There’s only one thing more deadly than the storm…
Fisheries officer Simone Lord is transferred to Quebec’s remote Magdalen Islands for the winter, and at the last minute ordered to go aboard a trawler braving a winter storm for the traditional grey seal hunt, while all of the other boats shelter onshore.
Detective Sergeant Joaquin Moralès is on a cross-country boat trip down the St Lawrence River, accompanied by Nadine Lauzon, a forensic psychologist working on the case of a savagely beaten teenager with Moralès’ old team in Montreal.
When it becomes clear that Simone is in grave danger aboard the trawler, the two cases converge, with startling, terrifying consequences for everyone involved…
The award-winning author of The Coral Bride returns with an atmospheric, race-against-the-clock thriller set on the icy seas in the midst of a brutal seal hunt, where nothing is as it seems and absolutely no one can be trusted.
It's an absolute pleasure to be hosting the blog tour for Whisper of the Seals today. Many thanks to Roxanne Bouchard, Orenda Books and Anne Cater from Random Things Tours for inviting me and for my advance copy of the novel.
A new Detective Moralès is always something I look forward to. We Were The Salt of The Sea and The Coral Bride both captivated me and so Whisper of the Seals was one of my most highly anticipated reads of the year. It's not necessary to have read the previous books but I would recommend doing so if you can, in order to truly appreciate the full emotional weight of the storyline.
Whisper of the Seals sees the welcome return of Fisheries Officer Simone Lord who has been transferred to the remote Magdalen Islands, off the coast of the Gaspé Peninsula. Right from the start, there's a sense of foreboding and the disturbing early scenes that the reader is privy to while Simone remains unaware of what is happening are a chilling portent of what follows. Throughout the book, it's obvious just how vulnerable she is and yet her inner strength is never in doubt. She is a woman in a man's world and has suffered as a result, both personally and professionally. Her presence on board the Jean-Mathieu is greeted with anger and lechery, and it's more than just words that she has to contend with. She has been tasked with observing the largely unsavoury crew on their late season seal hunt and has to ensure the rules regarding the killing of the animals are properly adhered to.
I'm a vegan and can't pretend I enjoyed the scenes where seals are killed, however, although Roxanne Bouchard candidly describes what happens, it is never gratuitous. I am drawn to fiction that challenges me and so despite my own personal choices, I appreciated being shown a different perspective regarding the culling of seals as part of the necessary fine balancing act required to manage the seas effectively. It's not comfortable reading but it is thought-provoking as well as being the integral backdrop to the plot.
Meanwhile, Joaquin Moralés is away from land too as he embarks on a cross country skiing and cruising holiday with his friends. Érik Lefebvre and Nadine Lauzon. Newly divorced, adjusting to this change in his life is difficult and has left him feeling disjointed. Whisper of the Seals is a tense thriller but it's also an elegantly melancholic exploration of loneliness and regret. Moralés and Lord may be on different boats but there's a poignant similitude between them that means the terrifying inevitability of what occurs becomes even more moving. There is only a brief scene featuring some of the wonderfully eccentric Caplan villagers but the characterisation is as pitch-perfect as ever, even though most of the crew are various shades of despicable. The coked-up Painchaud, mysteriously enigmatic Michaël Lapierre and the violently misogynistic McMurray, who is encouraged by vengeful poacher Lucien Carpentier all spring from the pages, bringing with them a jarring sense of danger.
In such a dark book, the lighter moments come from Moralés's companions; for all Lefebvre's jocularity, he shows a perceptive awareness of what his friend needs and fortunately, Nadine is as dedicated to her work as a forensic psychologist as Moralés is to his job. Although she is on holiday, she's brought her latest case on board with her, as she endeavours to discover why a teenager was so mercilessly beaten in such a brazen display of violence. Detective work grounds Moralés and so as he questions who he is in the light of his divorce, it's unsurprising that he should be drawn to helping her with the case.
The atmospheric, poetically vivid prose irresistibly captures the unforgiving winter weather, almost thrusting the reader directly into the heart of the action, and consequently, the nail-biting, shocking final scenes resonate even more strongly. David Warriner's astute translation of this lyrical, affecting novel deserves high praise too. Whisper of the Seas is a stunningly effective novel; it evokes the stark beauty of the Gaspé Peninsula and the icy, treacherous waters that shape the lives of the communities living there while also being a tautly plotted, suspenseful thriller that never feels rushed or uneven. Roxanne Bouchard allows the storyline to unfold at its own pace and the result is devastating. Superbly structured and potently compelling, Whisper of the Seals is a mesmerising tour de force.
Whisper of the Seals will published by Orenda Books on 18th August 2022. It can be purchased directly from their website or from bookshop.org, Hive, Waterstones and Amazon but please support independent bookshops whenever possible.
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