Gwendoline Ewins

I've always been intrigued by what took people to remote places so it is no surprise that my stories are usually set on isolated islands in the southern seas, especially since I lived on one myself for many years.

"My" small island was surrounded by never-ending sea - I can still feel the desolation of watching a rare ship sail of the bay.

That island of mine was first inhabited years ago as Polynesians left "Havaiiki" in search of something better or simply different and found strings of spectacular islands and atolls rising out of the sea. They travelled on fragile trimarans that should have sunk but survived the long voyage. They were courageous people, intelligent and beautiful with a lusty appreciation of sex.

Then Europeans came - traders and missionaries, whalers and sandalwood gatherers. Most of them were men who might well have thought they'd died and gone to heaven because of all the sex and erotic dancing under the moon, but by the end of the 1790's the missionaries were coming and brought wives with them. They set up schools and reduced the language to writing. Polynesian script became an art form.

The clash of cultures would have been enormous - how to express joy or grief, for example. Beliefs about sensuality and promiscuity were miles apart and so was the attitude towards possessions - Polynesians took it for granted everything was to be shared while "sharing" was tantamount to theft to the Europeans. To put it simply, Polynesians believed this was right and that was wrong and Europeans believed differently. This is the world where my heroines and heroes live.

Luke Wainwright is an artist attracted by Polynesia's vibrant light, but he hadn't expected to bring a wife along with him. He was forced into a marriage with Hester because by the strict rules of regency England he had played the fool once too often. ("Who is He?")

A young man relies on others to choose the perfect wife for him, only to suffer the consequences. His wedding night is a nightmare - and that is just the beginning. ("A Perfect Wife for Peregrine Winthrop")

Two wounded people have been acquainted forever but only truly meet when tragedy strikes and he sails to her aid. ("Unexpected Hero")

Amelia is a destitute teacher who witnesses the slaughter of a man she has never met yet agreed to marry, while Guy thanks God for his wife's betrayal - without it he would never have prepared for the worst. ("Drums")

"Mistake" is still being written. Joshua, one of the seafaring Churnsides, blithely believes he is destined to live happily ever after with Reverend Browning's daughter Susannah - until she makes a mistake he is unable to forgive.

More about me and the world of my characters is on my website: http://www.gwendoline-ewins.com