Left in the Wind: A Novel of the Lost Colony: The Roanoke Journal of Emme Merrimoth

by Ed Gray

In 1587, the 118 men, women, and children of the "Lost Colony" were abandoned by their governor on what is now Roanoke Island, North Carolina, and never heard from again.

In this fictional journal, Emme Merrimoth—one of the actual colonists of Roanoke—recounts the harrowing journey that brought the colonists to the New World. During the voyage, Emme becomes involved with Governor John White, who reassigns her to his household and then asks her to marry him. With no better prospects and happy to be free of her bland former employers, Emme agrees.

Once on Roanoke, the colonist restore the village abandoned by former English settlers and realize, when faced with hostile natives, that they have been misled by White. White plots to return to England to avoid the hardship of the New World, and he and his supporters drive a hard bargain with the colonists: they will send back much-needed supplies from England if they allow White to flee without interference. Faced with little choice, the colonists agree, and are left to fare on their own.

Emme, due to a scandalous past, is accused of witchcraft, shunned by the colonists, and enslaved by a nearby tribe. But throughout these dramatic turn of events, Emme commits herself to putting down on paper her every memory of the Lost Colony.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Historical, American History, 16th Century, Mystery, Adult

244 pages, Hardcover

First published May 2, 2016

About the author

Ed Gray is a writer and editor of books, magazines, and screenplays. With his wife Rebecca Gray he has been the founder of Gray’s Sporting Journal, GrayBooks Publishers, Aisle Seat Books and Tales2Film.
He lives in Lyme, New Hampshire, just a few miles north of Dartmouth College which, as he says, “has twice claimed to have educated me.”

Reviews

[Leah · Rating 1 out of 5]

Yeah, this was not the book for me. I wanted a historical fiction novel about Roanoke. What I got was essentially 1580s New World erotica. The MC sleeps with 4 men throughout the novel, is nearly raped by 2 more, and references her past as a prostitute (?? it's never directly stated, but she talks about entertaining members of a Mason guild.)

Naturally Emme is gorgeous and has ridiculously big boobs that make all the men (White and Native American) want her. Especially once she begins mingling with the Croatoan tribe and starts dressing as they do: only a flimsy piece of animal skin for a skirt. Oh and let's not forget how Emme all but wills herself to begin lactating so she can assume duties as a wet nurse, only to have the child taken away and when the pain of her engorged (and impossibly gigantic, remember) breasts becomes too much, a gentleman kindly takes it upon himself to step up and being suckling away.

No. This read more like a disturbing fantasy and more than once I was ready to abandon it but kept going in the hopes it would get better. It didn't.

For more thoughts, head over to The Pretty Good Gatsby!

[Sandra · Rating 1 out of 5]

I received this an an ARC from the publisher but the review is my own.

This was for me a very frustrating read. I liked the concept of one of the original settlers of Roanoke having written a journal of her journey from England there; it's founding and ultimately, its failure. History has left us with many questions as to what happened to this lost colony and what might have been the reason for it being left to fade into the annals of time. Even to this day with prestigious names such as Raleigh attached to its conception, we are still little better off in being able to truly come to grasp with the ultimate fate of these intrepid souls. So having Gray's own fictional grasp of possible events sounded very promising indeed, giving voice to those we can no longer hear. However, for me personally, this is not the book I wound up reading.

Almost off the bat I felt the frustration of dealing with a character who is so shallowly described as to have, in only a few chapters made me both internally and verbally roll my eyes at the sheer ridiculousness of her. Now as a reader my natural inclination is to want to find something in the character that I can relate with, to create a bond. The only thing created here was open hostility. Gray's prime character reads like a roll call of the cheesiest, movie part/pigeon holed heroines ever devised. Every single pace of her story made me want to throw the book across the room; underneath the cheap facade one could see the bones of a really good idea and to glimmer the wasted possibilities was just maddening.

I'm not going to list the various instances because then I'd just be relating the story page by page. Needless to say that as this is my opinion and the other reviews I've read all praised Mr. Gray's efforts, if you're looking for something to help you fill out the story of the lost colony of Roanoke and are interested in a fictionalized account than this could be a good read for you. As for me I was left feeling disappointed and confused as to why this is the finished product.

[Alicea · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book in today's post was generously sent to me by Pegasus Books. There are some publishers that totally get the kind of books that I like and Pegasus is right at the top of the list. They sent me a copy of A Novel of the Lost Colony, Left in the Wind: The Roanoke Journal of Emme Merrimoth by Ed Gray which comes out on May 2nd of this year. It's a historical fiction book about the English that attempted to colonize Roanoke at the end of the 16th century...and were never heard from again. Gray took that concept and ran with it in a completely unique way. As the title suggests, it's the fictionalized journal of Emme who we know was one of the colonists who traveled to Roanoke. The preface explains that the governor who traveled over with the more than 100 individuals (including women and children) returned back to England for supplies, went back to Roanoke, and discovered that the colony was empty. There was no investigation. Gray created an entire backstory for 1. Why the governor really went back to England and 2. What actually happened to the colonists. I have to confess that this area of history is one which I am abysmally ignorant. However, the best works of historical fiction make the reader want to do their own research and if it's a really excellent book it will make you want to go out into the field to see it with your own eyes. I will warn that this book went in directions that I hadn't expected (there are scenes of a sexual nature is what I'm getting at here) but it fits with the characterization of Emme who is very sexually liberated for her time. It was fast paced, engaging, and had me wanting to know just what exactly happened to those people...maybe Gray had it spot on...guess we'll never know. If you're a history buff and/or you like an engrossing read (who doesn't?) then I highly recommend you go out and pick up Left in the Wind which comes out on May 2, 2016.

[Taryn · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF.
Dear author,

Don’t try to write about women.

[♏ Gina☽ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although this is a work of fiction - using a fictional journal - the person who wrote the "journal" in this book was quite real.

Emme Merrimoth was one of 118 people, including children, were abandoned and left on Roanoke Island, North Carolina, and were never heard from again.

This journal outlines the harrowing journey the group endured while making their way to the New World. Governor John White is the one who abandoned the group, and the one with whom Emme begins a romance while on the journey. Once the group lands at Roanoke, they realize that White never intended to keep any promises, and leaves them to fend for themselves. As might be expected, the indigenous people were none too thrilled. Without much of a choice, they take White up on his offer to send back needed supplies following his trip back to England if they will allow him to go free.

Emme is singled out - having been a "friend" of Whites. She is accused of witchcraft, and thrown out to fend for herself. She becomes a slave to the tribe.

Through all of this, she remains strong, determined to survive, and to write her every thought down in this "journal".

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

My first acquisition for Pegasus! I hope you all love LEFT IN THE WIND (and the clever Emme) as much as I do!

[Crystal Falconer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Woman with few defining characteristics has sexual encounters indiscriminately and otherwise lives a life with little purpose.

[Melissa · Rating 2 out of 5]

I chose this as my "read historical fiction set before 1900" (Read Harder), but it's really historical fantasy and the fact that it was a poor choice is my fault. The historical part:
1) In 1585-6 an English colony was set down at Roanoke, the fleet left to get supplies, there was an attack by peoples of the First Nations which was repelled.
2) In 1586 - Sir Francis Drake happened by and collected those that wanted to return to England with him. With them they also brought the following: potatoes, tobacco, and corn. A small contingent was left to protect England's interests in the Americas.
3) 1587 a new colony was dispatched, this time to Chesapeake bay, but they (the Governor and a few others) set down at Roanoke to check in with the guard...which was gone. duh duh duhn!
4) For reasons, this group was not allowed back on the ships and the entire colony was disembarked at Roanoke rather than continuing to Chesapeake.
5) A colonist is killed, the colony feels threatened, and Gov. White heads to England (suddenly allowed back on board the ship!) to explain the colony's fears. Time passes. White returns in 1590 and finds the colony gone. The only clue was the word "CROATOAN" carved into a fence. This is a reference to an First Nations settlement nearby, but due to a brewing storm the fleet left without checking....duh duh duhn!
Now the fantasy:
This is the purported diary of a fictional female colonist, Emme Merrimoth, twice married, childless (3 dead back in London) who is the domestic servant and soon to be wet nurse for a pair of colonists. She is promiscuous, bedding the fleet captain, the governor, one of the other colonists, and finally one of the originial 15 who was an Indian captive. She's disliked by most of the colonists, but gets on well with the First Peoples.
My issues: the wet nursing bit (how is this possible?!!!), the promiscuity (why, why, why?!!!), the level of her education (would a domestic be able to write a journal and where did she get the paper?), and the whole noble vs. evil savage vibe. Basically, it suffers from being a first novel and a man writing a female perspective. Not quite man-splaining, but not far off.
Not recommended but not quite airborne.

[Penmouse · Rating 2 out of 5]

I tried very hard to like Left in the Wind: A Novel of the Lost Colony: The Roanoke Journal of Emme Merrimoth by Ed Gray. Sadly, the author lost my interest at the very start of his book as his book is inaccurate and the main character is depicted as a promiscuous woman.

To start with the author has the character, Emme Merrimoth, working as a servant for a couple who plan to emigrate to the New World. Merrimoth was supposed to work as a midwife and wet nurse for the couple after their baby was born in the New World. There is only one problem: In order to be a wet nurse you must be lactating yourself. Merrimoth was not pregnant, and was not nursing a child; so her position of wet nurse was virtually impossible. Later in the book Merrimoth is left to permanently care for the child, while working as a wet nurse, and the baby is removed from her care. Later in the book a male character then proceeds to help relieve the pressure of Merrioth's engorged breasts as she was unable to nurse leading to her one of many sexual encounters. Perhaps my recollections of Merrimoth are wrong concerning her ability to lactate but I don't think so.


Other sexual encounters have Merrimoth having sex with two different characters before arriving to the New World.

If I were Emme Merrimoth, I would be greatly embarrassed by the poor editorial treatment received by the author in his book Left in the Wind.

Suffice it to say, his book does contain adult sexual content.

There are some plusses concerning his book. His plot does invite the reader to continue reading his book as there is a bit of mystery involved.

Recommend with caveats given.

Review written after downloading a galley from Edelweiss.

[Gary Close · Rating 5 out of 5]

We are, all of us, caught up in the chaos of our times seemingly in control of our destinies but not. And European settlement of the New World was a gritty affair, the summation of all the desires and hopes of a people crammed in the Old World but willing to chance everything on the edge of another. Thrown into this mix is the character Emme Merrimoth who must make her way through the ambition of a fledgling British Empire complicated by the personal desires of the colonists themselves--including Emme’s.
We know the haunting story of The Lost Colony -- an English settlement planted amidst unknown peoples and then abandoned. Ed Gray’s book “Left in the Wind” recounts the mystery and the heartbreak of that forlorn effort. And, God help us, but we want to read it, feel it, smell it as each page turns to another, as each tragedy moves into another, ending as we know it will, with men, women and children trailing off to an uncertain future . Much like life today.
Much like life today. It bears repeating. This is what makes Gray’s book so compelling. Yes it is well written. Yes it is historically accurate. But what makes a good book good is that it tells us about the human condition in universal terms. We are, like the characters in the book, full of plans and desires, but the events of the day thwart all but a few of those plans -- and there is nothing we can do about it. Gray gets it. The book gets it. The characters experience it. As do we.
Now about the role of sex in this book--it’s there and it can make us uncomfortable. What else is new? Sentient beings like ourselves get a little uncomfortable when we face that which is irrational and yet so necessary. Gray’s presentation of the subject is necessary for the plot but it is never gratuitous nor salacious. I have no doubt that humans comported themselves then as they do today -- and the consequences can be serious as they are in the book. Gray gets it and presents it as such. Enough said on this subject.
I enjoyed the book. You will too.

[Thebooktrail · Rating 5 out of 5]

This has to be one of the most interesting and fascinating novels I’ve read in a long while. The story of the Lost Colony is apparently very familiar to most Americans but elsewhere, less so. I don’t know why as you would think people going missing en masse would raise an eyebrow or two!

There are more than a few historical links to the British as well.It was a late 16th-century attempt by none other than Queen Elizabeth I to establish a permanent English settlement and was even founded by Sir Walter Raleigh.

What’s more, this is a very clever mix of fact and fiction for the narrator Emme Merrimoth was a real person and was part of the Lost Colony. She was a widow but was used and abused by some very high up men in power at the time. She is accused of all sorts and ostracized and so tells a quite remarkable account of life at that time and of a colony under pressure.

I can’t believe this story is not well known outside of the states as all the places are real, the story is real and you immediately feel as if you’ re transported back in time and feeling the emotions, the conflict and the anguish of those who lived there at the time.

This is one amazing puzzle of history and I now want to head straight out to North Carolina to see all the heritage museums and real locations for myself. Just wow. Imagine stepping back in history and trying to find out what happened?Well I feel I have with this novel.

Highly recommended!

[Stephanie Gerson · Rating 1 out of 5]

A woman's perspective written from a man's hand can only work when the woman isn't written to be a hussy who enjoys getting raped by men. Some, or all, of the sex scenes could have been left out. I really didn't understand its purpose from the beginning and it never got better.

[MaryannC Victorian Dreamer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fascinated by this story of the Lost colony of Roanoke, haunting as well because we will never know what became of them.

[Carla · Rating 2 out of 5]

Left in the Wind is a fictional diary/journal from Emme Merrimoth, one of the 118 residents of the Lost Colony on what is now Roanoke Island. In 1587, two ships left England for North America with John White, the Governor of the colony, and Manteo of the Croatan tribe, who had been taken back to England after the first trip by Sir Francis Drake. Emme is working for a couple who are expecting their first child, and she will be their wet nurse. On the voyage, she becomes involved with the captain of the ship, then John White. She moves in with him to be his house servant and more. He eventually asks her to marry him. When they arrive on Roanoke Island, they find an abandoned fort, but none of the soldiers that built it. They fix it up and plan to stay there, but there are issues with the local native tribes, especially the one led by Wanchese of the Secotan tribe. After they are settle, John White heads back to England for supplies and to tell the crown what they are dealing with. He doesn't return until 1590 and the colonists are gone. The mystery of what happened to the Colony at Roanoke remains unanswered.

I wanted to read about the Lost Colony at Roanoke to find out more about how they came to be there, what happened once they arrived and maybe some idea of what might have happened, but although some of those answers were given, this is not what I was looking for. Left in the Wind is supposed to be a journal written by a real member of this group, Emme Merrimoth. She is a three time widow with no children. She is gorgeous, voluptuous and extremely promiscuous. She has relations with 3 different men, and it seems everyone wants her. It had way too many scenes of sexual activity, not what I was expecting. Between those scenes, there was some historical information that I liked, and learned from. There are accusations of witchcraft hurled at Emme for a variety of reasons, but she is saved from being killed by Manteo, the son of the leader of the Croatan tribe and a joint governor of the colony, left in charge when John White leaves. This is not historically accurate. If you are looking for a book about the Lost Colony, then this is probably not what you are looking for. It is a highly fictionalized and sexualized account of this time.

[Barbara Robinson · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was really a rollicking good story! But lacking the detail and depth I look for in good historical fiction. Character development was stereotypical and superficial. The main character seemed more 18th century than 1587. But as I said, a rollicking good story—it kept me engaged.

[Judy · Rating 3 out of 5]

After visiting Roanoke island and the site of the lost colony several years ago, I read a short history of what some think happened there. I wanted to read something about the settlement in the historical fiction genre. This is the first book I've tried, and it was somewhat lacking. Emme Merrimoth is the main character ( a fictitious person because there is a list of all the colonist who went to live on Roanoke.) That didn't bother me, but several things about her didn't ring true with me. First she was very outspoken and independent, something not common among such people as the settlers. And she was a brazen, bawdy woman. But the main thing is that this book is a diary of her experiences, and I don't think many people, women especially, had the expertise in writing and the education to keep such a diary. Nevertheless, I enjoyed what was written about the various natives, and think the author did due research on them. So I finished the book--it's a quick read. And I have another book on my list that I'll like better

[Holly Weiss · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thank Pegasus Publishing for sending me an ARC.

Great fascination filled me as opened the pages of a story of the lost colony of Roanoke. Very little is known about these intrepid people and their fate. What a wonderful opportunity to create a fictional story. I really wanted to love this book.

The book is formatted as a journal by a widow, Emmie, young, beautiful, and well-endowed. Tell us more about her character, you may say. My thoughts matched those as I read. The story was lean on substance, although events like Govenor John White's return to Englad appear to be accurately described. The author emphasized Emmie's fate/choice to be promiscuous. The salacious scenes are not graphically described, but I grew weary of them and felt they detracted from the book. I wanted the author to dig into Emmie's motivations and emotions without constant reminders of her ample bosom.

[Marybeth Quattrone hueter · Rating 2 out of 5]

Finally. An historical fiction I THOUGHT I could enjoy. Until almost immediately the main character is described as a well endowed blonde who enjoys sexual interludes. Ruined it, even though I liked the author's writing style. A blonde with a large bosom...how cliche.

[Chrisana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful Story

I very much liked the character Emme, she is a practical no-nonsense person. I also enjoyed the writing style of Mr. Gray, he really made it read like the journal of an Englishwoman.

[Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Left in the Wind is weirdly sexual. Every time the main character has any interaction with a man these are the three options that happen:

1. He tries to have sex with her, she resists, then gets into it. This is presumably because the men are attractive because the next scenario is-
2. The men are gross so it's an attempted rape and she gets away. Not sure why the others weren't also classified as rape since she resists initially.
3. Native American men tell her they are not attracted to white women.

There are also references to her breasts throughout the whole book and a very weird scene where a man relieves her when she couldn't nurse her baby. It was like a man's colonial fantasy. The sex wasn't graphic, just constant.

Emme Merrimoth, the main character, was a real woman in the Roanoke Colony- can you imagine her reading this character???

In spite of the odd amount of sex that spreads through the whole book, sometimes for plot, sometimes for zero reason and no purpose, I kind of liked the overall story. I didn't learn anything about the Roanoke Colony, but it was an interesting take on an elaborate situation of what could have happened. Somehow, even though time was spend on sex when it could have been used for characterization, the sex and bickering and relationships between the colonists and with the Native people did create an overall reminder that the Lost Colony of Roanoke did contain actual people with feelings and relationships.

[Christine Irvin · Rating 5 out of 5]

In 1587, 118 people (including women and children) left England as colonists and landed on what is now called Roanoke Island in North Carolina. John White, their governor, abandoned them for some unknown reason and no one ever heard from them again.

Little is actually known about what happened to the colony. Author Ed Gray offers a fictional account of what might have happened to them. The story is told in the form of a diary, that of Emme Merrimoth (the name of one of the actual colonists although the diary is fictional). Emme is determined to tell her story, so she writes everything down that she can remember. The result is an interesting look at what life may have been like for the colonists.

[Lori · Rating 1 out of 5]

Left In The Wind would better be left in the rubbish heap. What a disappointment! This underlying story was interesting had it been developed more fully. The mystery of the fate of the settlement Roanoke lends itself to a good story. The delivery of the story through a journal was a good start. The journalist is Emme Merrimoth who is hired to be a wet nurse for a pregnant couple,nevermind that she is not lactating. Emme's overwhelming sexual allure leads her mindlessly into varied situations more along the kind for a fruitloop skin magazine . The ridiculous story thread of desirable Emme swamps the telling of the colony. It is as though Mr Gray could not choose which story to tell,the historical conjecture or the over the top 1500 sexy fantasy so he rolled them into one tragic mess.

[Heather Hamel · Rating 3 out of 5]

The write-up on this book sounded amazing - a journal about the lost colony of Roanoke. The preface let you know right away that it was pure fiction and never said if it was based in any sort of research and what it was. It was mostly an entertaining story - even if she was extremely sexual for that time, at least it wasn't graphic. The last page was a huge disappointment - there was no real ending. Did she commit suicide and drown her son as well? Did she give up on being English and live with the natives? How was her journal found if she released it to the wind. I feel cheated by the ending.

[Stephanie · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a disappointment. The main character, widow Emme Merrimoth, is meant to be an independent thinker, a voice of reason among colonists who are depicted as being pretty clueless. But Emme's story involves being passed among four men over the course of the story, and having her ample bosom leered at by countless others. In all of her sexual encounters, none of which she initiates, she's depicted as initially resistant, then "giving in" to her secret physical passion. Another reviewer called this "New World erotica" and that's a perfect description.

[Roni Jennings · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an historical fiction account of the Roanoke Colony as written in the fictional journal of an actual member of the colony. Emme Merrimoth and her journal give us a glimpse into the politics and the relationships within the colony. She also writes about the native peoples- Manteo, Wanchese, Skiko- and others individuals as well as their tribes.
Intrigue, sometimes thrilling, sometimes court-like. The manner in which each of the characters depended on a collective of others for safety and survival was compelling. Definitely a happy find in the bookstore in Duck, NC!

[Jennifer · Rating 1 out of 5]

Quick read, but very bizarre. The whole reason for Emme going to the New World was to be a midwife/wetnurse for her boss' family, but she has no midwife experience, and considering she isn't pregnant/mother to a baby at the time, the wet nurse thing seems pretty farfetched as well.

Beyond that, the plot is just very "we do this, and then this happens, then this" Just seemed repetitive. Wouldn't recommend.

[Marilee Steffen · Rating 3 out of 5]

The "Lost Colony" of 1587 mystery has never been solved. One hundred eighteen men, women, and children were abandoned on Roanoke Island, North Carolina by their governor who went back to England and did not return for 3 years. When he did the colony had vanished. The fictional story of what happened to the colony is narrated, in her personal journal, by Emme Merrimoth, who actually was a member of the colony.

[Kyla Denae · Rating 2 out of 5]

i didn't actually finish this book, because. nah. but i did want to shout out to everybody in the reviews who's like "her being a wet nurse like that is unrealistic! that's not how breastfeeding works!" because that's actually. super realistic. especially given that the main character had had children before, and been able to lactate--all she'd have to do is establish enough of a demand to get a supply going again. so. you know. find the rest of this book to list out as stupid things, i guess.

[Marguerite · Rating 2 out of 5]

The mystery of the disappearance of the Roanoke colony tantalized me into reading this “account” of the settlement, even though, of course, completely speculative. However, the male author chose instead to objectify the MC, a single woman, giving her enormous breasts and willing to bed down just about anyone. This seemed like the writing of a lecher writing out his fantasies. I struggled to get past mid-point of the book and finally couldn’t take any more. DNF

[Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yes, Emme's sexuality is annoying and seems written by a man's fantasy. However, I still enjoyed this easy to read book. Since I know so little of this time period, I found this historical fiction interesting, especially the parts about Native Americans. I now want to visit the area of Roanoke and read more about this time period. A good introduction to the early English colonists in the New World.