but has no idea about the secrets that he had hoped were left behind in Siberia. While looking for her lost boy, she faces down various betrayals while discovering the strength she didn’t know she had. Can she rescue her son or is it too late? Read this fascinating story to find out!

The Devil on Her Tongue is a 2014 novel by Linda Holeman. If you’ve read other Holeman stories and loved them or are just looking for something new to enjoy, check out this book.

Diamantina is just thirteen years old when her father abandons their family. He is a Dutch sailor who has left behind his daughter and her African-born mother to try and make his way to the New World.

The girl is unbaptized, tainted not only by her foreign blood but her mother’s witchcraft too. The girl’s an outcast and seems doomed in her attempt to survive. But Diamantina will not bend to destiny, promising herself she’s going to get out of her circumstances and make a life of her own no matter what. But will she be all right with what it costs when the price goes up? Read this book to find out!