Driftwood by Harper Fox

Driftwood by Harper FoxNarrated by Chris Clog

One of the things I’ve enjoyed about the books by Harper Fox I’ve listened to so far is the incredibly strong sense of place that she evokes through her lyrical writing and the vivid descriptions of the locales in which her stories are set. Many of her books are set in Cornwall, which offers plenty of material for evocative description and Driftwood, one of her earliest works, makes particularly effective use of its setting in a remote Cornish village near the sea.

The story opens as former army medic turned local GP, Doctor Thomas Penrose, is walking his large rescue dog, a wolfhound named Belle, along the beach of Kynance Cove, where he notices someone far out at sea getting ready to surf the huge wave that’s about to break. Simultaneously impressed by the man’s agility and cursing him for an idiot, Tom watches helplessly as the surfer, at first riding the wave easily, suddenly comes a-cropper, and plunges into the dangerously strong tide. Tom should really go and fetch help – he’s not on duty and this isn’t his responsibility – but when the man doesn’t surface immediately, he knows he can’t leave without knowing if he is dead or alive. Tom swims out to find him and brings him back to the shore, a bit shaken but fortunately unharmed.

Flynn Summers is a Lieutenant in the SAR – Search and Rescue – Unit of the Royal Navy’s Fleet Air Arm, and used to be a helicopter pilot, but after a tragic accident a couple of years earlier which killed all but one of his crew, he no longer flies. Like Tom, Flynn is carrying a lot of emotional baggage, but something immediately clicks between them, and Tom feels the pull of attraction towards another man for the first time in over three years. Tom’s three tours in Afghanistan have left him with PTSD, and every so often, when his memories threaten to overwhelm him, he seeks refuge at the bottom of a bottle – several bottles, in fact – going on benders that last for days. (I should point out that as he knows full well what he’s doing, Tom is at the very least responsible enough to make sure his shifts are covered at his surgery and the local hospital, so he’s not treating patients while he’s shit-faced!) He is mostly content with his life as a country doctor, but has resigned himself to a life alone. Life in rural Cornwall doesn’t exactly present many opportunities for dating other men, and in any case, Tom hasn’t been very interested in sex for quite some time, since well before he left the army.

But with Flynn, he feels the kind of connection he’s never experienced with anyone, and Flynn makes it clear that the feeling is mutual. Both are interested in exploring that connection, but Flynn sadly explains to Tom that he’s in a relationship, and that would seem to be that.

Except… it isn’t. Tom is pleased, a few days later to see Flynn at a local event where the SAR team is present (and which, if he’s honest, he only attended in the hope that Flynn would be there), and it’s obvious that Flynn is equally delighted to see Tom. But then Flynn’s boyfriend Robert Tremaine makes an appearance, and Tom is instantly alert to the fact that something isn’t right. Robert is friendly, but there’s a definite sense he’s put a big fat “hands off” sign around Flynn; Tom realises immediately that he’s possessive and is clearly not happy that Flynn is friendly with another man, and suspects the relationship is – at the very least – an emotionally abusive one. His concerns are borne out when Flynn, burdened with survivor’s guilt and tied to Robert out of a debt of gratitude, finally and heartbreakingly opens up some days later, confirming Tom’s worst fears about his relationship with Robert and explaining why he feels he deserves to be in such an abusive situation. But for the first time in the two years since the accident, Flynn has begun to feel that perhaps he does deserve better – meeting Tom has given him the strength to face the truth and to end things with Robert.

The emotional connection between Tom and Flynn is intense, and I loved the way these two damaged people found the strength in each other to face their problems and start to deal with them. Between them, they have a lot of baggage – but things are about to take a turn for the worse when the pair become unwittingly entangled in a web of illegal activities perpetrated by a criminal gang who will stop at nothing in order to safeguard their very lucrative enterprise.

In a way, this expansion into romantic suspense territory made Driftwood feel like a book of two different halves – the first a gently moving romance between two damaged individuals, the second a fast-paced action yarn in which our protagonists’ lives are in very real danger. I also asked myself at one point if Tom and Flynn didn’t have enough to deal with, what with the PTSD and alcoholism (Tom) and an abusive relationship and suicidal thoughts (Flynn) – and if throwing in a sub-plot concerning gun-running off the Cornish coast wasn’t overkill. But with that said, I can’t say I didn’t enjoy that aspect of the story, even though I have to admit that there were a couple of implausible plot points, and that the transition from gentle but intense love story to action/romantic suspense tale was a little jarring.

Having very much enjoyed Chris Clog’s narration of the author’s Seven Summer Nights, I was keen to listen to him again, which is one of the reasons I selected Driftwood for review. He has a pleasant, well-modulated voice which is easy on the ear, and his portrayal of Tom – a man plagued by inner demons, but with sufficient self-awareness to recognise them – is pitch perfect, as he expertly conveys an inner core of strength beneath Tom’s softly-spoken manner. Flynn’s tone is brighter and slightly deeper by contrast, and Mr. Clog does an excellent job of portraying the intensity of the emotion that lies between the couple, hitting all the right notes throughout, but especially in the scene where Flynn confesses the hopelessness of his situation to Tom. He employs a slight Cornish accent in his interpretation of Robert, which works very well to differentiate his speech from Tom’s and Flynn’s and also to make it clear to the listener that he’s local to the area (and therefore likely to be who Tom thinks he is) – and all the secondary characters are solidly realised and skilfully delineated. The performance is nuanced and well-paced throughout and I’ll definitely be on the lookout for more of Chris Clog’s narrations.

In spite the reservations I’ve expressed, I’d still recommend Driftwood to listeners looking for an intense love story who don’t mind a bit of suspense mixed in with their romance. The story is beautifully written, Flynn and Tom are likeable, flawed protagonists and Chris Clog’s excellent narration wraps it all up in an attractive and enjoyable package.

Caz


 

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