Historical Fiction Sequel Launches Today!

Transfer cover design by Creation Booth

I'm excited to share that today (March 31st) OC Publishing author, Apple Gidley’s latest novel, Transfer, launches. It's the 102^nd anniversary of the transfer in 1917 of Saint Croix from Danish to American rule. If you read Gidley’s first novel, Fireburn, and want to know what is going on in the lives of the characters you came to love, Transfer continues the story of those living at Anna’s Fancy.

Reviewers love it! “Apple Gidley’s striking new novel captivates from its very first page,” said Jack Scott, author, Perking the Pansies. “This is a deft and well-crafted plot, effortlessly weaving its way through the politically-charged uncertainty of the Danish West Indies and presenting us with such authentic and credible characters that the overall effect is seductive.”

Gidley, an Anglo-Australian author who divides her time between Houston, Texas and Saint Croix, USVI, has revelled in the cultures of the twelve countries she has called home, but now spends most of her time in the islands. Her European heritage and love of history spill onto the pages of Transfer, drawing the reader in as the main characters live their lives between Saint Croix, London, Paris and Copenhagen during a tumultuous time in history.

“When I first decided to write an historical novel about Saint Croix, I envisaged it around the transfer to America,” said Gidley. “But whilst doing the research I came across Fireburn, the worker uprising in 1878, and thought it an interesting and little-known piece of history.”

As the author worked on her first novel and the characters of Niels, Javier and Fabiana developed, she decided to separate the storyline into two books. The sequel, Transfer, follows the lives of the younger generation as each plays a part in the islands’ history. The characters grapple not only with the challenges of unsettled times, but with the clash of cultures and race.

“Initially Niels is like many young people - trying to find his way. Fabiana, on the other hand, was born to be an artist,” said Gidley.

“Reading Apple Gidley’s Transfer, will give you detailed insight into life in the then Danish West Indies,” said Michael Keldsen, editor of Magasinet, the magazine of the Danish West Indian Society. “What makes the book interesting is the story it tells of a gallery of individuals, most of them from the islands with a variety of national backgrounds, and certainly not with an insular approach to life and mind.”

Author, Apple Gidley

Gidley’s roles have been varied - magazine editor, intercultural trainer, interior designer, and Her Britannic Majesty’s Honorary Consul while in Equatorial Guinea. Now writing full time, she evocatively portrays peoples and places with empathy and humour. She is currently working on her third novel which is set in 1950’s Malaya. More on the author and her books can be found at https://www.ocpublishing.ca/apple-gidley.html or www.applegidley.com.