Chasing the Moon.

Emily Walters Gregor is a graduate student in 20th-century American
literature and an ESL writing tutor at the University of Minnesota.

Set on Prohibition-era Vancouver Island, Chasing the Moon finds Kit Avery reunited with her estranged father as her mother undergoes treatment for tuberculosis. The farm on which Kit spent her earliest years has decayed—the only well-maintained object a fishing boat that is suspiciously empty of fish. Kit struggles with her new life on a decrepit farm with her hard-living father.

Things improve somewhat for Kit when she befriends a young magician’s assistant with a talent for reading tarot cards and divining water. Caleb locates a better source of water for Kit and her father than the rancid water from their dried-up well, and is soon enlisted by Kit’s father to assist with his mysterious business transactions.

Chasing the Moon is a plot-driven novel focused on the mystery of Kit’s father’s business and the adventures Kit pursues in uncovering its solution. The historical setting, interlaced with intimations of supernatural influences, offers an engaging backdrop for this action. Chamberlain’s conclusion avoids simplistic resolution, a sophistication of characterization and narration that is found throughout the book. Recommended.