Hurricane Gilbert: A Jamaican Saga

By Desmond Lloyd Levene

Hurricane Gilbert: A Jamaican Saga is a story told from the beginning of the island's culture to its current existence. An introduction depicts ships, explorers, the need to occupy, a chronology of conquistadors, natives shocked with reality, the battle for a new hemisphere, slaves scattered in a diaspora, and Michael Manley introducing the politics of change.

Fast-forward to the presence of Melvin and Vanessa Lex that is told through the eyes of their son, Michael. It also reveals an antagonist with a need to possess every dollar he could claim. Rooted with love and romance, Michael and Jessica met in high school one day when it rained. He did his best to conceal a fear of lightning and thunder while she was enthralled with his handsome, chiseled demeanor and instantly found love at first sight--a delight distinct readers will appreciate. She blurted out, "Hey, new boy," and thus, the conversation started between two unstoppable forces.

Moments later Jessica's father is found dead, drifting in his fisherman's dinghy. Slowly, silently, the reader is exposed to a gutless profile of an antagonist gone loose.

Michael is sent off to England to pursue a career path designed by his father. He returned in midsemesters and somberly laid to rest his mother and father. The loss of both parents sent psychological shockwaves into Michael's being, transforming him into a journey; as time progresses, what seemed like a freak accident gradually unfolds as the murder plot that it is.

The boy returns from his studies with a bride on his arms, shattering the bond of love in devoted Jessica--a love which directed her not to relinquish. She is forced to make statements like, "I am a twenty-five-year-old virgin in love with a boy I met one day when it rained."

Hours earlier, she watched as he became married to another.

In only a moment, Michael and his new wife are ambushed by the antagonist whose intent to cover his tracks is laced with blood.

A background of Jamaican realities serves as stocking stuffers or a plate of ackee and salt fish as we follow our protagonist through life and death and love situations. At one point, it is climaxing the very moment Hurricane Gilbert creeps across the island to a final resolution as the antagonist is revealed.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Feb 16, 2022
• ISBN: 9781098097011