Lightweight story about two men who meet in India and work together in a gold mining community during the inter war years of 1920s. The loves and trials of their adult lives are prefaced with the story of their early days prior to the meeting and how those early experiences influence the rest of their lives. ( )

This was a light, but very enjoyable read. Others felt that it was too predictable, which I suppose it was in some ways. Jack and Ned are the main characters and are the only developed characters in the book. Others are all shallow compared to them. It gives a slight insight into life in India in the 1920's. ( )

In Fields of Gold Fiona McIntosh branches out from her usual genre of fantasy into sagas/historical fiction. As such, the book is very different from what I've otherwise come to expect from her work. She here tells the story of Ned and Jack - two very different English-men (sorry, one is Scottish) who end up working together in India after having been forced to move there due to personal circumstances.

I was very fascinated by the description of life in India, and believe it to be fairly accurate - or at least in accordance to what I've been told by other people/books. The descriptions of the characters were well done and interesting, although occasionally rather stereotypical. While not exactly a page-turner, I was kept well entertained during the first 500 pages, and was prepared to give it a high recommendation.

Unfortunately, the last 94 pages made me change my mind. Suddenly the book turned very dark, and the ending was a lot bleaker than the rest of the book had led me to believe it would be. That in itself didn't bother me too much (I prefer happy endings, but can accept that sometimes it just wouldn't make sense), but the fact that it seemed unnecessary - or even pointless - to have it end this way did. It may be that she's paving the way for a sequel, in which case the ending may prove to be justified, but as of now, there's no indication that this is the case, and therefore a lot of my enjoyment of the book was removed.

Still worth reading though, but be prepared for a less-than-happy ending. ( )

Jack Bryant lives in mining community in Cornwell. Jack’s good looks and charm can woo any woman that he is interested in. Unfortunately Jack is also tempted by gambling and drinking. After a mechanical failure in a mine Jack decides to leave England to try mining in Australia or India.

Ned and Bella Sinclair are taken by their mother to Rangoon to be reunited with their father. In England Ned had completed his electrical apprenticeship. Things go drastically wrong in which Ned and Bella end up in orphanage that Ned knows that they must escape.

In India Ned and Jack’s paths cross and they form a wonderful friendship. As years go on and they gain more responsibilities within the mining community at Kolar Gold Fields. Ned and Jack both fall in love with Dr. Walker’s daughter Iris.

The friends within this book keep secrets from one another that lead to guilt and the ultimate betrayal. There are also wonderful and tender moments between characters that show the souls of one another.

While this book is a fiction one gets a sense of the tension of British colonialism and the racism between the British, Anglo-Indians and the Indian people in India and England in the early 1900s. ( )