-
Ilima Todd
A Song for the Stars
by: Ilima ToddHawaiian Islands, 1779
Inspired by a true story.
As the second daughter of a royal chief, Maile will be permitted to marry for love. Her fiancé is the best navigator in Hawaii, and he taught her everything he knows—how to feel the ocean, observe the winds, read the stars, and how to love.
But when sailors from a strange place called England arrive on her island, a misunderstanding ends in battle, and Maile is suddenly widowed before she is wed.
Finding herself in the middle of the battle and fearing for her life, Maile takes John Harbottle, the wounded man who killed her fiancé, prisoner, and though originally intending to let him die, she reluctantly heals him. And in the process, she discovers the man she thought was her enemy might be her ally instead.
John has been Captain James Cook’s translator for three voyages across the Pacific. He is kind and clearly fascinated with her homeland and her people—and Maile herself. But guilt continues to drive a wedge between them: John’s guilt over the death he caused, and Maile’s guilt over the truth about what triggered the deadly battle—a secret she’s kept hidden from everyone on the island.
When Maile is tasked with teaching John how to navigate using the stars so he can sail back to England, they must also navigate the challenges of being from very different cultures. In doing so, they might also find the peace that comes when two hearts become one.
- Author Ilima Todd is Hawaiian and a direct descendant from the marriage of John Harbottle and the daughter of a chief of Oahu. The author was able to trace her family’s story through genealogical records and family history passed down through generations.
- A historical romance set in late eighteenth-century Hawaii. Inspired by true events and characters, it’s a fictional depiction of the first European contact with Hawaiians by British Captain James Cook in 1779.
- Part Romeo and Juliet and part Disney’s Pocahontas with John Smith, as two people fall in love despite long-standing feuds and cultural divides.
- The story is told in a first-person narrative from Maile. Interspersed with her narrative are excerpts from John Harbottle’s fictional journal, giving us a unique perspective of the traditional Hawaiian culture through the eyes of an English sailor.
- The author weaves ancient Hawaiian traditions into the story, like the privilege of wearing certain colors and the role the gods played in the seasons-specifically when to go to war, and when to celebrate peace.
- Clean content, suitable for all ages.
ISBN: 978-1-62972-528-4
Publisher: Shadow Mountain
Publish Date: 2019
Page Count: 352
