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Zusatztext A sinister! engrossing story Informationen zum Autor Lydia Syson is a Royal Literary Fellow for the Courtauld Institute. She lives in south London with her partner and four children. After an early career as a BBC World Service Radio producer, she turned to writing, often drawing on her family history for inspiration. Read more about Lydia and her books at www.lydiasyson.com or on Twitter: @lydiasyson Klappentext 1873. A desert island. A family of settlers, and a series of shocking events that turn their world upside down. A vulnerable young boy goes missing as the same time as an indentured team of young men arrive on the island to work. The dark history of the island, and the trading in people is brought to the fore as the two cultures clash. The teenage sister of the missing boy, and their charismatic, domineering father must choose her allegiance. Making the wrong choice will have fatal consequences ...Intimate, intense and beautiful. A highly acclaimed novel of possession, power and loss of innocence for fans of Mister Pip and The Poisonwood Bible Zusammenfassung 'An intelligent, beautifully written story about a dysfunctional family in a sinister paradise' The Times Oceania 1879. A family of settlers from New Zealand are the sole inhabitants of a remote volcanic island. For two years they have struggled with the harsh reality of trying to make this unforgiving place a paradise they can call their own. At last, a ship appears. The six Pacific Islanders on board have travelled eight hundred miles across the ocean in search of work and new horizons. Hopes are high for all, until a vulnerable boy vanishes. In their search for the lost child, settlers and newcomers together uncover far more than they were looking for. The island's secrets force them all to question their deepest convictions. Praise for Mr Peacock's Possessions : 'Syson's novel, a modern take on the literary genre known (after Robinson Crusoe) as the robinsonade, is a haunting exploration of Lizzie's disillusion with her father's dreams and their damaging consequences' The Sunday Times 'Syson's novel is richly evocative of a Pacific world in flux, as cultures clash and individuals battle to find their place amid the ensuing confusion . . . a very moving story of fathers and children, of faith and disillusion, and of the dangerous consequences of trying to take possession of people as well as land' BBC History Magazine 'Lushly written , with immaculate historical detail, it worked for me on many levels' Women and Home 'As compelling, mysterious and haunting as the troubled tropical paradise it portrays . . . Syson doesn't just write about the past, she transports us there. A tour de force ' Piers Torday 'A wonderful book full of drama, courage and aspirations . The language is rich and the characters so humanely drawn' Carol Drinkwater 'A thrilling story of love and courage, brutality and hope all told with equal measures of deep humanity, imagination and élan. Lydia Syson has an amazing gift of bringing history alive through richness of language, dramatic pace and fabulous visual imagery. This is better than watching a film!' Anne Sebba 'With its chorus of vivid voices , Lydia Syson's novel reminds us why we consumed The Poisonwood Bible and The Underground Railway so avidly' Michelle Lovric 'What a powerful, rich and fascinating book. Dark historical events are interwoven with the mystery of a missing child on a remote Pacific island in 1879. Highly compelling ' Anna Mazzola ' Swiss Family Robinson meets Lord of the Flies in ...
Summary
1873: An intrepid family of British settlers are determined to make a deserted Pacific island their own. But hope crumbles and what, to them, is a bountiful paradise, quickly turns dark and frightening as the horrific history of the island makes itself known. A vulnerable boy goes missing at the same time as party of indentured young men from a neighbouring island arrive to work. The dark, recent past of the place is brought to the fore as two cultures clash. The young men, the missing boy's teenage sister and their charismatic, domineering father must choose their allegiance. Making the wrong choice will have fatal consequences...
Report
A thrilling story of love and courage , brutality and hope all told with equal measures of deep humanity , i magination and élan . Lydia Syson has an amazing gift of bringing history alive through richness of language, dramatic pace and fabulous visual imagery. This is better than watching a film! Anne Sebba
