Category: Australia and New Zealand 5 out of 5s

Carol Jones’ — The boy with blue trousers *****

In 1856, Little Cat feels disgruntled because working with silk and picking mulberry leaves never stops while her twin brother, Ah Yong gets to relax after a day’s work. But when she is drowning in a life and death situation, it is Ah Yong she hopes can help her. Will she evade the possibility of death?

Meanwhile, Violet has fled from the gossip in London and works as a governess in Robe Town, a small coastal South Australian port. But once her past catches up with her, she is desperate to escape along with the hundreds of Chinese who flood the town on the way to the goldfields.

What does the future hold for these two women from opposite sides of the world?

Heretaunga Pat Baker’s — Behind the tattooed face *****

This is a daunting tale of Maori settlers along New Zealand’s Bay of Plenty in the late 1700s. As the population expands, the need for more resources and the tribe’s ability to fight against neighbouring tribes is paramount.

This is an accurate account of Maori life and cultural beliefs before the onslaught of the Pakeha invasion.

Jane Harper’s — The lost man *****

Here’s one for those who love mysteries. When Cam is discovered dead from dehydration near a stockman’s grave in outback Queensland, his brothers, Nathan and Bud are suspicious. Cam’s well stocked car is parked nine kilometres away, but he had no water with him. Cam was well aware of the dangers in the forty plus degree Australian semi-desert. Something doesn’t add up. But when the police arrive on the scene and take his body for an autopsy, they find nothing to suggest murder. But Cam is not convinced and his son, Xander is also asking questions. What he discovers is not only exactly what happened, but a whole other life his brother lived that he was unaware of.

Hannah Kent’s — The good people *****

In the 1800s an Irish village, Nora loses her daughter, then her husband before she hires Mary to help take care of her grandson. Because her grandson neither speaks nor walks at age four, she pleads with the priest for help, but he turns his back on her. The women of the village blame the boy for their troubles, so Nora seeks help from Nance who has the “knowledge.”

This books starts a little slow, but is as captivating as Kent’s Burial Rites. We are taken into the minds of the villagers, from their family woes to their superstitions where they readily blame their misfortune on anyone but themselves.