The Land Uncharted

August 22, 2016
The simple life of physician Lydia Colburn expands with the introduction of an enigmatic stranger in Keith’s (Aboard Providence) chaste Christian romance that insufficiently blends science fiction with Amish-style culture. In 2025, a world war rages over natural resources. Navy pilot Lt. Connor Bradshaw ejects and parachutes into the Land, an isolated, pre-industrial island in the South Atlantic Ocean. The settlers are descendants of pioneers who left America in 1861 and maintained a society of horse and buggy and prairie dresses. Unfortunately, it’s also a society in which Lydia fears that her reputation will be destroyed because of deranged stalker Frank Roberts. Meanwhile, Connor embraces his peaceful new life and virtuous courtship of Lydia. He also encourages local inventors to stop experimenting with electricity, so the outside world won’t discover the Land and its abundant fresh water. Science fiction elements intrude on the idyllic life of the villagers adding little to the story of a peaceful people and their homespun troubles. An inadequate background for Connor leaves his character and his quick adoption of the Land incomplete.