One Woman's Island - Paperback

by Susan M. Toy (Author)

Running away from Canada, Mariana hopes to forget a failed marriage and the death of her husband by embarking on a whole new life. She moves lock, stock, and two cats to the small Caribbean island of Bequia. But the move brings more than she could have imagined. New friends ask her to help solve a recent murder in the expat community. And then there's the problem of her neighbours, a young woman and her children. Seemingly abandoned by family and friends, Mariana believes they need her help By becoming involved, Mariana is carried along from wanting to simply "live with the locals" to being overwhelmed by their culture, one so vastly different to what she had left behind in Canada that she doesn't know who among her expat friends she can turn to for advice. So she carries on regardless and discovers that Bequia isn't exactly the tropical paradise it had promised to be. One Woman's Island is the second novel in the Bequia Perspectives series that picks up again a few months in time after the first novel, Island in the Clouds. One Woman's Island beautifully captures the spirit of being on the island of Bequia. The author's ear for local dialogue is faultless. Besides its lush and exotic setting, however, the book accurately and with pathos reflects the end of an unsatisfactory marriage for main character Mariana who is constantly searching for something meaningful to take its place. She takes a young girl Verity and her two children under her wing, and hears about her folly in no uncertain terms from one of the die-hard ex-pats who lives there. With its complex characters, fast-moving plot, authentic setting and the underlying seriousness of the questions it so skillfully raises, One Woman's Island, is a book that should garner a wide readership, one far larger than those who are familiar with Bequia. Felicity Harley, author of The Burning Years Great news, Susan Toy fans The long-awaited sequel to her acclaimed novel, Island in the Clouds, has finally arrived. With a sharp eye for description and a well-tuned ear for dialogue (and local dialect ) Toy tells how a recently widowed Canadian woman moves to the tiny Caribbean island of Bequia to find solace, only to discover it's not quite the paradise she hoped for. A tasty meal of storytelling that comes with complementary recipes - Brian Brennan, Postmedia newspapers best-selling author I heartily recommend this novel that takes the reader on a roller-coaster ride through gorgeous landscapes and a unique though often frustrating culture in a story that seldom lets the reader rest and never lets the reader down. Humour, suspense, a thoroughly satisfying narrator-and yes recipes, several of which I can't wait to try-combine to make this another well-executed work by a skilled craftsperson. David A. Poulsen, author of mystery novels, books for teens, co-author of a cookbook, actor, and award-winning Rodeo Announcer Susan Toy's new novel One Woman's Island is: lively; startling; creepy; funny; shocking; sad; insightful - and engaging from start to finish. Ann Ireland, prize-winning author of novels, A Certain Mr. Takahashi, The Instructor, Exile and The Blue Guitar About the Bequia Perspectives series of novels ... There seems to be a huge character quietly looming across your book series: Bequia, the island herself. Each book, even though different, reveals more and more about her as a character and a force. Quite cool. Karen Parker, Galveston, TX