Description
Book SynopsisIt’s spring, 1963 in the “Nickel Capital of the World.” Nineteen-year-old Jake McCool is about to undergo a rite of passage—his first shift underground in a hard rock mine. But the Cold War is at its height, and Jake is also about to become a reluctant participant in a bitter inter-union battle fuelled by the global struggle between two ideologies in the wake of the Second World War.
So is his girlfriend, Jo Ann Winters. Together the couple will be swept up in a web of intrigue; at its centre is a terrible secret that will haunt their relationship for the rest of their lives, as their hometown becomes not only one of the world’s greatest hard rock mining centres, but also the epicenter of the Cold War in North America.
In this fast-paced novel set against the little-known historical backdrop of a true-life battle that included vicious beatings, riots and worse, Lowe posits a provocative premise: that the US government sponsored a ruthless covert operation to destabilize a strategic community in the heartland of its closest ally: Canada.
Trade Review. . . a compelling story of political power, love and hatred all rolled into a gritty, hardhitting novel of the Nickel Range." —David A. Patterson, hard rock miner, former president Local 6500, USWA
"If part of a writer’s task is to take us places where we would never go, Mick Lowe does so magnificently in
The Raids… Lowe knows [his subject] intimately from his days as a fearless reporter: in
The Raids, he transforms that knowledge into unforgettable fiction." —Jack Todd, author,
The Taste of Metal and
Sun Going Down"The Raids is a fascinating excursion into unexplored realms in the Canadian past.... Mick Lowe weave an intriguing tale based on intense political passions, memorable characters and dramatic conflicts. From the depths of the nickel mines to the fierce union hall confrontations to the beer-fueled conspiracies hatched in Sudbury's raucous bars, Lowe guides us through a tangled story that never fails to entertain. Lowe leaves the reader convinced that was is presented as fiction fits closely historical fact." —Larry Hannant, Adjunct Associate Professor, University of Victoria, History Instructor, Camosun College
