I received this one for my birthday and finished it on our trip to Pittsburgh for Nick's wedding. It's a sympathetic tale about a clan of MacDonald's living in Cape Breton, their extended relations (blood is thicker than water), and the tragedies and triumphs that come their way. The principal character, Alexander MacDonald, relates his childhood in Cape Breton and adolescence working in a northen Ontario uranium mine. His relationships with his siblings and grandparents are depicted beautifully and the harsh landscapes set the tone. All the way through this I just wanted to hop on a train to Nova Scotia. This is the first McLeod novel I've read and I look forward to reading more.