Cross Currents-John Shors

Cross Currents
John Shors
NAL, Sep 6 2011, $15.00
ISBN: 9780451234605

In 2004 at Ko Phi Phi Island, Thailand is a major stop for tourists from all parts of the globe. Married locals Lek and Sarai raise their seven month old baby Achata as well as their older children while also running a failing resort since the larger firms have discovered the beauty of the islands. Feeling desperate they agree to give room and board to Patch the visiting American in exchange for his help at the resort.

Patch’s brother Ryan and his girlfriend Brooke arrive from the States. Lek is shocked to learn Patch is a fugitive and his presence in their lives places his family in jeopardy. Adding to the confusion is the behavior of Brooke who since their arrival begins to doubt she loves Ryan as she is attracted to Patch. Then without warning two monstrous waves hit the island from both ends before converging in the middle.

Based on the real killing event that hit this island and many other locations, Cross Currents is an exhilarating thriller with an underlying theme to never forget any tragedy but especially one of this mind boggling magnitude. The story line is character driven (by the two extended families) as the audience sees the difference between the Thais from the island and from the mainland cities like Bangkok, and the visitors. All that changes when the tsunami is an equal opportunity killer ignoring ethnicity, religion and culture when it comes to death; those still alive in order to survive the ordeal need to trust and rely on one another or die. This is a great look at the killer tsunami that left behind over seventy times the deaths of the 9/11 tragedy as 230,000 plus died.

Harriet Klausner