Product Description

An ecological romance with a pulsing heart, equal parts Rider Haggard and Chico Buarque -- one of the world's greatest and most beloved storytellers broadens her style and reach with a Amazonian adventure story which will appeal to all ages Fifteen-year-old Alexander Cold has the chance to take the trip of a lifetime. With his mother in hospital, too ill to look after him, Alex is sent out to his grandmother Kate -- a fearless reporter with blue eyes 'as sharp as daggers' points'. Kate is about to embark on an expedition to the dangerous, remote world of the Amazon rainforest, but rather than change her plans, she simply takes Alex along with her. They set off with their team -- including a local guide and his daughter Nadia, with her wild, curly hair and skin the colour of honey -- in search of a fabled headhunting tribe and a legendary, marauding creature known to locals only as 'the Beast', only to find out much, much more about the mysteries of the jungle and its inhabitants. In a novel rich in adventure, magic and spirit, internationally-celebrated novelist Isabel Allende takes readers of all ages on a voyage of discovery and wonder, deep into the heart of the Amazon.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #26109 in Books
• Published on: 2003-06-02
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 416 pages

Review
Praise for Isabel Allende: 'A magical storyteller' Daily Mail 'Allende's writing is so vivid we hear the sounds, see the bright birds, smell and even taste the soft fruit.' The Times 'A wonderful, seemingly effortless storyteller; you feel yourself sink into the folds of her narrative with an almost childlike certainty that you're going to hear a good story well told.' Irish Independent 'Her prose is rich and magical, her characters vivid. She mixes violence and horror, love and humour, with more than a touch of genius.' Mary Wesley praise for Daughter of Fortune: "A dazzling, sweeping story." MAIL ON SUNDAY "Romance, passion and adventure fuel Allende's new novel. With an old-fashioned narrative drive and a warm-hearted heroine, it wins you over." SUNDAY EXPRESS "Memory and imagination and myth weave their spells... Allende creates world upon world in dazzling descriptive prose." INDEPENDENT ON SUNDAY "Within the lush sweep of this tale of the heart, there is a message that love is transient and illusory, that it is the beginning of a journey of self-discovery, not the end. Daughter of Fortune takes us from high-class soirees to brothels, revolutionary meetings and opium dens; it introduces a cast of colourful characters and the story remains fresh and original." TLS

Uncut
‘Adventure-stuffed page turner... Allende’s notorious, luminous gift for imaginative story-telling runs wild in the jungle’

Literary Review
‘treads a msterful line between children’s and adult fiction… J K Rowling may have met her match.’

Customer Reviews

Scientific magic of the Amazon
This is one of the strangest books I have ever read and also one of the most interesting. It's gripping, sinister, magical and sometimes very amusing. Always challenging your assumptions, there is a scientific explanation for every weird and wonderful thing that happens causing you to believe in it entirely and dragging you head first into the mysteries and beauty of the Amazon rain forest. A very original book and a rare find.

With his mother in hospital with cancer, Alex Cold is sent off to stay with his fierce, eccentric grandmother Kate. She is just about to set off on a journey to the far reaches of the Amazon rain forest with a group from 'International Geographic' magazine. The party is trying to hunt down a fearsome 'beast' that has been roaming the area and write a report on it. Rather than change her plans Kate simply takes Alex with her. On arrival in Manaus they meet with the rest of the expedition, led by Ludovic Le Blanc, an extremely arrogant, selfish, annoying, sexist, melodramatic and paranoid professor who is none too pleased to see an extra member of their group in the form of a 15 year old American schoolboy. When their guide, César Santos's daughter Nadia begs to come too he almost blows his top but as usual Kate gets her own way and Nadia joins the crew.

And so begins the start of a powerful friendship between Nadia and Alex and an out-of-this-world adventure full of murder, kidnap, shamans, ghosts, prehistoric creatures, lies, deceit and the mysterious and wonderful People of the Mist. Set in a place where scarlet butterflies flutter between the leaves and feed on soft succulent fruits, photographers are attacked by caimans, macaws screech in the tree tops and dolphins swim along side the boats, the colours, sounds, smells, sticky heat and incredible sights ooze out of this book's pages - it is an adventure not to be missed!

A Gripping Read
I have to disagree with the reviewer who described this book as not for people over 9 years of age. Yes, it is probably aimed at teenagers but it's still a great read for adults. I think maybe a little bit of the language suffered because this was a translation but nevertheless, a very interesting, enjoyable book. I've just bought the next book in this series and am looking forward to reading about the main characters again.

Totally different, captivating & highly imaginative
I love Isabel Allende's writing and have read many of her books, she is a fantastic storyteller. This is different again though. It is a fairytale, pure escapist fiction that, if you have a good imagination and like to drift off into the realms of fantasy that a good book can evoke, captures you and carries you off into its amazing world. If, however, you prefer more "realist" fiction then it is probably not for you.
It reminded me of Jostein Gaardner's Sophie's World in its apparent childish simplicity and innocent beauty, but with a darker vein of social comment running underneath that you can pick up on & ponder or choose to ignore and read the story at face value- who are the real Beasts in this Amazonian jungle?
At the same time it is a fable, a mystery and a thought-provoking comment on society and what we have done to indigenous tribes everywhere. A great read.