Storm Chasers

by Paul Quarrington

Few people seek out the tiny Caribbean island of Dampier Cay—visitors usually wash up there by accident. But this weekend, three people are flying to the island, not for a tan or fun in the sun, but because they have reason to believe that they might encounter something there that most people take great measures to avoid—a hurricane.

A lottery windfall and a few hours of selfishness have robbed Caldwell of all that was precious to him, while Beverly, haunted by tragedy and screwed by fate since birth, has given up on life. Also on the flight is Jimmy Newton, a professional storm chaser and videographer who will do anything for the perfect shot. Waiting for them at Dampier is the manager of the Water’s Edge Hotel, Maywell Hope, a descendant of the pirates who sailed the Caribbean hundreds of hears ago.

As their stories unfold, the tragic underpinnings of Beverly and Caldwell’s lives are revealed, a storyline that builds just as the hurricane looms ever-closer on the horizon. Cinematic and harrowing, Storm Chasers is a tale of love and loss—and finding redemption in the eye of a hurricane.

Genres: Fiction

256 pages, Hardcover

First published July 1, 2005

About the author

Paul Quarrington was a novelist and musician, an award-winning screenwriter, filmmaker, and an acclaimed non-fiction writer. His last novel The Ravine was published in March 2008. His previous novel Galveston was nominated for the Giller; Whale Music won the Governor General’s Award for Fiction. Quarrington won the Stephen Leacock Medal for King Leary, a title that also won the 2008 Canada Reads competition. As a musician, he played in the band PorkBelly Futures; their self-titled second CD was released in April 2008; the first CD Way Past Midnight was extremely well received. His screenplays and story editing have won many awards, most recently the CFPTA Indie Award for Comedy for the series Moose TV, and he was in high demand as a story editor for feature films and television. Paul ’s filmmaking talents as writer / director were evident in his BookShorts short film, Pavane, which he adapted from The Ravine and was featured in the Moving Stories Film Festival September - November 2008. His non-fiction writing included books on some of his favourite pastimes such as fishing, hockey and music. He regularly contributed book reviews, travel columns and journalism to Canada’s national newspapers and magazines. Paul lived and worked in Toronto, where he taught writing at Humber College and University of Toronto, and sat on the Board of Directors for the Fringe Theatre Festival. Quarrington was also an (extremely) amateur magician and a would-be mariner.

Paul was diagnosed with Stage 4 lung cancer in May of 2009. He died at home, with his family.

Reviews

[Carol · Rating 2 out of 5]

I did not like this book. It was crude and full of unnecessary relations and the story really didn't reach that deep. It didn't paint a good picture of the island or tell me anything I didn't already know about a hurricane. The characters were all loosely constructed... it just wasn't that great of a book.

[Jon · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thought this book was sort of boring and didn't really have a point when I got to the end. It was a quick read, so not much was lost.

[Katie Lynn · Rating 2 out of 5]

Just a book. A bit predictable, I thought. A little too cliche and lacking in realism for me.

[Vilate Van Leeuwen · Rating 4 out of 5]

great book , foul language

[Sara · Rating 1 out of 5]

Very strange. I felt like I was missing something the whole time.