1. Plot (synopsis)

It´s the year 1941. After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, Australia has declared war on Japan. Hartley, the son of Michael Penrose, a pearling master in Broome (WA), is "adrift in life" because his love affair with Mitsy is blighted by war and racism.

Mitsy is a beautiful Japanese girl and the daughter of Zeke, one of Michael Penrose´s pearl divers. Years before she had lost her father because of Mr Penrose´s fatal decision to sail out though it had been too early in the season. In a cyclone Zeke had drowned and Hartley had been seriously injured.

Now Alice, Hartley´s sister, who has offered her services to her country as a nurse, has apparently been killed by the Japanese while being on service.

Due to the growth of pre-existing suspicion and distrust increased by the anxieties of the war and his personal experiences Hartley feels that his own positive feelings begin to change dangerously. Will Hartley´s love for Mitsy prevail? ...

 

 

 

Garry Disher, The Divine Wind