“Burning Distance is a double helix of a book, carefully plotted and beautifully told. It’s a spy story interwoven with a love story, and the strands fit together in a way that moves the reader effortlessly from chapter to chapter . . . A subtle and satisfying novel.”
—David Ignatius, journalist and best-selling author
About Joanne
Joanne Leedom-Ackerman is a novelist, short story writer, and journalist. Her fiction includes regional bestseller The Dark Path to the River and No Marble Angels. A former reporter for The Christian Science Monitor, Joanne has won awards for her nonfiction and published fiction, articles and essays in newspapers, magazines, and books.
Praise for Joanne's Fiction
"Well-written, thematically rich. I fell in love with the characters. I didn’t want the pleasure to end."
—Barbara Kingsolver, Poisonwood Bible
"...the writer’s strengths—honesty, compassion and the ability to present such memorable scenes."
—Jill McCorkle, The New York Times Book Review
Praise for Joanne's Non-fiction
"PEN Journeys tells the story of the important organization PEN from the ground and through insightful eyes…and with narrative flair."
—Azar Nafisi, author of Reading Lolita in Tehran
"This invaluable book shows the range and depth of Liu Xiaobo's interests, concerns, and thoughts. It helps us know this remarkable man intimately."
—Ha Jin, author of Waiting, winner of the National Book Award
Latest Blog Post
Umbrellas snap open like a flock of blackbirds arriving at the grave. Twelve of us stand wing to wing as clouds roll over the green hills and the rain falls harder. Few families endure one murder. I am mourning the second in my lifetime. I’m nineteen years old, and I am beginning to see that life connects. My father used to say, “There are no coincidences, only life showing you its patterns.” As I watch our small gathering on the hillside, I strain to see the pattern…. So begins my new novel Burning Distance which publishes on March 7 and can be ordered now. The opening chapter of the novel and an essay “Manuscript in the Drawer” will also appear on pub day in The Hopkins Review online. I hope you’ll enjoy the story—find it moving, entertaining, informative, surprising… I…