T F Pruden

Mac Armstrong is a half-baked dick in a hard-boiled world.When life as a Private Investigator in western Canada serves a daily bowl of drab routine, his bad habits keep things interesting. With an immature wife, an underage lover, plus a litany of addictions to anchor his broken dreams, a day of reckoning proves unavoidable.In the inevitable unwinding of Mac's life, more than love will be lost.Searching for imagined glamor, only justice awaits The Recalcitrant P.I.

Set in western Canada during the roaring nineteen eighties, "Grand Opening" is the tragi-comic tale of three men pursuing the dream of owning a restaurant.Wayne Stevens is a near bankrupt entrepreneur looking for a second chance. Rene Lemieux is a hardened businessman seeking another conquest and more profits. Maurice Deshampes is a recovering alcoholic and chef, desperate to be a restaurateur. Together, they form a partnership that will change their lives in ways they did not imagine.The launch of a new restaurant and an impetuous attempt to live out their dreams provides the backdrop for Grand Opening. An intricate cascade of fantasies, falsehoods, fabrications, lust, substance abuse, and cock-eyed optimism is served by the terse plot. A race for glory, seasoned with humor and drama inevitably unfolds.It's a wild ride to the Grand Opening.

A gripping wilderness adventure tale, a tragic sin of the father's story, and a tender ode to friendship. T.F. Pruden's debut novel 'A Dog and His Boy' is these and more. The richly layered account transports the reader to a world too real to be imagined where life alternates between ironic humor and compelling tragedy. A poignant coming of age narrative, it confronts the gritty reality of a broken home and alcohol abuse with lyrical precision. To grow up in the back country of the Canadian northwest during the nineteen seventies is a trip only the hardy survive. With his father away on another binge Tommy Parker struggles to care for his younger brother and a sprawling ranch. His canine best friend Puppits is both hunting partner and confidant. With childhood lost he lives in fear of ever growing responsibility. The return of his father sets events in motion sure to change everything. Tommy will need something to hold onto if he's going to make it. Along the way he'll learn that some lessons are impossible to forget.*****A Dog & His Boy clearly has the potential to become a Canadian classic - Brian MacKinnon, Canadian Poet, Retired English Teacher, Founder/Director MacKinnon's Y-Not? Anti-Poverty Program/Charity*****