Authors: Paul Butler
TITANIC ASHES
“
Titanic Ashes
is a fast read filled with elegant expression and surprising emotion. Butler makes it easy to see inside the turmoil both sides felt when split second decisions made the difference between life or death. With surprising conclusions for all, this gem of a novel is sure to please those looking to expand on what came after.”
â
Historical Novels Review
“
Titanic Ashes
paints an interesting and seemingly accurate picture of Ismay and provides insight into a troubled man.”
â
Edwards Book Club
“Butler uses well-documented evidence on which to build this story, and he creates a finely-detailed psychological portrait. Not just of a man, but that of his family
â
and of the desperate self-delusion of which we are all capable in the face of unattractive truth. Add into the mix a climactic confrontation with another survivor of the
Titanic
, whose personal circumstances contrast sharply with those of Ismay, and Butler's novel becomes quite suspenseful as well as absorbing.”
â
The Western Star
“Butler covers a lot of ground in a short space, and the flashbacks are vivid and well executed.”
â
Quill & Quire
“
Titanic Ashes
resets the immense and famous tragedy on an intimate scale, interlaced with family loyalties and individual memories.”
â
The Telegram
“Butler skilfully shows us the characters and their connections. By drawing the barest lines to delineate then, he lets us fill in the colours and shading of the relationships.”
â
The
Northeast Avalon Times
“Paul Butler's prose is like Granny's knitting, tightly stitched; its tension perfect.”
â
The Charter
CUPIDS
“A tale of both danger and intrigue . . . and an interesting read to boot.”
â
The Compass
“Butler does a good job of bringing out that âunstated drama' in
Cupids
, the drama unfolding in the first person voices of various characters
â
most notably John Guy and Bartholomew. Butler provides enough detail to give you a sense of life in the 1600s, but not so much that it weighs down the characters and the story they are telling. Another of his strengths as a writer is an ability to quickly create a picture of a character, one that stays with you.”
â
The
Chronicle Herald
“Paul Butler's novel
Cupids
has brilliant insight to the beginning of what was once known as Cupers Cove and John Guy's adventures.”
â
Current Magazine
“Reminds me of prose that might have been penned by my favourite dead English author, Thomas Hardy.”
â
T
he
S
outhern Gazette
“A rich story filled with interesting characters and unpredictable plot twists.”
â
Downhome
“Butler provides solid descriptions of both the coast of Newfoundland and Bristol, England; where he excels is in his depictions of the human psyche: the servant who rebels against her station, the aunt who never forgets past wrongs, the willful daughter of a rich man. He has created memorable characters who could all easily be historical figures rather than imaginative figments.”
â
Historical Novels Review
1892
“
1892
combines both lyrical writing and telling detail. It is a novel written by a sure and confident writer in his prime.”
â
The Chronicle Herald
“[
1892
] is a page turner that will be enjoyed as romance, historical fiction and a chilling gothic tale.”
â
Atlantic Books Today
“The unanswered questions that will nag historians forever (like âWho started the fire?') are answered amid the drama of a love story caught in tragic circumstances, making for a rich blend of fact and fantasy.”
â
D
ownhome
“[Paul Butler's] writing is lyrical and compelling.”
â
The Sudbury Star
“Beautifully written . . .”
â
Book-A-Rama
“Butler's account of the fire's genesis is dramatic, but his descriptions of how people find themselves in old St. John's are persuasive and compelling.”
â
Resource Links
“Butler is adept at using historical events in his compelling story about the developing intimacy of two lower-class young people.”
â
Newfoundland and Labrador Studies
“
1892
is a novel as intriguing as it is lyrical. Paul Butler is a great writer and a gifted storyteller.”
â
Donna Morrissey, Author of
S
ylvanus Now
ST. JOHN'S: CITY OF FIRE
“It's no easy task to make a long ago emergency interesting to a modern reader, but Butler brings his novelists skill to the newspaper reports, eyewitness accounts, and archival information, creating vivid images of the city and her inhabitants.”
â
Atlantic Books Today
“Paul Butler brings a level of detail possible only through in-depth historical research.”
â
Downhome
NAGEIRA
“Butler's prose is smooth and clean; the story moves forward vigorously, with patches of poetry.”
â
The Globe and Mail
“Butler keeps the story grounded, brisk and inviting.”
â
T
he Telegram
“A tour de force of the imagination . . .”
â
C
anadian Book Review Annual
“[A] brilliant exploration of one of Newfoundland's central mythological figures set within highly-crafted, well-written parallel stories that hinge on twists of fate and an intricate plot structure.”
â
A
tlantic Books Today
“The novel is poetic, compelling and surprisingly fluid.”
â
Product of Newfoundland website
EASTON'S GOLD
“A compelling novel . . .”
â
The Globe and Mail
“
Easton's Gold
and its predecessor [
Easton
] are about as different as it's possible for two novels featuring the same character to be. They're both excellent, but in very different ways.”
â
The
Chronicle Herald
“Butler is an invigorating writer, keeping the reader in suspense, but moving the story along at an exhilarating pace. Furthermore, he provides a substantial background to his story, and is meticulous in his re-creation of time and place, especially of shipboard space.”
â
C
anadian Book Review Annual
EASTON
“The story is fast-paced, action-packed, and replete with horrific details, frequent tests of will, a somewhat improbable love match, and a satisfying denouement.”
â
Canadian Book Review Annual
“It is exceptionally well-written, with the author's proseâand especially the dialogueâflowing in an easy, natural manner.”
â
The Telegram
“Taking the reader from England to Newfoundland to the Caribbean, this tale of politics, power and piracy provides an adventurous perspective on a fascinating time in our history.”
â
C
urrent
Magazine
“The story is fast-paced and captivating.”
â
D
ownhome
“Nicely detailed and imagined.”
â
T
he Telegram
“Striking phrasings.”
â
T
he Independent
STOKER'S SHADOW
“Butler's prose style is often lush; he describes post-Victorian London quite eloquently . . .”
â
The Globe and Mail
“
Stoker's Shadow
is a stunning achievement that will doubtless gather to itself all praise.”
â
Joanne Soper-Cooke,
Author of
A Cold-Blooded Scoundrel
“Though the vampires in Bram Stoker's novel
Dracula
cast no shadows, the author and the book certainly do. In
Stoker's Shadow
, Paul Butler explores this phenomenon in a unique blending of biography and dreamscape.”
â
Dr. Elizabeth Miller, Author of
Dracula: Sense and Nonsense
and
A Dracula Handbook
“
Stoker's Shadow
is an interesting read because of its unique approach and its historical insights.”
â
T
he Newfoundland Herald
The
Good
Doctor
_______________________________
Paul Butler
P
ennywell Books
St. John's
B
y Paul Butler
Titanic Ashes
Cupids
1892
City of Fire
NaGeira
Rogues and Heroes
Easton's Gold
Easton
Stoker's Shadow
Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication
Butler, Paul, 1964-, author
The good doctor / Paul Butler.
Issued in print and electronic formats.
ISBN 978-1-77117-361-2 (pbk.).--ISBN 978-1-77117-362-9 (epub).--
ISBN 978-1-77117-363-6 (kindle).--ISBN 978-1-77117-364-3 (pdf)
1. Grenfell, Wilfred Thomason, Sir, 1865-1940--Fiction.
I. Title.
PS8553.U735G66 2014 C813'.6 C2014-903429-6 C2014-903430-X
ââââââââââââââââââââââââââââââââ ââââââââââââââââ
© 2014 by Paul Butler
All rights reserved.
No part of the work covered by the copyright hereon may be reproduced or used in any form or by any meansâgraphic, electronic or mechanicalâwithout the written permission of the publisher. Any request for photocopying, recording, taping, or information storage and retrieval systems of any part of this book shall be directed to Access Copyright, The Canadian Copyright Licensing Agency, 1 Yonge Street, Suite 800, Toronto, ON M5E 1E5. This applies to classroom use as well.
Printed in Canada
Cover Design by Graham Blair
Flanker Press Ltd.
PO Box 2522, Station C
St. John's, NL
Canada
Telephone: (709) 739-4477
Fax: (709) 739-4420
Toll-free: 1-866-739-4420
Pennywell Books is an imprint of Flanker Press.
9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
We acknowledge the financial support of the Government of Canada through the Canada Book Fund (CBF) for our publishing activities, and the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, Department of Tourism, Culture and Recreation. We acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts, which last year invested $157 million to bring the arts to Canadians throughout the country.
Nous remercions le Conseil des arts du Canada de son soutien. L'an dernier, le Conseil a investi 157 millions de dollars pour mettre de l'art dans la vie des Canadiennes et des Canadiens de tout le pays.