Title: Marie Cadieux and the Fever Coast
Author: David Gennard
Pages: 272 Pages
Publisher: Self Published
The Blurb
“They don’t call it the fever coast for nothing. People go there, and they die.”— Marie Cadieux
Artist. Saboteur. Spy. Meet Marie Cadieux.
1889. Marie Cadieux has grown accustomed to life as an artist in Parisian high society. But the U.S. government expects more from their sleeper agent. They want the Panama Canal.
When a murder leads to plans capable of saving the flawed canal construction, Marie’s status changes to active.
Now, her only chance of freedom from a life of spying lies in the jungle on the other side of the world. Can Marie sabotage the building of the Panama Canal and evade two rival detectives seeking justice? Maybe… But only if she can survive, The Fever Coast.
The Review
Full disclosure, I have known the author – David Gennard – for 20 years and throughout that time he has sent me his writing and I have read and enjoyed it. However, it wasn’t until he had completed Marie Cadieux and the Fever Coast that I knew anything about it. I was fortunate enough to get an advanced copy and grateful with David to trust me with his work.
Now came the hard part – with reading the work of a friend comes responsibility. I needed to be fair in my review but equally I didn’t want to ruin a friendship. I needn’t have worried because The Fever Coast is an absolute romp of a story.
Marie Cadieux and the Fever Coast could be described as many things as it lands firmly within many genres but if I had to pick two then I would say it is a historical adventure story which has a strong female protagonist – Marie Cadieux – kicking some serious ass.
Marie Cadieux has a secret. Marie Cadieux is undercover and spying on intimidating men who underestimate women. Marie Cadieux is about to show these men just how powerful a woman can be. With instructions from the American government, Marie Cadieux must embark on a Death defying adventure to gain her freedom – however she soon learns that freedom can often come with a hefty price.
I genuinely enjoyed this book. Admittedly historical adventure novels are not usually my first choice of a read (and to be honest If I didn’t know the author I probably wouldn’t have picked it up) but this one had me captivated. I loved Marie Cadieux. She was strong, self-reliant and not afraid of allowing her heart to rule her head. She was flawed but it made her all the more powerful. The cast of characters that helped tell her story were well fleshed out and I felt like no one was “throw away”.
There were a few scenes that felt very visceral and if you are squeamish you may find difficult to read but the good thing about them is that they never underplay the moment, Gennard does not underestimate his reader.
The sweeping story has you go from the sparkling lights of Paris to deep in the jungle and you feel each change and beat. Along with Marie, I felt the heat of the jungle and the panic of the chase. I love it when a writer can give you that feeling and I felt it with Marie Cadieux and the Fever Coast. It reads like a movie.
Look, you can say that I am only saying this because I (humble brag) know David Gennard. However, having reviewed thousands of books over the past 10 years I can only promise that If I don’t like a book I don’t read it and I certainly don’t review it. Still don’t believe me? Then read it for yourself, it is a great escapist novel that I know you will enjoy.
Marie Cadieux and the Fever Coast by David Gennard is available now.
For more information regarding David Gennard (@david_gennard) please visit www.davidgennardauthor.com.
