Gentle SPECTRUMS discussion
Buddies: Maureen Johnson
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Shipwreck (2011)
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(last edited Jun 28, 2021 07:19AM)
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Jun 28, 2021 07:17AM
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I want to leave a note for Kerri to see, in case she joins us, that will ensure she does not judge Maureen Jennings' novella for using simple, straightforward vocabulary. I have to say, it is a fresh change from authors who are too wordy and I liked it. Stick to the details, feelings, and action. It is in Maureen's first novel that we will learn her style and the character of her storytelling voice. Please give me a chance to indulge in a few non-Canadian books I have looked forward to reading in July, when this year's reading challenge is done this month. After, I am game to try out book 1.
Kerri, in 2010 the Canadian government had an adult literacy campaign called "Good Reads". They obviously didn't give a hoot about their moniker b similarity to this American social network, haha! The object was for a few Canadian authors to contribute adult content with simple words, so mature folks learn to read in English, with a more suitable level of interest than from baby books. That is a thoughtful idea. It so happens this is my second book in the program, after Louise Penny's.
Kerri, if you are curious: you are 15 hours ahead of Manitoba, if in tandem with Australia. It is easy for me to tell your time. I mentally switch my clock from AM to PM and add 3 hours. You do the reverse to tell my time. I am going to bed to read "Ghosts Of James Bay" now. Keep the reading going, with a goal to finish 4, for 40 total.
Well, thanks to Shirin, I have something else chalked up for Canadian content before the end of this sacred, hard month. I finished 6 flowerbaskets this afternoon and watered all of our pots planted earlier. They all contain Marigold seeds with planned flowers. :)
Ron handled the gardens with the sprinkler when he arrived home from work and read outside with the cats. Now he is watching a hockey game, even though the Winnipeg Jets aren't in the Stanley Cup playoofs. That's a Canadian for you: loving summer stuff, then sitting down to a sport with ice, haha. Bonne nuit, mes cheres amies!
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I wonder if the Priest is in another book or not, there was so much about him (as a very short book), and there is a little information about William Murdock.
Overall I liked it. In both stories (Bill and William), have been tried showing love and sympathy.
Carolyn, I read your email and appreciated it so much. I'll reply to you in the next few days when a few things are order (internet, pc and all that). Yesterday, I moved to the new place with my cats and few necessary appliances. We still have some works here and there till moving completely. My cats are examining every centimeter here. :)
I check my email and Goodreads with my cellphone but probably answer with delay in this week. again thank you, and I wish you the best and a happy year on Canada Day! <3
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Tomorrow, we will also honour the birthday of our childhood cat, Thumbelina. She made it to 21 years and 19 days and McCartney matches her, on that very day. We are proud of him, excited and grateful for him. May Angel, Petal, and Conan do just as well as he does in a long, healthy life. We remember and honour Love, Marigold, Spirit, Thumbelina with all of our hearts.
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I hope you see my personal and national Message #6. As a general rule, please ensure you always read upwards past the newest messages, for others you had not seen.
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Shirin, thank you for your two great points. I had not noticed but you felt the Nova Scotia priest was present more than William Murdoch and wondered if we will see him in other books. It makes a lot of sense, except we know that the series starts with William as an adult, in Toronto, Ontario; next to my middle province. Nova Scotia is on our east coast. We are reading backwards and will find out if he did. Although this childhood prequel comes first, it was written in 2010, book #8. I will bet that Maureen Jennings featured the priest because William did mention him as his career inspiration.
Your other point is very close to my heart: the best mystery solving is just about figuring out answers to questions! There does not need to be a crime or a villain arrested! William and the priest using clues to figure out who is who on the ship and what happened, is definitely a mystery. There was a crime in this mystery but no one would be arrested because they were dead.
The situation was investigated by the priest and William for accurate record-keeping out of respect for the families and the dead and out of keen interest in what had happened. They could find the families of these people and bury the drowned people with their names. Most importantly, the baby could grow up with her own name and background.
I liked to see a little bit about William's descedents in the future but thought that Maureen spent way too much time on introducing a reason for telling the old Nova Scotia story. Just start telling it. Also, the little girl interrupted too much and was annoying to me. The story flow should not be interrupted. I know the tie-in was to teach readers that everyone can pick up clues about school children, divorced couples, and people around them. That is a smart tie-in but Maureen should have kept it short. She needed no complex justification of future relatives telling a family story.
I would have rather seen a few scenes with the baby Daughter and her adopted Mother. It is lovely that one woman's loss was eased a little by a new infant.
I see that Maureen is very skilled at orchestrating thorough backgrounds for the stories she builds. I have a concern that she not take too long to make her points. A lot of authors are successful at starting their action and adventure quickly and feeding out information we need along the way.
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I don't have a PDF for this story -- is it one you have to buy online? If it's one either you or Shirin can email me, I'll quickly read it and catch up on the conversation, but if if not I'll have to give it a miss and just jump straight in with "Except The Dying".
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Know this about me: I will never pay to drink water and what I call "air": non physical entertainment and literature. The PDF is free for those with fast enough internet to find it. I will e-mail it by tomorrow if you don't e-mail that you have it already.
Happy birthday to our precious Spirit today! We wish he were still living and celebrating age 17 with us and beyond. Love, Carolyn.
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Your other point is very close to my heart: the best mystery solving is just about figuring out answers to questions! There does not need to be a crime or a villain arrested! -- I really liked this aspect of it. It wasn't less interesting by not having a legal focus. Just wanting to know what happened and why.
I would have rather seen a few scenes with the baby Daughter and her adopted Mother. It is lovely that one woman's loss was eased a little by a new infant. -- I would have enjoyed this as well. I wonder if there was a word limit? I was impressed with how much she managed to fit into such a short story. I found the story of the past more interesting, but I did enjoy the present day scenes as well, especially the end when he was thinking about the size of his house, and how his family might like to come live with him. It was a nice note to leave them on, full of possibility.
I really liked the priest -- it would be interesting if he reappeared at some point, either as a flashback or mentioned in a conversation of something. Or perhaps William Murdoch might pay a visit to the place he is from, or receive a letter from home that makes mention of the church? For longtime readers of the series, I imagine it was fun to get a short story of Murdoch's early days!
Also, the little girl interrupted too much and was annoying to me. -- I found her a little annoying too, but I did also appreciate some aspects of her, and how she is the person that her Grandfather still feels connected to as he is going through the grief of losing his wife.
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What was precious to me is the man's Daughter being reminded of what a good parent she had and not only seeing him to seek a favour. However, the details readers weren't told is if that was recent. It would be understandable if she only avoided visiting while she was working out whether or not to bring her ex-husband back into her life. We aren't keen on visitors if life isn't going well, or if we are working on rebuilding it, until we want company and support.
My favourite part of the modern story is the Daughter curling up to be read a story by her Dad. We love and need our parents at any age. My Dad has filled in very well, especially before being in the hospital. But Mom was the one I called, on the rare, overwhelming occasion of a cat's ascension to Heaven. She also reassured me when we got our dear Spirit in 2004 to join McCartney, that the soul of my childhood cat wouldn't mind. I could still use my Mom now but am doing my best. She taught me well.
I loved watching the grown Daughter listening to their family tale. She kept the momentum going. I will only say of the Great-Granddaughter that I suppose her purpose was to show readers that many details can be gleaned about people if we keep our eyes pealed, just like William Murdoch and the priest.
I don't expect two dear international friends to know the geography of Canada, so I would like to share a map at my blog: http://cmriedel.wordpress.com/reviews.... Leeanne's province, Ontario, is east of mine. In fact, Ron & I were there walking on docks by the lake and buying books on Friday! But Toronto is a 2 hour plane ride away, in the south east nearer Québec. That is where William Murdoch moved to be a detective.
The beautiful Nova Scotia, my favourite province after mine, is an "Atlantic Province" on the east coast of Canada: another plane ride away. In pre-plane days, I don't know if William and his parents visited back & forth but I hope to find that they did.
Maureen is elderly and it seems that she only wrote 9 stories. I wonder if she deems them unnecessary, in favour of the TV show. They have surpassed those few mysteries. Surely they could use material, although I am told they have the humour and a tone of their own, different from the serious novels. We can start them in a couple of days. I have read far enough into "Animals In The Afterlife" that it is no longer a drag.
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Maureen needs to let us know about Bill, his daughter, and his granddaughter. as a short story, she did it. But I think you're right!" I liked to see a little bit about William's descendants in the future but thought". I liked to know about Bill himself or maybe even his parents.
"We knew William was cautious and affected by an alcoholic Dad but very close to his Mom." Did I miss something? Do we know that? Why didn't I notice? :)
"We love and need our parents at any age." Thank you for your beautiful comment. I hope you and Ron have a good time by the lake and find perfect books. <3
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Anyway, in the first paragraph of chapter 5, Bill tells the story that "Harry doesn't go to church anymore". When William takes over the historic Nova Scotia story in the second paragraph, he says outright that Harry slapped people when he drank too much and made fun of his family, including their mentally challenged son. I think his touchy Dad is mentioned again but will leave you to look-up more entries like that.
What did you think, in your own impressions, Kerri? I love your thorough replies and wonder what you might add. It might help to write your updates first and look at other entries after. I want access to your wonderful, well-read mind. :) I will add more when everyone is caught-up.
The book sale was awesome and our look at the lake. We went to a restaurant there beside the water. Between two places, we came home with 200 books, at a bargain of .40c each! This is why I have to keep reading, hahaha.
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I'm glad you recapped the mentions about Williams father -- when you mentioned the alcoholic father I didn't remember it, but the when I read the example you shared I recalled it again. I'm not sure how it didn't stick the first time!
Overall I thought the story was a lot of fun, but already I am enjoying the novel more, and as I enjoy the novel I find myself appreciating the background information this story gave as well. My favourite aspects now are how we know that the caring and curious side of William has stayed with him, and perhaps how this simpler mystery from his youth may have pushed him toward his current career. Also knowing that William has descendants means I know he will likely find love again and marry, which is nice since right now he is only just at the place to start thinking of moving on. You mentioned in the other thread Carolyn that you know who he ends up marrying, but I only have what I've gleaned from this. So a marriage, but I know nothing else! And here we get some details about his parents, who so far have only briefly been mentioned in the novel, so I have appreciated that insight too. Both this short story and the first half of "Except the Dying" have confirmed to me that I like Maureen Jennings' writing style a great deal -- she's been very successful at holding my attention. The short story is not city based, so I liked the insight into the seaside town, how the rescue itself was not exactly unusual. It would be a tough environment to grow up in, but probably good preparation for the detective work!
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I was glad to discuss Shirin's interpretation of mysteries usually being about arresting someone. It is almost a hobby to dispel the notion that mysteries need have any crime, for the other kinds of quests to answer questions and discover secrets are what I prefer! Now you propose something interesting that I need to ask you about, Kerri. Why do you view this mystery as simple?
Putting aside that this was a novella, I marvelled that it was more complicated than usual. On the other hand, "Except The Dying" is about finding out what someone was murdered, like most novels. "Shipwreck" strove to identify who everyone was, what happened to them, and what they were doing prior to capsizing. There were mismatched clothing and accessories and the sole living person Will and his Maritime priest could interview, lied. I deemed it amazing that they could work out as much as they did by that short interview, their observations, and their inventory.
How do you ladies see the story? Why was that ship en route to Nova Scotia? Was the wife a willing companion, wanting a new life, or merely going along with her merchant husband? Did she know the kind male passenger before, or did she only forge a connection with him because she was abused aboard ship? Only a catholic upbringing, ironic as it is, compelled her to lie about unseemly incidents, to be at peace with God. Today, a woman who needed help or defended herself in duress, would say so.
I couldn't see a name for Abigail's newborn, could you? This is an annoyance: spending too much time with a Grandchild who detracted from the story for me but not adding details readers would want to know. We know William went to university and worked for awhile before moving to Nova Scotia. Did this story say where he studied? I am curious if his fiancée, Elizabeth was Abigail's Daughter from home, 15 years his junior. But Bill would have remarked on a young loss. He said she grew up to be a wonderful woman.
He seems to have been an officer as soon as he came to Toronto. I will review the beginning of "Except The Dying", unless either of you can remind me how long he has been an officer in 1895. I don't get the sense that he is antsy about becoming a full detective but purely enjoys his job. I think he only noted that this case might advance him. Yes, it sure is refreshing for people not to be sad, struggling financially, or subject to drama. A crime mystery creates enough of that.
Kerri, I think to read in buddy style where we add our reactions every night or two, we had better not stop at page 100. Share everything you write under a heading inside your entries. Or paste half, then another half the next day. If you & Shirin mark your page numbers every night, as is my habit, we can see where each other is. :)
As it happens, I believe we are all halfway through and game to rush forward some more tonight. You, Shirin, are 9 1/2 hours ahead. Kerri, if you are the same latitude as Australia, you are 15 hours again. Do you remember the trick? I flip AM to PM + 3 hours. Speaking of differing time zones: I adore Nova Scotia and can tell you it is a wonderful place of beauty. I will soon write the rest of my thoughts in our other thread.
Yes, the book sale was phenomenal price wise and a great score book wise! It oddly seldom seems that I pick off much from my list but I recognize books of interest and obtain better copies than some I had. I keep picking up a number of great Canadian books for the two of you and my American friend, Lorraine. :) Love, Carolyn.
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So, we read a short story and find a lot of questions about the plot, characters, and what happens. But, when I read the whole series and after that, start to read a short story, it looks more interesting.
I think the wife hadn't another choice, except to follow her husband and by the chance, she met a kind male passenger. But, we can't say it for sure, can we? :)
I suppose so when here it is Tuesday 3.5 PM (now when I posted), and Carolyn, 6 AM. and probably Kerri at 9 PM. right?
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It is true that short stories often leave questions. However, I ask about things that I think were told in the story. Did you see things I missed? I thought you could refresh my memory or direct me to parts I missed, like I did about William's Dad, Harry. We can glean a lot from very little information, if we think like detectives. In fact, this is what "Shipwreck" teaches us, in both timelines. Let us try! Let us not assume "it is impossible with short stories".
You are also right, Shirin, that authors often decide to compose back stories. However, I think they wished they had written those histories in order and compose them so that all the information in them precedes their series. Thus, I think we are lucky to read them first and that it should work. I don't think it makes sense to search for more information from William in 1895, for example, pertaining to something that took place in 1865 (estimating he is age 25). Very often, we become fans of series that are well in progress. I love starting at the earliest time period, not the book's or novella's release years.
I think the answers are here, if we take time to absorb the clues. Even Bill's Granddaughter make remarks about children at school, that made it plain that some of their families were poor and it was only a fast comment. Let us be detectives: help me with a few of my questions if you can. :-) That is a good deduction, Shirin, that Abigail had to go with her husband. I think if I re-read that paragraph of the PDF, it will be clear if she was happy about going to Canada or not. Yes, she probably needed and received help by happenstance on that boatride.
Boats are something a prairie person like me seldom rides, unless they have a cottage and boat by our many lakes. Do either of you often ride in boats, my friends? New Zealand is an island. Is your capital city or country around much water, Shirin?
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I agree with Shirin that the wife probably didn't have a choice in the matter. She seemed like the kind of person who would try and make the best of a situation though, so perhaps she was hopeful for the future. I felt very sad for her that she didn't get to live, since she would have been freed from her husband, but with the dignity of being a widow, which would have been socially acceptable at the time. Still, to know that her baby is safe and will be cared for is lovely too. The life of the baby changes course swiftly in this short space too -- she loses both parents, but also escapes an unhappy home life, especially since it's possible her father would be abusive toward her too, and she almost immediately is taken into another family who will love and care for her. That was one of my favourite parts, because it was sad but hopeful as well. I do wonder if she will factor in somewhere? I think she would be too young to be William's fiancée if he is only in his twenties, but not too young to factor into his life at some point. I do want to know if she was simply part of this mystery only, or if further into the series we might realise who she is!
In terms of time zones, New Zealand is two hours ahead of Australia and it's about 7:00pm as I'm writing this. And boats are pretty common here but I have little experience with them. I have been on a few ferries but it is not my preferred mode of transport!
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Here are interesting links about the series. Beginning in 2008, it is still going, with season 15 coming next month! I won't look at it until I have seen the shows in order. I am watching for good prices of the most current boxset, which goes to season 12 in region 1 NSTN. https://www.tvinsider.com/1001035/mur...
If I have the money to fly to Toronto in the future again, to visit my brother, sister-in-law, niece, nephew; I will want to see chief "Murdoch Mysteries" locations. I always think of something to see in Toronto. https://murdochmysteries.fandom.com/w...
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I couldn't remember the baby's name, so I checked Abigail's newborn name again, but never has not been mentioned.
Twice I was in a small boat, that's all. :) Once in the Caspian lake and other times in a cave. :) I can't say we have much water. A sea in the south of the country and a lake in the north, far from the capital. But I really like the city near the water, to hear or see the lovely blue color.:)
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You asked if $700 CDN was the estimate for a whole PC. Yes: monitor, harddrive, keyboard, mouse, tower with CD drives, and all. That is without price-shopping. It would eat up the $200 cost of a Windows 10 CD.
Shirin, I thought Iran had mountains like Afghanistan and as a result, plenty of water. Is Iran a desert, or multi terrain like Canada? Forest, marsh, prairie, lakeland, ocean? I was in a water cave by boat in England, with an internet friend there. Many times, I have met my dear mail pals and internet friends in person around the world and a few times at my home. :) Dreams come true, my friends, dreams come true!
I think you would enjoy the John Krasinski "Jack Ryan" series because it mostly takes place in the Middle East, where I get to know different stories. Season 1 ended with a Yemen or Syrian woman escaping with her children to the USA, from her husband who had become a terrorist leader. The rest is the personal story of young, handsome Jack Ryan, who retired from the marines and is with the CIA. Ron said most of it is changed and is nothing like the books.
You both might ask: "Would Carolyn be interested in something political like that"? Not to read it but I have loved cultures and people, since I was a little girl in grade 2 (age 7!) and refugees from Laos came to my school. I never forgot them, which is why I read Colin Cotterill's "Dr. Siri" mystery series today, with great excitement. :) So maybe the plots are about politics but you hope the best for the people and the action is so fast, you are always interested!
When an episode ends, Ron & I say in unison "The next one, please"! We watched all of season 1 in two nights. It was good to have that fun together, before our anniversary. Now we can celebrate it, already feeling good after our nice long week-end.
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Carolyn, how amazing that you met internet friends around the world. Yes, dreams can come true. I never traveled to another country, it is great to see other cultures and cities.
I hope you have a great weekend celebrating. :) <3
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I am sorry to be late putting it together. I came home from my Dad's place with a cold from him and it took two weeks to shake. I am slow catching-up here. When your mail is ready, I must tidy up around the house, go through my dear Mom's items, pick from the garden.... I am also going to send test mail to Shirin soon. Please know your birthday mail is coming.
I have reviewed this short story with happy thoughts of both of you. Here is my link and I will look at each of yours soon, to ensure that I have remarked on them right along with you. Love, your friend, Carolyn. https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
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I see myself diving into the story "Mystery Of The Stuttering Parrot" immediately. Even if I want to collect certain cover artwork eventually, I am elated you helped me read this mystery, since I was a child borrowing books from the school library.
I prepared your mail on the day of your birthday in my time zone, Kerri. You were thought of all along. It will go into the mail on Monday, tomorrow, when Ron & I are in town to vote in our federal election. Go, Green Party!
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As long as our Covid levels stay as they are, I should be able to send the sympathy card and the book this week. Hopefully they won't take too long to arrive either! I'll keep looking out for the others in the series you mentioned, as well as that specific cover for "Mystery Of The Stuttering Parrot" as well.
I look forward to receiving your mail as well! I hope your party did well in the election! :)
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I learned the outcome was not a waste of time, along with our issues being discussed and getting a good airing and everyone getting a good look at the new Green Party leader. Elizabeth May retired, except from her Member Of Parliament seat, which she won again and maintains. Apparently, instead of continuing in the term that he had, Prime Minister Trudeau has bought four additional years. I didn't know that it how it works, so this is fine.
Do you mean other series or the Robert A. Arthur series? Additional e-mails with other books I could do with finding. I makes me happy that ou are helping me look out for them, if their prices are all right. :)
It is lovely days here as well. I am glad you are promenading around your beautiful island. I am going outside in a swimsuit to water plants and read the Agatha Christie novel I am sharing with Shirin. I also thought of my dear Mom on her birthday and mentioned it to you and Shirin by e-mail. It was a happy day enjoying our surroundings.
Alright Carolyn, you asked me to write my initial reactions to this before reading what you all thought of this, so here goes. I'll be honest, it took me three tries to get past the first 3 and some odd chapters because I kept getting sidetracked before I could get any farther! I was also a bit confused about what was going on until I realized that Bill Murdoch is not the William Murdoch that this series is about. After that initial confusion I got right into this.
I immediately liked young Will and the Nova Scotia setting was simply marvelous to read about. Oh we don't get to read about our country nearly enough, do we Carolyn? I obviously have been starved for home stories recently because I was so delighted to be there (mentally of course), even in the middle of a raging storm.
I instantly felt a connection to Will: 1. because he's Canadian, and 2. because even though I've never been an altar server, I can relate to getting distracted during a Catholic Mass. If it wasn't for covid I might even be attending the Easter Vigil tonight, which is a looong one, but so worth it because of the all candles in the dark church... Well, obviously there's also the exciting fact that Jesus is rising from the dead. Hmm, it seems my priorities are a little off, aren't they? Anyways, I'm off track.
I also instantly liked Father Keegan. To me at least, priests have always seemed kind of far away, if that makes sense, and Father Keegan felt very human and not so far away. He's also a very bright man and I loved that he was gently guiding Will in figuring out the mystery.
I wish Bill, Amy and Wendy Murdoch hadn't interrupted the story as often as they did, especially Amy. It jolted me out of the story every time and got really annoying by the end. Do any of them make appearances in the rest of the series? If they don't, I don't understand why Maureen Jennings included so much about them.
The mystery was not the most interesting one, but I liked how it was different since there were no suspects to interview. Everyone involved was dead, unfortunately for them, of course. Father Keegan and Will had to follow the clues in the woman's words, on the bodies, and in people's clothes. They can't say for sure how everything went down on the boat, but I'm okay not having a completely clear answer.
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Maureen made excellent points about people needing to not mind being wrong and to learn correct answers. I know she was showing it is easy for an observant person to gather details about Amy's classmates and I think it was obvious we were meeting William's modern Great-Grandson. However, Maureen put too much build-up into a reason we didn't need, for telling the principal story. It is nice that William has smart, compassionate relatives who continue caring about justice.
I laud the mystery for being more interesting than usual. If it seems like there wasn't much to it or that questions couldn't be answered, maybe I am more detail oriented. It was solved clearly enough for me with the inanimate clues and the most valuable benefit of a short conversation with the survivor while alive. You see, I prize originality before anything. I love just about any mystery that is different from how they are usually seen. My favourite of all is "non-crime mystery" that is purely about solving puzzles. It never has suspects to interview because it is about solving mysteries, not crimes - so much more creative! That atmosphere was here, even though there were crimes aboard ship.
Yes, in English language countries, England followed by the USA are too often more visible in book settings and author contributions. It is annoying when bestsellers like Simone St. James and Victoria Abbott don't use Canadian settings. The late, great Lyn Hamilton took us to enthralling world locations we didn't see enough. However, the firm Canadian identity went with her and the antique store base was in Toronto.
I reached the point of seeking "anything but English or American content". Kerri has shown me that New Zealand is especially rewarding and I have loved Australia. That leaves Caribbean English speaking places to explore, which I see too little in novels. Thank goodness the Celtic countries are abundant, which are identifiable individually, not lumped as "the UK".
I too instantly loved Will, Father Keegan, and their towspeople. We learn a lot about Will's childhood in a few sentences. It is rewarding that the TV show refers to it, even if it changes Will's siblings a bit and the book will draw return William Murdoch to Nova Scotia and his Dad in "Let Loose The Dogs", which is a very thick novel, as well as a season 1 show title! I'll bet it is a story that is continued over a few shows.
This brings me to asking, Leeanne, if you will soon borrow "Except The Dying" and if you like it, catch-up the sequel "Under The Dragon's Tail". We are poised to read "Poor Tom Is Cold" as soon as you are there. The thick personal story back to Nova Scotia, of which we are in high anticipation, succeeds it! I wonder if Father Keegan is alive for William to revisit too and if the show duplicates what would be a beautiful reunion.
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I said I zoomed through the beginning of Will's story in the PDF because I wanted to see if Maureen calculated dates accurately. Let's please avoid a cliché, dismissive argument "that age must have seemed old at that time" and properly think about it. The final novel calls William an old, retired man in 1917 but he would only be 56! His wife is no one I have heard of in the novels so far or the show.
He was born in 1861 and was age 12 in the PDF, which makes the year 1873. Murdoch Mysteries in the show are set in about 1908 and I think the books are as well. Thus, we meet William as a young man in his 30s. That seems all right, if Maureen did not calculate sloppily. Timeline is something I am careful about in life and in writing.
I got a lot out of reading "Shipwreck" and hope you three found its inclusion in our story reading valuable too. A look at FantasticFiction.com tells us it was published afer the book showcasing wartime in 1917. It succeeded the show's 2008 premiere by 3 years, allowing Maureen to write a sweet dedication to Yannick Bisson, whom I easily picture and respect as William in print and onscreen.
What really confused me about which Mr. Murdoch we were meeting was the information about his wife having just died. That made me think that we were meeting Will at the end of his career, after he was married, and that is what confused me. When I realized that this was a descendant of Will, I finally understood why Maureen was mentioning a wife. Then when Bill starts telling Amy the story about the shipwreck, I caught on to how Maureen was bringing William Murdoch into this. I plan on ordering "Except the Dying" from my city library around the end of May. It will be brought in from the next town over, so I shouldn't have to wait more than a day or two after. I think my library has all, or at least most of the series. It also has some of the TV series! I'm excited to read the next books, and I found "Shipwreck" quite valuable for getting to know Will Murdoch.
The mask mandates in Ontario have just been extended until June 11 (they were supposed to be dropped on the 27th of April). This means that public transit, hospitals, and long-term care and retirement homes still require masks. I don't know if businesses can request that customers wear masks or not. There are no number restrictions on places anymore. I still wear my mask when I go places because the number of cases are still high in Ontario. It's obvious that they would be higher if the hospitals still did covid testing, but they only do that for special cases. You can't just walk in and ask for one anymore. I know a lot of people who've had covid but I haven't gotten it yet, and hopefully I won't.
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I remember finding a lot of the details from "Shipwreck" quite tantalising, making me interested in reading the main series to learn more about William Murdoch. It's a great way to get a feel for the character, and gave a nice insight into his younger years. It is one of the reasons I am so looking forward to "Let Loose the Dogs" although of course having since read the first two books, they have added to that as well, making me keen to learn the backstory.
