Due to a medical emergency at home here in Mill Bay, my posts will be minimal. Followers will be notified of new posts.
I have just published my latest book: Red Jewel. It is available on Amazon as an epub ($5.99) or a paperback ($24.99). Just go to Amazon.com, select kindle books and then type in Red Jewel in the search bar.
Click on the link below and then click on the shakeyjay link to view Red Jewel’s cover page:
An overview:
Jim Turnbull is a twenty two year old Canadian with no sailing experience. Nigel Filtness is a thirty three year old British national who is a brilliant navigator and sailor with years of experience behind him.
Nigel, based out of Vancouver, British Columbia, is hired by Jim’s brother-in-law Sadao Katagiri to help him fulfill his dream of sailing his boat, christened Red Jewel, from Vancouver to Nagoya, Japan, his homeland. During the first leg of their journey to Hawaii, it becomes apparent that Sadao suffers from chronic seasickness and has to give up on his dream in Honolulu, their first port of call. Rather than abandon Nigel and Red Jewel in Hawaii, Sadao asks Jim to accompany Nigel as his crew and help him deliver Red Jewel to Japan. Jim jumps at this chance for adventure and agrees to go.
Jim’s arrival at the Ala Wai Marina and his initial encounter with Nigel are not without problems. Jim cannot understand Nigel’s coldness toward him nor his verbal slurs. Nigel’s intolerance and impatience with respect to Jim’s lack of nautical acumen is acute. Their relationship quickly becomes toxic. Nevertheless Jim is determined to make a go of things in spite of Nigel’s acidic personality and is enthusiastic and eager to do his part for a successful outcome. Indubitably, the unlikely partnership on this journey, coupled with the inherent dangers with open ocean sailing, will have signifi cant consequences for both of them.
John Morrison is a retired naval officer. He currently lives with his wife in Mill Bay British Columbia. His inspiration in writing Red Jewel came as a result of his experiences living aboard a sailboat at the Ala Wai Marina in 1973 and of his sailing from Honolulu to Saipan in 1974 in a Spencer Thirty Five off shore cruising sailboat.
The stories and characters found in the narrative of Red Jewel, while fictional, were mined by the author based upon his experiences as a young and very inexperienced sailor with much to learn.
John Morrison aka SJ…Out