Revenge of the Lobster Lover

The newest offering from The Acorn Press, Hilary MacLeod’s Revenge of the Lobster Lover is a light and fun read. Readers should be warned the first chapter is tough slogging with its overuse of metaphors and adjectives but the language quickly evens out and the author soon draws an idyllic small PEI community, home to enough nosy neighbours to create the right setting for a light-hearted murder mystery.

The characters are far-fetched but The Shores, the tiny Island community which plays host to the story, is just off-beat enough to make them believable. MacLeod creates a fun mix of stereotypical Islanders and the ‘come-from away’ heroine who means well but whose social blunders keep her from being fully accepted in the community. Accidentally bringing a lobster rights activist to The Shores during lobster season is only the latest in her well-meaning but misguided errors in judgment.

The story surrounds the wealthy but anti-social owner of some prime local real estate and the arrival of his personal chef and lover Guillaume, straight from rehab. Mix those two outsiders with the militant lobster activist, the local ne’er do well just out of jail and a host of other quirky locals and the scene is set.

Full of useless but interesting crustacean tidbits like the fact that lobsters have two penises and that they can easily escape traditional traps, Revenge of the Lobster Lover is a good read for lovers of light-hearted mysteries. There are a few awkward moments and plot twists that seem a bit contrived but, all-inall, this is a nice first fiction offering from author Hilary MacLeod. With a little polish, heroine Hy McAllister and the people of The Shores would be welcome on my bookshelf with their next mystery offering. —Megan Venner