The Big River
A mysterious death. An unresolved past.
John Cowan is living a peaceful life on the Big River in Labrador with his part-Inuit wife and their two children when his brother Duncan, whom he hasn’t seen in thirty years, pays him a surprise visit. Duncan wants John to return to his native Scotland to visit their ailing mother.
Upon his return, John finds himself thrown back into the life he had left behind and, in particular, the unresolved death of Gerald Symons and a love affair that refuses to die down.
During the visit, Jill, an investigative journalist and the girlfriend of John’s sister Sylvia, pieces together the puzzle of Gerald’s death and of the chaos that follows John’s return.
Combining mystery, adventure and love, The Big River explores the devastating effects of an unresolved past and the painful process of finding inner peace.
Akna
A Young Man Faces His Future—and the Secrets from His Past
David, a medical student in Montreal, fills his days with studies, thoughts of his future, and regular visits to his grandfather.
But when David learns the shocking truth about his parents, his world implodes. Together with an Inuit carving he receives as a gift from his grandfather, David sets off on a quest to connect with his roots.
His journey takes him to Labrador where he meets Akna, a young woman whose family has its own mystery to solve—how did Akna’s Aunt Sadie die years earlier? As David’s feelings for Akna grow, he begins connecting the dots between Sadie’s violent death and his own family history.
A fast-paced and insightful commentary on the perils of self-interest, Akna is the adventure of a young man striving to make peace with his past while embracing a future with limitless possibilities.
Under the Radar
A MONTREAL POLICE DETECTIVE, A MURDERER, AND A SPY
The body of a dead man is found in a condo in downtown Montreal, and Police Detective Carmel Roch takes charge of the investigation. She learns that the victim was part of a group visiting Canada with the purpose of sabotaging its radar defences in the far north.
Her search for the murderer leads her to Goose Bay, Labrador, and from there, she follows the plotters north to Saglek Fjord, in the Torngats, where there is an important radar site and numerous polar bears…
In the course of a dramatic climax at Saglek, Carmel helps the RCMP defeat the radar plot and finally succeeds in catching her murderer.
Under the Radar is a fast-paced story of murder, espionage, and Carmel’s stubborn pursuit of her objective, regardless of the many difficulties and dangers.
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About Peter
A retired lawyer, Peter Cumyn was born in Canada and lives in Montreal. He has farmed both in Scotland and in Canada, and has canoed extensively in Labrador. Under the Radar is his third novel.