It’s 1910, and Theodulf Sauer has finally achieved a position befitting his ego: master lighthouse keeper at a newly commissioned station towering above Lake Superior. When his new wife, Willa, arrives on the first spring ferry, it’s clear her life has taken the opposite turn: after being summoned home from college to Duluth when her father dies, she and her scheming mother find themselves destitute, and Willa is rushed into this ill-suited arranged marriage before she can comprehend her fate. Minnesota harsh conditions are brought to light throughout the book and can be challenging on their own. The story with just a few characters, mainly all strong and determined in different ways, the lighthouse a focus and character of its own and one man not knowing how to adapt or handle different circumstances are the focus of this story. The story is slow but that befits this story. Received a complimentary copy of A Lesser Light, by Peter Geye, from the University of Minnesota Press/NetGalley, for which I am appreciative.

I had the pleasure of helping with Peter Geye’s book launch last week for A Lesser Light and finished this big boy the other day. Coming in at over 500 pages, it is clear that Geye wrote every single word with intention. His writing is cerebral and his books are a slow journey. Once I got over the fact that I wasn’t going to binge this one in a weekend, I settled in and really loved the ride.

A Lesser Light is set in 1910 in a fictional town on the north shore, along Lake Superior. A lonely lighthouse keeper meets his new bride, an intelligent and strong willed woman, Willa. From there, the story unfolds and includes a burly fisherman and his recently orphaned niece, an outspoken housewife who befriends Willa, a local charlatan who peddles misinformation about the coming Haley’s comet, an unruly and dangerous Great Lake, wolves and more.

This book embodies northern Minnesota and the writing was so beautiful. It’s historical fiction but is heavily character driven, so go in knowing you aren’t going anywhere fast but you will get to know these beautifully flawed characters.

"She gripped the railing more firmly and sent the water a beseeching query. The answer came from the secreted shore—a lament calling back, a chorus of howls belatedly harmonizing with the whistle. They were so close she could reach out and hold their music. “That’s not your mother’s lap dog,” the purser said, standing there as suddenly as the howling had found her. She acknowledged him by peering harder into the fog. “Wolves,” he said." p5

"She’d certainly not wear a dress. Instead, she removed from her closet a short-sleeved blouse and the pair of bloomers she figured were most likely to offend. She took her time changing. After lacing her brogues, she fetched last her parasol. She would walk slowly. Ladylike, if not ladylike at all." p147

Final Review

This book reminds me quite a bit of another book that came out earlier this year, which I would recommend if you like this book, or vice versa-- Isola by Allegra Goodman (my review!). At 510 pages, though, I thought this one was a little too thick through the middle, which contained a lot of repetition. I do think this was a stylistic choice to show the tedium of the characters' lives. If you're a fan of detailed and accurate historical fiction, I recommend this book for you.

My 3 Favorite Things:

✔️ The author is developing an element of mental illness in the main character in a way that doesn't stigmatize and feels authentic. Considering how rare it is to find this, I feel deeply appreciative and seen.

✔️ The writing style is elevated perfectly to suit historical fiction, but is still accessible and lovely.

✔️ I really enjoyed the historical accuracies in this, such as the details of the fmc keeping house, and descriptions of her husband's work as a lighthouse keeper. This helps me access a story whose world is mine but also not mine.

I found an accessible digital copy of A LESSER LIGHT by Peter Geye in Libby. Thank you also to the author, University of Minnesota Press, and NetGalley for a digital copy. All views are mine.

I chose to read this one because the themes listed were interesting to me - science vs. superstition, how traditional power plays out in an isolated setting, etc. But these themes were buried under the writing. This work is 512 pages long, but should have been closer to 280. In fact, I honestly couldn't tell you what those pages were spent on because it just wasn't memorable. A lot of ramblings and introspection for all characters, a lot of flashbacks that were repetitive, and then some more introspection. There were also many things that were introduced, but even with 512 pages, weren't explored. Were they supposed to be red herrings? But don't you need a mystery to make that inclusion worth it?

The "brooding and beautiful landscape" got buried beneath how overwritten this all was. And the characters suffered much the same fate. Despite having plenty of chapters from Willa's POV, she doesn't come alive as a character. Theodulf is fully drawn, but he doesn't really change over the course of the book, so he's more repetitive than anything. There's also some things included that were very much "man writing woman" stereotypes that didn't work for me (the most egregious was a 13-year-old girl being aroused by watching her uncle having sex. Why include this? Just why?)

I rarely DNF books, and never DNF review copies, but I had to fight temptation to keep from giving up on this one. If you like very slow, very dense historical fiction with static characters you may like this one. My thanks to NetGalley and University of Minnesota Press for allowing me to read this work. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

Lesser Known History of Pre-Cleopatra Ancient Egypt
Toby Wilkinson, The Last Dynasty: Ancient Egypt from Alexander the Great to Cleopatra (New York: W. W. Norton & Company, April 8, 2025). EBook. 384pp, 6.3X9.3”, 8 pages of full color illustrations, 20 illustrations. ISBN: 978-1-324052-03-6.
****
“…Story of ancient Egypt’s last dynasty. Alexander the Great and Cleopatra may be two of the most famous figures from the ancient world, but the Egyptian era bookended by their lives—the Ptolemaic period (305-30 BC)—is little known… Three centuries’ worth of extraordinary moments and charismatic figures. Macedonian in origin and Greek-speaking, the Ptolemies presided over the final flourishing of pharaonic civilization.” A “cultural reach” was “displayed at the height of their power: how they founded new cities, including Alexandria, their great seaside residence and commercial capital; mined gold in the furthest reaches of Nubia; built spectacular new temples that are among the foremost architectural wonders of the Nile Valley; and created a dazzling civilization that produced astonishing works of sculpture, architecture, and literature. Stunningly, he also shows how such expansionist ambitions led to the era’s downfall. The Ptolemaic period was a time when ancient Egypt turned its gaze westward—in the process becoming the unwitting handmaid to the inexorable rise of Rome and the consequent loss of Egyptian independence.”
The “Contents” divide the history chronologically by shifts in the dynasty’s standing: its rise, crisis, neurosis, and then the arrival of a “nemesis” (Rome). There is a helpful table listing “Macedonian and Ptolemaic Rulers of Egypt”, and a “Timeline” orienting readers in this distant historic narrative. And there is a chart that shows relationships between the main players in the dynasty: who birthed whom and the like. Researchers will also benefit from maps, including a map of the necropolis that was designed just for this book. I was surprised it had a huge “Jewish Quarter” next to the gymnasium in Ptolemaic Alexandria. I have been researching ancient Jews in the Middle East, and this is a curious bit of evidence that fills in this part of their history. The interior explains that when Ptolemy seized in 301 this region on the “coastal strip” one of the things he gained was “Jewish mercenaries and administrators from the formerly independent kingdom of Judaea.” They apparently played an “important part” in Egypt across the following centuries (49). Ptolemy II then probably performed “the first Greek translation of the Torah” (87). There were times when Jews were prosecuted over disloyalty, but they mostly had their “own quarter” where Ptolemy VI “granted them their own self-governing community”. He appears to have patronized Jewish writers as “an exegesis of the book of Moses by the philosopher Aristoboulos “was dedicated to” him (150-1). Hardships included Cleopatra “refusing ‘to distribute the necessary grains to the Jews” (263). This is pretty much all that is told about this massive Jewish settlement. Because the Torah is believed to have been first-written just before the 323-221 BC period where this story opens, and the first Greek translation was apparently made in the middle of this action, it seems very likely that this was the place where Jewish scholars first crafted their theology. Only a single copy of the Torah seems to be dated to before the period covered in this book. It has probably been inaccurately dated. And if Judaism was a major religion starting in the 7th century BC or earlier, there would have been many more copies of it. A book just focusing on what the Jews were up to in the final centuries of Egypt’s independence is clearly needed to explore the likely true origin of Judaism.
The “Introduction: Questions of Identity” starts with a picturesque description of what Queen Cleopatra would have seen from her chamber in the palace. Then, her suicide is dramatically described due to her failure to keep Egypt independent. The next section also travels to a time outside the focus of this study. Then chapter “1: Rise of a Dynasty” begins with Ptolemy’s birth in 367 BC.
I have not seen many books that explore the history of this distant time, so I believe it would be very helpful for researchers who specialize in this period, who will now have a compact and dramatically-written source to consult. There are too few citation notes for my taste to explain the sources for these various details. But there are summaries of “Sources” at the back of the book for each chapter. The sources seem to be not numerous enough to have warranted in-text citations. For example, much of “Chapter 13: Dangerous Liaisons” comes out of a few cited books: Plutarch’s Life of Caesar, and Alexandrian War, with a few citations of research on this period published somewhat recently between 1988 and 2020. I guess there would have been too many “Ibid., 1, 2, 3” etc. notes in the text is these few sources were cited throughout.
This is a thoroughly researched, and energetically told story that scholars are likely to enjoy as they benefit from it. So, academic libraries should purchase a copy for their collections to make it available for specialists, or enthusiasts.
Pennsylvania Literary Journal: Spring 2025 issue: https://anaphoraliterary.com/journals/plj/plj-excerpts/book-reviews-spring-2025

Thanks to NetGalley and university of Minnesota press for the eARC! I grew up around the Great Lakes and was excited to read a story about Lake Superior, although from the Minnesota side. This is one of those books that sounds perfect on paper for me but just didn’t work in execution. While I typically enjoy character driven novels, I felt bored and unable to focus for more than a few pages at a time. The telling over showing was too much for me with all the minute details, and repetitive with a few too many “stirring of bowels” in a single chapter. So unfortunately a DNF after 17% (92 pages) but from reviews I have no doubt this book will find its audience!

This is a good book, though it moves along quite slowly and it is very lengthy, it's like a slice of life, every nuance of the characters is explored, interesting at times, but not a lot really happens. In 1910, along the shores of Lake Superior, Theodulf (Theo), has recently become a lighthouse manager, he is responsible for lighting the beam that alerts ships to the dangers of the shore. Theo is also recently married to Willa, it was a very rushed marriage for both, Willa and her mother had become near destitute after the death of her father, and the only way to survive was if Willa married someone wealthy. The story covers the back story of Theo and Willa, Theo may have a desire for a same sex relationship, though he is too frightened to act on it, the one time he thought he might be able to, the person he was interested in, did not show up again for him to pursue it, though little did he know that person was not what he seemed. Theo treats Willa like a servant most of the time, telling her when he wants his meals prepared and what he wants to eat. Willa has never cooked before, but help arrives in the form of two assistant light house keepers and their wives who take Willa under their wings and show her domestic skills. There is also a young girl and her uncle that live on the island and fish for a living, the young girl is also someone who claims she can see events. All of these characters make for an interesting if somewhat slow story, very interesting if you like historical novels and lighthouses. Thanks to #Netgalley and University of #Minnesota Press for the ARC.

I received a digital copy of this book from NetGalley for review. My opinions are my own.

3/5 stars

I was drawn to this book because of the nature of the subject - I am from the Lake Superior shoreline and love reading historical fiction about Lake Superior. This particular book is about a lighthouse keeper and his wife near Duluth in the early 1900s.

I have to say, my feelings about this book are complicated. I don’t want to give spoilers as this won’t be a long review but I feel that both Theodulf and Willa drew tough straws. However, I’m guessing much of this had to do with the timeframe the book was set.

The writing was beautiful.

1910 and Theodor has got a commission that he deems worthy of his status. He has also acquired a wife who is a total misfit for the isolated island, who is not fearful of him much to his dismay and one who has a mind of her own. A rough fisherman and his clairvoyant niece adds interest to Willa’s life with their interest and compassion, totally at variance with Theodor who having been brought up in a rigid, authoritarian household, does not know to act different.

The politics of an insular society - only a couple of families and the harsh, unrelenting weather makes for an environment stifling for Willa, but one with no escape.

The story with just a few characters, mainly all strong and determined in different ways, the lighthouse a focus and character of its own and one man not knowing how to adapt or handle different circumstances are the focus of this story. The story is slow but that befits this story.

A Lesser Light is a beautifully written tale of very strong but sad people that end up together almost by fate and their relationships are also shadowed by superstition and ignorance in relation to the Halley Comet. Theodulf resorts to a life full of rules and an strict adherence to the Catholicism to mask his sexuality and marries Willa to fulfill his father's wishes and to avoid more scandals. Willa marries so her mother can continue to live a life of luxury after her father commited suicide and left them penniless, and she's relieved that her marriage will be a farce. Mats assumes the upbringing of his niece (who forsees the future) and wants to make a life with Willa who is married to Theodulf. Is there any possibility of a better life to any of them or even of a happy ending?
I thank Mr. Geye, his publisher, and NetGalley for this ARC.

Thank you to NetGalley and University of Minnesota press for the ARC!

This is slightly rounded down as it just wasn't a 4-star read for me.

The prose is wonderful. Felt appropriate to the early 20th century, with no jarring anachronisms as far as I could tell. I felt like I was there, especially towards the end of the book when plot picked up somewhat.

The book overall felt like a slice of life, but I'm not sure that was the intent. There were too many threads that were picked up and then abandoned. Some appear to have been intended as red herring, but others felt unnecessary. What was the point of Odd, for example? Willa learns a lot from Ruth, apparently, but that's completely off page. The other wife is barely there, but surely she isn't in "real" life, as there are only four families there. They must interact every day, but we meet her once (twice?). She's so absent, I can't recall her name.

This is very much Theodulf's book. I don't know if he gets the most time on page technically, but he is the only one we get to fully understand by the end. He's not a nice person exactly, but he's consistent. Willa is a bit of a sketch, unfortunately.

Set on the wild shores of Lake Superior in 1910, *A Lesser Light* is a beautifully written tale of isolation, resilience, and quiet rebellion. Willa, a young woman thrust into an arranged marriage after her father’s death, finds herself trapped in a cold lighthouse with a distant, brooding husband. But as Halley’s Comet approaches and the northern skies darken, a flicker of hope arrives in the form of a clairvoyant girl and her perceptive uncle. The novel blends cosmic wonder with emotional depth, weaving themes of science, superstition, and self-discovery. Haunting and lyrical, this story is as atmospheric as the lake itself, with a slow burn that rewards patient readers.

I went into this book excited for the setting. I love lighthouses. I love the Great Lakes. I fell into the book rather quickly.

However, my biggest gripe may sound minor, but it pulled me out of the story many times and frustrated me.

The author kept switching POV with no markers. Using "he" instead of the name. And really, throughout, the use of pronouns instead of names made for confusing reading. Likewise time marker transitions weren't great- flashbacks, present time, etc. Each new section, I had to reorient myself in a way that I did not care for.
In general, would hope for better transitions in future books from this author.

Some really great language but a fair amount of extraneous details. Spending too much time in places where it didn't (to me) seem to matter- the details of rowing - showing every step. This sometimes got boring after a while and slowed the story down.

That said, this isn't a "plot" book. It's a "character" book and the author is an absolute wonder with characters. Maybe some of the best I've ever read. They are all complex, multi-faceted, fallible, and interesting. I read on for the characters and will read more from this author for the characters as well.

They say you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, but I have no reservations about judging a book by its first page. If the opening lines don’t reel me in, it usually goes right into my DNF (did not finish) list—unless I am fatally bored. A Lesser Light by Peter Geye had me hooked immediately. While the beginning wasn’t quite poetry, it was something similar, and it was just the right mix of intriguing and tongue-in-cheek to get me brimming with questions.

The author has a unique way of balancing tone: many sentences simultaneously raise questions and make serious implications yet remain lackadaisical. A good example of this is, “For a moment, she fancied stepping into the killing waters.” This combination encourages the reader to be curious while helping the narrative feel more grounded and mundane. This wry, almost whimsical tone is threaded throughout a narrative of religious zealotry and interpersonal drama.

If you’re a fan of minimalist writing—turn away. While A Lesser Light is far from overbearingly purple, Geye is exceedingly fond of metaphor and detailed descriptions. I thoroughly enjoyed his fresh turn of phrases, although my Google search history might raise a few eyebrows. Geye casually flings around words like “strychnine” and “basso profundo” right from the rip. I know a lot of words, but Geye uses a lot of niche vocabulary with a focus on obscure musical terminology, and I enjoyed learning more.

I rarely see a well-written, clever, and calculating woman protagonist. Luckily, Willa Sauer is all those things and more; “she made a silent vow; her covenant would be with the wilds—the wolves and water and celestial bodies. She would remain as agnostic as nature. And as cunning.” Willa is unerringly herself in a world that wants her to abide by its rules. When made to confess her sins, she “felt gleeful and hurried through a litany of false sins […] What else was forbidden?”

Willa’s fraught relationship with her husband is the main source of tension in the novel. I cheered aloud when she struck him back after he hit her. Theodulf, her husband, is a complex character that I took pleasure in loathing. This sums him up nicely: “His remorse, though, took a moment to classify. […] he visited the chamber of his faith, then his marriage, then his family name. He found no guilt in any of them. […] It was only in dishonoring himself that he felt any culpability.” Where Willa is defiant and curious, he is willfully ignorant and pridefully obedient. Where Willa’s instinct is to help a distressed child, Theodulf is blinded by the inconvenience of having his routine disrupted. This dichotomy is the perfect source of conflict—every lull is followed by a clash in their inherent characteristics that pushes the story further and further into tension and intrigue.

I enjoyed this book immensely. I would love to have a physical copy to mark up because a reread would reveal things I missed the first go around. If you like prose and character-driven stories, you’ll enjoy A Lesser Light.

Favorite Lines:
“They were so close she could reach out and hold their music.”
“Wisps of fog still licked the lantern room, as if it were exhaling, its breath plenty, for the fog no sooner ended than the clouds did commence. She scanned the rest of the sky to discern the time, but there was none.”
“This bedlamite. This quibbling gasbag. This dullard.”
“The cove was glass-like, the sky pink and guileful, the woods and shore blanketed by downy snow.”
“Did he crumple like bed linen falling from a drying line?”
“The birds have killed my song.”
“Whether that shattered light was a song or a soul, she had only a hunch.”

A fictional account of a mis-matched couple in the early 20th century. Theodulf Sauer is from a prominent family in Duluth and the now in charge of the Gininwabiko Lighthouse and the other watchers, on the shore of Lake Superior. She is much younger, Willa Brandt Sauer, ripped out of Radcliffe College where she studied astronomy, due to the death of her father.

Now Willa and her mother are stranded without funds or ability to get by, so a quick marriage of convenience to Theodulf was arranged.
They don’t get along from day one, it is a marriage of convenience and they hardly seem to even try to be friendly with each other. They had met because of her piano playing. Theodulf was taken by her rendition of Moonlight Sonata. It reminds him of the one time he was truly happy, in Paris when he met and had a brief affair with Paul. Being of a strict religious family this type of behavior is not tolerated, thus the need for a wife.

This is a long book and things move slowly. There aren’t many characters, but the solitary neighbor girl, Silje is quite a character herself, and my favorite in the book. I was intrigued by the premise of lighthouse and the watchers, and it was satisfied as the lighthouse has a prominent place in the book.

A Lesser Light
By Peter Geye

This is a beautifully written book that touches on many things but nothing direct. It takes place along Lake Superior near Duluth, Minnesota at the turn of the 20th century.

It is the story of the Gininwabiko Lighthouse, its keeper, and those who live around it. The lighthouse master is one Theodulf Sauer. He is the son and heir of a pillar of the Duluth community, a wealthy attorney and a self-made man. Though a professed Roman Catholic, Mr. Sauer Sr. is not a nice – or good – man.

Theodulf, his son, is socially awkward, a disappointment to his father. After embarrassing his father and being disbarred, Theodulf is sent to Paris to sow his wild oats and get himself straight. Unfortunately, far from straightening up, Theodulf finds himself in a relationship with another man!

Willa, is the much loved daughter of her meteorologist father and her drunkard mother who cuckolds her husband while belittling him. Willa has just returned from Radcliffe College upon receiving word that her father has ended his life. Her college is over and she and her mother are facing poverty.

Theodulf and Wiila enter into a marriage of expedience – he for his job prospects, she for financial security. As they start life together at the lighthouse, they always seem to be out of step and both unhappy, not knowing how to reach out to each other.

There are other characters here as well who exemplify both the good and bad in human beings. The weather – both the beautiful days and the horrendous storms – seems to reflect the multiple facets of the characters.

I would call this a character study – including the weather as a character. While not filled with plot twists, the book will leave you with much to ponder.

BOOK REPORT
Received a complimentary copy of A Lesser Light, by Peter Geye, from the University of Minnesota Press/NetGalley, for which I am appreciative, in exchange for a fair and honest review. Scroll past the BOOK REPORT section for a cut-and-paste of the DESCRIPTION of it from them if you want to read my thoughts on the book in the context of that summary.

I’m a sucker for a lighthouse story, even though—as my husband and I discussed last night—they all seem to be depressing and weird/unsettling/etc.

Unfortunately, this was not one of the better ones I’ve read and/or watched. I even whinged on a bit about it in a Book Report about a novella I read whilst in the middle of reading A Lesser Light.

Version Short: First quarter boring as all get-out. Pass out stone cold sober boring. Almost didn’t pick it back up after the novella. Then two quarters of interesting, but so, just……strange. And somewhat difficult to read because of the wording choices—lots of vocabulary from the early 1900s. Then the final quarter was kind of a maze to get through, with an unsatisfyingly cliched (to me) ending.

But, hey, at least it led to an interesting dinner table discussion about Lighthouse Movies (& Akin) That We Have Loved. So without further ado….

- The Lighthouse, 2019. “Two lighthouse keepers try to maintain their sanity while living on a remote and mysterious New England island in the 1890s.” Willem Dafoe and a noise that would drive a sane person crazy, much less the rest of us. But particularly me, because the foghorn sounded so much like the alarm clock I got in high school. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7984734/

- The Vanishing, 2018. “Three lighthouse keepers on the remote Flannan Isles obtain a mysterious trunk, leading to their mysterious disappearance.” Could things get any weirder? Well, probably. But, still. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt4131496/

- The Fog, 2005, and The Fog, 1980. “Local legend tells of a ship lured on to the rocks of Antonio Bay being enveloped by a supernatural cloud as it sank; the myth says that when this mysterious fog returns, the victims will rise up from the depths seeking vengeance.” Pick your poison. Both the original and the remake are worth seeing for different reasons. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0080749/ and https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0432291/

- How I Ended This Summer, 2010. “One place. One day. Two men. The place is a polar research station on an island in the Arctic Ocean, inhabited now only by Sergei and Pavel. One day when Sergei is out angling, Pavel picks up a radio message that he daren't communicate.” No lighthouse proper, but feels like there should’ve been. Russian. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1588875/...

- Enys Men, 2022. “Set in 1973 on an uninhabited island off the Cornish coast, a wildlife volunteer's daily observations of a rare flower turn into a metaphysical journey that forces her as well as the viewer to question what is real and what is a nightmare.” Once again not a lighthouse proper, but the movie is certainly evocative of one. And I have never thought of lichen the same way since watching this. Repeatedly. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt11698800/

We haven’t watched this one, yet, but want to: The Lighthouse, 2016. “Based on real events which saw two lighthouse keepers stranded for months at sea in a freak storm, the film tells a tale of death, madness and isolation; a desolate trip into the heart of human darkness.” https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3520714/

Cheerios, then!

DESCRIPTION
On the rocky shores of Lake Superior, a piercing story of selfhood and determinism develops: is the future what we’re handed or what we make of it?

It’s 1910, and Theodulf Sauer has finally achieved a position befitting his ego: master lighthouse keeper at a newly commissioned station towering above Lake Superior. When his new wife, Willa, arrives on the first spring ferry, it’s clear her life has taken the opposite turn: after being summoned home from college to Duluth when her father dies, she and her scheming mother find themselves destitute, and Willa is rushed into this ill-suited arranged marriage before she can comprehend her fate.

As the lighthouse station establishes, the new relationship teeters between tense and hostile, with little mutual understanding or tenderness. Willa takes solace in her learned fascination with the cosmos, especially (despite her husband’s suspicion of the event) in viewing the imminent Halley’s Comet. Under ominous night skies, Theodulf stands sentry over the lake, clinging to long-ago and faraway memories of happiness that fill him with longing and shame.

Into this impasse, a clairvoyant girl and her resolute uncle emerge from across the cove. They see through the Sauers’ thin façade and, by turns and in different ways, convey promise, sympathy, and insight that counter Willa’s despair. Armed with renewed self-determination, Willa forges a path to happiness. But before she can grasp it, tragedy comes to their remote beacon, and her future plunges toward a dark unknown.

Set against a brooding and beautiful landscape, A Lesser Light is a story about industry and calamity, science versus superstition, inner desire countered with societal expectations—and the consequences when these forces collide in the wilderness of rapid social change.

This novel provides a detailed look at life on Lake Superior in the early 20th century. Although there are flashbacks to Paris and Boston, most of the book takes place in Duluth and northeast to Two Harbors. The main characters are Theodulf (a lost and unhappy lighthouse stationmaster), his young and equally lost wife Willa, a fisherman who lives near the lighthouse, and the fisherman’s orphaned niece.

In this narrative, the lake serves as a central element, with the human characters providing insights into the influence of the lake and its varying effects on the nearby residents.

If you love Lake Superior and the North Shore, you may well find this book a great read.

This was a sad and suspensful story of a woman, Willa, who has been damaged by a weak father and a mean, selfish mother. Then she gets married off, because there is no money and she didn’t get to finish her education to learn a trade or career. The worst part is that she is married off to a mentally sick man. He’s also mean and unloving.

Because of his career of lighthouse keeper, they are stuck together in an inhospitable place where she doesn’t want to live.

Does any of this sound like it would be worth reading? I have to say that I really enjoyed this story.
Except for the ending. I really wish the author could have found a bit better ending or that he would explain why he chose the way he ended it.
It was still very much worth reading.
The writing is good and the story was developed well. I liked the other characters who added to the story, but I especially liked Willa. She is strongwilled and loves science, which does not sit well with her husband.

Reading this unusual novel I felt as if one of the nineteen century writers could have been resurrected.. Hardy, came to mind immediately. The novel’s backdrop was unusual . The Great Lakes in the 1900’s was a unique backdrop for the story. I loved the descriptions of the flora and fauna of this remote area of the lake and its lighthouse… the central figure in this book. All the themes are here.. repression, violence, homosexuality, rape, and prejudice. The lighthouse keeper is doomed from the first chapter. The characters are wonderfully depicted and the author has captured all the nuances of this isolated primitive landscape. The ending disappointed me. I felt it was too predictable and tacked on as a way to quickly end the narrative.