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The Occidentals by Caron Eastgate James A 19th Century Siamese Saga A tale of passion and vengeance set against the steamy atmosphere of old Siam, as the country artfully resists the advances of European colonialism, and Bangkok itself transforms from a medieval backwater into a modernising city. The story begins in 1868, when English photographer Edward Fairburn ventures to Siam - ostensibly to photograph the mysterious land and its exotic people. Edward's motive for his Far East sojourn, however, is not only adventure, but also to escape from the disappointments of his marriage to Charlotte, whom he has left in Australia with their young daughter, Elizabeth. Mesmerised by the beauty of Siamese women, Edward soon takes a mistress, Kesri - young, beautiful, ambitious, and guileful - who gives birth to a daughter, Anchalee. When Charlotte arrives unexpectedly in Siam with Elizabeth, she is distraught to discover both her husband's affair, and the fruit of his secret liaison. She departs for England - reluctantly leaving Elizabeth with her father and her new step-mother and half-sister, Anchalee. However, suspicion and misunderstanding between step-mother and step-daughter soon leads to Kesri's banishment from Edward's house, and eventually, years later, sets in motion a series of events that will haunt the sisters, and their families, into the next generation and beyond - with disturbing and almost catastrophic consequences. Paperback
Bangkok 1999
Asia Books
413 pages
ISBN 9748237346
For delivery in Thailand please go to
www.dco.co.th/product_info.php?products_id=60
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