A Sweet Sting of Salt

Sutherland’s winning debut, set in 1830s coastal Nova Scotia, creates a cozy queer haven in an unforgiving but subtly magical environment. “A spinster midwife at just four and twenty,” Jean Langille sees her solitary life careen in an unexpected direction when she finds a woman in labor on her land in the middle of a stormy night. Jean delivers the baby and learns that the woman, who speaks almost no English, is Muirin, the mysterious wife of a neighboring fisherman. The two quickly become close and Jean resolves to help Muirin escape her troubled marriage. The story’s meticulous attention to detail regarding character and setting is offset by its measured pace, as the reader will have discerned Muirin’s supernatural secret long before ever pragmatic Jean suspects anything out of the ordinary. Still, Jean’s relationships with Muirin and the few other townsfolk she trusts are pleasantly sweet, and the thrilling climax and satisfying resolution are well worth the extended development. Fans of folkloric fantasy should check this out. Agent: Jill Marr, Sandra Dijkstra Literary. (Apr.)