The Fortunate Brother

Shameful secrets abound in Canadian author Morrissey’s strong conclusion to her trilogy about the Now family set in rural Newfoundland (after Sylvanus Now). Sylvanus Now does a poor job of hiding his drinking from his wife, Addie; Addie has cancer, but won’t tell daughter Sylvie; and son Kyle tries to hide all his insecurities from both parents as he continues to mourn his brother, Chris, who was killed by a truck years before. Other residents of the village of Hampden have their secrets. Why does Bonnie Gillard stay with her abusive husband, Clar? Who is newcomer Kate Mackenzie, the guitar playing singer-songwriter whom Kyle likes to visit? Why does elusive Vernon Trapp skulk around the community? When someone fatally stabs Clar, Kyle, who recently confronted him, becomes a suspect, as does Sylvanus. Helpful friends provide fabricated alibis for Kyle and Sylvanus, complicating things for Sergeant MacDuff, the crime’s quietly competent investigator. Morrissey’s bleak portrait of harsh village life will linger long in the reader’s memory. (Mar.)