Caitlin Gray will never forget the young boy that darted in front of her car, or the fact that she killed him.  She suspects her husband is having an affair with a fellow orchestra member.  Caitlin makes the decision that it is time to escape. 

Caitlin travels to Alabaster Island, Maine where she hopes to fulfill her dream of becoming a writer.  There an elderly man who treats her as family, and O’zalik, a Native American, married to a cruel islander, befriends her.  O’Zalik wants the truth about her ancestors to become published and asks Caitlin to help.  To uncover the truth, Caitlin and O’zalik face animosity of the townspeople, who may not be ready to face the criminal acts of their own ancestors. 

Part general fiction and part mystery, Norman Gautreau captures every essence of remote Maine and brings it to life.  The characters are easy to love or to hate; some seem so evil you want to climb into the book and strangle them.  He does a great job at portraying a rugged land and tough characters. 

The downfall to the book for this reader was the lack of resolution with Caitlin’s family life.  They have a couple of meetings in the book where things are discussed, but nothing is ever resolved.  This leaves me wondering if there will be other trips to Alabaster Island in the future.