The Rising Sun

by Douglas Galbraith

Book Overview

Now in paperback, Douglas Galbraith's The Rising Sun is an extraordinary tour de force of historical fiction in the tradition of Caleb Carr's The Alienist and David Liss's A Conspiracy of Paper. A widespread critical favorite in hardcover, it was hailed by Kirkus Reviews as one of the best novels of the past decade, and established its author as a major new talent. In 1698, five vessels led by the flagship Rising Sun embarked on a perilous voyage...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0802138640
• ISBN13: 9780802138644
• Release Date: January 2002
• Publisher: Grove Press
• Length: 544 Pages
• Weight: 1.15 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 5.4" x 8.2"

Customer Reviews

The Rising sun

I saw this book and picked it up on a whim. I cannot put my finger on exactly what attracted me to the book, however, I am extremely glad that I bought it and stayed with the story through the first 50 or so difficult pages. The book chronicles the disastrous Darien Scheme (which I confess I had never heard of prior to purchasing the book), and its political and social repercussions for the nation of Scotland. The book is narrated by an ambitious young man named Roderick Mackenzie who comes to Edinburgh the callow second son of country gentry forced to seek his fortune in commerce. Our narrator quickly learns the shady aspects of business through his amoral and manipulative employer, Colquhoun, and the ways of drunken debauchery and women (for a price) with his fellow young fellow lodgers (who are careful to be seen attending church after a long night enjoying the favors of the ladies of ill repute at the Widow Gilbert's house). As superintendent cargos Mackenzie relates his perspective of the expedition though his diary. The journey over the Atlantic and late seventeenth century Edinburgh are described in breathtaking detail. The struggles (physical, moral and spiritual) of the colony are set out with heart wrenching precision, as the idealistic colonists wage a forlorn multi-front war with the Spanish military, English greed, tropical disease, the jungle, the torrential rains and, ultimately, themselves. It would be easy to describe this book as a male-oriented "adventure" novel (which many reviewers have) or as a detailed and lively "historical fiction." Both characterizations (as well as others that would be equally appropriate) are correct, but fail to give this astonishing work its full due. Ultimately The Rising Sun is a novel about idealism, opportunism and aspiration. Mackenzie, like all of the Darien colonists to one extent or another, wants to be part of something bigger than himself. As the self proclaimed witness to these great events, he sees first-hand the hopes of a nation sore, the petty intrigues of the colony as amid the death and squalor of the colony the delusional Patterson and vainglorious Drummon squabble over utilization of the colony's scare resources for the construction of their ultimately worthless prized projects (the "road" to the pacific and a useless fort, respectively), and the manipulations of the "great men" who, knowing that the colony was doomed to utter failure by the machinations of England, sold their shares in the Company of Scotland. For some reason, I had a difficult time initially dealing with the author's writing style for the first 50 or so pages, but from that point on the prose flowed very well. I cannot recommend this book highly enough, and I eagerly await the next title to be released by this author in the United States.

The Company of Scotland

This historical fiction covers an incident in history about which I was completely ignorant: the attempt by folks from Scotland to establish a colony in Central America, specifically in Panama. It's a well-written tale, with sharp characterizations and quite descriptive passages. It's a tale that the reader knows ends in sorrow and tragedy, but he keeps on with it, because of the clarity of the writing that conveys the sense of initial optimism, and then the growing knowledge, even if unspoken, that the enterprise is doiomed to failure. The narrator is a likeable young man, and we follow his progress of ups and downs closely. The key to good writing is to make the reader interested in your main antagonist, and in this aspcet the author has succeeded admirably. Read the book if for nothing else than finding out about a little known aspect of world, and Scottish, history.

Delicious!

I loved this book from beginning to end. I loved the subject, I loved the characters, but most of all I loved the language. I sometimed re-read pieces just for the pleasure of reading them. But I also couldn't put it down - it's a really good story, and very evocative of late 17th C life: in Scotland; aboard a ship; in the tropics. I won't go into the detail of the story because you can get that from the editorial review, but I will say that it lives up to its description .... and that's not always the case, is it?

So very nice to find ...

... a book you can learn from, and tremendously enjoy. The history here sent me to my non-fiction searchs, to learn more, and the tale Galbraith weaves made me hope for another. There is room here for a sequel also, plenty of room in fact. Fans of Patrick O'Brian will feel at home here. A must read for Scots.

An extraordinary literary accomplishment

It is hard to believe that this is Mr Galbreath's 1st novel. The style is often reminiscient of Dickens, and his prose is quite successful at evoking the flavor of 1698 Scotland and the physical travails of life in the Isthmus of Panama. While the book is the story of some 2000 Scots who set off to establish a trading colony, the handful of characters central to the plot are developed with power and precision. This is a book well worth reading, and one that you will remember for years to come.