PastFinders #03: Disenchanted Soldier, The

- Blurb -

A vivid, attention-grabbing insight into the everyday lives of pioneering New Zealanders makes history come alive! Libby was fascinated by the stories surrounding Daniel, by this man who looked down at her from the aged black-and-white photos on the walls some 70 years after his death. His story seemed inextricably linked to pioneering New Zealand, and she wanted to know more, to know his secrets ...She was not disappointed. Daniel's story was more than she had hoped for - a life of adversity and sadness, of happiness and success. It's 1863 when 21-year-old Daniel, a trained soldier, embarks on an adventure of a lifetime, in pursuit of a new life, of land and to shrug off his past. Crossing the oceans to New Zealand to fight an unknown enemy, he is soon disillusioned by war, by its violence and cruelty, its emptiness changing his life forever. Eventually he finds happiness and heartache in equal measure with his great love, Emma, a young Prussian girl, and they build their life together in Foxton. This powerful and moving narrative traces Daniel through the generations until his death in 1926.The story alternates between real-life events as they happen to Daniel and following Libby, the modern-day researcher, as she seeks his true story. His legacy is unforgettable.