Review: THE CORAL BRIDE, Roxanne Bouchard

• 
  This edition an e-book on Kindle (Amazon)
  
• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0885YZQD6
• Publisher ‏ : ‎ ORENDA BOOKS (August 12, 2020)
• Translated into English from French
• Print length ‏ : ‎ 356 pages
• Detective Morales #2
• **SHORTLISTED for Crime Writers of Canada: Best French Crime Novel**

Synopsis (Amazon)

It's not just the sea that holds secrets

When an abandoned lobster trawler is found adrift off the coast of Quebec's Gaspé Peninsula, DS Joaquin Moralès begins a straightforward search for the boat's missing captain, Angel Roberts a rare female in a male-dominated world. But Moralès finds himself blocked at every turn by his police colleagues, by fisheries bureaucrats, and by his grown-up son, who has turned up at his door with a host of his own personal problems.

When Angel's body is finally discovered, it's clear something very sinister is afoot, and Moralès and son are pulled into murky, dangerous waters, where old resentments run deep.

Exquisitely written, with Bouchard's trademark lyrical prose, The Coral Bride evokes the power of the sea on the communities who depend on it, the never-ending struggle between the generations, and an extraordinary mystery at the heart of both.

My Take

Those most affected by Angel Roberts' death want the authorities to believe that she committed suicide. But thanks to a Prologue we, the readers, are pretty sure that it is murder, but it isn't until the very end that DS Joaquin Moralès can put the scenario together, and apportion the blame.

The book's journey takes us down several paths, not only what happened to Angel, but also the personal events occurring in Morales world. Angel Roberts is a woman in a man's world, and her fight to be accepted on her own terms reflects the fight many women have had in the 21st century.

There are cultural issues too, which also reflect what has happened in our world. 

An interesting but demanding read. 

My rating: 4.5

About the author

Roxanne Bouchard she learned to sail 10 years ago, first on the St Lawrence River, before taking to the open waters off the Gaspé Peninsula. The local fishermen soon invited her aboard to reel in their lobster nets, and Roxanne saw for herself that the sunrise over Bonaventure never lies. Her fifth novel (first translated into English) We Were the Salt of the Sea was published in 2018 to resounding critical acclaim, sure to be followed by its sequel, The Coral Bride. She lives in Quebec. David Warriner translates from French and nurtures a healthy passion for Franco, Nordic, and British crime fiction. Growing up in deepest Yorkshire, he developed incurable Francophilia at an early age. Emerging from Oxford with a modern languages degree, he narrowly escaped the graduate rat race by hopping on a plane to Canada—and never looked back. More than a decade into a high-powered commercial translation career, he listened to his heart and turned his hand again to the delicate art of literary translation. David has lived in France and Quebec, and now calls beautiful British Columbia home.