Burning Ground

By Pearl Luke

A finalist for the Chapters/Robertson Davies First Novel Award, Burning Ground has established Pearl Luke as a fresh, original voice and a writer to be watched. Burning Ground is the story of Percy, a... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0002255049
• ISBN13: 9780002255042
• Release Date: January 2000
• Publisher: Harper Flamingo
• Length: 249 Pages
• Weight: 0.80 lbs.

Customer Reviews

Where there's smoke

Working in a fire tower deep in the Canadian forest, Percy Turner uses the isolation as a wall against people, and uses the time for reflection on her past and future. She has a strained relationship with her parents, burdened by family secrets, and her childhood friend & longtime lover Marlea can't seem to choose whether to be with Percy or with her current boyfriend (not that Percy has had a stellar record keeping faithful to Marlea either). Through an internet exchange with a fellow fire tower worker, Percy slowly begins piecing her life back together. Pearl Luke's compelling story is sprinkled with fascinating facts about fires that make this tale so unique. She eloquently shows us that desire and attraction aren't always as clear cut as we like to think.

Passions just below ground level, from a bird's eye view!

I adored this book, which I grabbed, I admit, from cover and brief write-up alone. The notion of fire, and burning, tied up with the omnipresent Canadian Wilderness and Weather, becomes a moving portrait of passions in the life of the heroine, Percy Turner. The novel explores the isolation of a fire-watch tower in the wilderness, with only a hastily begun e-mail romance, and semi-regular supply drop-offs to break up the isolation. Percy travels in her minds eye, through her past, including her tempestuous relationship with a woman who still holds much of her heart, and her current budding relationship with a fellow fire tower watcher, a man who seems to spark new emotions within her. Free will, erotic passions, losses and the notions of relationship detente are just some of the themes explored in this novel. The imagery sears. Moving through the past, the present, and Percy's emotional potential future with an extreme grace, Pearl Luke's passions seem to smoulder on the pages, imagery tight with some of the most vivid prose I've ever read. I will definitely be looking out for her in the future, and happily reccommend this to anyone looking for a contemporary story that borders on the erotic while remaining truly expressive and character-driven. Even the conclusion of the story kept me gripped, and I put the book down at its completion with a real sense of fulfillment. 'Nathan

More than I expected

I picked this novel off the shelves having never heard the name. As I was reading this book I could almost feel the passion that Pearl Luke put into her writing. This book is so honest about life and tells it like it is. Excellent novel. My Favorite. The words are almost haunting and I can not wait to see if Pearl Luke writes another book. This is a Must Read. I gave this book to a friend of mine to read and she read it in one day and we have been ranting about it ever since. Excellent.