Down There by the Train

The first thing Levon Hawke does on being paroled from prison is head to his old friend Sweeney's diner. There, Levon learns a suspect history of the island where he has been offered a job at his cousin's bakery. He must start work the next day but having missed the only ferry, he sets out anyway, alone across the frozen lake in failing light. Stumbling ashore he is confronted with a ruined house deep in a dark forest. Here he finds the ethereal red-haired Obdulia Limb, grieving for her mother ten years dead, making poisoned tea and burning the ENCYCLOPAEDIA BRITANNICA to keep herself warm. Will this extraordinary girl be his nemesis, or perhaps even his destiny? DOWN THERE BY THE TRAIN is a witty and wistful gothic romance, brimming with comic misunderstandings and metaphorical brilliance.