Lies That Blind

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E.S. Alexander
2021. Penguin
Softcover. 23.1cm x 15.3cm, 274 pages
ISBN 9789814954426

RM81.00

Inspired by true events, Lies That Blind is a story featuring historical character Francis Light (1740-1794) who, in an effort to defy his mortality, was seemingly willing to put the lives and livelihoods of a thousand souls on Penang at risk.

Aspiring journalist Jim Lloyd jeopardises his future in ways he never could have imagined. He risks his wealthy father’s wrath to ride the coat-tails of Captain Francis Light, an adventurer governing the East India Company’s new trading settlement on Penang. Once arrived on the island, Jim-as Light’s assistant-hopes that chronicling his employer’s achievements will propel them both to enduring fame. But the naïve young man soon discovers that years of deception and double-dealing have strained relations between Light and Penang’s legal owner, Sultan Abdullah of Queda, almost to the point of war. Tensions mount: Pirate activity escalates, traders complain about Light’s monopolies, and inhabitants threaten to flee, fearing a battle the fledgling settlement cannot hope to win against the Malays. Jim realises that a shared obsession with renown has brought him and Light perilously close to infamy: a fate the younger man, at least, fears more than death. Yet Jim will not leave Penang because of his dedication to Light’s young son, William, and his perplexing attraction to a mercurial Dutchman. He must stay and confront his own misguided ambitions as well as help save the legacy of a man he has come to despise.

ESAlex

E.S. (Liz) Alexander was born in St. Andrews, Scotland in 1954, although her family moved to England a few years later. Liz has written/co-authored over 20 award-winning non-fiction books—most of them mainstream published—while maintaining a successful freelance journalism career.

Weight 750 g
Dimensions 23.1 × 15.3 × 1.9 cm

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