What do you think?
Rate this book
Rain Before Morning
When Nathan and Leah meet in Silva Landing, on the Sunshine Coast, in 1913, it is love at first sight; but they find their passion tested at every turn. Leah engages in a battle of wills with her mother, who feels she is too young for a serious relationship and ships her off to a convent school in Vancouver; Nathan wants a university education almost as much as he wants Leah; both of them struggle to suppress their desire for each other until they are truly ready to start a family.
The lovers manage to flee in Nathan's tiny boat and to spend a few idyllic weeks alone together, exploring the spectacular coves, beaches, estuaries and islands of the west coast. But even the wild, convoluted Inside Passage cannot hide them forever--they are caught and taken back to Silva Landing. Leah is sent off to nursing school and then, when World War I breaks out, to a hospital near Etaples, France. Nathan, a conscientious objector, goes to work logging Sitka spruce on the central coast for a surly, tight-fisted gyppo logger. From opposite sides of the world, the lovers exchange letters when they can, living on hope and memories.
When Leah is discharged from her duties overseas and Nathan is injured in a horrific logging accident, they are reunited in Silva Landing. But a new challenge awaits them despite his best efforts, Nathan is conscripted into the Canadian army. The young couple have fought their parents, their society and even their own desire to make a life together, and now they must engage in a life-or-death struggle with their government and the Great War itself.
In one way, Leah and Nathan's story could only unfold on the Sunshine Coast during World War I; in another way, it is a timeless, universal tale of passion, war, tragedy and the power of love.
The lovers manage to flee in Nathan's tiny boat and to spend a few idyllic weeks alone together, exploring the spectacular coves, beaches, estuaries and islands of the west coast. But even the wild, convoluted Inside Passage cannot hide them forever--they are caught and taken back to Silva Landing. Leah is sent off to nursing school and then, when World War I breaks out, to a hospital near Etaples, France. Nathan, a conscientious objector, goes to work logging Sitka spruce on the central coast for a surly, tight-fisted gyppo logger. From opposite sides of the world, the lovers exchange letters when they can, living on hope and memories.
When Leah is discharged from her duties overseas and Nathan is injured in a horrific logging accident, they are reunited in Silva Landing. But a new challenge awaits them despite his best efforts, Nathan is conscripted into the Canadian army. The young couple have fought their parents, their society and even their own desire to make a life together, and now they must engage in a life-or-death struggle with their government and the Great War itself.
In one way, Leah and Nathan's story could only unfold on the Sunshine Coast during World War I; in another way, it is a timeless, universal tale of passion, war, tragedy and the power of love.
318 pages, Paperback
First published August 30, 2006
3 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
March 17, 2011
This was a story set in a time that I don't normally read about. Having grown up on the West Coast of BC, I enjoyed the setting. Nathan and Leah's story was well told and the writer kept me interested from cover to cover. I liked the shift between character story and settings and how the story kept moving. It made me want to keep reading to find out what would happen to the young lovers. Overall, a good read.
January 4, 2013
Canadian story of star-crossed lovers during the first world war...set in the Sechelt Peninsula.
November 16, 2015
Well written and a great story. A must read!
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews