East Kootenay author Tony Berryman will be launching his new thriller, On Borrowed Time, on June 1. The second novel in his Massage Therapy Thriller series, it follows the adventures of Vancouver massage therapist Jackson Teague as trouble finds him and he needs his skills, and an obsession with patterns, to find his way out.

Every day they wait is a day they’ll never get back. When Jackson Teague picks up new massage clients dedicated to extending their lives, he discovers a world where longevity and health-span are more precious than gold.

A secret, expensive new treatment promises the Holy Grail of life extension: perfect health with no expiry date. It seems to work miracles—but Jackson’s hands tell him something’s not right.

A treatment that could be worth billions attracts serious attention. Some very bad people want what Jackson knows. Others want to keep him from saying anything at all.

One step ahead of organized crime and one step behind the answers, Jackson races to uncover the truth before his patients, and his friends, find out just what eternity could cost.

Life extension meets organized crime

The large and growing life extension community is investing huge resources into delaying, or even curing, the diseases of old age. In On Borrowed Time, Berryman combines longevity research with his massage therapist’s knowledge of the body and throws it into the middle of Vancouver’s ongoing gang war. Jackson, who wants no part of any of it, is pulled into finding the truth when his friend falls victim to the scam. “You say you’ve seen negative effects? Then show me the clinical trials evidence, Jackson. That, I might believe.”

Jackson turned to go, but gave it one last shot. “Georgia,” he said, as soft as he could make it, “don’t you get it? You are the clinical trial.”

Massage therapy thriller?

“It’s time massage therapists had a hero in the thriller genre,” Berryman said. He draws on his own experience of 17 years as an RMT, most of it as a traveling therapist in Vancouver. Jackson Teague is a capable, well-trained professional, and approaches his challenges with a scientific focus and an analytical eye.

On May 29, Berryman will be giving a public reading and launch at the Invermere Public Library, with the generous support of the Canada Council for the Arts through The Writers Union of Canada.

He will be giving another reading at the Edgewater Community Hall on May 30. Further appearances will be scheduled throughout the region.

He can also be found at the Invermere Farmers and Artists Market on Saturdays through June and July.

Tony Berryman spent 17 years as a Registered Massage Therapist—much of it as a traveling therapist in Vancouver, a unique and challenging corner of the profession. He hung up his oil bottle for a job with Parks Canada and to pursue his next career as an author.

His first massage therapy thriller, The Night Nurse, came out in 2020. He also co- writes sci fi adventures with his wife, Juanita Violini, under the pen name Trigger Jones.

Berryman lives in Invermere.

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