Avian Games

The title of this first novel raises the obvious questions—who is Darren and what effect will he have on the women we meet on page one? Creelman opens the story with Heather’s visit to Benny at the hospital. She is on edge, visiting her married lover and worrying about the arrival of his wife, Isabelle. In a few short paragraphs, the tension is built. This is not Benny’s story, however, as it is clear from the outset that Benny is dead, his lifespan compared unfavourably to that of an injured puffin. This story belongs to the women and, of course, to Darren.

So who is Darren? While I was intrigued with the Heather-Benny-Isabelle triangle, I waited for Darren, hoping that he was the one who could rescue these two exhausted, injured women. Isabelle and Heather know about each other, and they circle the periphery of each other’s lives, each a vague threat on the horizon that could swoop in and bear down on the other.

Darren, it turns out, is a blessing in the...