Not Yet Drown'd

Kingman's stately debut historical stars Catherine MacDonald, a young widow in 1822 Edinburgh who is left with the care of Grace, the child from her husband's previous marriage. Just before she is unexpectedly visited by a representative of Grace's uncle, who wishes to take Grace to relatives in Virginia, Catherine receives a mysterious package from her twin brother, who reportedly drowned the previous year in India, containing tea, a fine shawl, and a sheaf of bagpipe music including a tune tantalizingly retitled ""Not Yet Drown'd."" Circumstances seem designed to compel Catherine to India-to protect her stepdaughter and to solve her brother's mystery-accompanied by her Indian and African maids, the latter an escaped slave. The journey has all of the era's fascination with the Orient, with a dash of the romantic, a little deceit and a central puzzle to keep things interesting. Though things move slowly, Kingman renders period detail-tea figures largely-with attentive care.