U.S. publisher picks up Winnipeg author Van Rooy

Cassity Delvenne, a 24-year-old Indigenous woman, was arrested by the Brandon Police Service (BPS) and charged with impaired driving and resisting arrest on June 12.

A 45-second bystander video of Delvenne’s arrest shows officers on top of her, repeatedly striking her. Brandon Police acknowledge that the officers did hit Delvenne.

Allegations of excessive force have been levied against the arresting officers. Delvenne’s mother maintains that she has photos showing extensive injuries to her daughter that include bloodied ears, bruising, and a chipped tooth.

Delvenne reportedly made a complaint to the BPS following her arrest. She died nine days later. The exact cause of her death is under investigation.

DEAR MISS LONELYHEARTS: I have an itch that needs to be scratched every couple of days. I sneak home with a new young woman from my workplace, who is a witch, and spend an hour or more with her, learning some things my wife doesn’t know anything about. It’s not really sexual with this new person yet, but I’m feeling intrigued by her witchy-ness — and more.

I’m fascinated and want to learn whatever she’s willing to teach me as we go along. This is especially cool now my “magic woman” has told me she’s interested by the darkness in me. Whatever that means. Nobody’s ever noticed that before.

I feel my wife really doesn’t need to know I’m into this stuff. It would only hurt her, and it may lead to nothing. But how do you keep a secret from your partner for any length of time when they know your every mood and can almost smell your secrets?

— Feeling Insecure, West End

I demand restitution. Where’s my hour?

In the traditional fall-back, spring-forward time change set up — you know, ol’ trusty that’s been effect for lo these 63 years — we lost an hour in the spring that we got back in the fall.

That was the social contract: you commit to feeling like you’re on cold medication for a week in March because you know a glorious extra hour of sleep will be returned to you in November. (Unless, of course, you have little kids, but look: we all make our choices.)

Well, that transaction, flawed as it was, isn’t happening this year. That hour you sacrificed to the sun gods in the spring? Gone. Not coming back. We’ve sprung forward and we shan’t be falling back — not in November, and (possibly) not ever. The scale shall remain unbalanced and the loop shall remain unclosed as Manitoba has adopted permanent daylight time.

WINNIPEG writer Michael Van Rooy's first two thrillers have been picked up by an American publisher.

Thomas Dunne Books will release Van Rooy's debut, An Ordinary Decent Criminal, on its Minotaur mystery imprint in July 2010.

Van Rooy's U.S. editor, Peter Wolverton, confirmed the deal by e-mail this week.

In 2011, Wolverton said, Thomas Dunne will release Van Rooy's followup Your Friendly Neighbourhood Criminal.