In a small, isolated outport on the northeast coast of Newfoundland toward the end of the nineteenth century—where nothing of note ever seems to happen—a woman is brutally attacked, and a murder-suicide is committed. The age-old rift between young lovers of different religions becomes a challenge, one which is met head-on, and though it is overcome in a physical sense, it carries severe emotional consequences. A woman's successful manipulation leads to an untimely death and a lifetime of hatred.

Read about a time long ago, when lamplight bent its glow through single panes of windows upon gravel paths—when men worked hard, and women harder. From the peaceful waters of Newfoundland, sail away with the boys to the war in Suvla Bay—and fight there with the men. Survive on food that you caught, grew, and hunted. Live in a home carried out of the forest on your shoulder and built by your own hand. And learn why, despite the toil, the loneliness, the unchanging way of life, and the many hardships, even those who sailed away from the Place never left for good.

Gary Collins was born in a small, two-storey house by the sea in the town of Hare Bay, Bonavista North. He finished school at Brown Memorial High in the same town. He spent forty years in the logging and sawmilling business with his father, Theophilus, and son Clint. Gary was once Newfoundland’s youngest fisheries guardian. He managed log drives down spring rivers for years, spent seven seasons driving tractor-trailers over ice roads and the Beaufort Sea of Canada’s Western Arctic, and has been involved in the crab, lobster, and cod commercial fisheries.His writing career began when he was asked to write eulogies for deceased friends and family. He spent a full summer employed as a prospector before he wrote Soulis Joe’s Lost Mine; he liked the work so much, he went back to school to earn his prospecting certificate. A critically acclaimed author, he has written a total of eight books, including Cabot Island, The Last Farewell, Soulis Joe’s Lost Mine, Where Eagles Lie Fallen, Mattie Mitchell: Newfoundland’s Greatest Frontiersman, A Day on the Ridge, and the children’s illustrated book What Colour is the Ocean?, which he co-wrote with his granddaughter, Maggie Rose Parsons. The latter won an Atlantic Book Award: The Lillian Shepherd Memorial Award for Excellence in Illustration.Gary Collins is Newfoundland and Labrador’s favourite storyteller, and today he is known all over the province as the “Story Man.” His favourite pastimes are reading and writing, and playing guitar at his log cabin. He lives in Hare Bay, Newfoundland, with his wife, the former Rose Gill. They have three children and three grandchildren.

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