Friendship Estate

From the sweeping vistas of Jamaica's shores to Georgian England's gilded halls...

If only there had been a white boy named Brixton and a black boy named Dexter who had grown up as brothers, nursing at the same mother's breast, celebrating their shared heritage and the dream of racial harmony. If only ancient spells could give power to the helpless and stem the brutality of oppressors.

Jamaica in the late 1700s and early 1800s was at a crossroads. The abolition of slavery was on the horizon. In the colonies, the white and black races had been mixing for generations. They had formed a new society with a culture born of oppression harboring a deep desire to mix freely while charting a new course for themselves by taking the reins of freedom into their own hands. Instead, emancipation came slowly and painfully, leaving a legacy of bitterness and resentment that poisoned the politics of future generations because the dawning of a new age and the enlightenment it would bring was ignored.

In Lynda Edwards' utopian fantasy, Jamaicans take the torch of freedom into their own hands and join the abolition movement that is gathering force in Britain. Good-hearted Lords and Ladies work behind the scenes to grease the wheels of progress as we witness the intricate romances and elegant customs of a bygone age while meeting a captivating array of characters.

Lynda's book transcends history's oppressive grasp and conjures up a romantic age where anything is possible. We emerge from her dream world with renewed faith in the possibilities that lie ahead. By showing us what might have been, she points the way to what yet might be.

If only...