Fiji Review

Fiji: A Novel by Lance Morcan
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

It took me ages to read this book, thanks very much to all the Uni distractions!! I barely had time to read a chapter before I was bombarded with a whole lot of assignments and all the other ammunition education uses on us helpless victims of the system.
I finally had the sense to download the e-book into my phone, and life sitting idly in the bus or throne of thought was graced with some reading entertainment.
The novel caught my eye firstly because the novel title was, "Fiji." I thought, hey! I just happened to live in Fiji! Look at that!
At first, I thought it was some sort of biography of a dead dictator, or cannibal, or chief maybe. I was surprised to find out, this was a historical adventure fiction!
With a 19th century Fiji as a setting, the plot launches with the introduction of our heroes; the missionary and the musket trader. Oh the contradiction there, what a team!

Susannah Drake and her father Drake Snr are taking the word of God to a village in Momi Bay, meaning to save all their souls and instilling christianity into the village people.
Now, we aren't talking rainbows, sunshine and peace village people. We're talking, a village full of reformed cannibals who require human sacrifices for any little accomplishment they've made.
As a Fijian, I find the old traditions of our people fascinating and just as great as they are crude and gruesome. The novel touches on most of these now extinct practices, in mad detail and it's AWESOME! (However, do a little research after reading...you'll be surprised at what you'll find.)
Then ofcourse, I'm sorry I got carried away. Then, we have Nathan, the musket trader. He is more of a prick than a hero, at the beginning of the novel. The people of Fiji were all just a bunch of primitives, uncivilized in their ways and ignorant of their own resources. This was Nathan's point-of-view. How he had gone so far without getting eaten, is a mystery to me.
He just happens to be going to Momi Bay, and just happens to be on the same boat as dear Sussannah. DUN DUN DUN....

Momi Bay villagers themselves were facing an on-going war with the rebels, who were kidnapping women to grow their own brood of..um...rebels. Sussannah and Nathan, strangers torn by faith and culture, connected by their barely suppressed sexual chemistry, are thrown into this war and forced to take sides.

Obviously, the rebels are the bad guys.

Racial prejudice, religion, culture and family, I thought, were the underlying messages that the story carried with it.

The adventure, fast-paced and nail biting was a real page turner. The romance, sizzling, exciting, forbidden.

It was definitely well worth the read, and I give it my 5 stars because that's the maximum amount of stars we're allowed to give...

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