This is a lump of a book that turns out to be three books joined together once you start reading. There are 699 pages to navigate, and the story takes you through the years 1298 to 1327, moving steadily across half the world as you join the main characters on their epic journey from Cambaluc in the far east, right round to Cornwall in England.
It turns out to be quite a history lesson and I felt that Dana Stabenow had done all sorts of research before putting this together. On the flip side of that, I also felt that she wanted to leave no piece of researched knowledge behind, and the story is a bit like Forrest Gump in the way the characters brush up against all the important elements of history as they continue their journey.
The heroine is Johanna, who we meet as a child but she quickly grows into a beautiful woman who seems to excel at everything she does. She is the daughter of a merchant trader, Wu Li, and the Grand-daughter of Marco Polo, whose genes have made Johanna considerably taller and more European in appearance than the rest of her family.
In the early part of the book, Wu Li's family comes across a small boy, Jaufre, who is the last surviving member of a travelling caravan attacked by bandits on the road. Jaufre is just a little older than Johanna, and he also has European heritage, so that gives them something in common and they form a strong bond after Wu Li adopts Jaufre as his step son. Not surprisingly, Jaufre grows up to be tall and muscular, and the perfect partner for Johanna, but here begins the other strand to the story. Throughout the book we are teased with the 'will they, won't they' story line and that is embedded in the historical twists and turns.
When Johanna and Jaufre are around 17, they leave their home in Cambaluc in a hurry as Johanna's life is in danger, and they join a caravan of merchants moving west to give themselves cover. It is here that the main thrust of the story begins. This journey brings the travelers into mortal combat with a Mongol warlord, all sorts of armed soldiers and the evil warrior Gokudo, who we first meet as Johanna's wicked stepmother's bodyguard.
Johanna and Jaufre's travels allow them to gradually aquire a mixed group of travelling companions, who join them on their journey at various points on the globe. One of these companions knew Jaufre's father and he reveals that was a Knight Templar from England who had taken part in the crusades. Up to this point Jaufre had not known much about his father as he had been very young when his father was killed. This new information spurs the travellers on right through Europe and finally on to England to try to find out more about where Jaufre's family came from.
In addition to all the people on the journey, the party is accompanied everywhere by North Wind, the great white stallion that can only be ridden by Johanna and is possibly the fastest horse in the world. North Wind is key to many of the plot twists and does much to ensure that Johanna is seen as a very different kind of woman in the male dominated cultures.
Overall, this book is a good read, although the characters are glamorised to a certain extent. There are also some very improbable scenes where the outcome would be very unlikely in real life, but if you can just accept what you read without question, it is enjoyable.
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