The Fishing Widow
by Amy
K. Marshall
Today, I'm introducing you to Amy Marshall's debut novel, The Fishing Widow. You can read my interview with Amy below.
Description
There's an old
saying that goes: The difference between a fairy tale and a fisherman’s tale is
this… a fairy tale begins, "Once Upon A Time" and a fisherman’s tale
begins, "This Ain’t No Bullshit."
Supernatural terror
stalks the crew of the purse seiner the F/V The
Case In Point during the March 2010 Sitka Herring Sac Roe Fishery in
Southeast Alaska. As the herring war intensifies, each boat is an island, and
being alone can cost you everything. As the web spins from the depths, the past
is not so distant; the lines between history and myth begin to blur. The
forgotten horror surrounding the 1835 loss of the Nantucket whaler The Covenant threatens to overwhelm the
present. One among the seven men aboard The
Case In Point is unwittingly marked by a woman beautiful and cursed, who
not only desperately needs his help, but needs, desperately, to tear out his
heart and consume his crew.
Book Trailer
Excerpt
Colin lurched, his hand tightening against
the smooth metal wheel as a roller crashed against Revelation, sending white capped water raging over the wheelhouse.
He steadied his feet, his hand scrabbling madly for the radio’s transmitter.
The boat’s superstructure groaned. The roller drove him, hard, up against Fairweather again.
“Matt!” Colin’s voice was hoarse with
desperation. “Matt! Get those lines cut!” Through the wildly scattered sheen of
the sodium mast lights, Colin could see two of his shipmates struggle to their
feet, dragging fire-axes up with them, and resume hacking wildly at the lines
that held the two boats fast. Revelation
shuddered as the following trough removed the sea beneath her. Colin watched
the rain-slicked orange figures reel as Fairweather
slid down after her. One line parted suddenly, snapping away as the two boats
continued to pitch.
“One!” Matt yelled.
“C’m on, boys,” Colin pleaded in a whisper
as two axes began tearing fiercely into the second line. Colin started,
spinning around as the bulkhead door behind him banged open. Ethan flung
himself into the wheelhouse. He made a mad grab for Colin.
“Get out!” Ethan’s hands closed on Colin,
pulling him from the wheel. Colin stumbled away, falling against the starboard
bulkhead as the boat pitched.
“Ethan!” Colin yelled.
Ethan turned, his blue eyes shining
insanely in the shifting light. He stumbled aft, grabbing at the fire axe.
“Oh, shit, no,” Colin breathed his eyes
wide. Colin let out a yell as he flung himself aft. His hands closed on Ethan
and he hauled him forward, slamming him down against the con. Ethan struggled,
punching at Colin. Ethan’s fist connected and Colin fell back, his hand
fumbling for the wheel. Ethan howled, kicking at Colin before tumbling to the
deck. Ethan staggered to his feet and turned.
They suddenly reeled to starboard as the
second line parted and Revelation
rocked free of Fairweather. Ethan’s
fingers found the radio mic as he slid, his other hand grasping wildly for the
wheel.
“Matt!” Ethan wailed frantically.
“Ethan!” Colin lunged for Ethan. The boat
jerked and shuddered, sliding sideways through the worsening swell. Ethan and
Colin fell, grappling, against the port bulkhead.
“Let me go!” Ethan screamed. He flailed
helplessly.
Colin turned wildly as the bulkhead door
banged, thrown open and shut in the wind. The gale swirled through the
wheelhouse—spinning charts and papers from their places beneath the con.
“No! Let me go!” Ethan sobbed. Colin
ignored him; he lunged for the door, wrenching it shut before he staggered to
the wheel. Ethan howled.
“Ethan--” Colin’s hands struggled at the
wheel to steady her. He watched Ethan writhe against the deck, howling, his
fingers clawing madly at his survival suit. Colin shook his head in disbelief.
His hand trembled as he picked up the transmitter, his eyes never leaving
Ethan. “Oh, God, Matt,” he breathed, his voice echoing in his ears. “Call
Ketch.”
Review
By Lynda Dickson
The Fishing Widow is set in Alaska, and follows
the story of fishermen Ethan and Colin, and the women in their lives, Nan and
Ellie. It begins with a chilling encounter aboard the Revelation four years earlier, introducing us to the main
characters and a mystery which will continue to haunt Ethan.
We jump forward to the
2010 opening of the Sitka Herring Fishery aboard Colin's new boat The Case in Point. What follows is a
life and death race to bring an end to an ancient curse and to solve the
mystery of what happened aboard the Revelation
four years earlier. A word or warning: there are a lot of names in this book,
including the crew members and a number of boats. Be sure you pay attention to all of them, past and present, as they
are all relevant to the story.
This book is a fine
mix of romance, historical fiction, thriller, suspense, and horror, and it is even
part boating and fishing manual. At times there is too much detail but, while this
may detract from the story itself, it does have the effect of transporting the
reader into the book's world. We can hear the rain pelting down on our hooded
slicker and feel the deck swaying beneath our feet.
All in all, this was
a good read with elements to please all types of readers.
About the Author
Amy K. Marshall has been an archaeologist, curator, archivist, conservator,
diver, sled dog race project manager and logistics chief, line chef, waitress,
forklift operator, newspaper delivery girl, musical theater director, actress,
small business owner, musician, and shovel bum (not necessarily in that order,
and not necessarily exclusively at one time or another).
Amy holds a B.A. in Medieval Archaeology (this explains the odd jobs) and
an M.A. in Maritime History & Nautical Archaeology (this explains the whole
boat fascination thing). She is currently the Library Director for the small
fishing town of Craig, Alaska on Prince of Wales Island, and would like to go
on record that she was NOT her small fishing town's librarian at the time of
writing this particular story. She resides in Craig with her husband, two teenagers
(this goes far in explaining the whole horror writer thing), dark-fairy-hunting
cat, and psychotic Border collie; all of whom she loves beyond all measure.
The Fishing Widow is Amy's first novel. She
is currently working on a number of other projects.
Not half-bad for the girl who was born and abandoned in the Grover
Bungalow Laundry Mat in Lawrence, Kansas in November of 1964 (you can read more
about this by following the link
below).
Links
Other Interesting Links
Amy in the News
Hauling Gear - Commercial fishery blog
JuneaTek - Commercial fishery
blog
