The Judas Bird

by D K Evans

The Story

According to island legend, the Judas Bird is a mysterious, seldom-seen resident of Roatán Island Honduras that makes itself known to precious few in the first light of pre-dawn. Following each infrequent visit this elusive bird vanishes, with its mournful call never heard in the light of day. To hear the bird is an unusual event—an experience that foreshadows change, usually bringing good luck for the observer.

Until recently Roatán was a little-known Western Caribbean island, but now (1995) an evil has descended. A small gang of murderous, modern day land-pirates abruptly become the law, terrorizing the island’s once peaceful population. Francisco Downer, an old man with a mysterious ability to see into the past is about to lose his family’s land to these pirates. To thwart this frightening evil now confronting the Downer family, the old man turns to Todd Wilson, a young, prior Peace Corps volunteer who, during his tour of duty on Roatan Island Honduras, once lived in Francisco’s home. After an absence of five years, Todd returns to find the delicate fabric of the island’s peaceful culture under immediate threat, devastated by a cascade of rapid changes that leave terror and murder in their wake.

Meanwhile, Colleen Kennit, a young woman residing on a small Scottish island, finds herself living a surrealistic dream, suddenly becoming the heiress of a quiet mountain estate on a tropical island in the western Caribbean that she has never heard of. Upon arriving on Roatán Island Honduras, she immediately falls in love with the estate and the local people, but soon discovers that all is not well. She is trapped as a pawn, wrapped into a dark, diabolical web of greed that threatens her new home.

Desperately wanting to rid the island of the evil and fear that now grips it, Todd puts a clever but complex plan to work. Guided by the old man’s secret “memories” into the past, Todd uncovers the key to an ancient Spanish legend regarding a secluded cove and the location of a treasure, buried there over three hundred years before. Digging deeper into this incredible mystery, Todd struggles with his growing love for the beautiful Colleen and his crucial mission— one that could potentially cost him his life.

With his plan seemingly crumbling and a hurricane bearing down on the island, Todd finds himself in a race against time. As things begin to go tragically wrong his only hope lies with a belief in his interpretation of the ancient Spanish legend and the faint, mournful call of the elusive Judas Bird.

The Judas Bird quickly captures its readers, wrapping them in the age-old human dramas of intense greed, murder, and romance. David K. Evans crafts a tight plot with charming prose and gentle glimpses of the turbulent years of the 17th century, a time when the island was the primary rendezvous for the “Brethren of the Coast,” the lusty, hard-living buccaneers and pirates sailing the Western Caribbean. Blending the majestic with the mundane and using the intricate characterization of colorful islanders and his knowledge of Roatan Island dialogue and customs, the author paints a beautiful and exciting portrait of modern life on a small island that was both isolated and unknown until but a few years ago.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

David K. Evans

David K. Evans is professor emeritus of anthropology at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, where he founded the Overseas Research Center in 1967. In his retirement he continues to take students annually to the island of Roatán off the north coast of Honduras in the western Caribbean. For forty-three years Dr. Evans has conducted research on Roatán and now divides his time between Winston-Salem and La Casa Promesa, his family's island home.

BOOK SIGNINGS:

You can email the author at dkevans@wfu.edu to check on any planned events. His homepage can be found at www.wfu.edu/~dkevans.

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ABOUT THE ISLAND

Roatán Island

Roatán Island is the setting for The Judas Bird. The author, Dr. David K. Evans, maintains a residence on the island. Also, as an anthropology professor at Wake Forest University, Dr. Evans founded and directed the Overseas Research Center on Roatán Island, where hundreds of students have lived and studied over the years.

Roatán, the largest of the Bay Islands, is located about 35 miles off the north coast of Honduras, in the Caribbean Sea, between the islands of Utila and Guanaja. It is approximately 37 miles long, and less than 5 miles wide at its widest point. It's population today is about 30,000, almost twice its population in 1992. It is the department capital of Islas de la Bahía ("Bay Islands"), one of the 18 departments into which Honduras is divided. Islas de la Bahía comprises the islands of Roatán, Guanaja, Utila, Barbaretta, the Cochinos Cays, and several smaller islets.

The capital and most populated town is Coxen Hole, located in the southwest of the island. Other important towns include French Harbor and Oak Ridge.

Located near the largest barrier reef in the Caribbean Sea (second largest worldwide after Australia's Great Barrier Reef), it has become an important cruising and diving destination in Honduras. Tourism is its most important economic sector, though fishing is also an important source of income for islanders. Built in 1993, Roatán International Airport is one of the most modern island airports in the Caribbean, receiving direct flights from Miami and Houston as well as San Pedro Sula in mainland Honduras. A new international airport on the neighboring island of Utila has been completed as well.

In 1998, the island suffered considerable damage from Hurricane Mitch, temporarily paralyzing most commercial activity.

The main language on the island is a pidgin form of English, contrary to the Spanish of mainland Honduras.

The Bay Islands were first discovered by Columbus on his fourth voyage to America in 1502. They were later claimed, and successively held, by Great Britain, Spain, and the Dutch United Provinces. Britain finally took control in 1643 and, with the exception of a one-month period of Spanish dominance in 1780, held onto them as a Crown colony, dependent on Jamaica. In 1860, in the aftermath of the William Walker filibustering affair, the British crown recognized Honduran sovereignty and ceded possession of them. The department of Islas de la Bahía was officially incorporated into the nation on March 14, 1872.

Most of the text of this article is used from the Roatán and Bay Islands entries of the Wikipedia, which can be found at:

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REVIEWS

From: Jennifer Oliver

"I have probably read thousands of books since I was a child and I swear that this book is one of the absolute best I've ever read! I'm only a quarter of the way through and I'm so happy that there is so much more to come... I think the fact that Evans places so much history and visualization of the island makes me consciously absorb every word."

From: Becky A. Dayhuff -The Caribbean

"David Evans has done a fine job with character development. The people of The Judas Bird are so very much like the real-life residents of Roatán. Mr. Evans obviously loves the Roatánians, and that love is exemplified in his descriptions of every day island life, as well as the history of those who came centuries ago and left a little of themselves. The pirates, buccaneers, Indians, Spanish, English, Scots, and slaves who melded into today's islanders are also central to The Judas Bird's plot. It is a rousing adventure story, a love story, and an historical novel all rolled into one."

From: Gordon Glass -Seattle

"I have just finished the wonderful book The Judas Bird. It was a very easy and greatly entertaining read... not to mention the historical richness of the text. Without having yet been to Roatán, the book did a splendid job of taking me from the cool drizzle of the Pacific Northwest and immersing me in the warmth of the Caribbean island. Evans did a really superb job of character development... I feel I know them. I don't think I could have found a more perfect introduction to the island than The Judas Bird."

From: Catherine McCabe -Travel Writer

"What a wonderful story Evans tells in The Judas Bird! His book weaves a tale chock full of intrigue, imagery, and beautifully done dialog, especially when he writes in the local dialect. The Judas Bird perfectly captures life on Roatán."

From: Alan Jenkin

"Thanks to David Evans for a well-told, rollicking good story! Some books, when you finish them, leave a sadness like saying goodbye to an old friend. The Judas Bird is one of those books; I hope there will be sequel! What a delightful read!"

From: Ron Thompson

"David Evans has written an intriguing new novel that interweaves history, love and deception in the western Caribbean. His characters seem real and rich. The Judas Bird is a tightly-crafted, yet carefree read as well as a beautiful lesson on what happens when paradise comes up against modern greed. This new novel focuses upon the island of Roatán, and picks up where Herman Wouk's Don't Stop the Carnival leaves off."

From: Jana Eylands

"I'm enjoying every page myself and can't wait for the sequel! Glad to have mine signed by the author as a personal keepsake of my lovely island home."

From: Barbara Prehn

"I just finished The Judas Bird, and so now please tell me what to do while waiting for the movie! What a great story!"

From: Mark Durham -Independence, Missouri

"An excellent book; it kept me up way past bedtime several nights."

From: Judy Wright

"I recently finished David Evans’ book The Judas Bird and just loved it! I couldn't put it down. It really is a wealth of info about Roatán Island! I hope he will write more about the island. It was a great combination of non-fiction and fiction!"

From: Judy Allred

"I have just turned the last page in The Judas Bird and I'm so sad it had to end. Loved every minute of the read... it was such a treat getting to know Roatán, from its history to its people, and in-between. Evans has put all of his years of study to use in this book and it made it so fascinating for me. I also loved the big print. His characters were well drawn and I hated to end my friendship with them. I'm still thinking about them as I write."

From: Anne Gilmore -Museum of Anthropology, Wake Forest University

"As an avid reader of mystery and historical fiction, I was hooked soon after I began this novel. The story has it all; including delightful characters and an insightful view of the culture of the people of Roatán Island. Well-researched accounts of pirates, buried treasure and intrigue are smoothly blended with ancient legends, mystery, and romance. The Judas Bird is highly recommended to those who will enjoy exciting adventure neatly mixed with colorful accounts of the past and present of a small Caribbean island. This truly is a "Must Read"! You will be left wanting more!"

From: Taoko Grande

"I was caught up in the excitement and sheer kinetic force of this splendid story. The Judas Bird is a masterful historical novel-- well done!"

From: Moragh Orr Montoya -a resident of Roatán Island

"I finally finished The Judas Bird and you can believe me when I tell you - it's fun! There truly is something for everyone in this treasure book: Intrigue, action, pirates, romance, comedy, mystery, history, anthropology, good guys, bad guys, even socio-economic theory (something called "The Image of Limited Good"), not to mention all your favorite restaurants: Gio's, Romeo's, Que Tal Café. If you are an Islander, born and raised, you'll laugh at Evans' dead-on descriptions of clueless tourists wandering around, getting sunburned, drinking margaritas and stumbling back to their cruise ships at the end of the day. You'll also recognize, and love, his beautiful word paintings of your Island. Roatán's beaches, reefs, and sunsets, its curving mountain roads, torrential rains and brilliant sun all come to vivid life. You can decide for yourself how good a job Evans does of duplicating the Island dialects - it sounds pretty exact to me. Most of his characters are Islanders and they speak to each other and to their gringo friends in Island English. He even duplicates the way many of you switch back and forth from formal English to dialect in what to all of us who speak only one, not very colorful, English, seems truly amazing!

"If you're an expatriot (from anywhere) living on one of The Bay Islands, or on the mainland, you'll be tickled pink by the familiarity of Evans' hero and heroine's experience at the TACA counters and waiting rooms in Miami. And you will watch, with growing amusement, their gradual acceptance of the completely insane (our earliest, rather limited point of view) as completely normal (our later, more experienced, point of view). Tell the truth! How many trips to Honduras did it take before you started playing "spot the missionaries, the honeymooners, the con artists, the 'mochilleros'"? And how long was it before all of the above became "foreigners" to us too, the objects of some amusement?

"Todd is Evans' hero; a fairly young Gringo whose first encounter with Roatán and its people came from a stint in the Peace Corps several years ago. Now he is returning to the Island after time spent in the States studying and teaching maritime history. He's bored with the work he's chosen for his career and is trying to find some way to make it exciting again. Colleen, the beautiful young heroine, comes from Scotland and is on Roatán because, by a strange twist of fate, she has inherited a lovely mountain top estate on this far away island, a place she has never heard of before. The bad guy, and I mean he's a really BAD GUY, is Charles Tegget, "a land pirate" with a smile that charms anyone right out of all common sense unless they catch a good look at his eyes, "the eyes of a stray dog" with no warmth or compassion, only cold calculation.

"Todd and Colleen arrive on Roatán just in time to get caught up in Tegget's latest scheme, an attempt to steal a beautiful beach property from the family who has owned it for over 150 years. Of course, Todd must save the property, win Colleen's love, find the treasure and thwart Tegget in such a way that the truly evil pirate never dares to set foot on Roatán ever again. He does so with the help of a tightly-crafted plan and a band of his island friends, Tony, Sharella, Miss Cristina, Tim, Miss Katy, and Francisco, an old "Turtle Mon" who mysteriously sees into the Island's distant past.

"That's your basic plot and it’s more than enough to keep you interested. If you don't want to know anything about pirates, islanders, and Roatán's amazing history you can skip over everything else and still have a great read. Skipping would be a huge shame, though, because The Judas Bird is jam-packed with fascinating pieces of history, island lore, odd vocabulary and all of Roatán in its idiosyncratic glory!

"In any case, the older people on Roatán won't ever have to worry about its history and culture being forgotten. David Evans has done a great job preserving it and serving it all up to us on a really tempting platter. No matter how busy you are you'll be glad you took the time to enjoy this book - whether you gulp it down fast, or savor it slowly, a little bit at a time."

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RELATED LINKS

You will find the author's homepage here.

Worldwide Outreach Services

A non-profit organization that supports Roatán Island through three programs: mother-child HIV testing, free clinics, and educational programs. Click here to visit their website.