This story is about a young woman, referred to throughout the book, as the girl from the coast.  She was from a poor fishing village with many boats coming and going each day.  A man noticed her beauty and told his employer about it.  The man returned to the village and visited the girl's parents.  A few days later, the girl learned that she would be leaving everything she knew.

A marriage had been arranged for the girl from the coast to marry the Bendoro, a nobleman.  The young girl refers to her husband as "master" and soon learns that she is almost in a situation similar to being in jail.  The Bendoro intimidates her.  She longs to be back home with her family.

The girl from the coast soon finds out that she is just a "practice" wife and the Bendoro divorces her and takes away her child. 

How will the girl from the coast handle this situation?

This story is based largely on the life of the author's grandmother.  The author does an extraordinary job of writing this very moving story.  It is interesting to see how the people who have wealth can control the people who don't have much at all.  The author makes us feel that we are right there in the isolated rooms with this girl from the coast.  He also does an excellent job with the characters as we can picture the Bendoro who comes across as a very strong, demanding person.  This is a great book - one you don't want to miss reading.  It is a very captivating story!

Nancy Eaton

DO NOT REPRINT WITHOUT PERMISSION OF THE AUTHOR, NANCY EATON