cover image Caught in a Still Place

Caught in a Still Place

Jonathan Lerner. Serpent's Tail, $9.95 (0pp) ISBN 978-1-85242-146-5

A handful of people struggle to endure in a seacoast town after an unexplained plague has killed most of the planet's populace. The author is not offering an ecological warning or a science fiction scenario; he suggests that, like the forest fire that opens the book, destruction will pave the way for new life. In any case, the end of civilization serves to clear the stage for a rousing drama uninterrupted by phone calls or traffic jams. Some survivors are hit hard by the scourge, but Julian luxuriates in the resulting solitude and unhurried hours he can enjoy in this verdant, marshy setting. After his lover, Richard, abandons him to see what is left of the rest of the world, Julian develops a new relationship with Jaydie, a strong-willed pragmatic woman. Their time is spent talking, gathering food and making love. But the disaster has left them emotionally scarred: as they tentatively explore their friendship and coax it toward love, they also must define the new society they inhabit. Replete with fine detail and a strong sense of place, this poetic first novel delves into the raw, exposed feelings of thoughtful characters. (May)