Review by Booklist Review
When a literary thriller succeeds beyond genre, it's often because the book's sense of place gives it extra depth. So it is in this striking first novel about a shocking murder in the Long Island community of Amagansett in the years immediately following World War II. When Basque fisherman Conrad Labarde lands the body of a New York socialite in his net, he knows it means trouble--for the Long Island natives, struggling to preserve their way of life against the onslaught of Manhattan wealth, and especially for him personally, since the victim was his lover. Screenwriter Mills expertly blends the fascinating history of Long Island's south shore into his story, incorporating not only the stories of immigrant fishermen but also those of Native Americans, the first group to be dispossessed as the island became more attractive to rich people. The novel combines a touching love story, told in flashback, with a nicely detailed procedural starring an unlikely investigative duo: the taciturn Basque and the Amagansett assistant police chief, who hopes to resurrect his career in the wake of scandal. Literarily inclined cop-novel fans will be reminded of Michael Malone, while nongenre types will find elements of John Casey's Spartina (1989) in the fishing story and in the conflict between locals and summer people. This is a novel to savor, both for its portrait of rough-hewn individuals finding selfhood beyond the breakers and for its snapshot of the postwar world not yet locked in the death grip of modernity. --Bill Ott Copyright 2004 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
A mysterious drowning rekindles a conflict between a Basque-American fisherman and a powerful Long Island family in screenwriter Mills's smart, complex debut novel, a fascinating murder mystery that begins in the post-WWII years when Conrad Labarde hauls up the body of Lillian Wallace in his net while earning his livelihood in the waters off the Hamptons. At first the drowning looks like a tragic accident, but when the autopsy report raises the possibility of murder and Labarde's history with the Wallaces is uncovered, police chief Tom Hollis suspects Labarde of playing a central role in Lillian's death. Further investigation, however, casts suspicion on the powerful Wallace family, specifically Lillian's former boyfriend, Justin Penrose, and her ambitious brother Manfred, the latter of whom may have been involved in a deadly hit-and-run accident. As Mills weaves together the various plot threads, he ably paints the Hamptons as a social battleground for the local fisherman, the Jewish residents and the wealthier sport fishermen. Mills saves his trump card for the climax, in which Labarde baits Manfred Wallace into a final confrontation while cleverly forcing Hollis to play a pivotal role in their face-off. Probing, morally nuanced and rich with period detail, this is a fine first novel. Agent, Jennifer Rudolph Walsh. Foreign rights sold in Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Holland, Italy, Japan, Norway, Spain, Sweden and the U.K. (Aug.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Library Journal Review
It is 1947, and GI Conrad Labarde has returned to his working-class Long Island town. A first-generation Basque fisherman, he is all too familiar with the wide financial and cultural disparity between Amagansett's year-rounders and the tony Manhattanites who flock each summer to their mansions by the sea. But times are changing in postwar America, and when Labarde finds the body of a beautiful young woman tangled in his nets, the Hamptons set is rocked to its core. Why did this woman leave the country club, and what did she know about the hit-and-run death of a young girl on the night of a summer dance? The rich may be different, but are they above the law? For Deputy Chief of Police Tom Hollis, the mystery exposes his troubled past and opens a door to the future. For Labarde, it nearly costs him his life. Screenwriter Mills's debut novel is a taut, suspenseful drama filled with well-crafted characters and wonderful descriptions of Long Island. Its solid plot and tantalizing subject matter will win over many readers; highly recommended.-Susan Clifford Braun, Aerospace Corp., El Segundo, CA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by School Library Journal Review
Adult/High School-In 1947, two fishermen find the body of a beautiful woman tangled in their net off Amagansett, Long Island. Both deny recognizing her, but Conrad Labarde is lying. The murder reveals the discord between the privileged who summer at beachfront houses and the men who live and work at the shore. Both Deputy Police Chief Tom Hollis and Conrad are determined to find the killer-Tom to salvage his reputation after a scandal drove him from the New York police force, and Conrad because he and Lillian had been having an affair. But since her family was one of the wealthiest of the "summer people," she could never marry him. Each man conducts his own investigation, but it is Conrad who links Lillian's death and the earlier death of a town girl by a hit-and-run driver. This is a gripping story, with characters powerfully drawn against a tapestry of time and place. Conrad is the most memorable: he becomes a manipulator of men and events but is left with his loss; his only love, the sea; and his work, fishing.-Molly Connally, Chantilly Regional Library, VA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
Strong debut melodrama, solid as granite, not a clichÉ in sight. Screenwriter Mills's research into Long Island's South Fork fishing village of Amagansett as it was in 1947 stands forth with superb detail. The story draws its subject matter from village lore, from wondrous fishing scenes (especially for giant tuna), and from the invasion of the town by wealthy snobs--who allow no Jews on the fancy golf course. Conrad Labarde, son of Basque fishermen, and his retarded mate Rollo are hauling a seine into shore when it becomes clear that there's a woman's body in with the fish and big shark in their net. She's Lillian Wallace, a millionaire's daughter and, as we later learn, Conrad's secret lover--secret since her family would never approve of an affair with a fisherman. Conrad thinks she was murdered and begins a private investigation. Meanwhile, Deputy Sheriff Tom Hollis, with slightly more evidence, comes to the same thought and also begins his own secret investigation. The reader weighs various suspects until, halfway through, Mills lets us know who the bad guys are, although with no loss of suspense. So this is less murder mystery than, well, epic drama peopled with leathery fishermen, gabby townsfolk, and big-spending mansion dwellers. As background, perhaps a fifth of the pages fill in Conrad's incredible war record of fighting Nazis all over Europe, experience that develops his charisma and underpins the climax. Typical native lingo: "I got a mess o' clams and a bluefish needs eating. I'd boil up a lobster, only I'm sick to the hind teeth of the damned things." Sea, sky, tossing waves, curling whitecaps, foam, rowboats cutting through a wild unrest (as Whitman puts it)--not to mention high humor and heartfelt sex. Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
