West of Spencer

Rough seas, biting spray in the wind, fractious salmon in abundance one day and impossible to find the next---to Bo, these offshore challenges are way better than those he faces on land. The sudden end of a love affair has left a deep wound, and his cure of choice, massive infusions of Crown Royal, offers an interesting perspective but little in the way of positive results. As the long Alaska winter approaches its end, increasing daylight, new romantic prospects, old friendships, and the accelerating salmon season begin to effect some healing. Then, a deadly error out on an offshore bank brings Bo face to face with his own mortality.

This first novel nails the life of fishermen in the Gulf of Alaska. On the docks, over the boat radios, and in the cafes and bars of a coastal Southeast town, Bo and his friends search erratically but amiably for answers to the deepest questions: why is love so elusive? Who might God be, really? And, where the hell have the fish gotten off to now?