The Signal Line
Brendan Colley

Winner of the Unpublished Manuscript Prize, Tasmanian Premier’s Literary Awards

Brothers Geo and Wes are testing their relationship now that their parents have passed away. Geo and Wes rarely agree on anything, especially not the sale of the Hobart family home. Geo needs the money to finance his musical career in Italy. For Wes the house represents the memory of their father, and what it means to live an honest, working life.

But then a ghost train appears in Hobart, often on the tram tracks that once existed, along with the Swedish man who has been pursuing it for 40 years.

Everyone it seems is chasing their dreams. Or are they running from the truth?

The Signal Line is a warm-hearted, unforgettable novel about what we are all searching for, even when our personal dreams and aspirations have collapsed: love and acceptance.

‘My favourite kind of book – one that lets you see the world differently. It relocates the line between reality and fantasy, letting through an exhilarating strangeness. I felt the unbelievable become entirely natural. I loved every minute of it.’ — Rohan Wilson, author of To Name Those Lost and Daughter of Bad Times