Robert James Russell

Fantastic news for those who prefer eBooks: My debut novel Sea of Trees is now available as an eBook (in either Kindle or NOOK format) for only $6.99! Click the links below to find your preferred format, and see what others are saying about the book already!

Print ($12.99): Amazon | B&N
eBook ($6.99): Kindle | NOOK

I’m very excited to share praise for Sea of Trees from the very talented Charles McLeod, author of National Treasures and American Weather:

“Darkly beautiful, replete with intriguing bends, Russell’s novella unfolds much like one of the tree-shrouded paths comprising its protagonists’ somber, captivating journey, the characters’ psyches as perilous as the forest in which they find themselves lost, the book’s stunning vignettes like narrative shrines to those who have chosen to make their end in Aokigahara.”

Thanks, Charles!

Big storms, strong drinks, holiday cook-outs…it doesn’t get much better than Michigan in summertime.

While I’m not on the site myself (yet), Sea of Trees most definitely is. If you’ve had a chance to check out my debut novel, head on over and let me know what you think!

Fellow Winter Goose Published author Hemmie Martin interviews me at her blog, where I talk about writing Sea of Trees, finding a publisher, and how I deal with rejection. Check it out.

Sea of Trees was reviewed by Cee Martinez at her blog:

“The prose is compassionate and achingly accurate to anyone who has suffered a serious bout of depression. The tales of the sufferers vary from those driven to sadness by their own mistakes, others by the coldness of their environment, and in others it’s the monster living deep within them from birth. I found passages of it so affecting it was like staring into a cold, clouded mirror I’ve been running from my entire life.”

Thanks for the review, Cee!

C.J. Opperthauser, who created the fantastic micro-review/interview site Mud Schematic, reviewed Sea of Trees:

“Here the length serves to tease the reader instead of making an easy exit, and the intertwining stories/narratives/voices add to this teasing and result in a different type of tenstion/propulsion. It’s not quite like anything I’ve read before; It’s quick, unique, and definitely worth checking out.”

Thanks, C.J.!

I was interviewed by Kim Larocque at Muse in the Valley where I talk about my favorite authors, the inspiration for Sea of Trees, and what my ideal theme song would be (hint: anything by M83).

Jessica Tripler reviewed Sea of Trees at her blog Read React Review. Here’s a preview:

“Russell does a good job resisting the lure of cultural essentialism. Although Junko points out that ‘We are a very proud people. Very traditional in many ways. It is very hard for some to live with themselves after they have done something so horrible,’ the novella as a whole presents suicide as it in fact is: a complex phenomenon with psychological, situational, cultural, and, yes, aesthetic elements.”

Thanks for the review, Jessica!

The always fantastic L.M. Stull reviewed Sea of Trees at her blog:

“Russell’s writing is raw, real, and stunningly palpable. A book that will grip your soul, Sea of Trees will envelope you and hold you until the very end.”

Thanks for the review, L.M.!