Picture The Clan of the Cave Bear with Zulus in the place
of Neanderthals. A white girl is washed ashore from a
shipwreck and raised in a Zulu village, well aware that she
is British but seemingly in no hurry to return her own
culture. This is set in 1878 when the raiding Zulus and
colonising British are about to clash. As in the earlier
book, Elizabeth knows that an aspiring clan leader hates
her and if he comes to power she would do well to leave.
DAUGHTER OF THE SKY is how Elizabeth is sometimes called,
for her red hair is like a bird. She learns that the
British in Natal have demanded the Zulu king must disband
his army and military rule, and be overseen by a British
appointment. As the whole kingdom is run by military means
this is not an option, and war seems inevitable. Lindan, a
warrior who rescued Elizabeth, must pick up his spear. The
clan chief says that if the girl returns to her own people
now, the Zulu may suffer retribution for keeping her, and
asks her to spy instead. She decides to agree.
"An empire is a very big thing to hate," says a scout
wisely. Dressed as a teenaged boy and driving a cart with
fresh meat, the brave girl inveigles her way into the
underfed, overdressed redcoats' camp. Captain Burdell
discovers her to be female but lets her pretend to be his
batman to protect her. Names such as Rorke's Drift and
Isandlwana will be familiar to those who watched Zulu and
it must have been a marvelous, and frightening, spectacle
to see the impi on the move. The athletic warriors believe
that their wisemen will put muti, magic, on their shields
but Elizabeth is knowledgeable about Martini-Henry rifles.
The girl's position in two worlds is also reminiscent of
the film Avatar where no matter what she does she is
betraying her people.
Another quote - there is one before each chapter - which
rings true is from a Zulu king, but could have been said by
many invaded peoples over the world. "First comes the
trader. Then the missionary. Then the red soldier."
Michelle Diener has told the history well and with such
appalling losses of life as occurred we are keen to see how
Elizabeth can ever find happiness. DAUGHTER OF THE SKY is
very readable and has a wonderful sense of place, and will
interest many people keen to try an unusual historical
romance.
The Victorian Empire has declared war on the Zulus if they
don't accede to their outrageous demands. The clock is
ticking down to the appointed hour. With no idea why the
British are marching three massive columns of men and guns
towards them, one Zulu general is prepared to take an
impossible risk. But the life he's gambling with isn't his
own . . .
The sole survivor of a shipwreck off the Zululand coast, 15
year-old Elizabeth Jones is taken in by the Zulus, the
people of the sky. Six years later, her white skin becomes
useful to the Zulu army as they try to work out why the
Victorian Empire has pointed their war-machine at the Zulu
nation. Elizabeth is suddenly Zululand's most important spy.
While infiltrating the British camp, Elizabeth's disguise
as a young soldier is uncovered almost immediately by
Captain Jack Burdell. However, he believes the tale she
spins of searching for a missing brother and shields her
from discovery, allowing her to bunk in his tent and giving
her a job as his batman. Burdell is war-weary and
disillusioned - no longer willing to follow regulations at
all costs.
But as Elizabeth and Jack explore their growing attraction
to each other, the two armies move towards their inevitable
clash. Elizabeth is torn between the guilt of betrayal and
her fierce loyalty to her Zulu family, and when Zulu and
British meet on the battlefield, both she and Jack find
their hearts and their lives caught in the crossfire
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