Daughters of Captain Cook

By Linda Spalding

Book Overview

Kansas-born Jess marries Paul and removes with him to the sultry paradise of Hawaii to challenge Paul's haunting past. All goes well until an act of disloyalty exposes Jess to the mythical beliefs of... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1559720085
• ISBN13: 9781559720083
• Release Date: January 1988
• Publisher: Carol Publishing Corporation
• Length: 217 Pages
• Weight: 1.20 lbs.

Customer Reviews

Deliciously evocative and creepy.

Ironically, I obtained this book thinking it was a historical account of Captain Cook's progeny, based on a hastily-read (although positive) review of it in Outside magazine. However, despite not being a fan of contemporary fiction, I was immediately swept up in the deliciously woven prose: contemplative, evocative, personal, and mysterious. Its imagery entranced and lulled (but not bored!) me in its depiction of a Hawaii both exotic and yet accessible, while the seedy underbelly of its mystical and tragic plot slowly and deliberately unfolded. Although it seems incogruous for a gothic novel to be set in a tropical paradise, Daughters of Captain Cook is a compelling, nearly seamless read.

A story well told, rooted in ancient tradition

I was drawn to this book by the lyrical quality of the words and also because it was set in Hawaii. Hawaii intrigues me and I absorb stories about things Hawaiian like a sponge.On the surface the story is simple. A Kansas-bred woman and her Caucasian Hawaiin-born husband return to live in Hawaii with their child. His native Hawaiian half-sister has inherited the family estate and her 14-year old daughter begin a relationship that is rooted in the ancient incest culture of Hawaii. The story is both a mythical allegory as well as a heart retching journey through the wife's pain. It ends tragically.I was swept up in the beauty of the words and a story well told.

A great novel which takes a fresh look at the great themes o

Daughters of Captain Cook is an enduring addition to the tradition of The Great American novel. Spalding's considerable descriptive gifts set the novel in a darkly exotic Hawaiian island where her vivid characters struggle to manage the tensions of marriage, sibling rivalry, sexual jealousy and loss. Hawaiian history and bizarre royal customs clarify and complicate the plot as it unfolds inexorably before us. This is one of those precious books that repays close reading at the sentence level, but which sweeps you up in its powerful narrative at the same time. Once begun it's hard to put down.