Set in Kenya against the fading backdrop of the British Empire, this is a story of self-discovery, betrayal, and an impossible love.
After six years in England, Rachel has returned to Kenya and the farm where she spent her childhood, but the beloved home she’d longed for is much changed. Her father’s new companion—a strange, intolerant woman—has taken over the household. The political climate in the country grows more unsettled by the day and is approaching the boiling point. And looming over them all is the threat of the Mau Mau, a secret society intent on uniting the native Kenyans and overthrowing the whites.
As Rachel struggles to find her place in her home and her country, she initiates a covert relationship, one that will demand from her a gross act of betrayal. One man knows her secret, and he has made it clear how she can buy his silence. But she knows something of her own, something she has never told anyone. And her knowledge brings her power.
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“Katharine McEwan’s narration, sprinkled with Swahili phrases, vividly details the various voices of two cultures… Her tone softens with wistful remembering, intermingled with the increasing intensity of racial unease that mushrooms into the bloody 1950s Mau Mau Rebellion…McEwan draws listeners into these chilling dramas.”
— AudioFile
“A dramatic historical period piece…[with] a harrowing, well-paced plot. McVeigh excels ratcheting tension in the plot, and she has a keen eye for the minutiae of everday life in Kenya.”
— Free Lance-Star“Readers who want a story that keeps them on edge will enjoy this historical novel rich with emotional and sociopolitical drama.”
— Kirkus Reviews“McVeigh’s beautiful prose and harrowing plot will quickly absorb readers…by sensitively approaching themes of race, cultural evolution, and the humanness that unites us all.”
— Publishers Weekly“McVeigh does a good job of charting Rachel’s growth amidst political and personal turmoil, set against a backdrop of Kenya’s wild beauty.”
— BooklistBe the first to write a review about this audiobook!
Jennifer McVeigh graduated from Oxford University in 2002 with a First in English Literature. She went on to work in film, television, radio, and publishing before giving up her day job to write fiction.
Katharine McEwan is an English-born actress and an AudioFile Earphones Award–winning narrator. Her theater credits include Private Lives at Long Beach Playhouse, The Verdi Girls at Laguna Playhouse, Night Mother at Stage Lee Strasberg, and Hamlet at the Next Stage. She has also appeared in numerous independent and Hollywood films.