Aficionados of Hawaiian history and those who lust for battle will enjoy this hero’s tale.
This novel presents the trials and derring-do of a warrior, set against the backdrop of the most tumultuous time in the history of Hawaii, the end of the 18th century.
Readers meet Kalani Tana when marauders steal into his compound in Kahului on the island of Maui in the early hours, set fire to the buildings, and slaughter those who try to escape the flames. Kalani’s pregnant wife, Nani, burns to death. Who was behind this? Kalani vows revenge. He travels to Hawaii, the leader Kamehameha’s home island. Eventually, Kalani is enlisted to spy for Kamehameha, assessing the strength of his enemies’ forces. Enter Capt. George Vancouver, who is trying to broker a peace among the warring factions of what was then called the Sandwich Islands. Kalani, who is bilingual, becomes very important in the negotiations. A deal is struck: The islands will be under British protection, but peace must be maintained. This does not go well. Rival kings plot against Kamehameha, and alliances are extremely fluid. And through all of this, Kalani is still trying to get to the bottom of his wife’s murder. After much brutal warfare, Kamehameha is triumphant, and Kalani plots his retribution. An epilogue takes readers up to the final unification—thanks to Kamehameha—of the islands that people know today as Hawaii. Fernandez is a competent writer. That it is a dizzying challenge to follow the tale, considering all of the names that will be unfamiliar to most readers, is hardly his fault. (The list of important characters is quite helpful.) This is literally a bloody book that is also historically true, offering rich details. The author has to keep the protagonist alive, of course, so Kalani comports himself in combat like a superhero (with his faithful sidekick, Moki). In this engrossing story, Kalani is an appealing figure who is against human sacrifice and supports the decent treatment of the powerless, attitudes that will later be accepted in principles like the Law of the Splintered Paddle.
Aficionados of Hawaiian history and those who lust for battle will enjoy this hero’s tale. (maps, sketches, glossary, bibliography)Pub Date: April 23, 2020
ISBN: 978-0-9990326-9-5
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Bowker
Review Posted Online: June 6, 2021
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
An affecting portrait of a prickly woman.
A lifetime’s worth of letters combine to portray a singular character.
Sybil Van Antwerp, a cantankerous but exceedingly well-mannered septuagenarian, is the titular correspondent in Evans’ debut novel. Sybil has retired from a beloved job as chief clerk to a judge with whom she had previously been in private legal practice. She is the divorced mother of two living adult children and one who died when he was 8. She is a reader of novels, a gardener, and a keen observer of human nature. But the most distinguishing thing about Sybil is her lifelong practice of letter writing. As advancing vision problems threaten Sybil’s carefully constructed way of life—in which letters take the place of personal contact and engagement—she must reckon with unaddressed issues from her past that threaten the house of cards (letters, really) she has built around herself. Sybil’s relationships are gradually revealed in the series of letters sent to and received from, among others, her brother, sister-in-law, children, former work associates, and, intriguingly, literary icons including Joan Didion and Larry McMurtry. Perhaps most affecting is the series of missives Sybil writes but never mails to a shadowy figure from her past. Thoughtful musings on the value and immortal quality of letters and the written word populate one of Sybil’s notes to a young correspondent while other messages are laugh-out-loud funny, tinged with her characteristic blunt tartness. Evans has created a brusque and quirky yet endearing main character with no shortage of opinions and advice for others but who fails to excavate the knotty difficulties of her own life. As Sybil grows into a delayed self-awareness, her letters serve as a chronicle of fitful growth.
An affecting portrait of a prickly woman.Pub Date: May 6, 2025
ISBN: 9780593798430
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Crown
Review Posted Online: Feb. 15, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2025
SEEN & HEARD
A pleasant if not entirely convincing tribute to the power of art.
A French art historian’s English-language fiction debut combines the story of a loving relationship between a grandfather and granddaughter with an enlightening discussion of art.
One day, when 10-year-old Mona removes the necklace given to her by her now-dead grandmother, she experiences a frightening, hour-long bout of blindness. Her parents take her to the doctor, who gives her a variety of tests and also advises that she see a psychiatrist. Her grandfather Henry tells her parents that he will take care of that assignment, but instead, he takes Mona on weekly visits to either the Louvre, the Musée d’Orsay, or the Centre Pompidou, where each week they study a single work of art, gazing at it deeply and then discussing its impact and history and the biography of its maker. For the reader’s benefit, Schlesser also describes each of the works in scrupulous detail. As the year goes on, Mona faces the usual challenges of elementary school life and the experiences of being an only child, and slowly begins to understand the causes of her temporary blindness. Primarily an amble through a few dozen of Schlesser’s favorite works of art—some well known and others less so, from Botticelli and da Vinci through Basquiat and Bourgeois—the novel would probably benefit from being read at a leisurely pace. While the dialogue between Henry and the preternaturally patient and precocious Mona sometimes strains credulity, readers who don’t have easy access to the museums of Paris may enjoy this vicarious trip in the company of a guide who focuses equally on that which can be seen and the context that can’t be. Come for the novel, stay for the introductory art history course.
A pleasant if not entirely convincing tribute to the power of art.Pub Date: Aug. 26, 2025
ISBN: 9798889661115
Page Count: 432
Publisher: Europa Editions
Review Posted Online: June 7, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2025
SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
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