Matthew Schumacher, with his manuscript-in-progress, Last Breath: A Ryan Beckwith Novel, is a 2022 New Voices writer. Congratulations, Matthew.

Last Breath tells the story of former special forces commando, Ryan Beckwith. Finally at peace after years of war, Ryan is living quietly in the Caribbean with his new love. Elise is a French freediving instructor, and, unbeknownst to Ryan, a former operative of her nations’ special intelligence service. A chance meeting with a fellow Australian will see both Ryan and Elise drawn back into a world of deception and violence, travelling from the oceans of the Caribbean to the jungles of Indonesia, and finally back to the country Ryan turned his back on, Australia.

About Matthew: For the last twelve years, Schumacher has served as Infantry Officer in the Australian Army. During that time, he has been been fortunate enough to travel from the jungles of Malaysia to downtown Kabul, and many other exciting places. During 2022, he resided in the Cayman Islands, and dedicated his time to writing. His stories are filled with echoes of the many brave and interesting people Schumacher has encountered in his travels. When not reading and writing, he enjoys spending time underwater, both SCUBA and freediving.