Published to rave reviews all round, this novel is set in 1857, with the Reverend Geoffrey Wilson setting out for Tasmania, in the hope of locating the Garden of Eden. Breathtakingly good. funny, savage, compassionate. a big, mind-expanding book in every respect. The journey is turning out to be less than straightforward - dissent is growing between him and sinister racial-theorist Dr Potter, and, unknown to both, the ship they have hurriedly chartered is in fact a Manx smuggled vessel, fleeing British customs. in Tasmania the aboriginal people have been fighting a desperate battle against British invaders, and, as the passengers will discover, the island is now far from being an earthly paradise.ix. + 462pp. 20x13. An unmarked copy.