My Aunt Is a Pilot Whale

Belgian author Provoost tackles a weighty issue-incest-with limited success in this novel set on Cape Cod. Anna's cousin, Tara, and her parents move in with Anna's family and then into a nearby beach house allegedly haunted by a mermaid witch. Intermittently withdrawn and violent, Tara is prone to cryptic discourses. Provoost's often plodding narrative alludes to Tara's abuse by her father, but only after Tara's mother commits suicide does Tara confide in Anna. After much inner deliberation, Anna turns for help to Petr'Ann, a marine biologist who has involved the cousins in a rescue mission of beached pilot whales, and Petr'Ann effects Tara's rescue as well. Obtuse imagery, overabundant symbolism and circuitous conversations cloud this attempt to convey an inarguably important message. Ages 11-up. (Jan.)