Author(s): Frank Coates

Fiction

Wangira is caught between the traditions of his Kikuyu tribe and the disturbing new ideas of the missionaries. When, as a young warrior, he saves the life of a wealthy American photographer, he is offered the chance of a new life far away in the white man's world. Between the wars, Kenya is a land of boundless opportunity where the rich engage in hunting safaris, horse racing, outrageous parties and all the pleasures that money can buy. Dana Northcote is a celebrated socialite, living the high life, but when Wangira uses her husband's farm in the Kenyan highlands to hide some contraband, she embarks on a dangerous, passionate affair. Ultimately, she is forced to make a heart-rending decision that will tear her life apart and has consequences which will echo through the generations. Spanning the first half of the twentieth century and culminating in Kenya's fight for independence from the British Empire, ECHOES FROM A DISTANT LAND is a vivid evocation of a nation in turmoil, and a story of a love that dared to cross the divide.