"The Maine Cottage" by Nicholas Rogers

James McNally is a former Marine who’s been working as a war photographer. He has plenty of work, unfortunately – Afghanistan, Iraq, other parts of the Middle East. But he’s been caught in a roadside IED explosion; several of the mend he was with were killed, and Jim nearly lost his leg. 

Even now, many months later, his leg is scarred and smaller than it should be. Walking is painful, but the doctors have told him that, the more he walks, the less painful it will become over time. He numbers the pain with prescription drugs and alcohol as he spends time recovering. And recovery is happening in a coastal cottage in Maine.

 

He has company. A former wat photographer turned fashion photographer is doing a nearby photo shoot with several models. A young Marine who serves in the Marine equivalent of the Navy Seals is on leave and preparing to return for his fourth deployment. 

 

Nicholas Rogers

The Maine Cottage by Nicholas Rogers looked at one point that it would sink into an endless round of parties with friends and fashion models, former Marines sharing (or not sharing) old stories and their experiences, and the women who might, or might not stand by them. And then it shifts, and the story develops into a discussion about war, war photography, how war changes people, and how participants deal with both physical and mental injuries. 

 

If you’ve had no war experiences of your own, you simply sit and read, knowing that what you’re seeing on the page is true and real, told through a fictional story.

 

Rogers has previously published two novels, 29^th Street South and Tides of War. A former Marine himself, he spent 26 years as a firefighter, paramedic, and city emergency manager. After he retired, he became a consultant on weapons of mass destruction. He lives with his family in Florida.

 

The Maine Cottage is a sobering read. And a good story.

 

Some Thursday Readings

 

The singularity of speech – Wilfred M. McClay at New Criterion on the distinction between free speech & free expression.

 

The Backlist: Jonathan Kellerman on Returning to Margaret Millar and Ross Macdonald – Polly Stewart and MacDonald versus Macdonald by Rom Corbett, both at CrimeReads. 

 

Year of the Monarch: Butterfly Dreams – Laura Boggess at Tweetspeak Poetry.