Tag: Canadian setting

Rebecca Silver Slayer’s—In the land of birdfishes *****

After two twins Mara and Aileen, witness their mother’s suicide their father is wild with grief. He blindfolds both girls so they won’t see the worst in the world, causing Mara to become blind and Aileen ‘s eyesight to be damaged. When a Nova Scotia neighbour discovers what he has done to his children, they are separated from their father and each other and it is not until years later that Aileen discovers where her sister is living. She leaves a broken marriage and heads to Dawson City, but when she arrives she struggles to decipher fact from fiction in the tales Mara’s son, Jason spins. Will she ever learn the truth about what happened to her sister?

A well written tale that because of Jason’s twisting of the truth, the ending couldn’t be fathomed until the very last page.

Heather Marshall’s—Looking for Jane *****

When Angela discovers an undelivered letter hidden in one of the antiques in the Toronto shop where she works, she is determined to find Nancy—the person who should have received this confession ten years earlier. Nancy was adopted, but from the letter it appears she never knew.

While the characters are fictional, events in the novel relating to the Canadian Government’s earlier policies on abortion and the church’s institutional treatment of unmarried mothers is based on historical fact. Despite a little unnecessary detail throughout the book, this is still a compelling and eye-opening read that I couldn’t put down.

Joan Clark’s — An audience of chairs *****

Moranna lives in a Cape Bretton farmhouse in a small village. She is often alone when her partner, Bun is away working on the ferries between islands. Although she is considered mad by the locals, she decides to attend her estranged daughter’s impending wedding in Halifax when she learns the news. But will she be welcomed?

Mary Lawson’s — A town called Solace *****

Aging Mrs. Orchard has gone into hospital and Clara, her neighbour’s daughter is feeding her capricious cat. At the same time, Clara’s teenage sister, Rose has an argument with her mother and leaves. The small community of Solace in Northern Ontario search the woods, but there is no sign of Rose. Clara stands by the window awaiting her sister’s return when she spies a stranger entering Mrs. Orchard’s house. Who is this man? Why are her parents lying to her? And why hasn’t Mrs. Orchard returned?

This novel is off to a slow start in the first two short chapters, but the small town setting, the characters and Lawson’s wonderful story telling had me engrossed by the third chapter.