The Serpent Never Sleeps by O'Dell, Scott - 1990

U.S.A.: Juniper, 1990. Book. Very Good. Mass Market Paperback. 12mo - over 6¾" - 7¾" tall. Very-good copy. NO remainder marks or clippings. Covers are clean and bright (NO tears). 1 page shows a small, closed tear. NO other tears inside book. Tight spine, clean pages. NO writing or marks inside book. Pages show light tanning. 184 pages. Synopsis: Serena Lynn, age seventeen, turns down an appointment to serve England's King, James I, at court in order to follow her beloved Anthony Foxcroft across the sea to the newly founded colony of Jamestown. But their ship, loaded with much-needed supplies, founders in a hurricane, wrecking Serena and Anthony in Bermuda. By the time they make their way to Jamestown, the colony is in ruins, the people half-starved. Now Serena must go to the Indian princess Pocahontas to plead for the life of the colony and of the man she loves! Publishers Weekly: This latest historical novel by the award-winning author transports readers from a lavish 17th century English castle across the Atlantic to a shipwreck off Bermuda and finally to the struggling early settlement at Jamestown. As always, O'Dell writes seamlessly about historical settings. His young protagonist, a castle maid, Serena Lynn, follows nobleman Anthony Foxcroft to the New World; when he is killed, she hopes to return to England before deciding that her life is in America. A stream of dramatic action makes this story mostly compelling to read, but Pocahontas, appearing long after her famous encounter with Captain Smith, befriends Serena too late to provide a strong climax to the tale. Despite this, the novel provides a spinning sense of immediacy with underplayed but key events: the arrival of King James's English translation of the Bible in Jamestown; the near-constant debate of settlers as to whether to face a hazardous journey back to England or the bleak-looking future in the New World..