Ian Thomas Shaw was born in Vancouver, British Columbia. For the last 33 years, he has worked as a diplomat and as an international development worker, living in Africa, the Middle East and Europe. He currently lives in Aylmer, Quebec. He is the founder of Deux Voiliers Publishing, the Prose in the Park Literary Festival and the Ottawa Review of Books. Quill of the Dove (Guernica, April 2019) is his second novel. He is the translator of Andrée A. Gratton's Choosing Eleonore (Guernica, September 2021).

Quill of the Dove is a gripping political thriller driven by memorable characters, both noble and nefarious, whose destinies are inextricably determined by war zones and conflicts. Spanning the Middle East, Europe and Canada, the novel delivers a fascinating quest for truth and love that illuminates the legacies of violence in our complex world.

- Cora Siré, author of Behold Things Beautiful

Quill of the Dove is an impressive debut, and Ian Shaw brings a new voice that’s strong and confident, weaving a tale with a knowledge of culture and history that draws and transports the reader right from the beginning.

- Dietrich Kalteis, award-winning author of Ride the Lightning

A suspenseful, powerful and ambitious novel.

- Sonia Saikaley, author of The Lebanese Dishwasher

Shaw’s intimate knowledge of Israel and the Palestinian Territories grounds the drama in this heart-stopping political thriller.

- Claire Holden Rothman, author of My October and The Heart Specialist

A raw & pristinely crafted political thriller based in the Middle East.

- MacroMicroCosm Literary Reviews

Shaw's knowledge of the Middle East gives the novel a realistic feel, but he never lets politics get in the way of telling an engrossing story.

- CBC Books

The novel's several plot lines are rich and masterfully connected to tell an inspiring and realistic tale, and the characters are well constructed and very real, indeed very human.

- New York Journal of Books

This might have been Ian Thomas Shaw's second novel, but he has already established himself as one of the greatest writers in contemporary fiction.

- Midwest Book Review

The Gatineau-based Shaw, a former diplomat and aid worker in the Middle East, has created a muscular cast of characters, some kindly, many brutal, involved for two decades in political and military conflicts.

- Artisfile

Quill of the Dove is a bold tale of courageous ideals in pursuit of peace and human dignity.

- Ottawa Review of Books

Shaw draws on his experience well and you can tell that his knowledge of the Middle East has served him well in this story.

- Word, Pages, Books

A smart political thriller written in a tragic key, Shaw’s novel is testament to how rich the rewards of the genre can still be for the reader.

- The Compulsive Reader

Shaw depicts the clashes and the ever-vigilant people so well, while pulling on the reader’s heartstrings to sense the importance of what is going on. This is truly one the of great parts of this piece, in that it seeks less to inform and more to help the reader to feel what is taking place, a true asset.

- Pechy Pondering

Quill of the Dove is well-structured story in which characters large and small are convincingly described, and converging plotlines are cunningly used to build the suspense, ensuring the reader will remain hooked until the final (and surprising) pages.

- The Opal Magazine

Quill of the Dove is a suspenseful, intriguing story spanning over thirty years in the most complex, misunderstood region in the world.

- Reader's Favorite