Review of Mel Keegan's "Home From the Sea"

I picked up “Home From the Sea” the minute I heard of the title’s release and did not regret my purchase for a moment.  Mel Keegan has an enviable gift for world building, in this case transporting us to the English coast circa 1769.  Mr. Keegan brings to life an ordinary, upstanding fellow about to be swept up in secrecy and adventure he could never have fathomed.

We first meet Jim Fairley running his late father’s tavern.  A reputable establishment, The Raven flocks with clientele who share hair raising tales from the high seas that leave Jim musing over the thrill of exotic shores.  The fog of his daily grind only lifts when a man of like mind enters the establishment and the pair discovers mutual attraction.  But these illegal interludes are dangerous, inevitably brief in nature.

As a result Jim finds himself forever consoled by the companionship of rum-soaked sailors, a dog, one cat, his nearly deaf grandmotherly cook, and a female populace that assumes an old leg injury left him a eunuch.  Even an aged regular sees the danger of missed opportunity, warning that any safe haven can become a prison.

Enter Toby Trelane, the enigmatic visitor who gradually, unintentionally, turns Jim Fairley’s mundane existence on its ear.  Toby acts as handyman by day and balladsinger by night, drawing unlikely crowds even on the cusp of bad weather.  This stranger piqued my interest with his secretive yet generous nature.  What was Toby hiding?  Why did he seem shamed by his past?

I had difficulty putting the book down well before any actual mayhem ensued.  You must know, too, that Mr. Keegan incorporated some unexpected characters, well crafted ones.  There’s the long-dead owner of The Raven who watched the coastal path with eerie intensity.  No one could say why.  Mother Nature plays a major role, for sure, and even the The Raven herself seems like much more than just a set of structures.

I consider this an outstanding mesh of romance, mystery, drama, and jeopardy.  If you appreciate a thoughtful story filled with grit and heart instead of endless sex, be sure to pick up “Home From the Sea”.

Click here to read the blurb, excerpt, or just buy, wish I recommend:

Mel Keegan Online 

-

Stream of Consciousness

Yesterday I sat at a riverbank, content to watch the water slide by.  A crane waded in the middle near a tiny atoll, taking patient stabs at elusive fish with its bill.  Four Canada geese endeavored to cross and, as I wondered why they didn’t just fly over, I swore the largest (mother?  father?) led this spring’s fledglings in an effort to teach them how to navigate the current.

After that bucolic consideration, I realized how the word current is spelled and pronounced the same whether we’re talking about the movement of air and water or referring to our present, as in a “current situation”.  The cause is likely coincidental, especially given the many English words originated from Latin or more modern languages.  The two meanings probably have very different derivations.  Still, I like the implication.  Life, however stagnant our place in it might feel, is fluid, able to change course around whatever obstacles emerge (my fervent wish for those in troubled times).