Wrecker

Author/Guide: Noel O'Reilly

Why a Booktrail?

1810s: There are many things washed up on the beaches in Cornwall…

ISBN: 978-0008274511
Genre: Historical

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What you need to know before your trail

Shipwrecks are part of life in the remote village of Porthmorvoren, Cornwall. And as the sea washes the bodies of the drowned onto the beach, it also brings treasures: barrels of liquor, exotic fruit, the chance to lift a fine pair of boots from a corpse, maybe even a jewel or two.

When, after a fierce storm, Mary Blight rescues a man half-dead from the sea, she ignores the whispers of her neighbours and carries him home to nurse better. Gideon Stone is a Methodist minister from Newlyn, a married man. Touched by Mary’s sacrifice and horrified by the superstitions and pagan beliefs the villagers cling to, Gideon sets out to bring light and salvation to Porthmorvoren by building a chapel on the hill.

But the village has many secrets and not everyone wants to be saved. As Mary and Gideon find themselves increasingly drawn together, jealousy, rumour and suspicion is rife. Gideon has demons of his own to face, and soon Mary’s enemies are plotting against her…

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Travel Guide

Travel BookTrail style to Porthmorvoren, Cornwall with Wreckers

Porthmorvoren is fictional but it is reminiscent of so many places in Cornwall, off the Cornish coast that were renowned places for smuggling and for ships being washed up at sea.

This is a story of the wild and windswept Cornish coast – this area historically has a rich and varied history of ship wrecks , smuggling and local folklore.

There’a strong religious overtone to the story and the time – a man is rescued from the sea who is an evangelical Methodist minister,. He is nursed back to health and he stays in the village to help bring about religious salvation in many ways. This is a remote community with a history of religious fervour and superstitions which date back centuries and they’re embedded in the very soil of these Cornish towns.

This story has a very strong sense of time and place and the landscape is as much a part of the story than any of the characters. In many ways, it is the main character.