"As we cling to our desire . . ." Scenic and situational, ardent and open, Seascape & Other Poems is an inspiring collection that reveals the many shapes of human love. Its intricacies take form in a series of vignettes set in an ever-present and symbolic backdrop of nature. Drawing upon love and loss, these deceptively simple and mostly prose poems voice much more in the undertow, where hope and despair seem to be bound together in conflict. Out of this conflict, McGough fashions a dichotomous and clear language that bears the incalculable weight of nostalgia. Divided into three chapters based solely on setting, Seascape & Other Poems also marks the significance of time throughout. Time writes its own signature on each piece, intrinsic in its linkage to love and more telling when love is lost. What comes of this gulf is a continuous ebb and flow of hope and desire, as expressive as it is sincere.