The Waterfall Gods

About the Book

This is the story of an ordinary English family that, partly because of the times through which they lived but more probably because of the choices they made, became an extraordinary family. The characters are drawn from life, but much poetic license has been taken, and the order of events and conversations of necessity, fictitious; but their stories are true. They are taken from the diaries, letters, and recollections of those who experienced them. Dates, times, and names have been changed to protect identities and privacy. It tells of the beautiful, gentle Catherine Hamilton, whose romantic dreams saw her caught up in a loveless marriage to an English policeman in Ceylon, manipulated into a web of deceit and cruelty. Her beloved sister, Victoria, talented, ambitious, and vivacious, who became the darling of the West End in prewar London, and of the trials and tribulations of the two young English women in the 1920s, in Ceylon. It tells of the heat, leopards, snakes, and the inherent dangers in the colony. Also of the men in their lives, and of the children, whose lives were so influenced by the choices of their parents. My father wanted this story told.

About the Author

Jane Paul was born in England and travelled extensively throughout much of the world, both as a child, with her parents, and later as an adult. Her early life was spent as a ballet dancer in Australia and Europe. When illness ended that career, she went nursing, qualifying as a registered nurse in the 1960s. This, in turn, took her to some of the more remote areas of Australia. She has been writing since she was a small girl, but The Waterfall Gods is her first published work. A work mainly of fiction but based on her family’s history. Since retirement, Jane has been travelling again, recently to Sri Lanka, for background material for her novel. In her spare time, she enjoys her children and grandchildren; gardening, music, her dog, and cats; and drinking wine and swapping good books with her old friends. She intends to wear out, not rust out!