Riptide, Oregon, 1983. A sleepy coastal town, where crime usually consists of underage drinking down at a Wolf Point bonfire. But then strange things start happening: a human skeleton is unearthed in a local park and mutilated animals begin appearing, seemingly sacrificed, on the town’s beaches. The Mercy of the Tide follows four people drawn irrevocably together by a recent tragedy as they do … they do their best to reclaim their lives – leading them all to a discovery that will change them and their town forever. At the heart of the story are Sam Finster, a senior in high school mourning the death of his mother, and his sister Trina, a nine-year-old deaf girl who denies her grief by dreaming of a nuclear apocalypse as Cold War tensions rise. Meanwhile, Sheriff Dave Dobbs and Deputy Nick Hayslip must try to put their own sorrows aside to figure out who, or what, is wreaking havoc on their once-idyllic town. Keith Rosson paints outside the typical genre lines with his brilliant debut novel. It is a gorgeously written book that merges the sly wonder of magical realism and alternate history with the depth and characterization of literary fiction.
– NPR Books | Jason Heller – “Rosson is a talent to be watched, and Riptide is one of the most immersive fictional settings in recent memory.”
– Publisher’s Weekly (starred review) – “A striking novel”
– Foreword Reviews (4/4 hearts) – “An exquisitely honed, beautifully written novel.”
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Set in the Pacific Northwest in the early 80’s, THE MERCY OF THE TIDE brought home a robust sense of time and place.
In a small Oregon town, tragedy strikes in the form of a drunk driver. In towns like this, with an event like this, nearly everyone is affected as the ramifications ripple outward. Then, other things start happening. Dead, mutilated birds appear on people’s doorsteps. A skeleton is found in a local park. One deputy thinks he knows what’s happening: it’s related to an old native American legend. Can the goings-on in town be attributed to the legend, or are they attributable to humanity? You’ll have to read this to find out!
I very much related to the characters in this book. There’s one named Toad, (a nickname for Todd), and I knew a Toad when I was growing up, which was about the same time period as in this book. I also remember being afraid of the Russians and nuclear war. There’s a young girl in this book who is obsessed with nuclear annihilation. The music mentioned: Motorhead, The Ramones, and others-they formed the soundtrack of my teen years. I remember Ronald Reagan being shot as well-so all these things were perfectly drawn as far as I’m concerned.
The writing here was very good, especially the character development. The powerful themes of guilt and grief abound, and the reader cannot help but feel for these people. However, I did have a few issues. I can’t get too deeply into what those issues were because SPOILERS, but I can say I felt let down regarding the native American legend portion. I wanted more! I thought the denouement was perfect though-it shocked the hell out of me, but it also made me so mad I’m gritting my teeth just thinking about it.
Overall, I was impressed with this author and the book. The narration was excellent, as I’ve come to learn-Joshua Saxon’s work always is. I recommend this book-especially to those readers who came of age during this time period in American history. If you’re like me, you will feel the powerful rise of fond nostalgia.
*I received an audio version from Meerkat Press in exchange for my honest feedback. This is it!*
Review: The Mercy of the Tide by Keith Rosson.
As I read I thought the story came together well organized and it was entertaining to the point of captivating my interest to keep reading. The Sheriff had a reason for his toughness; he was grieving and was struggling to break that painful barrier of loss. It sometimes takes more time for people to heal, so he might have been grumpy especially towards one of his deputy’s. I didn’t like the deputy’s demeanor but he played his part well and a story usually has someone who will irritate the reader. He just rubbed people the wrong way. It could have been PTSD from serving in Vietnam but having an affair with a married woman and keeping a tragedy a secret throughout the story wasn’t Vietnam’s fault. I will say I was starting to fell bad for him near the end of the story.
Sam was a senior in high school and still had some growing up to do. However, he had a few things on his plate that he was also struggling with. I would say he was behind on hormones, a late starter, compared to Toad and he knew he had some catching up to do. After the tragedy struck his family he felt responsible to stay around and help his father and his deaf nine-year-old sister which, he knew his future plans came to a standstill. Sam did show plenty of adult responsibility when it came to his sister, Trina.
I love reading my favorite authors early books because you can see so much of their greatness developing. As with all of Keith’s books, this is very much a character driving tale. While it has a bit of supernatural elements, they are the sub-plot.
This book tells the stories of various families in Riptide, and how they are all connected to each other through various misadventures. This six degrees of Kevin Bacon but with tragedy instead of movies.
The use of multi-POV adds elements to the story that draw you deeper into the grief of the cast. Many of them have no idea why they are connected, but seeing their lives unfold from all angles make the last few chapters hit harder. I 100% had an oh shit moment towards the end. All of the pieces slipped into place, in a way that was foreshadowed, but still completely unexpected.
You’ll love this book if you love light plot, but heavy character reads that mix in just enough paranormal to make you wonder if it really was paranormal or the eyes playing tricks.
I enjoyed this book. The ending totally surprised me
I didn’t realize that this is more a horror book than a suspense book when I bought it. The point of view switches back and forth between characters and by the end of the book, various story lines come together. The book is bleak, depressing and the end will leave you unsettled. I finished it but I can’t say that I truly enjoyed it. The writing is tight and it is suspenseful but it is not my “cup of tea.”