Helpful Score: 2
Anna Jensen is subtly kidnapped by Nicholas Gaspard to teach Indian children he has rescued from the hands of those who would mistreat them. Unbeknownst to her, her employer is dead, and Nicholas is his son. Sparks fly when Anna realizes what he's done and tries to escape. Being raised with preconceived ideas about Indians, Anna believes that they are ignorant and savage. To Nicholas, Anna reminds him of the white woman he loved, a woman who scorned him because of his half-Indian blood. But as time passes, Anna comes to love these abused and orphaned children, and Nicholas as well. But Nicholas's half-brother Marcus and his father-in-law, who have been tracking the mysterious savior of the Indian children, are closing in fast. I liked the fact that this book addressed the prejudices Whites harbored towards America's first inhabitants. Secrets of a Midnight Moon was fast-paced and packed with humor and sensuality. It was funny when Anna was struggling with Nicholas because she thought he was going to kill her, when all he wanted to do was give her a bath because she threw the chamber pot at him, only to have it backfire on her. As she's clutching onto him while they're in the lake, she cries "Why are you doing this to me?" and he simply replies, "Because you stink."
This was such an uninspired read that I was unable to recall anything about the book 6 weeks after I'd finished it. I had to reread it to be able to write a summary and review.
Half-Indian Nicholas Gaspard pulls a slick trick of kidnapping new schoolmarm Anna Jenson; he needs her to teach Indian children in his hide-away school. These children have been spirited away from situations in which they were virtual slaves to whites. However, Anna was hired to teach the white children in a nearby town.
As a product of her environment, Anna thinks Indians were ignorant savages. As she works with the Indian children, she realizes they are just like other children, except for their haunted looks. The person who keeps Anna most off-kilter is Nicholas; one time he seems to like her and seconds later he is cutting and rude. Nicholas is still troubled by the white woman he loved who rejected him because of his mixed ancestry.
Nicholas' half-brother, Marcus (not of mixed blood), is still looking for the teacher who disappeared into thin air. He is aided by his father-in-law; they are also searching for the person who steals Indian children from white homes.
I liked the plot and the unique way of addressing the abuse of Indians by whites. However, the story did not emotionally grab me; it seemed to be a distant story about not very interesting lead characters. Rereading the book did not make it any more emotionally engaging than the first time.
Novels
Secrets of a Midnight Moon (1991)
Heat of a Savage Moon (1993)
Forbidden Moon (1994)
Half-Indian Nicholas Gaspard pulls a slick trick of kidnapping new schoolmarm Anna Jenson; he needs her to teach Indian children in his hide-away school. These children have been spirited away from situations in which they were virtual slaves to whites. However, Anna was hired to teach the white children in a nearby town.
As a product of her environment, Anna thinks Indians were ignorant savages. As she works with the Indian children, she realizes they are just like other children, except for their haunted looks. The person who keeps Anna most off-kilter is Nicholas; one time he seems to like her and seconds later he is cutting and rude. Nicholas is still troubled by the white woman he loved who rejected him because of his mixed ancestry.
Nicholas' half-brother, Marcus (not of mixed blood), is still looking for the teacher who disappeared into thin air. He is aided by his father-in-law; they are also searching for the person who steals Indian children from white homes.
I liked the plot and the unique way of addressing the abuse of Indians by whites. However, the story did not emotionally grab me; it seemed to be a distant story about not very interesting lead characters. Rereading the book did not make it any more emotionally engaging than the first time.
Novels
Secrets of a Midnight Moon (1991)
Heat of a Savage Moon (1993)
Forbidden Moon (1994)
