FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Dec 17, 2025
Victoria Tech Pioneer's Debut Novel Selected for Kirkus Reviews’ Best Indie Books of 2025
Abebooks.com employee #11 returns to creative roots; earns double Kirkus recognition rarely achieved by first-time authors
VICTORIA, BC – Dec 17, 2025 – Kirkus Reviews, the publishing industry's most respected pre-publication review service, has named Victoria, B.C. author Annabel Youens' debut novel Thread Traveller to its prestigious Best Indie Books of 2025 list. The recognition places Youens among the top 100 independently published titles from thousands reviewed this year.
The honour follows Youens' earlier Kirkus Starred Review—a distinction awarded to only the top 10% of books reviewed—making her one of the rare debut authors to earn both accolades. Kirkus praised the novel as "a strong debut with compelling characters that passionately advocates for community, nature, and found family."
Youens' journey from tech entrepreneur to acclaimed novelist mirrors the transformation at the heart of her book. As employee #11 at Victoria's Abebooks.com—the pioneering online book site that helped independent bookstores thrive in the digital age—she witnessed firsthand how technology could serve the literary world. After co-founding two global technology startups with her husband and serving as Chief Marketing Officer, Youens stepped away at age 46 to pursue the creative writing career she'd set aside 25 years earlier.
"This recognition from Kirkus feels like validation that it's never too late to return to your creative path," said Youens, who originally studied creative writing at the University of Victoria. "I started at Abebooks helping connect readers with books. Now I'm creating them."
Thread Traveller follows August Monk, a 47-year-old tech entrepreneur whose life unravels during a family trip to Kent, England. Transported to an alternate reality where mystical fungal networks connect all living things and women brewers guard ancient secrets, August must decide whether to fight her way back to her old life or embrace the unexpected community that welcomes her. The novel explores themes of midlife awakening, invisible labour, and the courage required to choose yourself over expected roles.
CanReads, a leading Canadian book review platform, placed the novel "in the vein of Margaret Atwood and Ursula K. Le Guin," noting that Youens' prose "rises to an exceptional deafening crescendo" while capturing "shared female experiences, perimenopause, invisible labour and, yes, striking rage."
Youens published Thread Traveller through Salt Line Press, the independent publishing house she founded to champion transformation stories, particularly for women navigating midlife. The novel is available in paperback, hardcover, and ebook formats, with an audiobook shortly launching.
Thread Traveller is available at independent bookstores across Vancouver Island—including Munro's Books and Bolen Books, in Victoria—as well as through major online retailers and her own website: www.annabelyouens.com
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Annabel Youens is a Victoria, BC-based author and founder of Salt Line Press. She studied creative writing at the University of Victoria before spending 25 years in the technology sector, including as employee #11 at Abebooks.com and co-founder of two global startups. Her work explores women's transformation stories, particularly the powerful changes that accompany midlife. Thread Traveller is her debut novel.
BOOK DETAILS
Title: Thread Traveller
Author: Annabel Youens
Publisher: Salt Line Press
Publication Date: October 3, 2025
ISBN: 9781069512208
Pages: 270
Price: $17.99 (paperback)
Media Contact:
Annabel Youens
publicity@annabelyouens.com
250 532 0855
About the Author: Annabel Youens is a Victoria, BC-based author and founder of Salt Line Press. After 25 years as a tech entrepreneur, she returned to her creative writing roots with "Thread Traveller." She holds a degree from the University of Victoria and builds literary community through her monthly author newsletter at www.annabelyouens.com.
About Salt Line Press: Salt Line Press is an independent publishing house dedicated to speculative fiction that explores environmental and social themes with literary depth.
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When August Monk sips a historic brew, she’s transported into an alternate world — one where women connected to nature resist a patriarchal religious order determined to burn them out. As August searches for a way home, she discovers bonds of rage, resilience, and chosen family stronger than blood.
“⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
In the vein of Margaret Atwood and Ursula K. Le Guin.”
“A strong debut with compelling characters that passionately advocates for community, nature, and found family.”
“Masterful worldbuilding… tragic and harrowing, yet undeniably hopeful.”