Review for Undreamed Shores

I've just finished Undreamed Shores by Mark Patton and I'm sharing my review with you today. I hope you'll like reading the novel, too.
 

Undreamed Shores by Mark Patton

Giving a reader a glimpse of life- completely fictitious or partially factual-in a historical era not often covered by authors is a daunting challenge. Mark Patton paints Amzai’s world of 2400 BC in such a way that allows the modern reader to empathise and recognise what takes place around him. Flora and fauna are used judiciously. I believe herbalists, ornithology enthusiasts, and devotees of aquatic creatures will love the detail in Undreamed Shores. I could smell the plants described; could hear the ‘rasping cry’ of the gannets; even taste the brine.   

Mark Patton covers Amzai’s transition from innocent boyhood to manhood perceptively when Amzai finds himself in a new world, among unknown people and unknown languages. Amzai is shown capable of absorbing, learning and embracing new and different cultures. Nanti, the woman he comes to love in his new land, is crucial to his learning curve, and supportive throughout the novel. 

In Undreamed Shores you’ll find many different themes running through it: accepting the responsibilities of life; jealousy; evil; the corruption of innocence; and love in many different forms. Archaeological detail is there for the reader to glean, where again, Mark Patton sets it in a living context. I enjoyed reading Undreamed Shores and I’d love to meet Amzai and his wife Nanti.