Surrender

As life slips away, Gabriel looks back over his brief twenty years that have been clouded by frustration and humiliation. A small town and distant parents ensure that he is never allowed to forget the horrific mistake he made as a child. He has only two friends - his dog Surrender, and the unruly wild boy Finnigan, with whom he made a boyhood pact. When a series of arson attacks grips the town, Gabriel realises how unpredictable and dangerous Finnigan is. Events begin to spiral out of control, and it becomes clear that only the most extreme of measures will rid Gabriel of Finnigan for good. Dark and tender, Surrender is a brilliantly told suspense novel.

Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award 2006
Short-listed for Audie Award Thriller/Suspense 2007
Short-listed for Aurealis Award Best Fantasy Novel 2005
Short-listed for The Age Book of the Year Award 2005
Short-listed for The Commonwealth Writer's Prize Best Book (South East Asia and South Pacific Region) 2006
Nominated for The Michael L. Printz Award for Excellence in Young Adult Literature 2007

"Sonya Hartnett explores the minds and lives of her subjects with stark and potent metaphors. Compassion is Hartnett's ink." -- The Age
"Hartnett exemplifies the quality and complexity of contemporary children's books. She is superb." -- The Guardian
"What an original and intriguing writer Sonya Hartnett is . . . [The reader is] uplifted by the beauty and simplicity of the language, the sharpness of the observation and the depth of feeling untrammelled by sentiment." -- The Observer
"Humphrey Bower is simply sensational as 20-year-old Anwell, confined to bed, bitter, and dying horribly. As a terrified 7-year-old charged with keeping his handicapped brother quiet, Anwell accidentally suffocated him. Neither his cold, distant father nor his emotionally disturbed mother can forgive him. His comfort comes from a pact made with his friend, Finnigan. Finnigan does the 'bad things', so Anwell won't have to. Bower's artistry keeps listeners wondering about Finnigan. Is he the perpetrator of a series of arsons in isolated Mulyan, 'a town of abominable secrets and myth'? Is he real, or merely Anwell's shadow made substance? In Sonya Hartnett's beautifully written, unflinching look at guilt, mental illness, and death, Bower's voicing is a small miracle of subtlety and insight." -- AudioFile Magazine

Sonya Hartnett is the internationally acclaimed author of several award-winning novels, including Of a Boy, which won The Age Book of the Year and was shortlisted for the Miles Franklin Award. Her work has been published internationally with editions available in the UK, US, Canada, Germany, Italy, Norway and Denmark.In 2008 Sonya was the recipient of The Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award. The prize is awarded to authors, illustrators, narrators and promoters of reading whose work reflects the spirit of Astrid Lindgren. It is the first time this award has gone to an Australian.Sonya lives in Melbourne. She has a dog named Shilo and a cat named Marcus. Humphrey Bower is a gifted and versatile actor. Since obtaining a BA (Hons) in English Language and Literature at Oxford University, he has worked extensively in theatre, television and audiobook narration. Humphrey won the prestigious Audie Award (US) for his performance of The Family Frying Pan by Bryce Courtenay, and was shortlisted for an Audie Award for his performances of Gould's Book of Fish by Richard Flanagan and Brother Fish by Bryce Courtenay. Humphrey's sensitive and intelligent readings are highly regarded and he is well-known for his capacity to perform a variety of accents.

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