New Zealand: A Novel

New Zealand: A Novel is a sweeping tale of discovery, destiny, and forbidden love in which the old and new worlds collide.Spanning five centuries, this tale begins in the 1300’s when daring Pacific Islanders set sail from Hawaiki, chasing whispers of a bountiful land they believe awaits them far to the south. Those who survive the treacherous voyage discover a place they call Aotearoa – land of the long white cloud. Shrouded in mist, it’s a place of beauty, danger, and intrigue. The last sizeable slice of undiscovered land on Earth.The new arrivals become Maori, forging a rich and complex culture spoiled only by the fierce and bloody intertribal conflicts that spread far and wide as the lust for land, food and influence increases. These herald an age of slavery and cannibalism.Centuries later, Captain James Cook’s bark the Endeavour appears over the horizon. Maoris call the white intruders pakeha. Their arrival heralds a clash of two vastly different ideologies as European civilization collides head on with indigenous culture. As Cook begins his circumnavigation of the new land, he realises he has rediscovered a country Dutch explorer Abel Tasman discovered 127 years earlier. A place called New Zealand.Among the more engaging crewmembers aboard the Endeavour is Nicholas Young, the popular Surgeon’s Assistant whose willingness and thirst for adventure endear him to all. Nicholas soon finds himself caught between duty and desire when he meets Anika, a fiercely independent and captivating Maori princess whose world is about to be upended.As Cook charts the unknown, Nicholas and Anika chart a course of their own – one fraught with peril, passion, and the weight of two civilizations at odds with each other. Their love defies the boundaries of culture and time, blooming in the shadow of misunderstanding, bloodshed, and upheaval.New Zealand: A Novel is a story of passion born in the eye of history’s storm. Adventure, romance, and the resilience of the human spirit converge in this unforgettable journey to the bottom of the known world. Read more