(I received a free copy of this book from Net Galley in exchange for an honest review.)

At 17, Veronica O’Shay is happier running wild on the family farm than behaving in the ladylike manner her mother requires, and she despairs both of her secret passion for her brother’s friend Jack Murphy and what promises to be a future of restraint and compliance.
But this is 1913 and the genteel tranquillity of rural Beecroft is about to change forever as the O’Shay and Murphy families, along with their friends the Dwyers, are caught up in the theatre of war and their fates become intertwined.
From the horrors of Gallipoli to the bloody battles of the Somme, through love lost and found, the Great Depression and the desperate jungle war along the Kokoda Track, this sprawling family drama brings to life a time long past… a time of desperate love born in desperate times and acts of friendship against impossible odds.

As an Australian, the title of this book alone evokes a strong sense of history and pride, so when this became available through Net Galley, I knew it was something I wanted to read.

This is Mary-Anne O'Connor's debut novel and, sadly, it does show. While the story itself is well done, there are a lot of moments when characters are just terribly over-written. An example:

"...she had her heart in her face as she returned his gaze."

I don't even really know what that means, honestly. And there are lots of this kind of phrasing which was so unnecessary as the plot would have kept this book chugging along perfectly fine...

I look forward to her next book and see what that brings.


Paul
ARH