Barbara Fradkin
Encyclopedia
Barbara Fradkin, née Currie, is a Canadian
mystery
writer, and a two-time winner of the Arthur Ellis Award for Best Novel.
and obtained her B.A. at McGill University
and M.A. at the University of Toronto
, before moving to Ottawa
to work and raise a family. A few years later she obtained her PhD in clinical psychology from the University of Ottawa
, and has recently scaled back her full-time practice as a child psychologist in order to devote more time to her writing.
She is an active member of Canada's writing community, she is the past president of Crime Writers of Canada
as well as contributes to Sisters in Crime
and Capital Crime Writers
, an Ottawa mystery writers' group.
Her own experience as a graduate student as well as that of her daughter, supplied the backdrop and detail for Do or Die. Her late husband's experiences in war crimes prosecutions gave her the impetus and background for Once Upon a Time, while Mist Walker and Fifth Son draw on her own experiences as a psychologist.
Fradkin is perhaps best known for her Inspector Green series, a police procedural series set in Ottawa. The main character is "the impetuous, exasperating Ottawa Police Inspector Michael Green, whose passion for justice and love of the hunt often conflicts with family, friends and police protocol." There are currently eight novels in the series, with the ninth in early conceptual stage.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
mystery
Mystery fiction
Mystery fiction is a loosely-defined term.1.It is often used as a synonym for detective fiction or crime fiction— in other words a novel or short story in which a detective investigates and solves a crime mystery. Sometimes mystery books are nonfiction...
writer, and a two-time winner of the Arthur Ellis Award for Best Novel.
Biography
Fradkin was born in MontrealMontreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
and obtained her B.A. at McGill University
McGill University
Mohammed Fathy is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university bears the name of James McGill, a prominent Montreal merchant from Glasgow, Scotland, whose bequest formed the beginning of the university...
and M.A. at the University of Toronto
University of Toronto
The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...
, before moving to Ottawa
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
to work and raise a family. A few years later she obtained her PhD in clinical psychology from the University of Ottawa
University of Ottawa
The University of Ottawa is a bilingual, research-intensive, non-denominational, international university in Ottawa, Ontario. It is one of the oldest universities in Canada. It was originally established as the College of Bytown in 1848 by the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate...
, and has recently scaled back her full-time practice as a child psychologist in order to devote more time to her writing.
She is an active member of Canada's writing community, she is the past president of Crime Writers of Canada
Crime Writers of Canada
Crime Writers of Canada is a national organization for Canadian crime writers, founded by Howard Engel.-Arthur Ellis Awards:Its annual awards are the Arthur Ellis Awards. The award statue itself is wooden model of a hanging man. The arms and legs move when the statue's string is pulled.The award is...
as well as contributes to Sisters in Crime
Sisters in Crime
Sisters in Crime is an organization that has 3,600 members in 48 chapters world-wide, offering networking, advice and support to mystery authors. Members are authors, readers, publishers, agents, booksellers and librarians bound by their affection for the mystery genre and their support of women...
and Capital Crime Writers
Capital Crime Writers
Capital Crime Writers is a non-profit mystery writing organization located in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. It was founded in 1988 by Linda Wiken and Audrey Jessup.CCW has 90 members....
, an Ottawa mystery writers' group.
Her own experience as a graduate student as well as that of her daughter, supplied the backdrop and detail for Do or Die. Her late husband's experiences in war crimes prosecutions gave her the impetus and background for Once Upon a Time, while Mist Walker and Fifth Son draw on her own experiences as a psychologist.
Fradkin is perhaps best known for her Inspector Green series, a police procedural series set in Ottawa. The main character is "the impetuous, exasperating Ottawa Police Inspector Michael Green, whose passion for justice and love of the hunt often conflicts with family, friends and police protocol." There are currently eight novels in the series, with the ninth in early conceptual stage.
Short Stories
- "Baby Blues" in Hard-boiled Love, edited by P. Sellers and K. Schooley. Toronto: Insomniac Press, 2003
- "The Minstrel Boy" in Bone Dance, edited by S. Pike and J. Boswell. Toronto: RendezVous Press, 2003
- "Major Billingham's Wife" in Storyteller Magazine, Fall 2003
- "Spoils of War" in When Boomers Go Bad. Toronto: RendezVous Press, 2005
- "Voices from the Deep" in Dead in the Water, edited by Therese Greenwood and Violette Malan. Toronto: RendezVous Press, 2006
Novels in the Inspector Green series
- Do or Die. Toronto: RendezVous Press, 2000.
- Once Upon a Time. Toronto: RendezVous Press, 2002.
- Mist Walker. Toronto: RendezVous Press, 2003.
- Fifth Son. Toronto: RendezVous Press, 2004.
- Honour Among Men. Toronto: RendezVous Press, 2006.
- Dream Chasers. Toronto: RendezVous Press, 2007.
- This Thing of Darkness. Toronto: Napoleon and Company, RendezVous Crime, 2009.
- Beautiful Lie the Dead. Toronto: Napoleon and Company, RendezVous Crime, 2010.
- The Whisper of Legends. Anticipated released date of Spring, 2013.
Novels in the Cedric O'Toole (Rapid Reads Imprint) series
- The Fall Guy. Victoria: Rapid Reads, Orca Book Publishers, 2011.
- Evil Behind that Door. Anticipated released date of Autumn, 2012.
Awards
- Storyteller Magazine's Great Canadian Short Story Contest, 1998, for "Brandemoor"
- Storyteller Magazine's Great Canadian Short Story Contest, 2002, for "Timber Town Justice"
- 2005 Arthur Ellis Award for Best Novel for Fifth Son
- 2007 Arthur Ellis Award for Best Novel for Honour Among Men
Nominations
- Arthur Ellis Award for Best Short Story, 2002, for "Coup de Grace"
- Arthur Ellis Award for Best Short Story, 2002, for "Double Trouble"
- Arthur Ellis Award for Best Novel, 2003, for Once Upon a Time
- Arthur Ellis Award for Best Short Story, 2003, for " Timber Town Justice"