Second novel from impressive author

The Cousins by Robert Christensen, self published by Your Books, $30 .. .. .. .. .. .. ..

The Cousins is this author’s second book and comes impressively soon after its predecessor, Danish Blood.

That introduced us to the Knud Jensen family as it grew in Denmark’s Jutland province from the 1840s onward. As time progressed they forged a link with New Zealand as some became pioneer settlers.

The saga’s newest instalment centres around first cousins, Thor and Elise-marie. He’s a seafaring adventurer. She’s aptly described on the back cover blurb as a “Viking warrior who burns many souls”.

We last met Thor in the early part of the 20th century when he’d jumped ship in Wellington after a slew of exploits on land and sea. He’s now married with a growing family. His wife Christina’s from Mellemskov, the Danish settlement, now renamed Eketahuna.

Not a man of the land, Thor’s unable to adapt, returns to Wellington and establishes a shipping line of fluctuating fortunes.

Undeterred by the geographical distance between them, globetrotting Elise-marie continues to lust after him. There’s something of the mythological siren about her as she lures him back to her. She arrives unannounced in New Zealand.

No love’s lost between Elsie-marie and Christina. They openly fight over him. Elisemarie’s

vanquished but vows to meet him again. She does — in Denmark.

That’s the barest of bones of this rip-snorter of a tale. Christensen excels juggling an assortment of story lines.

His characterisation of Elise-marie as a leader of occupied Denmark’s resistance movement is a standout piece of creative writing.

Christensen’s proof it doesn’t pay to be snooty about the quality of work of those who bypass established publishers and do the job themselves. Like others, he’s found it’s the simplest route to establishing a reputation as a writer with wide appeal.