Sheldon Birnie, "Down in the Flood" (BookBaby, 2012)

Sheldon Birnie's novel Down in the Flood (BookBaby, 2012) is the story of a man who is rapidly becoming lost in a sea of women, whisky, and bad weather. Set in the Canadian West, the story follows the narrator through a season of torrential rain and personal tribulation. With a colourful cast of characters along for the ride, Down in the Flood is a frank examination of alcoholism, friendship, love, and bad weather.

After adventuring around the Canadian West, our narrator and his best friend, Jack, return to their small hometown on the prairies to regroup and try to shake their addictions. But quickly, the pair fall into familiar patterns. Their personal quests for redemption are complicated by the arrival of two beautiful women - Iris and Rose - and an assorted cast of characters who make giving up the bottle even harder. Compounded by a season of unprecedented bad weather, their struggles soon come to overwhelm them. Will our narrator and Jack make it out with their lives intact, or will they go down in the flood?

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