Part of Series
A generation after Columbus made his great discovery, the tired Old World is striving ton conquer the new lands in the West, seeking gold and riches beyond their wildest dreams. From Spain to England to the Caribbean, follow the fortunes of Armando, restless wanderer with an uncertain heritage: Gabriella, whose beauty hides the secret of her birth; Paloma, child of a Spanish grandee and an Indian wise—woman; and Will, master-musician who flees the Inquisition because of his Jewish blood. Appalled by the cruelty of their countrymen, they seek to help the native peoples of the new lands, organizing the resistance to the Conquistadors in the land that will be called Florida.
Author
Susan Wiggs' life is all about family, friends...and fiction. She lives at the water's edge on an island in Puget Sound, and she commutes to her writers' group in a 17-foot motorboat. She serves as author liaison for Field's End, a literary community on Bainbridge Island, Washington, bringing inspiration and instruction from the world's top authors to her seaside community. (See www.fieldsend.org) She's been featured in the national media, including NPR's "Talk of the Nation," and is a popular speaker locally and nationally. According to Publishers Weekly, Wiggs writes with "refreshingly honest emotion," and the Salem Statesman Journal adds that she is "one of our best observers of stories of the heart [who] knows how to capture emotion on virtually every page of every book." Booklist characterizes her books as "real and true and unforgettable." She is the recipient of three RITA (sm) awards and four starred reviews from Publishers Weekly for her books. The Winter Lodge and Passing Through Paradise have appeared on PW’s annual "Best Of" lists. Several of her books have been listed as top Booksense picks and optioned as feature films. Her novels have been translated into more than two dozen languages and have made national bestseller lists, including the USA Today, Washington Post and New York Times lists. The author is a former teacher, a Harvard graduate, an avid hiker, an amateur photographer, a good skier and terrible golfer, yet her favorite form of exercise is curling up with a good book. Readers can learn more on the web at www.susanwiggs.com and on her lively blog at www.susanwiggs.wordpress.com.
