The Palace at the End of the Sea - (Theo Sterling) by Simon Tolkien

About the Book

"New York City, 1929. Young Theo Sterling's world begins to unravel as the Great Depression exerts its icy grip. He finds it hard to relate to his parents: His father, a Jewish self-made businessman, refuses to give up on the American dream, and his mother, a refugee from religious persecution in Mexico, holds fast to her Catholic faith. When disaster strikes the family, Theo must learn who he is. A charismatic school friend and a firebrand girl inspire him to believe he can fight Fascism and change the world, but each rebellion comes at a higher price, forcing Theo to question these ideologies too. From New York's Lower East Side to an English boarding school to an Andalusian village in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada, Theo's harrowing journey from boy to man is set against a backdrop of societies torn apart from within, teetering on the edge of a terrible war to which Theo is compulsively drawn like a moth to a flame"--

Book Synopsis

A young man comes of age and crosses continents in search of an identity--and a cause--at the dawn of the Spanish Civil War in a thrilling, timely, and emotional historical saga.

New York City, 1929. Young Theo Sterling's world begins to unravel as the Great Depression exerts its icy grip. He finds it hard to relate to his parents: His father, a Jewish self-made businessman, refuses to give up on the American dream, and his mother, a refugee from religious persecution in Mexico, holds fast to her Catholic faith. When disaster strikes the family, Theo must learn who he is. A charismatic school friend and a firebrand girl inspire him to believe he can fight Fascism and change the world, but each rebellion comes at a higher price, forcing Theo to question these ideologies too.

From New York's Lower East Side to an English boarding school to an Andalusian village in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada, Theo's harrowing journey from boy to man is set against a backdrop of societies torn apart from within, teetering on the edge of a terrible war to which Theo is compulsively drawn like a moth to a flame.

Review Quotes

"This coming-of-age tale is the first of a duology, establishing Theo's foundation up to the start of the Spanish Civil War...Readers will be eager to see whether he's ready for the fight that is to come in the next installment." --Booklist

"A book rich with lyricism as well as pain..." --Historical Novels Review

"[A] fascinating, emotionally and intellectually engaging read from cover to cover...With a genuine flair for authenticity of detail and the kind of narrative storytelling style that holds the reader's full attention for start to finish." --Midwest Book Review

"In epic fashion worthy of his namesake, Tolkien crafts a remarkable novel of an American boy swept up by love and circumstance and cast into the crucible of the Spanish Civil War. Intense, vivid, and moving." --Mark Sullivan, bestselling author of Beneath a Scarlet Sky and All the Glimmering Stars

Prior Praise for Simon Tolkien

"[A] delight to read and deserves the success [he] will surely achieve." --The Washington Post

"Simon Tolkien knows how to keep a story moving, and he does it well." --NPR

"Tolkien's skill as a storyteller is worthy of notice." --The Philadelphia Inquirer

"Written with great surety and absolutely compelling." --Booklist

"Tolkien...proves himself worthy--and then some--of his literary pedigree." --Richmond Times-Dispatch