Bright and Distant Shores opens and closes in Chicago and sure to please any lover of that city. It is history, love and adventure all rolled up in to on lovely package that will not disappoint.
The story opens in the summer of 1897 at the opening of Chicago First Equitable, the world's tallest skyscraper at 28-stories. The owner of this skyscraper, Hale Gray would like to have a unique "show" on the rooftop in order to attract people to the building in order to sell more insurance policies. The driving force behind this vision is a fierce competition with another local collector and magnate, Marshall Field.
Hale enlists a young adventurer, Owen Graves, to procure him artifacts as well as "savages" for his show. This requires Owen to sail on a boat through the South Pacific, leaving Adelaide, his fiance behind, giving him some anxiety since he has already delayed their marriage for years. Owen also knows that, Adelaide, would not approve of the idea of bringing savages to Chicago after events that occurred during the 1893 World's Colombian Expedition, but the monetary reward is too great for Owen to turn this opportunity down, seeing it as his chance to provide a solid footing with Adelaide, who grew up privileged.
Thus starts the adventure through the South Pacific, where there are vivid descriptions of the islands in which they travel and the indigenous they encounter. We learn about "faux-pa's" crew members make with the indigenous tribes, we get a feel for their personalities and how they interact with one another. Through the journey, Owen finds himself babysitting Jethro, Hale Gray's son, who has been sent on the trip to find himself and collect specimens. Jethro causes quite a few problems on the trip and descents into madness by the trips completion.
Throughout the South Seas adventure, Owen and Adelaide manage to stay in contact. Even though the voyage is amazing, I always felt like I wanted Owen to go back to Adelaide. I just wanted Owen to be done with this voyage and find a happy life with Adelaide, which, of course, is the same thing Adelaide desires.
This is a fabulous book with wonderful imagery and an eloquent writing style. A must read!
The story opens in the summer of 1897 at the opening of Chicago First Equitable, the world's tallest skyscraper at 28-stories. The owner of this skyscraper, Hale Gray would like to have a unique "show" on the rooftop in order to attract people to the building in order to sell more insurance policies. The driving force behind this vision is a fierce competition with another local collector and magnate, Marshall Field.
Hale enlists a young adventurer, Owen Graves, to procure him artifacts as well as "savages" for his show. This requires Owen to sail on a boat through the South Pacific, leaving Adelaide, his fiance behind, giving him some anxiety since he has already delayed their marriage for years. Owen also knows that, Adelaide, would not approve of the idea of bringing savages to Chicago after events that occurred during the 1893 World's Colombian Expedition, but the monetary reward is too great for Owen to turn this opportunity down, seeing it as his chance to provide a solid footing with Adelaide, who grew up privileged.
Thus starts the adventure through the South Pacific, where there are vivid descriptions of the islands in which they travel and the indigenous they encounter. We learn about "faux-pa's" crew members make with the indigenous tribes, we get a feel for their personalities and how they interact with one another. Through the journey, Owen finds himself babysitting Jethro, Hale Gray's son, who has been sent on the trip to find himself and collect specimens. Jethro causes quite a few problems on the trip and descents into madness by the trips completion.
Throughout the South Seas adventure, Owen and Adelaide manage to stay in contact. Even though the voyage is amazing, I always felt like I wanted Owen to go back to Adelaide. I just wanted Owen to be done with this voyage and find a happy life with Adelaide, which, of course, is the same thing Adelaide desires.
This is a fabulous book with wonderful imagery and an eloquent writing style. A must read!
