On the Ninth Day of Christmas

My true love gave to me, Peacefield by Philip David Alexander.

This book came to me by way of the man I wearily buy my coffee from every morning at the Aldershot GO Station. He was handing out bookmarks for the author, who is a commuter on an earlier train.

A version of this review originally appeared in Hamilton Magazine.

The quiet town of Peacefield, the setting for Burlington author Philip David Alexander’s aptly named third novel, isn’t a likely scene for a crime. However, the lives of Peacefield residents change in one instant as the town erupts in gunfire and hostages are taken. The result is a gritty and unpredictable novel that thrusts readers into the crossfire. Told from multiple perspectives, notably constables Grant Ambler and Arnold Strauss, Peacefield is packed with mystery and action. It’s also littered with memorable, nuanced characters grappling with internal struggles of their own.