The Luminaries

Emery Staines is a 21-year-old blond-haired man from Sydney who goes to Dunedin and later to Hokitika to seek his fortune in the goldfields. When he arrives in New Zealand, he is an idealist and a dreamer. By the end of the novel, he becomes savvier and cynical after being conned by Carver.

Staines is in love with Anna. He is willing to do whatever it takes to make her happy, including giving her half of his gold. Unlike many of the other men in town who express their attraction to Anna by giving her advice and controlling her behavior, Staines simply tries to provide her with resources and does not judge her. He is deeply devoted to her. For example, when Anna is being held in prison and Staines is with her, recovering from his wounds, he decides to stay in prison with her even though he could pay his bail and leave.

At the beginning of the novel, Staines is represented by the Moon in the astral charts. After he reappears in the narrative, he is represented by the Sun. 

Lydia is one of the main antagonists in the novel. She is a beautiful and charming, and she will stop at nothing to make money. She has known Francis Carver for decades, and she works with him to steal Crosbie’s fortune and con Lauderback out of his boat, the Godspeed. Lydia is not ashamed about being a con artist and openly boasts about her skills to Mannering. At her gambling parlor in Dunedin, she has the gambling wheel fixed so that it always falls just past the jackpot. When the wheel malfunctions and Crosbie wins the jackpot, she avoids paying him by offering to marry him instead. They have an unhappy marriage and Lydia conspires with Carver, who has long been in love with her, to steal Crosbie’s gold and identity papers.

Lydia has a passion for fortune-telling and the supernatural. She does people’s astral charts for a fee in Dunedin. In Hokitika, she renames the Wayfarer Hotel the Wayfarer’s Fortune and holds a séance there to contact Staines. Although Lydia does use her interest in the supernatural to con people, she also sincerely believes in it since she is genuinely shocked when she realizes that Anna and Staines have the same astral charts; Lydia expresses that they might be “astral soul-mate[s].”

Lydia is represented by the planet Venus in the astral charts, which associates her with the Roman goddess of love and desire.

Francis Carver is the main antagonist in the novel. He is a tall, dark, brutish man. Though he is usually cold, greedy, and calculating, he has genuine affection for Lydia. Carver was born in Hong Kong to a wealthy British merchant trader. In his 20s, he used Sook’s father’s business to traffic opium into China, leading to Sook’s father’s execution. After this, he ran the Sook business for 15 years until Carver’s father chartered a clipper for him to run a shipping route between Sydney and the Australian goldfields. On its first run, Carver was caught for smuggling and human trafficking, and he was sentenced to 10 years’ hard labor with Shepard as his jailer.

After Carver’s release, he conspires with Lydia to blackmail Lauderback to get his barque, the Godspeed, because no one will sell Carver a boat after his arrest. Carver is a dangerous man; he threatens Löwenthal, hits Anna, and possibly poisons Crosbie.

Carver is represented by the planet Mars in the astral charts, which associates him with the Roman god of war.

Walter Moody is a young man from Scotland; he is in his twenties, with gray eyes and blond hair. Moody is extremely attractive and vain about it. He is intelligent and measured, having studied law at Cambridge, although he never passed the bar. His mother died before he finished school. His father, Albert Moody, is an alcoholic who abandoned his second wife and fled from Scotland to New Zealand to avoid debts. After his graduation, Moody decided to leave Scotland to seek his fortune in the New Zealand goldfields.

Moody is the only main character in the novel who is not implicated in any of its events and misadventures, and he is therefore the most impartial. He is a careful judge of character and knows how to get people to confide in him. Moody kindly agrees to act as the defense attorney for Anna and Staines, and he does a good job making their case. Although he is in Hokitika as a digger, he does not put a lot of effort into the work. After the trials of Anna and Staines, Moody decides to leave town to seek his fortune in Charleston.

Moody is represented by the planet Mercury in the astral charts, which associates him with the Roman messenger god. This is symbolic of his abilities to draw connections between the characters.

Sook Yongsheng is a middle-aged Chinese man who runs the opium den in the Kaniere mining camp outside of Hokitika. He is known as a “hatter,” or a digger who works alone. Sook was born to a well-to-do family in Canton, China. His father owned a warehouse along the Pearl River and Carver did business with him. Carver stored opium in Sook’s father’s warehouse, leading to his father’s execution. When Sook discovers the betrayal, he becomes bent on avenging his father’s death by killing Carver.

Sook is a kind man. He has genuine affection for Anna, who comes to his den every day to smoke opium. He is friendly with Quee Long, another Chinese digger. Like Quee, Sook faces constant discrimination as a Chinese person in Hokitika.

Sook is one of the 12 men who meet at the Crown Hotel in Part 1, although he does not entirely understand the discussion about Crosbie’s death due to his limited English. Sook is represented by the sign of Aquarius in the astral charts, which is a water sign that is associated with eccentricity and idealism.

Charlie Frost is a young banker at the Reserve Bank in Hokitika. He is modest and not eager to voice his opinions. He was born in New Zealand and is embarrassed about his family background; even though he has never been to England, he acts as if he misses it. Despite his quiet manner, Frost is not afraid to stand up to Mannering when he threatens Sook at gunpoint.

Frost is one of the 12 men who meet at the Crown Hotel in Part 1 of the novel. He is represented by the sign of Taurus in the astral charts, which is a sign associated with stability, responsibility, and a dislike of change.

Benjamin Löwenthal is the Jewish owner and operator of the West Coast Times, the daily newspaper in Hokitika. He observes some Jewish traditions, but he isn’t strictly devout. Löwenthal is from Hanover and chose to come to Hokitika instead of going to Ilmenau because it had not yet “emancipated its Jewish citizens” (316). He is morally self-righteous and proud of himself and his business. While generally kind and friendly, he “could be very forbidding when his ethical code was affronted” (333), such as when Carver threatens him. Löwenthal treats Anna with respect and takes care of her when she is injured. Despite the relative freedom he has in Hokitika, he faces some discrimination because he is Jewish. For instance, Mannering calls him “a crafty Jew” (179), which references Jewish stereotypes.

Löwenthal is one of the 12 men who meet at the Crown Hotel in Part 1. He is represented by the sign of Gemini in the astral charts, a sign associated with gentleness, intelligence, and curiosity.

Edgar Clinch is the manager of the Gridiron Hotel, which is owned by Staines. He buys Crosbie’s estate after he dies. Clinch works with Mannering to house the sex workers that Mannering manages at the Gridiron Hotel. Clinch is 43, with a mustache and gray hair. He is in love with Anna and expresses this in a controlling way, as when he presses her to give up opium.

Clinch is frustrated that Anna does not return his affection and sometimes, in the guise of caring for her, he takes advantage of her. For instance, when Anna is inebriated, he undresses her and puts her in the bath, and then uses the opportunity to search her dresses for gold. He later grows furious that she hasn’t paid him rent and tries to evict her from the hotel. This shows Clinch believes he has a sense of entitlement over Anna.

Clinch is one of the 12 men who meet at the Crown Hotel in Part 1. He is represented by the sign of Cancer in the astral charts, which is a sign associated with caring and romantic feelings.

Dick Mannering is described as a “goldfields magnate” in the novel. He is an English self-made businessman. He owns the Prince of Wales Opera House in Hokitika, invests in goldfields, manages sex workers, and is a “card sharp” or a person who cheats at cards. He is impulsive and bombastic with a tendency to lose his temper and wave his gun around to get what he wants. Mannering is prejudiced against Chinese and Jewish people and is not shy about expressing these opinions. He salts the Aurora fields and conspires with Staines on its sale to con Carver out of profits. Mannering is Anna’s manager and enabler in Hokitika; he takes her to the opium den in Kaniere, knowing that she will only become further indebted to him as a result.

Mannering is one of the 12 men who meet at the Crown Hotel in Part 1. He is represented by the sign of Leo in the astral charts, which is a sign associated with strength, passion, and arrogance.

Quee Long is a Chinese gold digger who works in indentured servitude on the Aurora mine. Quee is from Kwangchow. He entered into indentured servitude in order to pay for his ticket to New Zealand. His goal is to make 768 shillings on the goldfields, a number that in Cantonese sounds “like the phrase ‘perennial fortune’” (259). After this, he wants to return to China. His father, a city watchman, had been captured by the British in 1841 and was released when the city was opened for trade. Quee is ashamed that his father and his city were defeated by the British. Following the example of his father, Quee hates opium and judges Sook for his use of it. However, eventually, Quee and Sook become friendly with one another.

Quee tries to alert Shepard to the fact that the Aurora mine has no gold, but Shepard’s prejudice against Chinese men leads him to not take it seriously. So, Quee steals the gold from the lining of four of Anna’s dresses, smelts it, and labels it “Aurora,” hoping for a bonus for the find.

Quee is one of the 12 men who meet at the Crown Hotel in Part 1, although his limited English means that he does not entirely understand the discussion. Quee is represented by the sign of Virgo in the astral charts, which is a sign associated with hard work.

Tauwhare is almost 30, handsome, strong, and has “a deeply private arrogance” (98). He is Māori from the Poutini Ngai Tahu iwi, or people, who sold much of their lands to the colonialists. They had been left with only small parcels of land, including that along the Arahura River, where Tauwhare searches for greenstones known as pounamu that are used to make weapons and other things of value. Tauwhare meets Crosbie when crossing through the Arahura Valley to the river. Tauwhare is Crosbie’s closest friend, and they spend evenings together while Tauwhare teaches Crosbie Māori. However, Tauwhare ultimately betrays his friend unwittingly when he informs Carver of his whereabouts in exchange for a small payment. While the text is purposely ambiguous about this, it implies that Tauwhare kills Carver in revenge for Carver having a hand in Crosbie’s death.

Tauwhare is one of the 12 men who meet at the Crown Hotel in Part 1. He is represented by the sign of Aries in the astral charts, which is a sign associated with courage and confidence.

Pritchard is the chemist, or pharmacist, in Hokitika. He gets his opium supply from Carver and his laudanum was found in Crosbie’s cabin, although he did not sell it to him. Pritchard is moody, intense, and liable to lose his temper. He is something of a loner, but loyal to his close friends. He is friendly with Anna but thinks that “with all her excess and intoxication, [she is] too like him” (149).

Pritchard is one of the 12 men who meet at the Crown Hotel in Part 1. He is represented by the sign of Scorpio in the astral charts, which is a sign associated with loyalty.

Thomas Balfour is a British businessman who is around 50 years old. He is comfortably rich and has “that relaxed sense of entitlement that comes when a lifelong optimism has been ratified by success” (10). Cheerful, talkative, and tenacious, he earns his living as a shipping agent who arranges for the transport of goods. Balfour is a close companion of Lauderback and assists him in his campaign for Parliament.

Balfour is one of the 12 men who meet at the Crown Hotel in Part 1. He is represented by the sign of Sagittarius, which is a sign associated with extroversion and humor.

Lauderback is a politician who, for the better part of the book, is campaigning for the newly-created seat in Parliament for the Westland; he ultimately wins the seat by a landslide. Lauderback is a lawyer from London who came to New Zealand to make it in politics. He is very tall and “imposing.” Lauderback is assertive and seeks to shape the world according to his will. He talks over others, has a temper, and presents a very different face privately than publicly. Lauderback has an affair with Lydia, which leads to her and Carver blackmailing him into selling his boat, the Godspeed. Crosbie is Lauderback’s unacknowledged half-brother. It appears Lauderback has some affection for Crosbie because he keeps Crosbie’s letters and attempts to visit Crosbie while on his way to campaign in Hokitika, although Crosbie dies shortly before his arrival.

Lauderback is represented by the planet Jupiter, which associates him with the ruler of the Roman gods who, like Lauderback, is known for asserting his will.

Governor George Shepard is the jailer of the Hokitika prison, which is at first located in the Police Camp and later relocated to the newly-built prison at Seaview. Shepard articulates a keen sense of justice and duty, but his actions betray his vindictiveness. Shepard marries Margaret, his brother Jeremy’s wife, after Margaret murdered Jeremy. However, Shepard believes that Sook committed the murder and that Margaret exonerated Sook by claiming that Jeremy shop himself. As a result, Shepard holds a fierce grudge against his wife, and she seems frightened of him. Shepard kills Sook in an act of revenge, although he insists, he did so only because Sook would have otherwise killed Carver.

Shepard is associated with the astral influence “Restriction,” which is appropriate for a jailer who relishes locking up people.

Crosbie Wells’s mysterious death on January 14, 1866, is the inciting incident of the novel. However, his manner of death is ultimately ambiguous. While it is clear that Carver brought laudanum to Crosbie’s cabin that evening, and the autopsy found traces of laudanum in Crosbie’s system, Dr. Gillies and Shepard believe that it wasn’t enough to kill him and they think that he died from alcoholism. The novel never entirely resolves whether his death was caused by murder or natural causes.

Crosbie is an English digger who strikes it rich in the New Zealand goldfields. He marries Lydia and she conspires (with Carver) to steal Crosbie’s gold and his identity. After these losses, Crosbie arrives in Hokitika to start over, and he decides to start a timber mill instead of searching for gold. Crosbie is an alcoholic who lives mostly in solitude in his cabin in the Arahura Valley. He is friendly with Tauwhare, who teaches him Māori. Crosbie is also fond of Anna, and he is the father of the child she loses. Crosbie also seeks to have a relationship with his half-brother, Lauderback, and he persists in this even though Lauderback does not respond to his letters.

Wells is not associated with an astral symbol because he is deceased when the novel begins. He is instead described in the novel’s character chart as “Terra Firma” or earth, as he is buried.

Cowell Devlin is a Free Methodist reverend from Ireland. He is well-traveled, having spent time in Dunedin and New York before arriving in Hokitika to work as a chaplain in the town prison. He suggests that part of the reason he comes to New Zealand is to practice his religion freely: “A new practice, a new polity” (85). The Free Methodist order was founded in New York in 1860, which would make it very new denomination in 1866, when the events of the novel take place. Devlin is devout, humble, and modest. He spends his time preaching to the inmates at the prison. He is fond of Anna and protective of her, and he does not judge her for how she earns her living. He finds the unsigned contract of the gift of 2,000 pounds’ worth of gold from Staines to Anna in Crosbie’s cabin.

Devlin is one of the 12 men who meet at the Crown in Part 1. He is associated with the sign of Pisces in the astral chart, which is a sign associated with compassion and gentleness.

Harald Nilssen is a Norwegian commission merchant who has spent 30 years in England prior to coming to Hokitika. A commission merchant is someone whose job is to broker sales. Nilssen likes to indulge in the finer things in life despite his somewhat limited means. He managed the sale of Crosbie’s estate to Clinch shortly after Crosbie’s death and earned a 300-pound commission on this, which he is later pressured into loaning—and then “donating”—to Shepard for the construction of the prison. Nilssen is desperate to be liked, which leads him to tell Shepard about Lauderback’s affair with Lydia.

Nilssen is one of the 12 men who meet at the Crown in Part 1. He is associated with the sign of Libra in the astral charts, which is a sign associated with gregariousness and amicability