Review: Guilt and Turmoil Among the Waves
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 08 27, 2013
This fast-paced story appealed to me on many levels. First, the author gets the readers' attention by the end of the very first paragraph. She introduces two friends, Greg and Jake, and states that something happened the night they went fishing that left Jake dead. Don't worry, no plot spoilers anymore, and if you read the first two sentences of this book, you will already know that Jake will be dead. The author told us. But that's just a small part of the mystery, the intrigue, and the appeal of this book.To me, the more interesting parts come later. A disaster hits the small waterfront town, leaving many people dead. As obvious from the beginning, Greg is not one of them. He is one of the few survivors. What follows next is an intriguing philosophical and psychological investigation of Greg's feelings and actions as he is attending the funeral of those who perished. Don't take my last comment wrong: the story is still fast-paced, but in this part, something more is added. As readers, we cannot help but wonder what kinds of feelings we would experience were we to find ourselves in Greg's situation. Relief? Guilt? Disbelief? Grief for those who perished? Fear that fate spared us this time, but our demise is approaching as well?And from that point on, the story only gets better. I loved the descriptions of the ocean, the shore, and the hint of shipwrecks that lead to myths and sea stories. The vivid settings reminded me of one of my favorite real-life settings, that of the Apostle Islands and Lake Superior, where the mystery of deep water, hidden undercurrents, and the desire to conquer nature still attract sailors, for better or for worse. It's a place of many shipwrecks and legends, just like this book. It was a treat to read it.