What a great book! A wonderful setting, a beautiful romance, characters I really cared about, an exciting story and lots of fascinating historical detail...definitely one of my favourite books of the year. I could see the influence of other books that I love – The Far Pavilions, Gone with the Wind and Jane Eyre – so it's maybe not surprising that I loved this one too!Zemindar is set in India before and during the Sepoy Mutiny of 1857. Laura Hewitt, a single woman of twenty-four, is accompanying her newly married cousin Emily and her husband Charles Flood on a trip to India as Emily, at eighteen, is considered too young to travel without another female in the party. Laura is happy to accept the position of paid companion – her parents are both dead and she has no money of her own – but she is also aware that it may not be a good idea to be in such close proximity to Charles, whom she had been in love with herself before he turned his attentions to the younger, prettier Emily.After a brief stay in Calcutta, Laura and the Floods travel to Lucknow where Charles is planning to make the acquaintance of his half-brother Oliver Erskine who lives a few days' journey away on the estate of Hassanganj. Charles and Oliver have never met but knowing that his brother is unmarried and seems likely to remain that way, Charles hopes to convince Oliver to make him his heir. On arriving at Hassanganj, however, it quickly becomes obvious that this will not be an easy task. As a zemindar (hereditary landowner), Oliver has been used to leading an unconventional lifestyle on his huge and isolated estate and is not the sort of man who can be made to do anything he doesn't want to do!Laura and Emily are both fascinated by Oliver Erskine, though while he shows nothing but kindness to Emily, Laura finds him arrogant and annoying. But when mutiny breaks out among the Indian sepoys in the army and Hassanganj comes under attack, she begins to see a different side to Oliver. Taking refuge in the Residency in Lucknow where the British army is preparing to withstand a siege, Laura must decide how she really feels about Oliver and whether she can see a future for herself in India. First, though, she needs to stay alive…There are so many things I loved about this book it's difficult to know what to focus on first, but I think I should start by praising Valerie Fitzgerald's beautiful writing. Zemindar was published in 1981, but I almost felt I was reading something written by Jane Austen or Charlotte Brontë. Laura's story is told in the first person and her narrative voice sounds exactly as the voice of a 19th century woman should sound. The descriptions of India – the landscape, the culture, the contrast between life in the British colonial communities and the mofussil (the rural areas) – are stunning too.The story takes place during a turbulent time in the history of British India, but don't expect this to be a fast-paced novel – some parts are very slow allowing time for character development and fleshing out of the historical background. No previous knowledge is needed as we have the opportunity to learn along with Laura as the events leading up to the Indian Rebellion unfold. Later in the book, when the British begin to crowd into the poorly-fortified Residency for safety there are some quite graphic descriptions of the brutality and atrocities committed by both sides as Lucknow finds itself under siege and tales of even greater horrors suffered by those in Cawnpore reach Laura's ears. Obviously we are seeing things from a British perspective but there's some sympathy for the Indian point of view as well; having spent most of his life at Hassanganj, Oliver understands India and its people in a way that most of the other characters don't and he tries to pass this understanding on to Laura.The relationship between Laura and Oliver is a lovely and poignant one which takes its time to develop and is not without its difficulties and misunderstandings. At times it reminded me of the romance in Gone with the Wind, though while Oliver is similar in some ways to Rhett Butler, the quiet, sensible Laura is more like Jane Eyre than Scarlett O'Hara. Because I liked Laura and Oliver so much I was completely absorbed in their story and hoping for a happy ending for them both – it was not at all obvious whether they were going to get one so I was kept in suspense right to the end!I hoped I've made it clear, though, that this book is not a fluffy romance or a silly bodice ripper. The romance is only one element of the story and is sometimes pushed into the background while we concentrate on the history, the battles and the sieges. My only disappointment on reaching the end of the book was discovering that Zemindar was Valerie Fitzgerald's only novel. I know M.M. Kaye's Shadow of the Moon is set during the same period so I'm hoping to read that one soon and see how it compares.
I just had to sit back and say WOW!! at the end of this book. This was just outstanding,and I am sorry there was never a sequel and very sorry this author never wrote again. An incredible tale of Laura the poor relation on a journey to India with her newly married cousin Emily and her husband Charles (who Laura thought herself in love with). The book really has a Jane Eyre feel to it, neither the heroine or hero are out and out drop dead good looking, just strong, honorable people we come to care about. As they travel through India on the way to Lucknow in northern India we meet many characters as the author sets up her stage to the Sepoy rebellion and the seige of Lucknow. Also introduced is Charles' half brother Oliver Erskine, a Zemindar, or large land holder. Eventually Oliver and Laura fall in love, and are separated at Lucknow (after a harrowing escape from Oliver's estate after the rebellion). Oh, when Oliver said to Laura, "I will come back to you, for you". The rest of the book follows the harrowing conditions at the residency at Lucknow during the seige, the battles, deaths and brutal conditions suffered by the British. Be warned that this was a very brutal rebellion and some of the scenes described, although accurate, can be a bit gory, but important history to be reminded of and the mistakes that were made by ignorant pompous officials and the brutalities committed on both sides due to hate, ignorance and prejudice. It's unfortunate that we do not learn well from history and things are still so much the same in the Middle East in our present time. The thing I liked most about this book was the author's lovely prose and characters. I felt like I was reading Jane Eyre or Villette, she reminded me so much of Charlotte Bronte, particularly at the end with the letters Oliver and Laura exchanged and when they were finally reunited. You definitely want to set aside quiet time(no kids, dogs or phone) for the last 50 or so pages so that you can savor every lovely word and emotion. Highly highly recommended for any lover of historical fiction, and would suit well to a younger reader as the love scenes are extremely chaste. I would also recommend MM Kaye's Shadow of the MoonThe same setting, but her characters experienced the rebellion outside of the Residency, so you see a different side of the tale. Both are out of print, but readily available used.
Do You like book Zemindar (1981)?
Zemindar by Valerie Fitzgerald... An Epic, a voluminous read on the Sepoy Mutiny during 1857; from the British point of view. The author depicts through Laura Hewitt the perils of the war who on a visit to India with her cousin gets drawn into the mutiny. Split into 6 books, a diligent description of the way of life in India (of the British) during the mid 19th century has been dealt with. The Zemindar, Talukdar & British life style intertwine to form a new way of life and Laura is ultimately drawn to it. Caught between the half brothers Oliver (The European Zemindar of Hassanganj) and Charles, in an amorous entanglement that virtuously led the Zemindar to realize his dream to rebuild Hassanganj with Laura beside him. The author has filled in with many characters some real and some fictitious to fill the plot of the well spun story line. Yet again the ploy is of the British, does not dwell into the Indian view and sentiments for freedom, that by itself does not run parallel to the stories of the Sepoy mutiny as seen by an Indian. Oliver did understand the Indian (Pandies) viewpoint, empathized with the locals but with less conviction.
—Karunakaran N.
Think "Gone With the Wind" set in British India -- just as long, just as dramatic, and equally compelling, I found. The first half of the book is easiest to read: lots of wonderful characters are introduced, including young Laura Hewitt, the 'poor relation' who has a stubbornly independent spirit, and Oliver Erskine, Indian-born of English parentage, the hereditary master of a large Indian estate,who has an unfashionable (by British standards)sympathy for and understanding of the native populace. The second half of the book traces all their travails in excruciating detail through the historically accurate siege of Lucknow and the massacre at Cawnpore. I found it riveting. The characters feel very real: they are tested spiritually, physically and emotionally and all emerge much changed. The romance between Laura and Oliver is chaste (by contemporary standards) but powerful. This was a terrific read but you DO need a long and leisurely week to get through it. A 1981 publication.
—Susanne
Though the writing is superb, the pace is way too slow, describing in painstaking minutiae every moment of the characters' ordeal while under the months of siege at Lucknow. The author is able to paint a realistic and vivid picture of India during the British Raj as only a person who has lived it can. In many ways, this book can be compared to M.M. Kaye's Far Pavilions, a classic of the genre of Historical Fiction set in India. The advantage Kaye had is her totally fictitious plot, which gave her free reign to imagine colorful characters and places loosely based on the real world, whereas Fitzgerald had to stick quite closely to history since it is based on the events around Mutiny of 1857.I made it to about 2/3rds of this book and am unlikely to continue, having to renew my borrowing one too many times. Guess the Pandy's got to me, I could not outlast the siege.
—Ryan
