If you love your books either set in Australia or about Australia, then this is the book for you. Rachel's books are all set in Outback Australia. She makes you feel like you know the characters and the setting.

Really lovely story with great characters as always from Rachael Treasure. Great plot, setting and writing. Highly recommend to fans of this genre.

The day Drift – Melody Wood – turned twenty-one was no different from any other. Her father, Split (Dennis), had cared for her since she was a child when her mother disappeared. His grief was still raw and on occasion he lost himself in the bottle. But their life as cattle drovers was one Drift loved. Carefree, with the dogs and horses to keep them company while working the cattle, they roamed the coast of Western Australia. Drift had two women in her life who had made a difference – Wilma the travelling librarian, and Charlie a mobile saddler - and both had instilled confidence and the calmness of life in her.

When Drift was attacked and brutally assaulted, her life changed. She no longer trusted men and when she was embroiled in the secrets and lies she was expected to keep, Drift withdrew into herself. Further tragedy hit her and it was only the wise words of Wilma and Charlie that kept her sane. But could she make her own way in the world? Did she have the courage and fortitude to overcome all that she’d lost?

White Horses by Aussie author Rachael Treasure is an intriguing look at life and its journey in the vast countryside of Western Australia. Heartbreak and courage, loss and tragedy – the story has a powerful message. It was overly wordy and too descriptive in places in my opinion, which I feel would have benefitted a tighter editing, but overall the coming of age story is a poignant and heartfelt one. Recommended.

With thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my digital ARC to read in exchange for an honest review.

When I started making notes to write this review of White Horses by Rachael Treasure, I was disheartened to realise that on balance, the negatives for me outweighed the positives. This has nothing to do with the quality of writing as such, and everything to do with specific elements of the story that I personally didn’t care for.

Treasure’s passion for regenerative agriculture, and ethical animal husbandry, something she herself practices on her farm in Tasmania, is admirable and is clearly communicated in White Horses. It’s evident, even to a lay person, that the agricultural industry needs to embrace more sustainable, holistic methods of farming and Treasure doesn’t hesitate to drive this point this point home at every opportunity. ‘The Planet’ does sound inspirational, but there is no denying it has a cultish vibe, especially with the talk of the ‘Waking World’ vs the ‘Sleeping World’.

I really wasn’t too keen on the spiritual overtones of the story overall. While I’m all for love and light, compassion and cooperation, I personally found the endless philosophising a bit grating, and I thought the idea of the ‘ghost girl’ was cheesy.

I liked Drift (aka Melody Wood) well enough, she is smart, capable, idealistic, and feisty but also insecure and a bit naive. Her unusual upbringing, spent droving with her father, certainly seemed to have had some benefits, especially when it came to her connection with the land and the environment, but I was a little bothered that the author seemed to consider her isolation from her peers and unfamiliarity with technology somehow laudable.

The romance between Drift and ‘the stockman’ was okay, and obviously it all turns out fine. I would have preferred we had the opportunity to ‘see’ them spend more time together, instead we really only witness them at two crisis points.
*spoiler* One point I feel compelled to make is that the likelihood of ‘the stockman’ being legally allowed to re-enter the country, which leads to the HEA, would be almost nil, and it bugged me.

My biggest issue with the book however was the lack of repercussions for the men who assaulted Drift. It appeared that in both instances there were no formal charges laid against any of the men for the attacks on her (though it was hinted that they eventually faced consequences for other crimes). Perhaps I’m mistaken in my interpretation, but it seemed to me that the author implied that Drift was too ‘spiritual’ to require that the men answer for their crimes against her, and I was uncomfortable with that idea.

White Horses has received several glowing reviews from readers who were delighted with it, unfortunately I just wasn’t one of them.

I just love Rachael Treasure’s novels and White Horses is another enjoyable read. Rachael Treasure has a very easy to read writing style that allows the story to flow and creates believable characters. Love the down to earth and gutsy Australian setting and characters in White Horses. The colloquiums are so endearing and ring so true for the Australian rural environment. A very compelling read which kept me captivated throughout. As well as an enjoyable story there were also some interesting issues raised about living in rural Australia.
Highly recommended read for this genre.

Thank you to Netgalley and publisher HarperCollins Australia for a ebook copy to read and review

Okay, so I've read the first chapter of this one and here are the reasons why I'm not reading the rest of the book:


“Shaynene threw her phone down theatrically, her melon breasts wobbling in her low-cut red tank top, causing the tiger tattooed on her left boob to jiggle too. She interrupted her monologue and swung around to the pigeonhole mailboxes and gathered up a large bundle for Drift. ‘Your dad has two copies of his brainbox magazine in there — it means you must’ve been gone a while. What? Over four months? I’ve had two roots since. And not from the same bloke neither.’”


“Drift glanced at Shaynene’s short-as-short shorts, which bit into thighs as juicy as delicious Christmas hams.”


“And after work, I’d better go shave me legs and tizz up my southerly bits.”


I should point out, the first chapter is rather short, so this rot is condensed, making it even harder to stomach. The sexualised food analogy is weird enough, but coming from a female perspective, it's downright strange. The cliché Aussie rural speech gives an impression that residents of rural Australia are not only uneducated, but possibly also have speech impediments, and no class whatsoever. Frankly, as a resident of rural Australia myself, this sort of rot is offensive and intolerable. And the author had the gall to preface this chapter with #metoo. Maybe this is an excellent book. But with a start like this, I have sub-zero interest in finding out.

Thanks is extended to HarperCollins Publishers Australia via NetGalley for providing me with a copy of White Horses and subsequently saving me from wasting my money on a copy, as I found the cover quite appealing and may have picked it up one time on a whim. #nearmiss