Outcast by Brian Stoddart

The life of Etienne Jean Brocher, who was also known as Stephen Brocher, is truly extraordinary. This well-written book brings to life the real man who was a soldier, bigamist, and fraudster in the 19th century, with action spanning France, North Africa, and New Zealand. After a double murder in Petone, he faced the gallows in a complex trial that gives an understanding of colonial New Zealand and its suspicion of outsiders.

French-born Etienne/Stephen was a colourful character who constantly rubbed up against people in authority throughout his life. At one point, he was dispatched to North Africa, where he spent much of a decade in military prisons. He was banned from going back to France, so he headed to New Zealand, where he married for the second time – despite having a living wife back in Akaroa. He became a Wellington market gardener, but loan sharks soon circled, and when the double murder happened in Petone, he quickly went from being a witness to chief suspect. He was hanged for this crime, which many believe was a complete miscarriage of justice. Despite his many character flaws, it seems very unlikely that he had committed a double murder.

This is a fascinating biography of a social outcast who never fitted the mould and who paid the highest price for not playing by society's rules. He was a misfit, that was for sure, but being the ‘wrong sort of immigrant’ in colonial New Zealand was his ultimate undoing.

Reviewer: Karen McMillan

Quentin Wilson Publishing