Red Moon

Geoff Cragg is a tenured instructor in the Faculty of General Studies at
the University of Calgary.

This is an intelligent, wry, and understated mystery in which the island
setting is central to plot, character, and tone. Set on Entry Island, in
the Isles-de-la-Madeleine, the story is concerned with the suspicious
deaths of two women and the official search to determine the cause. In
the course of following this inquiry to its conclusion, the reader will
encounter a cast of bizarre but convincing characters, the brooding
atmosphere of the island, a suitably tangled plot, and a number of
ironic comments on themes not commonly found in mysteries—age,
failure, acceptance, and the irony of human expectations among them.

Though disclosing the plot of a mystery would be unfair to its
prospective readers, the narrative structure of Red Moon deserves
comment. While the central chapters chronicle the district doctor’s
visit to the island and the ensuing deaths, the first and last chapters
are told from the perspective of Thomas, the son of the island nurse.
This concern with symmetry and balance is typical of Red Moon; Lemieux
seems to delight in the vagaries and contradictions of everyday life.

The island is much more than the passive physical setting for the
mystery. It provides the dark, brooding atmosphere of late fall on the
Atlantic and the sense of constant struggle against the elements that
pervades both the present story and the past narratives that are brought
to the surface. Its strong and unique identity makes the otherwise
eccentric characters plausible and consistent with their environment.
And its harshness and unpredictability mirror the human inconsistencies
and disappointments, which are a source of both pathos and humor. The
wit and wry detachment of the narration are well served by Sheila
Fischman’s translation; the prose is taut and spare, a foil for the
complexities of action and character. This reader hopes that Lemieux
finds time to continue his fine writing.