Tuesday, December 13, 2016

A dramatic new novel from one New Zealand’s favourite novelists


 


The Cloud Leopard’s Daughter

Deborah Challinor

On the gold fields of Central Otago, some make a fortune, some make enemies and others make mistakes.

In new novel, The Cloud Leopard’s Daughter, Deborah Challinor returns to the territory of her bestselling New Zealand novels, Kitty and Amber in her new tale of adventure. Set in 1863, the story begins on the Otago gold fields where the daughter of a Chinese Tong Master is kidnapped and whisked off to China and a forced marriage. 

Deborah’s impeccable research for The Cloud Leopard’s Daughter shores up her reputation as New Zealand’s foremost author of historical fiction.  For her Convicts series set in Sydney in the 1830s, she went as far as dressing up in period costume to get a feel for how it felt to walk around The Rocks in Sydney in a boots and a long dress, only to find herself accosted by tourists and requests for photographs.

‘This sort of research all adds up,’ says Deborah. ‘This sort of ‘looking’ contributes colour and, I hope, a certain extra layer of veracity and historical richness to a novel. I sometimes wonder if I’d keep writing books if I couldn’t go walking around the Rocks in costume, hanging over the side of tall ships being seasick, or down underground mines scared rigid by claustrophobia, or striding across old battlefields at the head of ghost battalions. In fact, I don’t think I would.’         

Her previously novel, Tattooed Heart was a #1 bestseller in New Zealand in November 2015.

About the author:

Deborah has a PhD in New Zealand military history, and is the author of fourteen (right) best selling novels& two non fiction titles. Her route to becoming a full-time writer was accidental.  She did a PhD in military history because she didn’t really want a job.  One of her university supervisors described her thesis as really readable, so she send a copy of a publisher, came away with a book deal and a writing career spanning 15 years and 14 novels. 
Deborah’s books are now sold in Australia, UK, Germany, Russia, Czech Republic and New Zealand. She lives in Hamilton with her husband and a nervous cat called Gus.




The Cloud Leopard’s Daughter by Deborah Challinor
Published: 1 November 2016
Imprint: HarperCollins
Format: Trade paperback; RRP: $34.99
eBook available

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