Bertrand W. Sinclair (1881–1972)

This was the fifth Bertrand Sinclair novel I've read and I was somewhat disappointed by the novel despite its interesting subject matter concerning Prohibition. The novel is principally told from the standpoint of Jean Groome, a hired secretary for Thor Motors of Vancouver. The hero is Chris Moeller, a ship captain and engine designer. He is an aloof man who is somewhat enigmatic and hard to identify with. At first, I assumed that Jean and Chris would get together by the end of the novel but that's not what transpires. Some of the secondary characters such as Buck Moore and Betty Tarrant are well drawn. The only part of the novel, besides the local Vancouver detail, which drew my interest was a ship's bootlegging expedition down the coast to California. Not the best of Sinclair's books.… (mehr)

I liked this novel better than Poor Man's Rock, supposedly Sinclair's best novel. There is more psychological insight, and the characters are fleshed out better. The main protagonist is Bob Hollister, a WWI veteran who suffers a terrible injury disfiguring his face. Before the war, he married a woman named Myra, who remarried when it was thought Hollister had died in combat. Bob makes his way to Vancouver, where he learns he still has a timber concession on Toba Inlet, on the British Columbia coast. On a ship, he meets Doris, a blind woman who thankfully cannot see what he looks like. Bob visits the property and is startled to learn his wife is living nearby. When he decides to remarry anyway, lawfully, he is a bigamist. His first wife doesn't recognize him initially. Bob manages his timber allotment and is quite successful, but a forest fire burns his stand of cedars down. Myra is shot dead by her jealous husband. Doris regains some of her sight, and Hollister is terrified she'll see his appearance, but the improvement is only partial. The novel ends with Hollister feeling contentment about his life situation.… (mehr)

There is a lot to recommend in this novel. The writing is fluent and never bogs down. The author has a deep knowledge of nautical life and an appreciation for the sea. It was fascinating to read about the plight of the poor fisherman and how the canneries manipulated them. However, I found the storyline somewhat predictable and trite, as I could guess who the hero was going to marry as easily as in a Harlequin Romance novel. The main character, Jack MacRae, doesn't show any development as a character until the very end, and his antagonist, Horace Gower, likewise. It was a breezy read but somewhat lacking.… (mehr)