Series: Book 2 in the Earthly Joys series
Rating: ****
Tags: Fiction, Historical fiction, Britain, Lang:en
Summary
In the stand-alone sequel to her Earthly Joys, Gregory
follows royal gardener John Tradescant the Younger back and
forth across the Atlantic between colonial Virginia and
war-torn England. When John first travels to Virginia to
collect exotic plants in 1638, his guide is a beautiful young
Indian girl named Suckahanna. After transporting his specimens
to England, he plans to return and marry her, but once at home,
he learns that his father has died, leaving a letter suggesting
that John marry the efficient Hester Pooks. Needing someone to
care for his two children by a previous marriage, as well as
for the Tradescant collection of rare objects and the Ark, the
family's famous garden, John weds Hester. Meanwhile, the
foolish, tyrannical King Charles I is dragging England into a
civil war, and John, as a trusted servant, is pulled
unwillingly into his service. To avoid having to fight for a
cause he does not believe in, John returns to Virginia and
Suckahanna, leaving Hester and his children back in England. In
Virginia he tries to start a plantation, but having no idea how
to live off the land, nears death before he is rescued by the
Powhatan, Suckahanna's people. Once again John must choose
sides in a war, this time between the Powhatan and the English.
John is torn between them, just as he is torn between the two
women in each of those separate realms. This hefty epic
illuminates the conflicts of the 17th century with clear prose
and a believable cast of characters, and will draw in casual
readers and lovers of history alike. (Dec.)
Set in 17th-century England and Virginia, this saga begins
as John Tradescant the Younger, Charles I's gardener, sails to
the New World in search of rarities for his gardens. Not only
does he find exotic plants, but he also glimpses unimagined
freedom. His father's death leads John to a marriage of
convenience in England. Unwilling to fight for Charles I, he
returns to Virginia, where he joins the Powhatan and finds a
wife. But eventually John loses his place in the tribe because
of his inability to kill settlers. Determined to maintain a
commitment to his English family, he goes home to a country
buffeted by civil war. John strives to keep his family safe,
but his gift for survival ultimately rings hollow. In fact,
this novel is tepid compared with its predecessor, Earthly
Joys. Readers who enjoyed that volume will want its sequel, but
others may find it hard to care about a character whose
loyalties shift so readily and so often.
From Publishers Weekly
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.From Library Journal
-Kathy Piehl, Mankato State Univ., MN
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.