Black Rock: The story of an island, an exile and an emperor

Author: Louise Hoole
Artist: NA
Translator: NA

Should ambition cease with death? Napoleon Bonaparte doesn’t think so. His ghost is actually hungrier than ever. The ex-emperor has no intention of allowing his premature end to thwart his destiny or threaten his legacy. But death holds unexpected surprises for the restless spirit of the nineteenth-century’s most infamous tactician. Set in 1821 on the remote Atlantic island of St Helena during the week between Napoleon’s death and burial, this historical who-done-it examines what powerful men do in narrowed circumstances and what ordinary people do when their lives collide with the exceptional. Louise Hoole, who lived on St Helena as a child, draws upon the letters and memoirs of those exiled on the island to bring to life the complex machinations of those who made up Napoleon’s last court.

200 Year Anniversaries:  April 1814: The deposed Emperor is exiled to Elba. Feb. 1815: Napoleon escapes Elba, marches on Paris. March - July 1815: Napoleon rules for 100 Days. June 1815: Napoleon is defeated at Waterloo. July 1815: Napoleon is exiled to St Helena. 9 August 1815: Napoleon sets sail for St Helena in British custody. 15 October 1815: Napoleon arrives on St Helena. 5 May 1821: Napoleon dies aged 52 on the island.

Language(s): English

ISBN number:  
HC ISBN: 9781939604-255 ($29.95; 220 pages; 5.5x8.5 in.)
PB ISBN: 9781939604-248 ($14.95; 228 pages; 5x8 in.)

Publication Date:  March 2014
Interest Level:  Adult readers
Key Words:  Ghost, Mystery, Historical Fiction, Napoleon Bonaparte, Island of St Helena, Exiles, Emperors.

A look inside the book.

Reviews and Notes from Readers:

Eloquent, beautifully written, grave and funny: all at once. Napoleon haunts the island, and the island haunts everyone else, including the novel’s author… Black Rock reads as many things, and one of them is as a love letter to St Helena.
– Fiona Shaw, author of Tell it to the Bees & A Stone’s Throw.

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