Open Secret by
Deryn Collier – In the fictional town of Kootenay Landing in the southeast
corner of British Columbia, just north of the American border, Bern Fortin is
the coroner. Retired from the Canadian Forces where he was a Lieutenant Colonel
who saw duty in Rwanda, Bosnia and Afghanistan, Bern is afflicted by the
traumatic events, especially Rwanda, which he witnessed and sometimes
participated.
Cindy Johns is an aboriginal girl growing up a generation
ago near Kootenay Landing in horrific family circumstances.
Cindy’s story and some of Bern’s past are provided in a
series of flashbacks.
Gary Dowd, a bookkeeper in a local company, has secrets from
his youth that have affected his marriage with Michelle.
Michelle and her parents are even more disturbed by the
trauma of a family tragedy.
Dr. Juniper Sinclair is a beautiful harried doctor with too
much work and too many people to care for in town with not enough doctors.
Juniper’s housemate, Gia, is gradually wasting away.
Constable Maddie Schilling of the RCMP is struggling with
debilitating cramps. Too early for her period she finds relief in a locally
made topical cream. She also struggles with low self esteem as she compares
herself with trimmer, more classically lovely, women.
Sitting against a rock ledge, enjoying the beauty and
stillness of the fall mountain scenery, Bern hears a rifle shot. Instantly
dropping behind the ledge he instinctively reaches for his military rifle.
Finding none there he returns to the reality of the day. Calming himself he
goes down to the marshy area where the sound of the shot came from and finds
Seymour Melnychuk mortally wounded.
Dr. Sinclair is desperately tries to save him giving mouth
to mouth resuscitation but Seymour is soon gone.
Seymour, an associate of the Hell’s Angels, had grown up with
Gary and just spent some time at Gary’s home.
Seymour’s presence back in Kootenay Landing has caused fear,
even terror.
No one will mourn his passing but who killed him.
Bern assists Constable Schilling as she probes the relationships
of the characters and looks for connections.
The area of B.C. in which the mystery is set has major
marijuana grow ops. Production of marijuana is a major industry. The business
of marijuana is a prominent part of the book.
The effects and uses of marijuana are featured in ways I had
not expected.
Collier does a good job of creating a realistic fictional
community. Her descriptions of the mountainous country are striking even
lyrical.
I wanted to like the book a lot. It is set in rural Canada.
It had an intriguing murder. Yet it did not work well for me.
I found the characters depressing. While I would find
unbelievable characters whose lives were all sunshine I found these characters
dominated by troubled pasts. I expect those readers who like their characters
dark in spirit will like the book.
I found the plot moved slowly for me. Ordinarily I appreciate
authors fleshing out relationships and providing backgrounds but I did not find
the pace of Open Secret quick enough
for me.
Open Secret is the 10th book of 13 for this year's Canadian Book Challenge which ends on July 1, Canada Day. The Challenge is hosted at the Book Mine Set blog.
Bill - The first thing that struck me as I was reading your review was the setting. It sounds quite well-done. But characters really are important to a story and if these characters didn't appeal to you, then they didn't. Still, the mystery sounds interesting. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteMargot: Thanks for the comment. The well done setting was not enough for me.
ReplyDeleteBill, apart from the setting I'm intrigued by the various characters with "troubled pasts" and how their disparate lives play out, singly or jointly, in the overall story. While I don't mind the slow pace of a novel, too many depressing characters can diminish my interest.
ReplyDeletePrashant: Thanks for the comment. This might be a better book for you than me. I think you would find interesting reading about that part of B.C.
DeleteSo funny how subjective books are. I'm reading Open Secret now, and I'm gripped by the plot and the characters. Depressing doesn't bug me (I LOVED Gone Girl, and man, were they ever people you don't want to meet in real life). And I agree with you--the setting is a real strength.
ReplyDeleteI like your review, though. It's well-written, comprehensive, and serves as the best reminder of all that books reach each reader so differently.
I look forward to reading more of your opinions.
Robin: Thanks for the comment and kind words. I hope you drop back often. After writing reviews for this blog and reading other blogs I have come to think, unless a reader has a specific affinity for a reviewer, it is a good idea to get reviews of a book from more than one source before reaching a conclusion on whether to get the book.
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