"It is Lucien's voice, bright and upbeat, in an enchanting mix of English, French and Creole, which really makes the novel. "Harris builds a lush sense of place, and the pace and tension of a rip-roaring adventure here, with derring-do and double-crossing and a looming sense of threat and dread from the start… But what is most striking is the irrepressible voice of Lucien ― whose highly original multilingual turns of phrase bring a spark and tingle to the telling of his tale ― and the fractious but profound relationship he has with the desperate, damaged Emile." The risk of her earlier restraint has paid off and the brief, harrowing scenes towards the novel's climax have an extra power because of it." ".It is in Grenada that Harris makes the brutal reality of slavery utterly plain. Through the eyes of young Lucien, we witness the cruelties of slavery, the heroism of his brother Emile―and are powerfully reminded that the past is, in many ways, still with us." "With a richness of historical detail, wry wit, and subtle characterization reminiscent of Hilary Mantel, Harris bridges the distance of centuries, to the slave plantations of eighteenth century Grenada. What a stunning writer Jane Harris is, mastering an extremely harrowing and complex subject and making it into art." "A vivid, perfectly paced tale of slavery and freedom, innocence and experience, love and despair, Sugar Money is told in an unforgettably beautiful language.
Recounted by Lucien, the younger brother, this story of courage, disaster, and love, is a testament to the tenacity of the human spirit under the crush of unspeakable cruelty. Despite the fact that Grenada is now under British rule, and effectively enemy territory, the monks devise an absurdly ambitious plan: they send Emile and Lucien to the island to convince the monks’ former slaves to flee British brutality and escape with them.īased on a historical rebellion, award-winning writer Jane Harris peoples her daring novel with unforgettable characters.
Seven years earlier - after a series of scandals - they were ousted from Grenada by the French authorities, and had to leave their slaves behind.
The monks run hospitals in the islands and fund their ventures through farming cane sugar and distilling rum. Set in 1765 on the Caribbean islands of Grenada and Martinique, Sugar Money opens as two enslaved brothers - Emile and Lucien - are sent on an impossible mission forced upon them by their masters, a band of mendicant French monks.
***SHORTLISTED FOR THE WALTER SCOTT PRIZE FOR HISTORICAL FICTION and THE WILBUR SMITH ADVENTURE WRITING PRIZE***
0 kommentar(er)
