James is attuned to the psychological moment: this is a book about fatherhood and all its attendant terrors. The prose is calm, vivid, hypnotic, and acutely piercing. Cormac James' writing is ambitious enough to be compared with either.' - JOHN BOYNE, author of The Boy in the Striped Pajamas and A History of Loneliness The great topic of Cormac James' The Surfacing is the reach of human possibility. Reading the book, I recalled the dramatic natural landscape of Jack London and the wild untamed seas of William Golding. The cool precision of James's writing draws you on as surely as if you're there, trapped in that claustrophobic interior with the vast northern landscape stretching forever outside.' - Irish Times An extraordinary novel, combining a powerful narrative with a considered and poetic use of language.

There's nothing like the reading buzz you get when a new book by an unfamiliar name grabs you and doesn't let go. The Surfacing is his North American debut novel. Cormac James was born in Cork, Ireland, and lives in Montpellier, France, with his wife and son. A tale of psychological fortitude against impossible odds, The Surfacing is also a beautifully told story of one man's transformative journey toward fatherhood.

When Morgan realizes that a stowaway will give birth to his child in the frozen wilderness, he finds new clarity and courage to lead his men across a bleak expanse as shifting, stubborn, and treacherous as human nature itself. It's a remarkable achievement.' - COLUM McCANN, author of Let the Great World Spin and Transatlantic Far from civilization, on the hunt for Sir John Franklin's recently lost Northwest Passage expedition, Lieutenant Morgan and his crew find themselves trapped in ever-hardening Arctic ice that threatens to break apart their ship. Reading the book, I recalled the dramatic natural landscape of Jack London and the wild untamed seas of William Golding.' - JOHN BOYNE, author of The Boy in the Striped Pajamas and A History of Loneliness 'The great topic of Cormac James' The Surfacing is the reach of human possibility. 'Fresh Pick for Your Fall Book-Club Meeting' 'Gratifyingly defies expectations.' - New York Times Book Review ' A] harrowing Arctic adventure.' - 'An extraordinary novel, combining a powerful narrative with a considered and poetic use of language.

Rose tremain merivel