Isle Of Passion

In a novel based on true events, a small band of soldiers and their families set sail for a deserted Pacific island, charged with defending its Mexican sovereignty. The optimistic crew creates a viable community but then is forgotten and isolated as W.W.I approaches.

In 1908, under orders to defend a tiny, isolated Pacific atoll from an improbable French invasion, Mexican captain Ramon Arnaud, his young bride, Alicia, and eleven soldiers and their families set sail for the so-called Isle of Passion. In this dire, forbidding place, a viable community is created under Ramon's guidance and inspired by Alicia's dedication. But they are soon forgotten by a motherland distracted by political upheaval and the first rumblings of World War I. Left to the mercies of nature and one another--falling victim one by one to disease, hunger, lust, despair, and, ultimately, violence--the castaways who remain must find strength in the courage and steadfast resourcefulness of Alicia Arnaud, upon whom their collective survival now depends.

Based on true events, Laura Restrepo's "Isle of Passion" is a brilliantly rendered and dramatic tale of savage human nature--and one woman's determination to triumph over a harrowing fate.