A fictional retelling of the story of mutineer Fletcher Christian considers what his life would have been like had he survived the South Pacific uprising and follows his romance with the beautiful Daphne. 20,000 first printing.
"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
On April 28, 1789, Fletcher Christian led a mutiny aboard HMS Bounty and forced Capt. William Bligh and eighteen men overboard. History tells us that the mutineers settled on Pitcairn Island in the South Pacific where their idyll came to a violent end in a native uprising. But there are numerous historical incidents suggesting that Christian was not killed and managed to escape. In Kinsolving's novel, Christian does escape, and subsequently frees a beautiful young Englishwoman, Daphne, from debauched privateers. Together they reach a deserted island where they fall deeply in love - a love that sustains them both through the worst of times that follow. Finally rescued, they find their way by separate routes to England, where Christian is ever on the run - from the navy, from the law, and from Bligh.
Proceeding from the premise that Fletcher Christian, leader of the 1789 mutiny that wrested control of HMS Bounty from tyrannical Captain Bligh, did not subsequently perish on Pitcairn Island, Kinsolving (The Diplomat's Daughter, 1993, etc.) offers an immensely entertaining account of a Georgian/Regency picaro's amazing adventures. Escaping his South Seas refuge by canoe (at age 30) after a native uprising in 1793, Fletcher is picked up by a Dutch merchantman that's later sunk by a French privateer in the Netherlands Antilles. Taken prisoner aboard the pirate ship, he manages to kill the depraved captain, purloin his small pouch of large gems, and save a distressed damsel named Daphne Lewis from an unhappy fate. After spending an idyllic fortnight on a conveniently deserted Caribbean isle, Daphne and Fletcher fall deeply, lustily in love. The wealthy, widowed Daphne (who was on her way from Jamaica to England to marry an impoverished duke) is soon rescued, and Fletcher (still wanted by the British Admiralty) eventually makes it home as well. Although spurned by his family, he keeps the first of many trysts with Daphne. Fletcher is sustained by his abiding passion for her--and the proceeds from sales of the jewels he took from her captor. He serves under assumed names as an able- bodied seaman on British warships in epic battles from Camperdown (in 1797) to Trafalgar (1805). Between naval engagements, he finds time to give Daphne and her impotent peer a much-wanted male heir. Consumption takes Daphne from Fletcher in 1806, and his resultant insanity gets him committed to Bedlam. Five years later, the vengeful Bligh finds him in the madhouse, but the condemned Fletcher is reprieved at the eleventh hour by his own noble son. At the close, the fiddlefooted hero turns from the life of idle ease that could be his and heads back to sea. A grand to-the-ends-of-the-earth romp that, though merry and melancholic by turn, strikes just the right stoically mock-heroic tone throughout. -- Copyright ©1996, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.
"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.
Shipping:
FREE
Within U.S.A.
Shipping:
US$ 3.99
Within U.S.A.
Seller: ThriftBooks-Dallas, Dallas, TX, U.S.A.
Hardcover. Condition: USED_VERYGOOD. No Jacket. May have limited writing in cover pages. Pages are unmarked. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less 1.45. Seller Inventory # G0684813033I4N00
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: ThriftBooks-Dallas, Dallas, TX, U.S.A.
Hardcover. Condition: USED_VERYGOOD. No Jacket. Former library book; May have limited writing in cover pages. Pages are unmarked. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less 1.45. Seller Inventory # G0684813033I4N10
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: SecondSale, Montgomery, IL, U.S.A.
Condition: USED_GOOD. Item in very good condition! Textbooks may not include supplemental items i.e. CDs, access codes etc. Seller Inventory # 00073589588
Quantity: 2 available
Seller: Better World Books, Mishawaka, IN, U.S.A.
Condition: USED_VERYGOOD. First American Edition. Former library book; may include library markings. Used book that is in excellent condition. May show signs of wear or have minor defects. Seller Inventory # 3392368-75
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: Better World Books, Mishawaka, IN, U.S.A.
Condition: USED_GOOD. First American Edition. Used book that is in clean, average condition without any missing pages. Seller Inventory # 5520070-6
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: Books From California, Simi Valley, CA, U.S.A.
Hardcover. Condition: Very Good. Dust Jacket Condition: Includes dust jacket. Signed. First Edition. First edition with full numberline, inscribed and signed by the author on the title page. Near fine in jacket. Seller Inventory # mon0002896509
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: Irish Booksellers, Portland, ME, U.S.A.
Condition: Good. SHIPS FROM USA. Used books have different signs of use and do not include supplemental materials such as CDs, Dvds, Access Codes, charts or any other extra material. All used books might have various degrees of writing, highliting and wear and tear and possibly be an ex-library with the usual stickers and stamps. Dust Jackets are not guaranteed and when still present, they will have various degrees of tear and damage. All images are Stock Photos, not of the actual item. book. Seller Inventory # 10-0684813033-G
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: Lorrin Wong, Bookseller, Los Angeles, CA, U.S.A.
1st printing of 1st edition. Fine hard cover book in fine dust jacket. Seller Inventory # 562733
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: Burke's Book Store, Memphis, TN, U.S.A.
Hardcover. Condition: Fine. 1st. 0684813033 Tight, clean. Seller Inventory # 089650
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: A Good Read, LLC, San Antonio, TX, U.S.A.
Hardcover. Condition: Very Good +. Dust Jacket Condition: Very Good +. Second Printing. Hard Cover. Very Good +/Very Good +. Second Printing. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall. Seller Inventory # 014341
Quantity: 1 available