Buy the book. Read the first chapter. Get news, events, and giveaways on Twitter. Join the Year of Fog Facebook fan page.
“A mesmerizing novel of loss and grief, hope and redemption, and the endurance of love.” ~Library Journal, starred review
“The book of the summer…If you read only one book, read The Year of Fog.” Olivia de Lamberterie, Tele Matin, Ch 2, France. “A breathtaking novel…magnetic.” Elle France. “The gripping story of the search for a missing child.” Radio France. One of the “great successes of the summer.” Le Figaro, France
“An unusually imaginative novel of family, loss and hope, The Year of Fog tackles mysteries of time, memory and the human heart.” ~South China Morning Post
“Deeply moving.” ~Madame Magazine, Germany. “Psychologically sophisticated suspense.” ~Freundin, Germany. “I’ve never found it so difficult not to race to the last page.” Brigitte Magazine, Germany. “Shines with a pleasing literary style, a quiet narrative and intense characters.” WDR5, Germany
“Richmond masterfully conjures feelings of love and loss.” Paisajes, Spain. “Intriguing.” Que Leer, Spain.
“With sensitivity, Michelle Richmond examines the fragility of our own stories and the role of memory.” Lalibre, Belgium
The Year of Fog was selected by Library Journal as one of the “Best Books of 2007,” and by Kirkus Reviews as a “Top Pick for Reading Groups.” It was also a Washington Post “A-list book”, a San Francisco Chronicle Notable Book, a Target Bookmarked Club Pick, and a selection for the Elle Prix des Lectrices, and is now in its fifteenth trade paperback printing. The Year of Fog spent numerous weeks on the New York Times bestseller list, in addition to other bestseller lists across the country and in Europe, and has been published or is forthcoming in ten languages. For film updates and other news, join the Year of Fog facebook page.
Photo tour: View a photographer’s take on the places that inspired The Year of Fog.
Interactive map of San Francisco, based upon The Year of Fog.
The Fog Mix. Yo La Tengo, Beulah, Walty, Morrissey, Steve Forbert, Laura Cantrell, Tom Waits, Wilco, Bruce, Chris Isaak, and more. Music for the fog.
For Book Clubs: Reading Group Guide & Discussion Questions
Author Q&A: My advice to an aspiring author? Be the quietest person at the dinner party. Listen. Observe. Tune into the way people behave, their motivations…
The story behind the book:Emma Balfour walked into my life in the summer of 2003. Our paths collided on Ocean Beach, the 3-mile stretch of gray sand and graffiti-spattered seawall marking the western edge of the city…
Listen to an interview with Michelle Richmond about The Year of Fog, from the XM Radio program Writers on Writing, available for free through AudibleWord. Interview by Josephine Reed. Press play and go to minute 7:30. Note: this is a ten-minute excerpt from a half-hour interview.
Purchase here: From the West Coast to the Gulf Coast, a few of my favorite independent bookstores.
Read an excerpt. Here the truth, this is what I know: we were walking on Ocean Beach, hand in hand. It was a summer morning, cold, July in San Francisco…
Publishers of The Year of Fog in translation: Random House Germany/Diana, Archipel (Netherlands), Tericum Kiado (Hungary), Videograf ii(Poland), AST (Russia), Editorial Presenca (Portugal), Buchet-Chastel (France), La Esfera De Los Libros (Spain), Musa Knyga (Lithuania)
Also soon to be available from Ebury in England.
About the Book:
Six-year-old Emma vanished into the thick San Francisco mist. Or into the heaving Pacific. Or somewhere just beyond: to a parking lot, a stranger’s van, or a road with traffic flashing by. Devastated by guilt, haunted by her fears about becoming a stepmother, Abby refuses to believe that Emma is dead. And so she searches her mind for clues about what happened that morning—and cannot stop the flood of memories reaching from her own childhood to illuminate that irreversible moment on the beach.
Now, as the days drag into weeks, as the police lose interest and fliers fade on telephone poles, Emma’s father finds solace in his faith–but Abby can only wander the beaches and city streets, attempting to recover the life and the little girl that she lost. With her hope fading and her life at a crossroads, she will leave San Francisco for a country thousands of miles away. And it is there, by the side of another sea, on a journey that has taken her into a strange subculture of wanderers and surfers, that Abby will make the most astounding discovery of all—as the truth of Emma’s disappearance unravels with stunning force.
A profoundly original novel of family, loss, and hope, THE YEAR OF FOG beguiles with its window into the mysteries of time and memory even as it lays bare the deep and wondrous workings of the human heart. The result is a mesmerizing drama that will touch anyone who knows what it means to love a child.
To schedule an author chat, please contact me at fogtalk at gmail dot com.
Reviews & Advance Praise:
“In this spare page-turner, Richmond draws complex tensions from the setup of a child gone missing… The book is beautifully paced—one feels Abby’s clarity of purpose from the first page. The sure-handed denouement reflects the focus and restraint that Richmond brings to bear throughout.” Publishers Weekly
“Richmond gracefully explores the nature of memory and perception in key passages that never slow the suspense of the search…a page-turner with a philosophical bent.” Booklist
Grade: A. “Gripping…Richmond makes the reader feel the gamut of emotions, from the initial disbelief and blind hope to the nagging guilt and gnawing despair.” ~Alexis Burling,The Washington Post
“What marks us, and how do we react to our impressions, both large and small, of life? These are the questions asked by San Francisco author Michelle Richmond in her wonderful second novel, “The Year of the Fog. Despite all its drama — and this heart-wrenching tale does ratchet up the tension — this is primarily a story of echoes and repercussions…spare, moving…it’s all done delicately, in almost poetic terms.” Clea Simon, The San Francisco Chronicle (read the review here)
“Richmond’s second novel is a startlingly original take on every parent’s worst nightmare…An unsettling and powerful punch of a book, The Year of Fog unfolds as a waking dream about the persistence of memory and the extraordinary force of love.” Cookie Magazine
“A good part of what makes “The Year of Fog” compulsively readable is the voice of its narrator. Abby’s tone is quietly conversational, almost as though she is sitting across the table and, over a cup of coffee, calmly telling her tale. The dispassionate tone reveals a brutally honest teller, and only serves to heighten the tension of the story…both believable and bittersweet.” Robin Vidimos, The Denver Post
“A harrowing, beautifully written story of a photographer and soon-to-be stepmom whose momentary lapse in attention results in the disappearance of her fiancé’s little girl on a foggy beach in San Francisco. What happened to 6-year-old Emma? The answer, and its implications, will keep you on the edge of your beach chair.” Melinda Bargreen, Seattle Times.
“[The Year of Fog] manages to have both the high-velocity pace of a ripped-from-the-headlines thriller and nuanced insights into the nature of memory, love, family, and guilt…Richmond burros into the details of San Francisco’s geogaphy and neighborhoods…Like all good mysteries, The Year of Fog twists the reader’s expectations, turning some of what we think we know about missing child cases on its head and providing a surprising and satisfying ending that manages to retain the complexity of real life. It is, in the end, a very memorable book.” ~Samantha Berry, Marin Magazine
“Much more than a tale of a woman looking for a child who’s lost. It’s also about the nature of passion, guilt, and most of all, memory…The Year of Fog also serves as a real-life guidebook of sorts to some of San Francisco’s lesser known neighborhoods and sites…Richmond captures the spirit of life in The City.” ~Leslie Katz, The San Francisco Examiner
“A hauntingly written novel of two people dealing with loss in their own ways… Richmond’s dream-like prose lends to an eerie atmosphere, and the solving [of] the mystery of Emma’s disappearance will leave you breathless.” Parkersburg News & Sentinel
“A child’s disappearance is at the heart of this riveting read that follows photographer, fiancée and soon-to-be-stepmother Abby Mason. Once the drama starts, prepare to race to the last page.” Hallmark Magazine
“Grab your beach bag and call your book club, The Year of Fog probably will be the best new novel of the summer…vivid environmental descriptions and psychologically sound character development. As with all good novels that border on great literature, the plot is multilayered. The Year of Fog will leave the reader both perplexed and enlightened.” Reba McMellon, The Mississippi Press
“A book I just finished this morning – reading while I was making breakfast because I absolutely could not put it down- is The Year of Fog by Michelle Richmond. Every single word in this book was worth reading. There are parts of this book that are heartbreaking, but I truly believe it deserves to be a best seller…” Tina Ristau, Des Moines Register
“Richmond artfully combines Abby’s research on memory and a sensitive depiction of her relationship with fiance Jake, resulting in a compelling, smart novel that you truly will find difficult to put down.” Birmingham Magazine
“While The Year of Fog is structured around the search for Emma, it offers a deeper meditation on the fragility of love. Which is the stronger loyalty, to child or lover? How can we relieve someone else’s despair? These sometimes unanswerable questions form the heart of Richmond’s book…The Year of Fog works well as both a literary mystery and a poignant portrait of a family ripped apart by random circumstance.” Frances Dinkelspiel, Culture Vulture
“The Year of Fog [is] written so movingly that an experience that is far from universal becomes immediate and personal… the vignettes throughout create a larger poetica in which it is the reader who becomes, happily, lost.” Santa Fe Reporter
“The dilemma with Michelle Richmond’s newest novel is this: the plot is so compelling you can’t read fast enough, but the writing is so crisp and exact you want to savor every word…Nothing is sugar-coated in these pages, which makes Abby’s self-realizations all the more honest, satisfying, and true. ” Anita Garner, Alabama Writers’ Forum
“Beautifully written, with deep insights into the human soul.” Willow Glen Books, San Jose, CA
“In The Year of Fog, Richmond gives us both a mystery and a meditation on memory. Profound, deeply moving, endlessly gripping; you will devour it in a weekend and turn it over to begin again.” ~Andrew Sean Greer, author of The Confessions of Max Tivoli
“From the very first chapter The Year of Fog grabbed me by the throat and didn’t let go. Michelle Richmond is that marvelous thing, a writer who can craft a gorgeous sentence and also create a plot so propulsive that it hurts to put the book down, even for a minute. And forget about sleeping. You won’t do that until you’re finished.” ~Ayelet Waldman, author of Love and Other Impossible Pursuits
“Michelle Richmond’s The Year of Fog is a harrowing and unputdownable novel. A moving account of one woman’s ardous journey from an ordinary day to nightmare to, ultimately, redemption. Few novelists put their characters through harder paces than Richmond. And readers have no choice but to carried away by the enduring beauty of this story.” ~Peter Orner, author of The Second Coming of Mavala Shikongo & Esther Stories
“Suspenseful, richly imagined, and ultimately hopeful, The Year of Fog is a keeper. Michelle Richmond is a talent to watch.” ~Joshilyn Jackson, author of Gods in Alabama and Between, Georgia
“Michelle Richmond crafts an addictive, haunting story, filled with brainy tidbits and a local’s love of landscape.” ~Michelle Tea, author of Valencia, Rent Girl, Rose of No Man’s Land
“The Year of Fog is impossible to stop reading. Even as I savored Michelle Richmond’s rich prose and fascinating passages on photography and the nature of memory, I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough. A missing child, a haunting neighborhood, a search for love, The Year of Fog has it all. Make a sandwich now: you won’t stop reading for hours.”~Amanda Eyre Ward, author of How to Be Lost and Sleep Toward Heaven
“In The Year of Fog, Michelle Richmond has performed something of a magic act. From the first few pages I was hooked. As though she knows the ride she is is taking us on is harrowing, Richmond peppers the story with mischievous humor and unexpected insights, all layered over a gorgeous love letter to San Francisco.” ~Heather Juergensen, co-writer, actor, Kissing Jessica Stein
“Michelle Richmond gives us a fascinating look into the mind of an artist. Richmond’s prose is sensual, her images fresh, her writing, lyrical and lovely.” ~Ann Cummins, author of Red Ant House and Yellowcake
German Reviews
“Michelle Richmonds “Ein einziger Blick” ist psychologisch raffinierte Hochspannung.” FREUNDIN
“Großartiges Psychogramm einer Frau, die durch eine Entführung die Lügen ihres eigenen Lebens aufarbeitet.” PETRA
“Dass aus dieser schlichten Idee ein richtig guter Roman wird, liegt daran, dass Michelle Richmond eine blendende Erzählerin ist. Mit einem literarisch ansprechenden Stil, melancholischen Tönen. Einem ruhigen, sicheren Erzählfluss und intensiven Charakteren. (…) Ein dramatischer Stoff, aus dem die Autorin eine Erzählung gestaltet hat, die bezaubert.” WDR 5: SERVICE BÜCHER + NEUGIER GENÜGT
“Ich musste mich noch nie so beherrschen, nicht vorab zum Schluss zu blättern.” Angela Wittmann, BRIGITTE
“Psychologisch raffinierte Hochspannung.” Freundin
“Es ist die sensible Beschreibung menschlicher Beziehungen und der darin verstrickten Personen, die diesen Roman zu einer aufregenden Lektüre machen.” WIENERIN
“Wenn ein Kind verschwindet, mutmaßlich entführt oder gar ermordet wird, dann lässt sich daraus ein Thriller stricken – oder ein Roman wie dieser: nicht reißerisch, sondern verträumt. Richmond findet zarte, poetische Töne, erzählt die dramatische Handlung in einer Kette subtil berührender Momente. Richmond glänzt dabei mit einem literarisch ansprechenden Stil, einem ruhigen, sicheren Erzählfluss und intensiven Charakteren.” WDR5
Reviews of The Year of Fog in French:
“Un magnifique livre qui nous entraîne dans une atmosphère pesante, le brouillard dominant accroissant cette sensation.” Aurélie Paschal, Journal despros
“Celle-ci, rongée par le remord et la culpabilité, mais armée de l’énergie du désespoir, consacre tout son temps, son instinct et sa mémoire à cette quête. Un livre très bien écrit…” Le livre du jour, Radio France
“Admirablement et adroitement porté par une écriture tour à tour descriptive, photographique et réflexive qui prend parfois la forme d’une méditation intérieure, L’Année brouillard est dépouillé de tout sentimentalisme ; il rivalise au contraire de lucidité, et de profondeur dans l’exploration anatomique de l’ensemble des conséquences d’une disparition d’enfant.” Chez Clarabel
“L’année brouillard est l’histoire haletante de la recherche d’Emma par la police d’abord, puis par Jake et Abby ensemble, enfin, au bout d’environ trois cents jours alors que son père abattu et découragé ne croit plus aux chances de retrouver sa petite fille, par Abby seule. Elle consacre tout son temps, son instinct et sa mémoire à cette quête. Obsédée par l’importance de retrouver le souvenir du moindre détail, du moindre événement, du moindre personnage présent ce jour funeste sur la plage, elle mène l’enquête à sa façon. Armée de l’énergie du désespoir et de l’angoisse, de sa culpabilité à conjurer et de la soif de se forger une image acceptable d’elle-même, mais délaissée car accusée en silence par Jake, elle mettra tout en œuvre pour retrouver les ravisseurs d’Emma. Y parviendra-t-elle ?” Arts & Livres
