KAREN CHARLTON
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Welcome to the official website of historical novelist KAREN CHARLTON

Book Review: Selkie Dreams

22/8/2012

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SELKIE DREAMS - Kristin Gleeson

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There is nothing more wonderful on a sunny British afternoon, than relaxing in the back garden with an excellent book. And ‘Selkie Dreams’ is just that: an excellent book.

This beautifully written novel is the love story of Máire, an Irish girl who travels to Alaska to escape an unwanted marriage and the claustrophobic atmosphere of Protestant Belfast.  Here she meets Natsilane, an enigmatic native man who has spurned his American education and the attempts of the missionaries to ‘civilise’ him, and returned to the traditions of his people. From the moment Máire is carried ashore to her new home by Natsilane, the narrative – and the passion – soars to lyrical heights: ‘Just before the boat could go no further, a man from the group moved towards them, parting the fish that thronged the water.’

The quiet, but determined, young girl from Belfast becomes engrossed in the rhythm, sights, music and stories of the Tlingit tribes and the beautiful landscape and wildlife that surround her.  The reader is carried along with her in her journey of discovery, desperately hoping that somehow, despite their cultural and religious differences, Máire and her sensual lover will find happiness.

‘The seals appeared again at the inlet, attracted by the fish that gathered in the weir.  Máire was glad they’d returned and went to feed them to lure them from the weir.  They came to her begging for the fish she dangled in her hand…She talked then sang and then patted their heads.  She gave each one a secret name…..

Natsilane caught her at it once, but only shook his head and walked away. She was certain she saw a shadow of a smile.


In the days that followed Máire found a small pile of fish by her basket, ready for the seals.’

Kristin Gleeson leaves us with a memorable and poignant love story and a vision of a wonderful culture, unique in my experience of literature.


Selkie Dreams on amazon.co.uk 


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Book Review: Sarah Thornhill

19/8/2012

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SARAH THORNHILL - Kate Grenville

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I have been a huge fan of Kate Grenville’s The Secret River for years, and I was really looking forward to reading more about the Thornhill family.  However, I have to confess that that I was very disappointed with Sarah Thornhill.

In my opinion, the better story would have been that of the adopted Maori granddaughter who was brought to the Thornhill household. Yet, Rachel is never anything more than a token character in the book and I got the sense that Grenville took the easy way out by focussing on the life of Sarah, instead. 

The book starts well enough and Grenville’s skill as a writer shines through.   I quickly became enthralled by the continuing struggle of the early settlers to carve out their lives in the harsh but stunningly beautiful, Australian outback. 

Sarah starts as a strong and fascinating character (albeit illiterate) with a distinctive voice of her own:

‘They called us the Colony of New South Wales.  I never liked that.  We wasn’t new anything.  We was ourselves.’

In her mid-teens, Sarah falls passionately in love with a Jack Langland, the mixed race son of a neighbour.  She enjoys a wonderful sexual relationship with him under the nose of her family, who seem to have an ambivalent (and not wholly convincing) attitude to the blacks.  They welcome Jack into their house and adopt the mixed race daughter of their dead son, but refuse to sanction the inter-racial marriage of the young lovers, who are torn apart.

Sadly, this is where the book began to go downhill for me.  Sarah and Jack are not Cathy and Heathcliff, or Romeo and Juliet; I felt they gave up the fight for each other very quickly.  

It then became apparent that this novel sacrifices realistic character development in order to concentrate on the wider issue of the brutality and cruelty of the white settlers towards the indigenous black populations of New Zealand and Australia.  Yes, this is a story which needs telling.  Grenville cleverly accomplished this in her previous book, The Secret River, which shows the cruelty but wonderful fallible humanity of a memorable cast of characters at the same time - but she doesn't manage this in Sarah Thornhill. 

Unfortunately, this novel degenerates into a book dominated by Sarah’s need to atone for the sins of her father.  This is not a theme I am ever comfortable with.  Realistic character development and plot were sacrificed for this wider political message to the Australian public.  The ending was particularly disappointing and very frustrating. 



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'Catching the Eagle': FREE on Kindle

15/8/2012

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FREE for two days only!

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From the morning of Friday, 17th August until the evening of 
Saturday 18th, 
Catching the Eagle will be available for a FREE kindle download from amazon. 

Simply click on the links below:



amazon.co.uk


amazon.com

But hurry, this offer ends on Saturday, 18th August!



Spread the word!

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'Seeking Our Eagle' FREE on kindle

11/8/2012

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FREE kindle download! 

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 11th, August 2012.

For one day only, download the eBook of  


'Seeking Our Eagle' 


from amazon.
Simply click on the link below:


'Seeking Our Eagle' on kindle 


But hurry, this offer starts and ends on Saturday, 11th August!

Spread the word!

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'Seeking Our Eagle' Published

9/8/2012

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New Book Published!

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I am delighted to announce that my latest book, Seeking Our Eagle, is now available to buy in paperback and eBook format.
 
Seeking Our Eagle is the second book I have written about Jamie Charlton and the Kirkley Hall robbery.  This time it is the story behind the story.  In Seeking Our Eagle, I explain how we uncovered a Regency convict in our family tree, and then turned his sorry tale of injustice into a historical novel.  

After the book launch of Catching the Eagle in 2011, the interest in the background to the novel took me by surprise.  Newspapers, radio, magazines and even a TV station all wanted to know how Chris and I had discovered our unusual skeleton in the closet.   Genealogy groups, libraries and local historical societies invited me to appear as a guest speaker at their events.  I soon realised that there might also be a wider audience for this extraordinary story and decided to write a complimentary factual book, called Seeking Our Eagle, which mapped our genealogical experience, the social history of our Charlton ancestors and my creative journey into fiction.

I like to think of Seeking the Eagle as a semi-autobiographical romp through the centuries.  It explains how we chased Bad Granddad Jamie (four times removed) through the dusty records and the even dustier Northumberland lanes. It also shows how we learned about the devastating impact of World War One on our ancestors; the role they played in the Railway Boom of the Victorian era and how our family was torn apart by dissension in the late eighteenth century.  The Charltons were ordinary people but many of them were caught up in extraordinary events.

I warmly invite you to join myself and Chris, as I take you back to the beginning and show you how we embarked on our remarkable journey of discovery.  



'Seeking Our Eagle' is available from amazon as a kindle eBook Price: : £3.06. Please use the link below.


'Seeking Our Eagle' on Kindle

* * * * *


Paperback: £8.99


20% savings! Ends Friday, 10 August 2012.

Buy a paperback copy of 'Seeking Our Eagle' from lulu.com @ a 20% discount.
Simply click on the link below and use the code: ASTOUND20 to claim your discount. (Code is case sensitive.)
But hurry, offer ends Friday, 10th August!



'Seeking Our Eagle' in paperback
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