R. M. Doyon

About the Book

In a sequel to his highly acclaimed debut novel, Upcountry, R.M. Doyon returns to Morgan County, New York and the tragic lives of the Schumacher family. It is a sultry Labor Day weekend in 2010 and the clan is gathering at a large lake in the shadows of the Adirondacks to celebrate a milestone in Hubie Schumacher’s life—and to bring some closure to the events of that fateful Thanksgiving nearly four years before.

Upcountry readers will recognize many of their favorite players, including Hubie’s daughter, Joanne, and the new man in her life. Central to the story, as well, is the county sheriff and the daughter he never knew he had. But new to the saga are Hubie’s literate younger sister, Barbara Cahill, her ailing husband, Roger, and their adult children. Daughter Ria is a beautiful and disciplined triathlete and their pride and joy. Her half-brother Brad, on the other hand, is a rudderless, drifting man who has forsaken college to fish, drink and live for the day. Joining them for the weekend—and seemingly beyond—is Ria’s beau, Nick, an angry yet magnetic man with a questionable past.

Immediately, we are introduced to the enigmatic world of the ‘old order’ Amish, who have arrived from Ohio by the thousands, searching for inexpensive land and freedom from temptation. At twenty-one, Joshua Troyer is a strapping, intelligent but unhappy young man struggling with his father’s edict to shun the dangerous ways of the ‘English’ world. Following a chance roadside encounter, however, Joshua accepts Ria’s invitation to join their party by the lake, setting in motion a romance that sparks a bigotry-driven clash of cultures that rapidly escalates into violence and strife.

In a narrative that brings the decades-long malaise of post-industrial upstate New York to life, Thou Torturest Me is a compelling, fast-paced story fueled by prejudice, principle and passion that will leave readers clamoring for more.  

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Born in Kirkland Lake, Ontario, R.M. Doyon has been a journalist, speechwriter, public relations executive and entrepreneur for more than three decades. 

A graduate of the University of Western Ontario and Carleton University’s Graduate School of Journalism, he began his career with the Ottawa Citizen before becoming a political reporter and Parliamentary Bureau Chief for United Press International, where he crossed paths with six Canadian prime ministers, one U.S president and many other world leaders.  After leaving UPI, Doyon wrote for The Vancouver Province, Maclean’s, and The Financial Post before serving as a speechwriter and senior communications advisor in two Canadian government departments. 

Entering the consulting world in the early 1990s, he co-founded High Road Communications, one of North America’s most-respected public relations firms, working with technology companies from around the globe.

Throughout his varied career, however, he never lost his love for fiction and screenwriting.  He is the author of Pirouette, a stage-play on the life and times of Pierre Elliott Trudeau, and has co-written two screenplays—Shoulda, Coulda, Woulda and The Last Carousel with his wife Shelley.

Inspired by true events, his first novel, Upcountry, a story of sisterly love, revenge and redemption, was released in October, 2010.  Set entirely in Upstate New York, Upcountry received rave reviews from around the world.

His sequel, a love affair between an Amish man and an ‘English’ girl that sets in motion a bigotry-driven clash of cultures, is entitled Thou Torturest Me and was released in September, 2013.  It is available today at Corbin’s River Heritage in Clayton, Leeds County Books in Brockville, Brewer Bookstore in Canton and The BookStorePlus in Lake Placid – and online from Amazon.com.

He resides along the shores of the St. Lawrence River on Howe Island, near Gananoque, with his wife, Shelley Anthony.

• ISBN-10: 1484108256
• Available Amazon