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by J.J. Viertel
In this gripping debut thriller, struggling divorcée Jeanette King becomes embroiled in a criminal ring when she discovers her ex-husband's cache of baby eels.
Caterpillar Island is off the central coast of Maine―beloved vacationland of lobster bakes and quaint fried clam shacks, kayaking and country houses. At night, though, by the light of a headlamp, the island is alive with cash, guns, and poachers. Oxy addicts, struggling retirees, and unemployable deadbeats dip their nets in the creeks to catch elvers―two-inch-long baby eels that fetch $2000 a pound on the international black market.
Into this dark and dangerous world falls Jeanette King, who has, up to this moment, been earning her meager living mainly by picking and packaging peekytoe crab meat for shipment to New York and Boston. As Jeanette gets drawn into a fast-moving story of risk and violent consequences, she enlists the aid of a local policeman and an Indigenous activist. Together they try to set things right for the people and the planet. But the deeper they dig, the more dangerous things get. An ensuing procession of colorful locals, corrupt state politicians, and treacherous outsiders weaves a tale that reveals the underbelly of a deadly business.
"While the large cast and copious flashbacks sometimes slow the pace, three-dimensional characters and an immersive setting enhance this fascinating crime tale. The Viertels are worth keeping tabs on." —Publishers Weekly
"An offbeat, atmospheric thriller with a whodunit at its core." —Kirkus Reviews
"The Glass Eel meets all my standards for fiction: an engrossing and highly imaginative plot; vivid characters; the revelation of a world completely unknown to me; and a narrative style that pulled me right along. Two bonuses: stunning nature writing and hilarious lines that lighten the plot at absolutely critical moments." ―Daniel Okrent, prize-winning author of The Guarded Gate
"Now here's a world I knew nothing about, but thanks to this wonderful novel I'm completely engrossed in the lives of the characters who inhabit the fisheries of Maine. The Viertels bring them brilliantly to life―I can still taste the saltwater. What a triumph!" ―Lawrence Wright, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Plague Year
This information about The Glass Eel was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
J.J. Viertel is the pseudonym used by the father-son writing team of Jack and Josh Viertel who live in Maine and New York. When they aren't writing crime thrillers together, they each have their own careers: Jack creates Broadway plays and musicals and Josh creates organic farms. Josh is a fly fisherman and bow hunter and Jack is a scuba diver and barbecue chef. In addition to writing, they play the blues together.
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