Bernard Thorogood, born and educated in Britain, has served as a minister in the South Pacific and in London and, since retirement, has lived in Sydney, a member of the Uniting Church in Australia. For twenty years, he was much involved in the ecumenical movement. He has written a number of books on theology, a memoir, "A Minister's Minutes," and a previous novel set in the South Pacific, "Reef Passage." He was awarded OBE and a DD in 1992.