Life moves in cycles and in this cycle I find myself immersed in historical fiction. Not the sort of story that uses (loosely) the manners and mores of an era to bring an extra bit of piquancy to a romance but the type that tries to share with you the lives and times of its cast and inform and enlarge your knowledge of the past. "Real" history, fictionalized, such as this well-researched biography of King Kamehameha and history of the Hawaiian Islands. I can hear the island lilt in the dialogue as the ways and practices of the times before the invasion by the haoles are described. Despite being at a neolithic stage of development (largely, I would imagine, due to lack of available metals), the society was diverse, multi-layered and as nuanced as the iron age James Cook's; a complete and complex civilization. The story itself moves along well despite confusion caused by so many similar musically multisyllabic names (abbreviated for our convenience wherever possible--and quite probably by the people at the time, in the manner of nicknames, despite a certain formality required by court etiquette and very strict laws).
I've been to Hawaii and enjoyed its beauty and became intrigued by its people and history so when I saw this listed in the Netgalley offerings I requested a copy. Many hours later (this is a large, meaty book!) I am feeling enriched by my selection.
