Lost
a novel
A shipwreck casts an unrepentant convict and a faithless chaplain into the open sea. One seeks freedom, the other forgiveness. Both will learn the depths of what it means to be lost.
Summary
J—, a convict bound for a life sentence in Van Diemen’s Land, yearns for freedom, even if it means death. When the ship wrecks mere miles from its destination, he risks everything to escape, including the life of the ship’s chaplain Thomas Woodlow, a haunted man now thrown from his path of redemption.
Adrift on an unlikely life raft—a portrait of a lady—the two must battle storms, starvation, and each other’s wills to survive. Their rescue by the Maori woman called Kekeno, an outcast desperate to belong, seems to promise salvation for the castaways, respect for Kekeno, and prosperity for her tribe. But the forces at play in a land beset by rivalries prove more complex and devastating than any of them can imagine.
History
Lost is based on the wreck of George III. Carrying 220 convicts from London to Van Diemen's Land, the ship was one of four convict ships to sink during England's practice of penal transportation. The novel also takes place in Bethlem Asylum, Millbank Prison, and pre-colonial New Zealand.
