A Scream in the Shadows

by Mac Donald Dixon

A crime story set in the rural Caribbean where traditional allegiances and a flawed criminal justice system provide a backdrop to the rape and murder of a young girl. When her father is accused of the crime, her brother joins the police to try and clear their father's name. While the suspect languishes in jail on remand, the young detective makes some alarming discoveries.

179 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 31, 2022

Reviews

[Becky Jno-baptiste · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was so promising. Justice, domestic violence, rape, child abuse. However, the author handled these themes poorly and frivolously and with no empathy, no nuance. Though told in first person, the reader did not know how the narrator felt about all this ugliness in his family. The characters were one- dimensional and unredeemable. Agnes, the mother, was the worse. I never got the impression that she ever regretted choosing her husband over her daughter.

[Sharon Dorival · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting Read, Great Cover and Title

I appreciate the Kweyol words. Mama is a
strong woman. Loyal and devoted. I am glad for Laurette that she was vindicated. Marvin did the right thing, at least Mama could still get to see him even though he is in prison. Better than dying in a foreign land. I enjoyed the launch to this book. Well planned.

[Imajin Consulting]

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[Gigisxm · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed reading this book written in our Caribbean dialect. I enjoyed the common colloquialisms and I wasn’t bothered but the local names and phrases that I wasn’t familiar with and nothing was translated (for the creole). They were all choices made that enhanced my experience of the book.

Now the mother frustrated me from the very beginning of this book up until the incident at the house. Why she would want him home and not immediately exact her own justice for what he did to her daughter and to her is beyond me.

The way a whole community can know something, the community coming together to support their own, the reticence to speak to the authorities. All too familiar.

Now there remained a few plot wholes. The biggest of which is why Marvin would come back to St Lucia. He was scot free, no one was dying, why pop up when you know how slow the justice systems is?

I rate this one 3 1/2 stars

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

A Scream in the Shadows is a nuanced work from writer Mac Donald Dixon and publisher Papillote Press. Set on the island of St. Lucia, the story is a twist on traditional crime fiction, using the genre as a vehicle to explore darker aspects of island life. Antillean creole words are sprinkled throughout, lending authenticity to the voice. Dixon uses a young person as narrator, which is an interesting choice as it allows the non-St. Lucian reader to view the world with innocence, at least as the novel opens. This book is a nice gateway to contemporary Caribbean literature and the social problems endemic to the island.

[Anderson Reynolds · Rating 4 out of 5]

“A Scream in the Shadows” by McDonald Dixon is a crime mystery novel set in rural St. Lucia, which gives the reader a flavor of island life and the French Creole culture of St. Lucia. However, the book hints at trouble in paradise; it portrays (though mildly) a society plagued by domestic violence, child abuse, and an apathetic and incompetent criminal justice system. Although a pleasant and worthwhile read, the novel could have been improved by stronger, more developed characters that readers could care more about, and a more robust, more profound treatment of the societal ills it hinted at.

[Mette · Rating 3 out of 5]

Reading around the world: St Lucia

Another rather depressing read from the global south. The story is engaging at first and easy to read as most mysteries are. But the main character was frustratingly stubborn and everything about the story was so frustrating to read.