The North Atlantic, 1940. A British destroyer pounces on a seemingly abandoned U-boat, leading to a spine-chilling encounter.Five years later, the US Navy destroyer Brownlee grimly prepares to battle a swarm of Japanese kamikazes at Okinawa.Mitch “Lucky” Kirkham, a young gunner on the Brownlee, wakes up miraculously unscathed after his crewmates are killed in a fearsome kamikaze strike.Bullied … kamikaze strike.
Bullied and resented amid accusations of cowardice and worse, Mitch re-boards his patched-up ship for the long voyage back to San Francisco. All he wants is to go home.
But far out in the boundless emptiness of the Pacific, a strange madness begins to seize the sailors on the Brownlee. Terror, hysteria and suicide torment the men amid sightings of ghosts and a terrifying monster that stalks the ship by night.
Mitch stumbles upon a possible explanation for the madness. But as the ship presses on alone, deeper into the vast Pacific Ocean and the grip of insanity, will anyone listen to him before his famous luck runs out for good?
Jonah is a searing, psychological suspense thriller, the latest from Carl Rackman, author of Irex and Voyager.
Praise for Carl Rackman:
“A spectacularly good first novel” – Terry Tyler, author of Tipping Point and The Devil You Know
“This a truly excellent book” – Amazon Reviewer
“A very enjoyable, well-written debut from a new writer well worth keeping an eye on.” – Amazon Reviewer
“I have to say it’s hard to believe this is a debut novel. It’s so good and the quality of the writing is excellent throughout.” – Between The Lines Blog Review
“Mr Rackman is an exceptional writer and this is a superb first outing – a psychological thriller, a seafaring adventure, and first-rate murder mystery.” – Noelle Granger, Author of Rae Brewster Mysteries series
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The story is set on board the US Navy destroyer Brownlee in the Pacific Ocean towards the end of the Second World War. Mitch ‘Lucky’ Kirkham miraculously survives a Kamikaze attack to the gun turret to which he was assigned. He was already known as ‘Lucky’ following another amazing wartime escape two years prior to this attack. He is accused of cowardice and desertion, and bullied by his fellow sailors. His tormentors are unwilling to believe his defense that he did not run away at the sight of the Japanese aircraft bearing down on him, but was just lucky.
Unfortunately instances of bullying, hazing and sexual harassment in the US Navy are rife, the culture of not ratting out your fellow seamen allows for many more instances to go unreported than the military service would be keen to admit. As the victim of such violent bullies, who are set on ending his life on more than one occasion, Mitch Kirkham can hardly be considered lucky in his daily life, but nicknames have a tendency to stick.
“Brownlee had been his home for two years, a community filled with friends and characters. Now it was a wall of hostility, cold and unfriendly. So much had changed in such a short time.”
Subsequently the survivors traveling back to Pearl Harbor on the Brownlee begin to be haunted by terrifying visions from their respective pasts and even a sea monster. Are their fragile mental states suffering from survivors’ guilt or combat stress and causing these visions, or is there something more sinister at play in the middle of the Pacific Ocean?
The use of flashbacks to explain the visions experienced by each of the haunted men works well as a device and gives the reader an occasional break from the setting on board the Brownlee. Could these visions be related to the performance enhancing amphetamines the seamen take in order to keep themselves awake during their long watches, now that the crew is short-handed?
“…yet another seaman sat quivering on the floor with his head in his hands. Others recounted their fantastic stories of how the monster had snatched away one of their crew mates.“
The chaplain McGready Is Mitch Kirkham’s only friend/confidant now that his friends have perished in the Kamikaze attack. Mitch soon realizes he cannot trust McGready’s confidentiality either, as it becomes clear that what he told the chaplain in confidence has got back to his tormentors.
From being “Lucky” Kirkham, Mitch eventually earns the titular nickname of “Jonah”, being accused of bringing bad luck to the rest of the crew while he himself remains blessed with good fortune in their eyes.
“They think I’m some kind of Jonah. I heard somebody use the word this morning. It’s very unlucky to use that name on a ship, Father.“
The characterisation in Jonah is excellent and you very quickly realise what type of person both Mitch and his nemesis, Halloran are going to be. The ego of the ship’s Captain comes into play later in the story, as does the fairness and integrity of Doc Coolidge.
Despite my lack of naval knowledge I did not find it necessary to consult the included glossary of terminology, since Rackman is very good at giving just enough context that you can figure out what is being referred to without needing a definition. There are also plans of the Brownlee included at the beginning of the book, but on the Kindle the accompanying text is almost impossible to make out.
With themes including the use of performance enhancing drugs, wartime PTSD, combat fatigue, bullying within the Navy, the inability to escape unfairness due to the chain of command, isolation at sea and survivors’ guilt, Jonah is an intriguing psychological thriller with spooky moments, horror elements and even a few expertly delivered, unexpected twists in the tale. I would recommend Jonah to all fans of psychological thrillers, wartime scenarios or fans of naval military intrigue.
I am a member of Rosie Amber’s Book Review Team and chose to read Jonah after seeing some other reviews for it. I received a copy of the book from the author but this has not influenced the content of my review.
It gives me great pleasure when an independent author has committed time, effort and money to ensure that when they publish their book it is the best that it can be, and that is the case here. Everything about Jonah’s presentation is professional which means no distracting typos or formatting errors during the read.
Mitch Kirkham, branded Lucky Kirkham, re-boards his ship, the Brownlee, after it has undergone repairs following a kamikaze strike. He just wants to get home but once out on the ocean a mysterious insanity starts to take over the crew and, amid an atmosphere of strange sightings that cause hysteria and suicide, he discovers the cause of the terror, and who’s behind it.
I know very little about naval warfare or the ins and outs of military ships and actually I have little interest in either but I was drawn into this story by the compelling characters Rackman creates and the setting in which he puts them.
I hadn’t read the blurb and knew nothing about the paranormal element and while this wouldn’t usually be my thing when it is incorporated into the storyline so naturally I completely accepted it without issue. I also really enjoyed the flashbacks into various characters’ lives which gave the background to the visions that haunted them.
There is a fair amount of detail about the ship and crew and with many technical terms the author has provided a glossary at the back of the book. But who has time to go looking for that when this skilful writer manages to impart all the information in a way that makes it clear what is going on, doesn’t slow down the storyline, and provides chapters of a length that make you want to fit in one more before you go to sleep. Well-written and thoroughly enjoyable I have no hesitation in recommending Jonah.