From a window high up in the Hotel Rossiya, a couple looks down upon the figure lying in the snow. Hannah and Luke have just arrived in Moscow after travelling across Mongolia and Siberia. They had not seen the Russian leave his car, but they did see the police arrive, take notes, cover the body with a piece of matting, and then leave.

'The Avenue of Eternal Tranquillity' charts the story of Pyotr and Yuliya, living in the Soviet Union of the 1960s.

Their tale is interwoven with that of Luke and Hannah travelling the trans-Siberian railway from Beijing to Moscow in the early years of the new millennium. Their paths collide during the festive season in Moscow, 2002.

Set in Russia and China, this uplifting and tender journey across Siberian and human landscapes traces two deeply founded relationships and the lives that are shaped by them.

About the author …

People’s motivations and their interior life are at the core of Karen Overman-Edmiston’s writing. In addition, impressions and experiences gained while travelling are strong contributors to her work. Both of these factors are strongly evident in the recently published novel, The Avenue of Eternal Tranquillity, as well as in the earlier publication, Night Flight from Marabar, a collection of short stories.

Karen has written for the stage and has had competition-winning plays performed, including at the Festival of Perth. She is also a prize-winning short story writer who has had stories published in several magazines.

Night Flight from Marabar was reviewed in the Australian Book Review in September 1999. In his review, Ben Zipper commented that the writer’s work ‘emerges with a strong coherence and singularity of tone.’ and that the author ‘uses location to wise advantage, as a tool of explaining and exploring human experience.’ Zipper concluded his review with the comment, ‘This collection clearly shows promise of more to come.’

Crumplestone Press

E-mail: crumples@iinet.net.au