Felicity Volk
Reviewed by Helen
This is the first book that I have read from this author, it is a compelling read that takes us across the seas from England to Australia and from 1952 to 2012, the story of a young boy Paddy who is sent away and what he does with his life, then there is a young girl Evie and their meeting as teenagers in the Blue Mountains and then a lifetime of love, ups and downs and what lies can do to people whether they are good lies or bad you decide.
Paddy O’Connor is seven when he arrives at the farm school in Molong in the Blue Mountains after being sent away from his family, it is 1953 and life as he knew is changed forever, Paddy is a quiet boy who does what he is told and keeps out of trouble he learns that going back is not always the best. He is lucky enough to get a scholarship and spends a lot of time with a family while studying. At the age of sixteen he meets a young girl at the markets and his life again will change forever.
Evie Waddell lives with her family in Canberra, a loving happy family, she is very close to her grandmother, although her father wants her to follow in his footsteps and become a lawyer Evie wants to become a landscape artist plants are her world, when she is visiting her grandmother and her partner in the Blue Mountains at sixteen year old Evie meets a young boy the chemistry between them is instant, a meeting that will capture her heart forever even if there are separations and lies that will forever change them both.
I am not sure in some ways how I feel about this book, it is a book that had me changing my views about Paddy and Evie throughout, I am not sure that I always like them and other times my heart went out to them, MS Volk had me feelings lots of emotions, but it was a book that I had to read I had to get to the end and find out how Paddy and Evie worked their lives out and how their love and their lives evolved, what happened with truths, lies and desire as they spanned in their decades together. This book is so well written, MS Volk pulled me in from the start, and I do recommend it.
4 stars
Expected publication: February 25th 2020 by Hachette
