The Colonial Hotel

by Jonathan Bennett

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Pub Date May 13 2014 | Archive Date May 12 2014

Description

In this powerful novel of love and family, a doctor named Paris follows a nurse to a country on the brink of civil war. When a confrontation does break out, they are swept up by rebel forces and separated. The nurse, Helen, is pregnant; she escapes, but Paris is left behind, imprisoned by rebels as war rages.

A narrative of brutal power, but also of parental bonds, forgiveness, and identity, The Colonial Hotel recasts for the 21st century the ancient story of Paris, Helen, and Oenone. While the action might be ripped from international headlines, Bennett creates a wholly new take on an age-old tale set in the bleakest aspect of our unstable, yet remarkable, world.

In this powerful novel of love and family, a doctor named Paris follows a nurse to a country on the brink of civil war. When a confrontation does break out, they are swept up by rebel forces and...

Advance Praise

“A novel of heroic lives and deaths as a poor tropical nation descends into civil war, The Colonial Hotel blends the personal and political in a haunting indictment of human misery. It is also a very moving story of love and hope amid the ruins, with echoes of Graham Greene and J.M. Coetzee.” and — Ronald Wright, author of A Short History of Progress and A Scientific Romance

“Jonathan Bennett has written an absolutely riveting novel about the brutal and beautiful extremes of being human.” — Camilla Gibb, author of author of Sweetness in the Belly and The Beauty of Humanity Movement

"Bennett's writing is elegiac, but not ornate. There's a sense of deep melancholy in this book, along with the terror, horror, violence, and disillusionment you see in all war stories." — Annie Smith on Summer Reading Project

Available Editions

EDITION	Paperback
ISBN	9781770411784
PRICE	CA$22.95 (CAD)

Additional Information

Average rating from 4 members

Featured Reviews

Rosemary S, Librarian

The Colonial Hotel by Jonathan Bennett. Published by ECW Posted on February 4, 2014 by cayocosta72

In a war torn country, Dr. Paris follows the woman her loves. Helen is a pregnant nurse who has put herself and her unborn child at risk by traveling into a war zone. Both she and Paris are captured, only Helen manages to escape. Paris is left behind to wonder what the future will hold, if he will ever see Helen again, and what he might have to do to get the chance.

A retelling of the classic Helen of Troy for the 21st century.