REVIEWS & ACCLAIM
"Riordan is a superb storyteller, and The North Line is an all-engrossing, never-dull depiction of Alaska’s ‘wild west’ and those drawn to it. Sentence by sentence, Riordan’s dazzling language will transport readers into a world both challenging and packed with beauty and possibility."​​
★ Anchorage Daily News ★
"The North Line is a ruggedly erudite story that combines the best of the individualism of Jack London with the introspective ruminations of Raymond Carver . . . not to be missed."​​
★ S.A. Cosby, New York Times bestselling author of All the Sinners Bleed ★
★ Even at the ragged edge of civilization, some lines should not be crossed.
Everyone believes Adam to be something he's not. Sometimes that's because he's told them a story. Sometimes he's told himself one. But when Adam leaves college for the Alaskan fishing fleet and the quick money he desperately needs, the dangerous work and harsh conditions strip away all fabrications.
On the unforgiving Bering Sea, Adam finds the adventure and authenticity of a fisherman's life revelatory. But when a strike threatens the entire season and violence erupts, Adam is thrust into a struggle for survival at the edge of the world, where nature and social forces collide for outcomes beyond anyone's control.
In this riveting debut novel, Matt Riordan pairs personal experiences with a master storyteller's eye in a piercing examination of the quest for identity in the face of tempests within and without. ★
REVIEWS & ACCLAIM FOR THE NORTH LINE
"The North Line is one of those rare books that you feel as much as read. The world and its details are so real, so intimate, and so lived-in that I had to check my fingertips for fish scales once I finished reading."​​
★ Craig Davidson, Author of Rust and Bone ★
"Riordan is a superb storyteller, and The North Line is an all-engrossing, never-dull depiction of Alaska’s ‘wild west’ and those drawn to it. Sentence by sentence, Riordan’s dazzling language will transport readers into a world both challenging and packed with beauty and possibility."​​
★ Anchorage Daily News ★
ABOUT MATT RIORDAN
Matt Riordan grew up in Michigan but spent his early twenties working on commercial fishing boats in Alaska. After college, Matt drifted from commercial fishing through a variety of jobs before landing in law school. Matt became a litigator in New York City, where he practiced for twent years. He now lives with his family in Australia.
REVIEWS & ACCLAIM FOR SEUL H'ORIZON
"It’s a novel that smells of the sea, of mustiness and fuel oil. There’s no reverie here, the horizon seems blocked, but you’re instantly immersed in this sticky, rough world: that of fishing in the Bering Sea. (...) There’s an atmosphere here that can’t be invented. When you close the book, you breathe again, relieved to be warm and tidy in your living room. A dirty, dark, immersive novel.."​​
★ VOILE MAGAZINE ★
"apres sétre fait pincer å dealer de I ecstasy lots dun concert. Adam a besoin d'un gros paquet d'argent, 11 embarque alors bord d'un vieux chalutier pouraller pécher le hareng. puis le saumon. dans les eaux glacées de la mer de Béring. au large de IAAIaska. Au milieu de cet univers impitoyable. dans lequel il faut apprendre vite. Adam révélera sa plus profonde Violence. speed, coke et eau salée : dans une ambiance digne d'un Jack London rock'n'roll. l'américain Matt Riordan signe un impitoyable roman d'apprentissage d'oü ron sort essoré".
★ ROLLING STONE ★
REVIEWS & ACCLAIM FOR SEUL H'ORIZON
"It’s a novel that smells of the sea, of mustiness and fuel oil. There’s no reverie here, the horizon seems blocked, but you’re instantly immersed in this sticky, rough world: that of fishing in the Bering Sea. (...) There’s an atmosphere here that can’t be invented. When you close the book, you breathe again, relieved to be warm and tidy in your living room. A dirty, dark, immersive novel.."​​
★ VOILE MAGAZINE ★
"apres sétre fait pincer å dealer de I ecstasy lots dun concert. Adam a besoin d'un gros paquet d'argent, 11 embarque alors bord d'un vieux chalutier pouraller pécher le hareng. puis le saumon. dans les eaux glacées de la mer de Béring. au large de IAAIaska. Au milieu de cet univers impitoyable. dans lequel il faut apprendre vite. Adam révélera sa plus profonde Violence. speed, coke et eau salée : dans une ambiance digne d'un Jack London rock'n'roll. l'américain Matt Riordan signe un impitoyable roman d'apprentissage d'oü ron sort essoré".
★ ROLLING STONE ★
★ Eld knew better. War taught him to know better. But with Prohibition expiring in a matter of months, his turn from fisherman to smuggler was supposed to be temporary. Running Canadian whiskey across the lake seemed the perfect plan to get his family out from behind the eight ball.
Even Maggie, Eld’s normally sensible wife, was on board. Together they crossed their fingers and threw the dice. Ill-gotten gains soon rolled in, but when underworld empires went to war, Eld’s family operation was caught in the crossfire. Hunted by gangsters and squeezed by the Depression, Eld, Maggie, and the children scattered.
Eld crossed Canada on a doomed quest, while Maggie and her daughter were forced to find sanctuary in a religion more cult than creed. When the family finally reunites, they aren't the same strivers who took a chance on a better life. In the end, Eld pays a staggering price for his version of the American Dream, and those he loves most pay even more. ★
REVIEWS & ACCLAIM FOR WHILE THE GETTING IS GOOD
"It’s a novel that smells of the sea, of mustiness and fuel oil. There’s no reverie here, the horizon seems blocked, but you’re instantly immersed in this sticky, rough world: that of fishing in the Bering Sea. (...) There’s an atmosphere here that can’t be invented. When you close the book, you breathe again, relieved to be warm and tidy in your living room. A dirty, dark, immersive novel.."​​
★ VOILE MAGAZINE ★
"apres sétre fait pincer å dealer de I ecstasy lots dun concert. Adam a besoin d'un gros paquet d'argent, 11 embarque alors bord d'un vieux chalutier pouraller pécher le hareng. puis le saumon. dans les eaux glacées de la mer de Béring. au large de IAAIaska. Au milieu de cet univers impitoyable. dans lequel il faut apprendre vite. Adam révélera sa plus profonde Violence. speed, coke et eau salée : dans une ambiance digne d'un Jack London rock'n'roll. l'américain Matt Riordan signe un impitoyable roman d'apprentissage d'oü ron sort essoré".
★ ROLLING STONE ★