Another wonderful tale of the Far East from M.M. Kaye | Trade Wind

Morally confusing as "Pavilions" was not but just as crammed with adventure, politics, exotic locals and people and romance | Trade Wind | M. M. Kaye

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	• Trade Wind M. M. Kaye St Martins Pr, 1981 - 553 pages average customer review:based on 19 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

Outstanding historical romance novel

I added the word "novel" to the title of this review because the book is so much more than the usual historical romance. It's really a coming of age story set in a time (the Victorian era) and place (Zanzibar) when many young women just accepted the roles assigned them -- and their peers' assessment of outsiders -- without question.

Molly Kaye's heroine, Hero Hollis, believes herself to be an enlightened modern woman when she departs Boston for Zanzibar, where she intends to visit her diplomat uncle, marry his handsome son, and help civilize the island. But during the long ocean voyage to the island, her idealistic notions of propriety and morality are totally upended when she encounters Rory Frost, a handsome privateer who plucks her from the sea when she's swept overboard during a storm.

Frost restores her to her reluctantly grateful family (Frost is a social outcast and gratitude comes hard even though he hasn't touched her). But as she settles in and begins to learn about her new home and its varied and colorful inhabitants (including a weak Sultan and a contentious royal family, other diplomats and locals, and her own relatives), Hero comes to realize that people aren't always what they seem; that their agendas aren't always clear; and that you may come to regret judgments made on the basis of incomplete information or context.

Hero's personal journey occurs over a colorful period in the history of exotic land, including not only political upheaval but natural disasters and a plague. Written on an epic scale (I don't disagree with comparisons to Gone with the Wind or Kaye's own The Far Pavilions), this book stays with you long after you've read and re-read it (as I have, several times). It's one of my all-time favorites.

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Another wonderful tale of the Far East from M.M. Kaye

This is the story of Hero Athena Hollis, an extremely independent woman of the 19th century, vehemently opposed to slavery and all of society's injustices and determined to use her wealth to stamp them out. After Hero's father dies, she is invited to join her family in Zanzibar where her uncle is serving as the American Counsel. Hero's family always expected that she would marry her aunt's son by a first marriage, even though she is not sure she's in love with him.

While on voyage to Zanzibar during a huge storm, Hero is washed off the boat deck and presumed dead. However, another ship captained by the infamous slave trader Rory Frost pulls up their rigging out of the sea and finds a half drowned, bruised and battered Hero. Since Hero is such a bruised mess from her ordeal, Rory has no idea what a beauty she is until sometime after she has been returned to her family. To say more of the story than this would be revealing the entire plot, which I don't like to do.

M.M. Kaye's knowledge of the Far East shines through, as it does in all her books. She stays as historically accurate as she can, and pulls no punches when describing the customs of the Island, the slave trade, the cholera epidemic and more. And once again, Kaye is able through her books to remind us that the west and east are two different and completely disparate cultures and will never see eye to eye. One other lesson brought to home in this story is when Hero's eyes are opened to the fact that for all her good intentions, going barging in to another culture you know nothing about and trying to change them "for the better" to the more "civilized culture" is inherently wrong, and one should look to correct what is one own's back yard first before trying to change the world.

This was a wonderful tale and I had a hard time putting it down. Out of print, but readily available at my county library.

*******SPOILERS DISCUSSED****
I see some of the other reviewers were distressed by the rape scene(s) towards the end of the book. While I do not condone rape under any circumstance, one must remember this was 19th century, in a remote island off the east coast of Africa, during a very turbulent time in that island's history. Kaye set the plot well leading up to the rape and Rory's actions, while not fully justified, did fit in with the story line. There were no graphic descriptions; everything was left to the reader's imagination, with no gratuitous sex at all. Rory showed remorse the next day and while those same reviewers felt that the second night was a rape, I did not get that at all. I was surprised at the vehemence of those reviewers who reacted so strongly and I'm glad I reserved judgment and read the book for myself. It's funny how so many of our soap opera heroes began as rapists after attacking the woman who would eventually become his true love and redeemed by Hollywood to become yet another super couple, yet people found this rape to be highly offensive. I don't get it.

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Morally confusing as "Pavilions" was not but just as crammed with adventure, politics, exotic locals and people and romance

I don't think there are very many people who after reading M.M. Kaye's amazing masterpiece The Far Pavilions aren't driven on to read her other historical novels. I certainly could not resist the lure of two new fat books written in Kaye's delicious style. But I have to admit to being both confused and intrigued (and a little repulsed) by "Trade Wind."

"Trade Wind" is the story of Hero Athena Hollis (named after a horse not a goddess) who received a prophecy from a supposed seventh daughter of a seventh son telling her she would go halfway around the world to do her work and meet the one to help her with it, cause of a power of people to be killed and receive harsh words for it and save more and receive no thanks. Naturally, this stayed with her forever and Hero grew up to be somewhat of an insufferable reformer whose life goal was to go to Zanzibar and stop slave trading.

But along the way to the Island (where her cousin in the American consul) Hero is washed overboard only to be rescued by one of Zanzibar's most wanted (by the British, not the actual government of the island) Rory Frost who is suspected of all sorts of no good deeds, none of which have actually been proven. But her short stay with the man challenged Hero's perceptions and her knowledge of the world. And her years on Zanzibar confuse even more what is right and wrong and all the shades of gray in between....

There is a lot that happens in this book that is morally weird. It's not a novel where you can agree with what everyone does, where there is any right side or any just person. Everyone makes mistakes, people break laws deliberately and are tricked into doing it, some behave terribly and blame others while others try to do good and are seen as evil for it.

There is a certain scene in this book that I won't describe but that is the center of the (biggest) moral controversy and slight repulsion I felt reading it. But I would like to state for the record that as the scene is not so much described as alluded to there can be no real way of knowing exactly what happened and therefore I think that "Trade Wind" deserves the benefit of the doubt. I myself, reading this scene, did not come to the conclusion that it was really as bad as others say. Otherwise what happened just couldn't have happened in the end. Kaye doesn't strike me as that kind of writer or Hero as that kind of character. (This will all make sense when you read the book I promise!)

I also highly recommend while reading this you consider the time and place the book takes place in and its probably historical accuracy and try not to pass too much judgment. Or at least continue onto the end

In the end though this is an adventurous, political, exotic and (somehow and surprisingly) romantic novel. Parts are bound to confuse you about certain characters because non of them are perfect but Kaye carries off the story so well that in the end I was not bothered by things that in any other book would have caused me to throw it at the wall. I was up for two night's strait reading this and can't wait to read Shadow of the Moon, Kayeas well as Kaye's mystery novels.

Five stars.

A note to potential readers: I feel the need to warn you that the mass market paperback edition of this book has the smallest print I have ever seen. If you have trouble seeing or reading I recommend you read another edition.

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Excellent...not a "romance novel"

Wow. Please ignore the front and back covers, which will have you convinced that this is an all-sex-all-the-time romance novel, or even one of those interesting and worthy historical romances, a la Bertrice Small.

TRADE WIND, as it happens, is more along the lines of an adventure novel, featuring a smart but somewhat naive heroine (named Hero!), drama on the high seas, political plots, good intentions leading to unexpected consequences, an intriguing good guy/bad guy, and plenty of action. And, oh yeah, there's a little bit of romance in there, too. It builds slowly, gradually -- in fact almost imperceptibly -- and it's never graphic. The fact that it happens (finally!) is satisfying, but one leaves with the impression that just a bit more detail would have been nice!

Still, I can't fault the book on much; it was perfectly enthralling the whole way through.

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reviews: page 1, 2, 3, 4

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