From Publishers Weekly
Restrained passion and conflicted loyalties drive this sweeping debut novel, in which two women of different eras experience the mysteries of Easter Island. In 1912, Elsa Pendleton's father dies and leaves her to care for her 19-year-old sister, Alice, who is beautiful but not quite right in the head. To secure their position, 22-year-old Elsa marries Edward Beazley, a contemporary of her father's who is an anthropologist with the Royal Geographical Society in England. They travel to Easter Island, where Edward plans to study the giant moai sculptures, and Elsa finds herself immersed in a new and harsh culture. As she contends with revelations concerning her husband and her sister, she befriends the native islanders and becomes engrossed in unlocking the meaning of the symbols she finds on wooden tablets. In a parallel narrative, Greer Farraday, a young American botanist recovering from a disastrous marriage to an older professor, arrives on the island in 1973 to uncover the mystery of the island's lack of native trees. One of Greer's fellow island researchers is Vicente Portales, a cryptographer attempting to interpret the rongorongo tablets and breech Greer's defenses. As Elsa and Greer's stories play out in alternating sections, a third element is intertwined: the tale of Graf Von Spee, the German admiral who led his ill-fated fleet across the South Pacific at the outbreak of World War I. Vanderbes knows how to craft suspense, and the narratives-while packed with vivid historical and scientific detail-move forward on the strength of her fully realized characters. When the connection between Elsa and Greer is revealed, it illuminates the novel. Like the overcast skies of Easter Island, this impressive debut is rich in shades of gray: meteorological, scientific, intellectual and emotional.Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Booklist
Through the interwoven stories of two women 60 years apart, this novel comes close to finding answers to the following age-old mysteries: the World War I defeat of Admiral Von Spee, the existence of the giant statues on Easter Island, the origins of the first flower, and why smart women let men take advantage of them. In 1913, Elsa accompanies her husband and sister to Easter Island for an anthropological study. Once there, she becomes a linguist and discovers the reasons behind the destruction of the giant Moai statues. World War I intervenes before the origins can be revealed to the rest of the world. Sixty years later, botanist Greer Farraday, suffering from the knowledge that her husband plagiarized her work as well as from his death, picks up where Elsa left off. The two compelling characters' stories of betrayal are equally engrossing. The story of Admiral Von Spee is less engaging and rather unbelievably tied to Elsa. This historical novel deftly combines romance, warfare, and science for the rationalist and romantic alike. Marta Segal
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved


Review
“One of the best novels of the year." —Robert Stone, author of Dog Soldiers

"Splendid...captures in the intertwined stories of two women a passion for life and for science that transcends time." —Andrea Barrett, author of Servants of the Map

"Recalling A.S. Byatt's Possession...weaves together history, science and romance, while maintaining an undercurrent of suspense." —Time Out (New York)

"Captivating...one of those impressive debut novels that come along once a year...and demands that readers take notice of its existence." —St. Louis Post Dispatch

"A gorgeous debut." —The Christian Science Monitor

"Intelligently conceived and elegantly written, Easter Island is a pleasure to read...combines gripping traditional storytelling with scientist-explorer protagonists...makes the quest for scientific breakthroughs both exciting and all too human." —Newsday



Review
"One of the best novels of the year." â??Robert Stone, author of Dog Soldiers

"Splendid ... captures in the intertwined stories of two women a passion for life and for science that transcends time." â??Andrea Barrett, author of Servants of the Map

"Recalling A.S. Byatt's Possession ... weaves together history, science and romance, while maintaining an undercurrent of suspense." â??Time Out (New York)

"Captivating ... one of those impressive debut novels that come along once a year ... and demands that readers take notice of its existence." â??St. Louis Post Dispatch

"A gorgeous debut." â??The Christian Science Monitor

"Intelligently conceived and elegantly written, EASTER ISLAND is a pleasure to read.... combines gripping traditional storytelling with scientist-explorer protagonists ... makes the quest for scientific breakthroughs both exciting and all too human." â??Newsday


From the Hardcover edition.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

"It is 1913. Elsa Pendleton travels from England to Easter Island with her husband, an anthropologist sent by the Royal Geographical Society to study the colossal moai statues, and her younger sister. What begins as a familial duty for Elsa becomes a grand adventure; on Easter Island she discovers her true calling. But, out of contact with the outside world, she is unaware that World War I has been declared and that a German naval squadron, fleeing the British across the South Pacific, is heading to the island she now considers home." "Sixty years later, Dr. Greer Farraday, an American botanist, travels to Easter Island to research the island's ancient pollen, but more important, to put back the pieces of her life after the death of her husband." A series of revelations brings to life the parallel quests of these two intrepid young women as they delve into the centuries-old mysteries of Easter Island. Slowly unearthing the island's haunting past, they are forced to confront turbulent discoveries about themselves and the people they love, changing their lives forever.

SYNOPSIS

In this extraordinary fiction debut--rich with love and betrayal, history and intellectual passion--two remarkable narratives converge on Easter Island, one of the most remote places in the world.

It is 1913.

FROM THE CRITICS

The Washington Post

Jennifer Vanderbes's sweeping first novel, Easter Island, exemplifies the continuing appeal of the historical-fiction genre to young, talented writers. An engrossing blend of adventure, romance and mystery, Easter Island spans the 20th century with three interwoven stories set in that remote South Pacific locale. — Heather Hewett

Publishers Weekly

Restrained passion and conflicted loyalties drive this sweeping debut novel, in which two women of different eras experience the mysteries of Easter Island. In 1912, Elsa Pendleton's father dies and leaves her to care for her 19-year-old sister, Alice, who is beautiful but not quite right in the head. To secure their position, 22-year-old Elsa marries Edward Beazley, a contemporary of her father's who is an anthropologist with the Royal Geographical Society in England. They travel to Easter Island, where Edward plans to study the giant moai sculptures, and Elsa finds herself immersed in a new and harsh culture. As she contends with revelations concerning her husband and her sister, she befriends the native islanders and becomes engrossed in unlocking the meaning of the symbols she finds on wooden tablets. In a parallel narrative, Greer Farraday, a young American botanist recovering from a disastrous marriage to an older professor, arrives on the island in 1973 to uncover the mystery of the island's lack of native trees. One of Greer's fellow island researchers is Vicente Portales, a cryptographer attempting to interpret the rongorongo tablets and breech Greer's defenses. As Elsa and Greer's stories play out in alternating sections, a third element is intertwined: the tale of Graf Von Spee, the German admiral who led his ill-fated fleet across the South Pacific at the outbreak of World War I. Vanderbes knows how to craft suspense, and the narratives-while packed with vivid historical and scientific detail-move forward on the strength of her fully realized characters. When the connection between Elsa and Greer is revealed, it illuminates the novel. Like the overcast skies of Easter Island, this impressive debut is rich in shades of gray: meteorological, scientific, intellectual and emotional. Agent, Maxine Groffsky. (June 3) Forecast: Like Andrea Barrett's Voyage of the Narwhal and Sena Jeter Naslund's Ahab's Wife, Easter Island combines the best elements of adventure and romance with a literary sensibility, and should appeal to a wide audience. Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

Library Journal

In this sprightly debut, Vanderbes successfully parallels two stories: that of Elsa Pendleton, who travels to Easter Island in 1913 with her much older husband and her mentally impaired sister to study the toppled moai statues, and of Dr. Greer Farraday, who in the 1970s escapes grief after the death of her famed scientist husband, accused of fraud, by studying ancient pollen on the island. Both women have been suppressed by circumstance-Elsa, always her sister's caretaker, has made a bid for security by marrying a colleague of her father after his death, and Greer battles prejudice against women scientists but is slow to admit how her husband has taken advantage of her. Both women find themselves coming into their own in the island's isolation. The tight weaving of the two stories can feel a bit suffocating. But it is to Vanderbes's credit that it never seems formulaic-in fact, she could have dug deeper into the implications of their struggles-and, thankfully, she doesn't wrap things up nicely. At book's end, both Elsa and Greer settle into quiet uncertainty. This is a readable, entertaining work; strongly recommended for popular fiction collections. [Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 2/15/03.]-Barbara Hoffert, "Library Journal" Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

Kirkus Reviews