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The Wintermen
The Wintermen is a near-future western, with snow machines riding into town and a showdown in the snow. Johnny Slaught and his Algonquin buddy Chumboy Commando didn't set out to lead one of the most notorious bands of rebels in recent history. But after the world descended into climate change chaos, the government did some serious triage, forcing wide-scale evacuations and abandoning rural areas to the non-stop snow. Soon enough, Slaught is forced by circumstance to stand up the the muscle of TALOS Security Corporation, setting in motion a rebellion of average folks fighting to rebuild their lives in the abandoned snowscape of the northland. Can a mixture of scrap snow-machines, gasoline and the military wisdom of subcommander Marcos be enough to let them rebuild their lives?
- GenresDystopia
296 pages, Kindle Edition
First published October 1, 2014
1 person is currently reading
54 people want to read
About the author
Brit Griffin
6 books10 followersThe Haunting of Modesto O'Brien, out Fall 2025 - an eco-gothic tale that writer Lindsay Wong called a "propulsive and fast-paced historical thriller that glitters with a violent, nightmarish-tinged atmosphere".
Griffin is the author of the cli-fi Wintermen trilogy. The Wintermen (2014) was short-listed for the Northern Lit award for fiction. She worked for many years as a researcher for Timiskaming First Nation, an Algonquin community in northern Quebec.
Griffin is the author of the cli-fi Wintermen trilogy. The Wintermen (2014) was short-listed for the Northern Lit award for fiction. She worked for many years as a researcher for Timiskaming First Nation, an Algonquin community in northern Quebec.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
June 10, 2025
A bit of a preamble here before I get into my review of The Wintermen by Brit Griffin because I do like a little bit of preamble. I mean who doesn't eh? Anyway, in my travels through the internet, specifically BlueSky, I started following a Canadian politician, Charlie Angus (well, a retired politician). When I researched him I saw that his wife, Brit Griffin, had authored a trilogy featuring the Wintermen and thought maybe it might be interesting to check it out. The Wintermen is the 1st book in this trilogy.
Now back to normal ambling...
The Wintermen presents a dystopic future, this story set in northern Ontario, around my birth place of North Bay. This added to the interest.
Climate change has turned the north into a frozen wasteland. A merciless corporation, Talus, wants to mine the crap out of the north, to get all of the precious minerals out of the ground. As the story starts, Johnny Slaught, one of these northern boys works in a shipping yard, loading everything that Talus is robbing from the north. They are trying to gather all of the northern residents to send south to the city so they will have free reign to the resources.
One of Johnny's co-workers steals a pair of gloves to keep warm and is murdered by the foreman. This forces a decision on Johnny who decides he has to fight back. The Talus bosses are taken over and then sent down south to tell their bosses to keep out of the North. And the Wintermen are born.
Jump forward a couple of years and Talus has plans to finally get rid of the Wintermen who have set up a town in the abandoned community of Cobalt, an old silver mining town in northern Ontario. The town has grown with many strays arriving. The Wintermen, Johnny Slaught and his best friend, Algonquin Chumboy Commando, search far and wide to build up food and medical supplies to help their rugged community survive.
Talus, along with Police Service officials, send up Mitch Black (one scary lady) and Grier Laskin, two mercenaries to deal with the Wintermen. Get rid of them and ship any innocents down the City. And that is the gist of this entertaining story, the 'battle' between the evil Corporation and the freedom loving Wintermen, who don't really want to fight, but will to protect their friends.
It's kind of a combination western, the cattle ranchers and the sheep farmers, and a Star Wars adventure (you know, the evil Empire vs the down and out rebellion, with the Wintermen as the Jedis). It's a rough and ready story with lots of action, a fascinating setting and great characters. It's a nice, easy read but it also packs a punch, especially as the story moves to its climax, a real page turner. I was totally satisfied with the story and as I look around the current world situation, with corporations and governments trying to dig up our natural resources, it's even an interesting cautionary tale. I'm looking forward to reading #2, Into the Deep Dark. Thank you, Brit Griffin for providing such an enjoyable read. (3.5 stars)
Now back to normal ambling...
The Wintermen presents a dystopic future, this story set in northern Ontario, around my birth place of North Bay. This added to the interest.
Climate change has turned the north into a frozen wasteland. A merciless corporation, Talus, wants to mine the crap out of the north, to get all of the precious minerals out of the ground. As the story starts, Johnny Slaught, one of these northern boys works in a shipping yard, loading everything that Talus is robbing from the north. They are trying to gather all of the northern residents to send south to the city so they will have free reign to the resources.
One of Johnny's co-workers steals a pair of gloves to keep warm and is murdered by the foreman. This forces a decision on Johnny who decides he has to fight back. The Talus bosses are taken over and then sent down south to tell their bosses to keep out of the North. And the Wintermen are born.
Jump forward a couple of years and Talus has plans to finally get rid of the Wintermen who have set up a town in the abandoned community of Cobalt, an old silver mining town in northern Ontario. The town has grown with many strays arriving. The Wintermen, Johnny Slaught and his best friend, Algonquin Chumboy Commando, search far and wide to build up food and medical supplies to help their rugged community survive.
Talus, along with Police Service officials, send up Mitch Black (one scary lady) and Grier Laskin, two mercenaries to deal with the Wintermen. Get rid of them and ship any innocents down the City. And that is the gist of this entertaining story, the 'battle' between the evil Corporation and the freedom loving Wintermen, who don't really want to fight, but will to protect their friends.
It's kind of a combination western, the cattle ranchers and the sheep farmers, and a Star Wars adventure (you know, the evil Empire vs the down and out rebellion, with the Wintermen as the Jedis). It's a rough and ready story with lots of action, a fascinating setting and great characters. It's a nice, easy read but it also packs a punch, especially as the story moves to its climax, a real page turner. I was totally satisfied with the story and as I look around the current world situation, with corporations and governments trying to dig up our natural resources, it's even an interesting cautionary tale. I'm looking forward to reading #2, Into the Deep Dark. Thank you, Brit Griffin for providing such an enjoyable read. (3.5 stars)
December 17, 2021
Found a spelling mistake.
Would have loved to edit the book more to make it better especially when the characters are talking to each other. Split up the dialogue to make it more impactful. Hard to believe it got a trilogy published, I need to write more!
Would have loved to edit the book more to make it better especially when the characters are talking to each other. Split up the dialogue to make it more impactful. Hard to believe it got a trilogy published, I need to write more!
May 25, 2025
This was a fun read but TBH it got a bit muddled for me near the end. I don’t think I’ll read the rest of the trilogy BUT it’s a great hook and starts off super strong. I think the strength of this lies in the premise and world building and I think it would make a better TV series than a literary one if I’m being honest. There are a ton of characters that I think just don’t stand out enough to make them shine through the busy narrative but in a visual medium it’d be different. I’d watch every season of this if someone made it.
August 7, 2020
The Wintermen is an action packed snowmobile ride through the northern landscapes of Canada. Dealing with not only capitalism and greed but also community in the face of climate catastrophe. A book for the times, Brit Griffin explores a near future possibility of perpetual winter and what that does to humanity and our willingness to work with each other and nature. The first in the trilogy, this books sets the ground work for a series steeped in humour, action, and snow.
November 21, 2014
"The Wintermen" which I won through Goodreads Giveways is a gripping thriller set in a future in Northern Ontario where a sparse population has to endure permanent winter. When the story opens a dispute has risen in one of the government depots over gloves belonging to Talos, the security corporation hired to ensure the clean sweep of supplies and people from the northern territories. When the argument escalates and a teenage boy is killed John Slaught reciprocates by killing the security boss and takes refuge in the town of Cobalt.
Two years later the small, dilapidated town has grown into a thriving community of average people trying to rebuild their lives, but the government has its greedy eyes on the natural resources of the North. Talos has been ordered to rid the region of any inhabitants before mining operations are flown in and this includes getting rid of John Slaught and his Wintermen who reportedly control the northern hinterlands. When a band of cold-blooded mercenaries are ordered into the territories they never expect to face a charade concocted by Slaught and his friends to detract them from their mission.
Brit Griffin sets the stage in a world devastated by climate change where the government has given unlimited power to a security organization to force evacuations from rural areas and to clean out any existing storage depots. Like a captivating old-time frontier western, John Slaught and the Wintermen ride their snow machines across the snowy landscape in a confrontation with an enemy whose weaponry and purpose are far more deadly. Although the language is overflowing with swear words, the plot is action-packed and gripping from the first page to the last. Even when the drama heats up, tension and suspense mounting as events unfold, it's often broken by wry humour.
The personalities of the characters are well-developed and complex with all their strengths, flaws and faults. Johnny Slaught a divorcee working temporary jobs is a natural leader who's clever, stubborn, and hates killing. Chumboy Commando an Algonquin and John's friend is amiable, considerate and shrewd. Susun Latour a woman haunted by the murder of evacuees, and a midwife can be grouchy, belligerent and head-strong; her growing affection for John never expressed in words, only by wearing his shirts. Auntie Verla a native healer and spiritualist is an enigmatic character with an acerbic disposition. Of the mercenaries Grier Turner an actor from the I-Time's Man Up Program is self-absorbed, jealous, and sleazy. He hides a vicious and murderous temperament, indiscriminately killing his colleagues. His partner and lover Mitch Black is a skilled mercenary who's tough, manipulative and impudent. Lusting for John Slaught she plays a cat and mouse game with him that amuses her but sends Grier Turner over the edge. All these characters add to the drama, passion and energy of a story that's so credible it's hard to put down.
I enjoyed "The WinterMen" and recommend it to anyone who like a science fiction thriller set in a landscape of a Canadian perpetual winter.
Two years later the small, dilapidated town has grown into a thriving community of average people trying to rebuild their lives, but the government has its greedy eyes on the natural resources of the North. Talos has been ordered to rid the region of any inhabitants before mining operations are flown in and this includes getting rid of John Slaught and his Wintermen who reportedly control the northern hinterlands. When a band of cold-blooded mercenaries are ordered into the territories they never expect to face a charade concocted by Slaught and his friends to detract them from their mission.
Brit Griffin sets the stage in a world devastated by climate change where the government has given unlimited power to a security organization to force evacuations from rural areas and to clean out any existing storage depots. Like a captivating old-time frontier western, John Slaught and the Wintermen ride their snow machines across the snowy landscape in a confrontation with an enemy whose weaponry and purpose are far more deadly. Although the language is overflowing with swear words, the plot is action-packed and gripping from the first page to the last. Even when the drama heats up, tension and suspense mounting as events unfold, it's often broken by wry humour.
The personalities of the characters are well-developed and complex with all their strengths, flaws and faults. Johnny Slaught a divorcee working temporary jobs is a natural leader who's clever, stubborn, and hates killing. Chumboy Commando an Algonquin and John's friend is amiable, considerate and shrewd. Susun Latour a woman haunted by the murder of evacuees, and a midwife can be grouchy, belligerent and head-strong; her growing affection for John never expressed in words, only by wearing his shirts. Auntie Verla a native healer and spiritualist is an enigmatic character with an acerbic disposition. Of the mercenaries Grier Turner an actor from the I-Time's Man Up Program is self-absorbed, jealous, and sleazy. He hides a vicious and murderous temperament, indiscriminately killing his colleagues. His partner and lover Mitch Black is a skilled mercenary who's tough, manipulative and impudent. Lusting for John Slaught she plays a cat and mouse game with him that amuses her but sends Grier Turner over the edge. All these characters add to the drama, passion and energy of a story that's so credible it's hard to put down.
I enjoyed "The WinterMen" and recommend it to anyone who like a science fiction thriller set in a landscape of a Canadian perpetual winter.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews