THE WHITE PEARL BY KATE FURNIVAL

Set in the period of 1941 - 1942 with World War II as its background, it deals with the life of Connie and her life as the wife of a rich rubber planter of the Hadley family. With Japan invading the Far East and stealthily creeping across South East Asia which was hitherto thought impossible, the lives of the complacent British have to change.

The beginning of the story was for me slow - the catalyst of Connie killing Maya and Razak's mother - was somehow flat for me. This should have been more important as it formed the very crux of this story and how it sort of spun out of control from that point onwards. With the fall of Malaya Connie and a close band of acquaintances are forced to flee taking what little they could grab on board The White Pearl a yacht belonging to Connie gifted to her by her husband.

Taking their lives in their hands across the seas hoping to reach Singapore safely (not knowing that Singapore will also fall), the expedition faces many dangers, loss of lives, pirates, storms, a betrayal and also a new exhilirating love being discovered.

The book picked up midway and held my interest intensely from that point onwards till the end. The way Connie's character developed from being a mild woman to that of asserting herself and deciding for herself what was good for her and her young son was nice to watch. How she handled treachery, betrayal and her new love was also amazing.

Books set in foreign climes always  fascinate me. Maybe I will be able to visit the country maybe I won't and this may be the closest I will get to it. This period in history was also new to me. My knowledge of how the Japanese ruthlessly almost took over the Far East was also new to me.

A very good book. I read about this author first on Cornflower Books. So glad I got this book.