Necessary Betrayals

Norman P. Goldman is a retired Civil Law Notaire (Notary) who also
specializes in Montreal history and culture.

Necessary Betrayals is a thought-provoking novel about a road trip taken
by Tristan, a photographer and bush pilot, and Jack, who divorced
Tristan’s sister, Monica. The journey takes them from Montreal to Bar
Harbor, Maine, and from Louisiana via New York and Florida to Val
D’Or, Quebec. Along the way, the pair persuade an attractive young
Spanish woman, Nuna, to tag along with them. The inevitable result is a
love triangle that leads to a surprising sequence of events.

Jack’s escapades as a bush pilot come back to haunt him in the form
of flashbacks of a plane crash that he had experienced with his ex-wife.
Apparently, Jack forgot to replace his private aircraft’s rusty fuel
tank, which was filled with impurities. Although the couple survived
without any physical injury, both were deeply affected
psychologically—a circumstance that led to their eventual divorce. In
Louisiana, our perception of Jack as irresponsible begins to change when
he helps his employer in a time of dire need.

Thankfully, this is one of those novels that relies on actions and
interactions, rather than endless descriptive passages, to bring its
characters to life.