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Not Yet Drown'd
Catherine MacDonald is astonished to receive from her twin brother—who had apparently drowned a year earlier in the monsoon floods of 1821—a kashmiri shawl, a caddy of unusual tea, and a sheaf of traditional bagpipe music in his handwriting. When had he sent it? And why had he retitled a certain tune "Not Yet Drown'd"? Irresistibly, she is drawn to India to search for answers. With her stepdaughter and their two maids—one an enigmatic Hindu, the other a runaway American slave—she follows an obscure trail of tea, opium, and bagpipe music, discovering unsuspected truths about the man she is seeking. Reading group guide included.
534 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 4, 2007
66 people are currently reading
323 people want to read
About the author
Peg Kingman
3 books21 followersPeg Kingman is the author of Not Yet Drown’d and Original Sins. Formerly a tea merchant and a technical writer, she lives in northern California.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 59 reviews
October 24, 2007
I know this is mean but I was disappointed.
Dear Peg Kingman,
I'm sure when you were coming up with the ideas for Not Yet Drown'd - you thought you couldn't go wrong. India, bagpipes, tea, steamships, orphans and widows and tigers - what's not to love? But let me give you some advice for your next novel.
First of all, even if you do a whole lot of research, it doesn't all have to go into the book. Sometimes, too many details about how to brew tea or how the bagpipes work, really slow the narrative down.
Secondly, and this is linked to # 1, you obviously have great skill and experience as a technical writer but it doesn't serve you well here. I don't need to know how a steam engine works in great detail. I never will. All the lengthy how-to and descriptions made your story feel bloated and weighty. Perhaps all that technical descrption prevented you from creating characters that a reader could care about.
Which brings me to #3. Some of your characters are a tad cliched. The preternaturally gifted orphan, the repressed widow, the amorous sea captain, and most egregious of all, the two, not one, but two, heroic, forthright, honorable women of color who manage to save the emotionally stifled white people time and time again. Ick.
April 14, 2009
One of the best and most fun books I've ever read! Loved every minute of this from the very first paragraph. The book was filled with intersting details about Scotland, India, bagpipes, art, engineering, botany, and so much more! I will definitely reread this again this summer =0)
January 31, 2009
For several reasons, including an over-the-top villianess who attempts to steal her stepdaughter, Catherine MacDonald travels from 19th century Scotland to Colonial India. Along the way she meets up with two women on the run from horrible situations - one outcast Indian and one ex-American slave - and comes to believe that her twin brother, who was presumed dead, may be alive after all.
I wanted to like this book. In fact, I did like parts of this book. But the author relied too much on improbable coincidence and the somewhat "mystical" abilities of the Indian woman to move the plot along. Each time I would suspend disbelief she would tweak my nerves again with another mysterious vision or fortuitous coincidence and I would be jolted back out of the story.
Which is not to say the book was all bad. It had some good descriptive writing and the author can do a good job establishing a back story without going into long explanations that feel out of place.
I think it may be worth a second read, now that I know what I'm getting into, but overall it was disappointing.
I wanted to like this book. In fact, I did like parts of this book. But the author relied too much on improbable coincidence and the somewhat "mystical" abilities of the Indian woman to move the plot along. Each time I would suspend disbelief she would tweak my nerves again with another mysterious vision or fortuitous coincidence and I would be jolted back out of the story.
Which is not to say the book was all bad. It had some good descriptive writing and the author can do a good job establishing a back story without going into long explanations that feel out of place.
I think it may be worth a second read, now that I know what I'm getting into, but overall it was disappointing.
August 31, 2007
Peg Kingman's novel is mysterious, intriguing and just downright absorbing historical fiction. This is the kind of story I truly love. It is smart and full of atmosphere with strong, interesting characters leading fascinating lives. There is such a marvelous sense of place and time journeying from Scotland to India with many cultural tidbits to ponder. The fact that the tale involves Scottish music, tea and an ocean voyage in the 19th century makes it irresistible!
January 16, 2010
An excellent historical novel, written by an author from my neck of the woods (northern california). Set during the time of the tea trade (which any tea lover will enjoy), but also full of info on Scottish music, the science of steam powered shipping, inter-racial romanice, and so on. I was truly amazed at how much the author tackled, and how lovingly.
July 31, 2009
Not Yet Drown'd takes the history of tea growing in India, bagpiping , and the development of steam-driven propellors and wraps them all up in an entertaining adventure novel. Brave, courageous Catherine is our heroine searching for her twin brother who supposedly died in a flood. While the plot, at times, seems pretty contrived,especially toward the end,and the relationship between Catherine and Mr. Fleming a tad too much like those found in cheap romance novels, the book is very entertaining. For anyone who likes their historical novels filled with bits of esoteric information, this is the book for you. It would definately make my list of good beach reads.
February 4, 2008
Part historical fiction, part mystery, part love story! I was captivated by this novel by Peg Kingman which begins in Scotland and ends up in India. Along the way I learned a little about Scottish music and bagpipes, the opium production in India, the tea trade in China and India, British rule over India and much more. It whetted my appetite to learn more on so many topics! Truly an outstanding first novel by Kingman.
April 7, 2011
Set in the 1820's the book spans the globe. A young woman in Scotland decides to flee as someone else wants to take custody of her step-daughter. She travels abroad a ship bound to India. On the way she has many adventures. But the bigget adventure of all is to try and figure out what happened to her twin brother. Why was a hand written copy of music delivered to her house with one song mistitled? Was it an accident or a clue?
June 4, 2007
Elizabeth Bennet on the high seas, with a minor in tea and steam engines.
June 25, 2020
Very enjoyable read, giving insight to life a hundred years ago. Life in Scotland, America, India, and traveling by ship. Interesting that the main character is a widow, and goes by "Mrs. MacDonald"-which is her maiden name. Was that a Scotish thing or common practice of that time period?
July 19, 2020
A love song of India
accompanied by a few tunes of Scotland, grounded in solid research and expressed in lyrical prose in English, Gaelic and Hindu. I hope the redoubtable Grace note has her own book.
accompanied by a few tunes of Scotland, grounded in solid research and expressed in lyrical prose in English, Gaelic and Hindu. I hope the redoubtable Grace note has her own book.
May 30, 2014
I would've given Not Yet Drown'd two stars for being "okay" but, truth be told, this is a book I didn't like. I can't add much more to other unfavorable reviews except to say there was so much potential here for an engrossing story full of exotic mystery in an historic backdrop but the writer chose instead (and her editors also chose) to present us with this badly written tale. Let's set the trite, silly story aside for a moment and just focus on the writing.
Ms. Kingman writes in chunks -- a paragraph here followed by a cute li'l graphic divider, then another few paragraphs, another divider, another page or so, divider...you get the idea. All of this only proves the author has no skill in writing transitions nor does she seem to be able to include the paragraph's worth of information into the existing text. Some readers may not care about this style of disjointed, clunky writing but I don't find it enhances the flow of the story.
And then there's the author's maddening deviations from the era in which she has set her story. This tale takes place in 1822. Inexplicably our main characters seem to have very 21st century sensibilities. As I indicated in my "updates", Catherine, our alleged heroine, seems to have real antipathy for Christianity as evidenced by little jabs against it inserted in the book. Not only does this have absolutely nothing to do with Catherine's character development -- we're never told "why" she feels the way she does or in what way this impacts any of her decision making -- these little jabs have nothing to do with the story, so why are they there? It's Ms. Kingman sticking her nose in where it doesn't belong, especially in 1822, especially in Scotland when, culturally speaking, the majority of people belonged to a church and would not have made the kinds of observations made by Catherine, at least not without good reason...which we are never given. Add to this the broad-mindedness of all the "good" characters who seem to be up to the minute on modern scientific and social issues and I began to get the feeling that Ms. Kingman had done no research whatsoever on the limitations, mores, superstitions, and biases of the time. Every "good" character is Ms. Kingman. Every "bad" character is a caricature of some stereotyped "villain" that she probably read about as a kid, or worse, watched on television. So, sloppy writing all around. She gets an "F".
As for the story, young widow takes sea voyage and meets perfect soul mate with the help of a genius six-year-old, an old (or was she young) Indian woman, and a runaway slave. *yawn* This is just my personal opinion but when you have to use such an overused device as a genius child to fill in the gaps that otherwise should have been provided by better writing, well we're talking yet one more inexplicable character. The child, Grace, adds nothing to the story. Why is she there? For "cute" factor? It's hard to know. And, as I stated in an update, the Indian maid is a complete Mary Sue. Heck, the slave girl is also a Mary Sue. Okay, when it all comes down to it this entire novel reads like juvenile fan fiction.
In conclusion, I was never given any reason to care about or even like Catherine. She did so many stupid, selfish things and then, in a climactic moment, is highly praised by her love interest for having all kinds of virtues and fine qualities that we never saw her exhibit in any way. It's as if the author expected us to take her word for it that by virtue of being a young widow, Catherine must be worthy of our empathy and interest. A good writer would've made me care. That's not the case here. I can't recommend this book to anyone but if you must read it, as one reviewer said, "it's worth a skim".
Ms. Kingman writes in chunks -- a paragraph here followed by a cute li'l graphic divider, then another few paragraphs, another divider, another page or so, divider...you get the idea. All of this only proves the author has no skill in writing transitions nor does she seem to be able to include the paragraph's worth of information into the existing text. Some readers may not care about this style of disjointed, clunky writing but I don't find it enhances the flow of the story.
And then there's the author's maddening deviations from the era in which she has set her story. This tale takes place in 1822. Inexplicably our main characters seem to have very 21st century sensibilities. As I indicated in my "updates", Catherine, our alleged heroine, seems to have real antipathy for Christianity as evidenced by little jabs against it inserted in the book. Not only does this have absolutely nothing to do with Catherine's character development -- we're never told "why" she feels the way she does or in what way this impacts any of her decision making -- these little jabs have nothing to do with the story, so why are they there? It's Ms. Kingman sticking her nose in where it doesn't belong, especially in 1822, especially in Scotland when, culturally speaking, the majority of people belonged to a church and would not have made the kinds of observations made by Catherine, at least not without good reason...which we are never given. Add to this the broad-mindedness of all the "good" characters who seem to be up to the minute on modern scientific and social issues and I began to get the feeling that Ms. Kingman had done no research whatsoever on the limitations, mores, superstitions, and biases of the time. Every "good" character is Ms. Kingman. Every "bad" character is a caricature of some stereotyped "villain" that she probably read about as a kid, or worse, watched on television. So, sloppy writing all around. She gets an "F".
As for the story, young widow takes sea voyage and meets perfect soul mate with the help of a genius six-year-old, an old (or was she young) Indian woman, and a runaway slave. *yawn* This is just my personal opinion but when you have to use such an overused device as a genius child to fill in the gaps that otherwise should have been provided by better writing, well we're talking yet one more inexplicable character. The child, Grace, adds nothing to the story. Why is she there? For "cute" factor? It's hard to know. And, as I stated in an update, the Indian maid is a complete Mary Sue. Heck, the slave girl is also a Mary Sue. Okay, when it all comes down to it this entire novel reads like juvenile fan fiction.
In conclusion, I was never given any reason to care about or even like Catherine. She did so many stupid, selfish things and then, in a climactic moment, is highly praised by her love interest for having all kinds of virtues and fine qualities that we never saw her exhibit in any way. It's as if the author expected us to take her word for it that by virtue of being a young widow, Catherine must be worthy of our empathy and interest. A good writer would've made me care. That's not the case here. I can't recommend this book to anyone but if you must read it, as one reviewer said, "it's worth a skim".
July 8, 2020
Engrossing
Several negative reviews spoke of lengthy and tedious digressions about tea and bagpipe music. After reading these reviews, I was mentally prepared for a kind of Moby Dock, with the story broken up by long side journeys from the plot. Instead, I found delicately woven story, with each bit of information helping to set the tone, illuminate the characters, and guide the story. I did not find a single paragraph I would have wished to see omitted. If the characters sometimes came across as more mythic archetypes than fully rounded personalities, it was no flaw, but instead an appropriate style for a story that brings us to India.
Several negative reviews spoke of lengthy and tedious digressions about tea and bagpipe music. After reading these reviews, I was mentally prepared for a kind of Moby Dock, with the story broken up by long side journeys from the plot. Instead, I found delicately woven story, with each bit of information helping to set the tone, illuminate the characters, and guide the story. I did not find a single paragraph I would have wished to see omitted. If the characters sometimes came across as more mythic archetypes than fully rounded personalities, it was no flaw, but instead an appropriate style for a story that brings us to India.
July 25, 2011
Ugh, this was quite disappointing. I actually just finished this book. It takes me a day or two to read a really good book, this one took me about a week. It's so slow paced, it doesn't get somewhat decent until about 300 pages in. This book forces you to skip pages, and then you realize between all that useless detail and unnecessary dialogue, you missed a very important event!
I love romances. Now, I'm not saying any book that isn't romantic is terrible, but reading the inside cover of the book and seeing the fact that it mentions something about romance; you'd expect to actually be somewhat romantic. Hardly! In my opinion, I think the author should have used less knowledge about bagpipes and tea and more details about this so called romance going on. Right when you get to the moment when you think there might be any romance involved, the book ends. And if you're anything like me, you're sitting there wondering what went wrong in this book..
I really wanted to enjoy it, but I just couldn't bring myself to it.
I love romances. Now, I'm not saying any book that isn't romantic is terrible, but reading the inside cover of the book and seeing the fact that it mentions something about romance; you'd expect to actually be somewhat romantic. Hardly! In my opinion, I think the author should have used less knowledge about bagpipes and tea and more details about this so called romance going on. Right when you get to the moment when you think there might be any romance involved, the book ends. And if you're anything like me, you're sitting there wondering what went wrong in this book..
I really wanted to enjoy it, but I just couldn't bring myself to it.
Read
March 24, 2009This is another irritating book in that it's sanctimonious - but the one, major, saving grace is that it manages to cover a lot of the scientific, engineering, botanical, trade, British Empire, military, ocean going hot spots and issues of the early 1800s as the protagonists travel from Scotland via Amsterdam to Calcutta, and then north to Assam. As such, it's an interesting historical narrative that highlights the huge strides brought about by the industrial revolution, Empire building and travel. Well worth a skim.
December 19, 2014
The author blurb inside the back cover sometimes says more about the book than any number of puff pieces adorning the cover from famous writers or celebrities. Ms. Kingman was formerly a tea merchant and now lives on a mountaintop where she plays the bagpipes and grows tea. If there are two things too much of in this debut effort, it's tea and bagpipes. How she manages to wend the two together - well, you'll just have to read the book. She has talent; her descriptive prose of place is evocative, however she badly needed a ruthless editor. If you're in the mood for a languorous travelogue from Scotland to India, look no further: this one's for you
November 8, 2007
This book took quite a while to get going. It starts off set in Scotsland about 100 years ago and there were lots of names of people and old-school manners stuff that was boring. But then, I was really into the last third because things really changed. The best part was at the end, I wish the book had started at the point just before it ended.
August 25, 2020
This book is a one of a kind story, bringing together bagpipes, tea, and woven shawl on a journey to India to solve a mystery. While a bit wordy at times, I really enjoyed diving into this bit of historical fiction set in the 1800s, accompanied by so many strong female characters. I would definitely read another novel by this author.
June 28, 2019
I loved this book. A tale to transport you away..beautifully written, well-developed characters, all on their own intertwining journeys. Scotland, India, music, mechanics, art, silk, tea - delicious, fragrant ingredients from a skilled storyteller.
September 5, 2019
Maybe 3.5 stars. A bit on the predictable side but a long and enjoyable journey from Scotland to India. Way too much detail about engines (snore....) and fun detail about bagpipe music. Different sort of 'quest' novel with some snarky humor mixed in.
July 29, 2020
Absolutely astounding. I could not put this down. The characters, the mystery, the travel, the narrative - all so engrossing! Sure there are many cliches of character but that's to be expected in a rendering of some of the best gothic novels of the past, rather than a modern fiction. It harkens back to a much different style of writing - and after all it does take place in the 1800s, a much different time from today.
I have to strenuously disagree with a previous reviewer who lamented the lengthy descriptions of bagpiping & tea; both so integral to the story as to be inseparable from it and myself a huge fan of bagpiping 😉
Catherine receives a message from the grave - or is it? Staunchly believing that her twin brother is still alive she goes on an epic journey - with a mysterious Indian ayah - to find him.
I was transported to a different time & place on history by both character and scenery. Stories like these don't come around often & this one will be savored by me for a long time.
I have to strenuously disagree with a previous reviewer who lamented the lengthy descriptions of bagpiping & tea; both so integral to the story as to be inseparable from it and myself a huge fan of bagpiping 😉
Catherine receives a message from the grave - or is it? Staunchly believing that her twin brother is still alive she goes on an epic journey - with a mysterious Indian ayah - to find him.
I was transported to a different time & place on history by both character and scenery. Stories like these don't come around often & this one will be savored by me for a long time.
September 13, 2021
I did enjoy the story, although the style was 'slow' - I think in part as it was written in the voice of a writer of that time setting? It also went into a lot of technical detail (if you are into physics/engineering, bagpipe music history, or details of the tea trade this is for you).
But a fun storyline with a myriad of characters to love or hate. Including strong females. (most of the guys were 'meh' down to 'yuck'.) The setting - place and time - proved interesting as well as the minor mystery thread.
Another interesting point for me was this turned out to be a local author! who knew?
But a fun storyline with a myriad of characters to love or hate. Including strong females. (most of the guys were 'meh' down to 'yuck'.) The setting - place and time - proved interesting as well as the minor mystery thread.
Another interesting point for me was this turned out to be a local author! who knew?
July 13, 2020
Interesting story about three strong women of different races from different countries traveling from Scotland to India during the early 19th century. The downside is too much detail about steam boat engineering and several unrealistic coincidences.
The history of the Indian tea trade is a bonus in the story.
The history of the Indian tea trade is a bonus in the story.
August 22, 2020
The beginning and ending where okay but we got stuck in the doldrums during the ocean voyage between Scotland and India.
January 21, 2021
I'd ... buy it for my grandmother.
September 27, 2008
Moderately interesting storyline, but somewhat predictable. The first and last quarters of the book were the strongest and most compelling. The middle half was way too long and kind of boring. I skipped quite a few pages. The problem is that about a hundred pages of tedious conversation and tangential information could have been cut from this novel to make it move along faster. It says in the author bio that she was once a technical writer, and unfortunately sections of the book are as meticulous and dry as technical writing.
That said, I found the characters are interesting, the historical details impressive, and the settings well-described. The writing is good, despite the tediousness of some sections.
That said, I found the characters are interesting, the historical details impressive, and the settings well-described. The writing is good, despite the tediousness of some sections.
October 8, 2024
The premise of this book definitely felt up my alley. A missing, presumed dead brother. A plot to escape the people who mean to take a beloved stepdaughter away to America. A sea voyage full of love, murder, and intrigue across an ocean to India. The origins of tea.
Unfortunately, the execution was a slog. The book meanders through chapters of collected vignettes about everything from steam engine production to spicing food to how to play a bagpipe. Most characters are so stilted, I felt like I was experiencing everyone's emotions through a fog. Nothing resonated.
It's a shame because the author is clearly very gifted technically and has a vast knowledge of a lot of different topics.
This just wasn't an enjoyable book to read for me.
Unfortunately, the execution was a slog. The book meanders through chapters of collected vignettes about everything from steam engine production to spicing food to how to play a bagpipe. Most characters are so stilted, I felt like I was experiencing everyone's emotions through a fog. Nothing resonated.
It's a shame because the author is clearly very gifted technically and has a vast knowledge of a lot of different topics.
This just wasn't an enjoyable book to read for me.
Read
May 15, 2008I didn't finish this book. I read the first 100is pages (out of 400 I think) and then I got really busy and didn't have time to finish. I couldn't renew it at the library and it was already several days late and I didn't have time or really the desire to finish.
I got up to the part where the characters get on the boat to travel to India. The part I read wasn't bad but it was pretty slow moving. There was a lot of detail about stuff I just didn't really care about (like bag pipes).
I might get this from the library again sometime but honestly I might not!
I got up to the part where the characters get on the boat to travel to India. The part I read wasn't bad but it was pretty slow moving. There was a lot of detail about stuff I just didn't really care about (like bag pipes).
I might get this from the library again sometime but honestly I might not!
September 30, 2008
The author lives on a mountaintop in Northern California where she grows tea and plays the bagpipe.
This is one of those books that, after reading a few pages you can see in your mind an outline of what is going to happen. Her story is nevertheless interesting and well written.
The characters seem real but are often put into unreal situations. It seems obvious that she has put a lot of research into the technicalities involved in the situations she is portraying. Dialogue is well written and believable.
Altogether a pleasing, rewarding read. Reviewed by Lon
This is one of those books that, after reading a few pages you can see in your mind an outline of what is going to happen. Her story is nevertheless interesting and well written.
The characters seem real but are often put into unreal situations. It seems obvious that she has put a lot of research into the technicalities involved in the situations she is portraying. Dialogue is well written and believable.
Altogether a pleasing, rewarding read. Reviewed by Lon
June 7, 2010
This book was written by a woman who lives in my area and who I have met and interviewed for the newspaper when she was running a tea-importing business in Potter Valley. She is also in Bob's wine club and stops in his tasting room from time to time. For that reason Bob bought me the book for Christmas. First, I should say I liked it more than I expected to and learned a lot about the very interesting history of the global tea business. Beyond that, however, it was typical romantic historical fiction and fairly predictable.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 59 reviews