A nuanced and wholly moving literary tale…
Set mainly in Labrador, Canada, this engrossing tale from Smith-Nochasak focuses on one damaged woman’s search for love and fulfillment. It was during her first teaching year away from her home, in Endor, an Inuit community on the far northern coast of Labrador, when Anna Caine fell in love with Joshua Kalluk, an Inuk carpenter, who was already engaged to be married. The pair embark on a passionate affair, but Anna, pregnant with Joshua’s child, eventually leaves. Unable to move ahead, she finds love in teaching. When a sudden twist of fate brings the pair together, Anna is forced to face her lingering feelings of love, shame, and regret. In lyrical prose, Smith-Nochasak digs out the psychological depths of her characters, extracting high drama from their gradually changing lives. Anna, with her vulnerability, makes for a worthy heroine: often full of conflicting emotions, she begins to recognize her restlessness as she becomes increasingly aware of her inability to move ahead in life. Readers will revel in Anna’s journey to self-realization. However, Anna is not the only person with conflicting emotions: the novel explores Joshua’s backstory and his role in Anna’s life. Also joining the cast are Anna and Joshua’s son, Aaron, who remains the connection between the two, and Joshua’s wife, Leah, who despite a small part, plays a significant role in Anna’s story. The setting is wholly authentic, making it easy to get sucked in. With its incisive exploration of love and regret, inuit culture and traditions, and characters readers will root for, the novel makes for a must-read.
The Ice Widow: A Story of Love and Redemption
Anne M Smith-Nochasak
FriesenPress
Pub date November 3, 2022
ISBN 978-1039160378
Price $32.99 (USD) Hardcover, $18.99 Paperback, $4.99 Kindle