12 September 2020
17 August 2020
A poem or two
Find all my books here. |
Let's forget the pandemic and the lock downs, and all else that is happening in our world today and just go bush with Old Irish (A touch of Australia's past)
The
bush and plains are the stockman’s home, the pine clad mountains and valleys to
roam
His
hat rests low on his proud set head, and covers his hair of the brightest red.
His dog
lopes close by his horses’ side, and the pair never tire through a long day’s
ride.
Old
Irish has dreamed since he was a lad, of riding all day across this wide land.
His
mother and father had both been rovers. His dad was a man well known by the
drovers
They
had died up along the Murrays’ side, and were buried near that great river so
wide.
Irish
knows well how to laugh and to cry—to share life’s sorrows ‘neath God’s clear
blue sky
He
knows all there is about herding cows, about riding all day when the wind just
howls.
Once
on a trek though the great desert land, he almost got lost as for gold he
panned
Old
Irish has been where black parrots fly, where mulga and scrub reach well past
the thigh.
Past
rivers so dry, the cracks split the earth, and no one can say what the red land
is worth
He’s
been where ‘roos jump high in the air, where wallabies roam over land green and
fair.
He
thought once of settling, taking a wife, but decided with forethought that
wasn’t the life
No
drover would fit in a life in the city—to leave all this space would be more
than a pity.
In
places like Sydney, Melbourne or Darwin, where the people flock and there’s
plenty of sin
No
woman in town would put up with his roving, this need to be moving, constantly
going
To back
blocks and endless wide open plains, far away from the city, shops and the
trains
No
female around would put up with the hide of a man who just yearns to be free to
ride.
The
man who knows joy in a good horse beneath you, a dog for a pal and restrictions
so few
The hard
times, good times, dust and the heat, where no man gives in to a thing like
defeat.
The
bush folk have ways the townsfolk don’t know, they’ll greet you, but then let
you go
To
wander wide open plains that you love, where at night all the stars fairly blaze
up above.
On a
night when the air is crystal clear, you’ll sit ‘neath a sky where the stars
seem so near
You
can reach out and touch the sky, and be closer to God than you’ll be when you
die.
A
stockman knows about drought dust, heat, but in his way of life won’t put up
with defeat.
His
life’s filled with pleasures no town man would know.
Old
Irish is off where the wanderers go.
A Touch of Hope
I hope I’ll go back, I heard her say;
I hope to return to my homeland one
day
We all hope for things, both large and
small
I hope that my kids grow up fine and
tall
Gran hopes that she’ll die in her bed
of old age
And I hope for peace in the world at
some stage
I hope my son doesn’t get mixed up
with drugs
or ever gets friendly with muggers or
thugs
My daughter hopes Greg will ask for a
date
and I hope he doesn’t bring her home
late
I hope that my washing gets dry on the
line
it will if the weather stays hot and
fine
My husband hopes that the horses he
backs
will race home like wildfire and eat
up the tracks
We all hope to own our own house one
day
and hope we won’t have a large
mortgage to pay
Our aims and our dreams help keep
faith alive
But hope, firm and strong, is what
helps us survive.
Find excerpts and reviews of all my books here on my web site
26 July 2020
Annie's Choices (Settlers Book 4)
Where to buy Annie's ChoicesCurrently all my books are 60% off at Smashwords, but this sale ends at the end of July, so hurry
"Frontier life in Australia was
made up of backbreaking hard work. The author says in her dedication; “gallant
women and brave men”, and it's true. This is the story of Annie, a girl who has
come to spend Christmas season with her brother Tim and his wife Jo. The year
is 1843, and after Christmas, Annie decides to stay in Port Philip, where life
is far more exciting than in the mountains where she grew up. Young and
frivolous Annie sets her sights on Jacob, who works for her family. Jacob is
serious and hardworking. Annie manages to get him to take her for a drive, but
a violent storm hits and they find an injured girl in a ditch at the side of
the road. The girl suffers from amnesia and can only remember her name – Sally.
Annie's brother and sister-in-law agree to take her in until she can recover,
and Sally and Annie, being the same age, soon become friends.
Then Zachary enters the
picture, and Annie finds herself attracted to the dashing, mercurial man who
takes her to parties and compliments her extravagantly. Soon Annie is driving
out with him on Sundays, and going to his house where his family hold large
gambling parties. Knowing her brother would not like that, Annie keeps that a
secret. While at Zachary's house, she also meets a servant girl who looks
disturbingly like her friend Sally, who still claims she remembers nothing of
her past life, and who has now started working in the Annie's brother's house.
This story is like a winding brook, carrying you with it as it goes, bubbling with life and laughter, joy and tears. It's not only a coming of age story and romance; there is adventure, a murder, a journey, and a cast of well-rounded, believable characters. It's also beautifully written and once I started reading, I couldn't stop until I found out what happened to Annie, Jacob, Zachary, and Sally.
Ms McGill's
writing is like a tapestry with the woven threads of the story leading you
further into the design – a design that shows Australia in the eighteen
hundreds in all its complexity. The author also includes the massacres
inflicted on the Aborigines and their consequences. I love historical romance,
and this one is a wonderful addition to my collection.
“Annie's Choice” is book 4 in the Settlers'
Series, but it can easily be read as a standalone. Warning – reading this one
will make you want to read the entire series! Highly recommended.
|
27 June 2020
Annie's Choices (Settlers Book 4)
Read an excerpt from Annie's Choices on my Web Page |
Visit my BWL Author page for links to numerous online book sellers |
22 April 2020
Annie's Choices (Settlers Book 4) Order now for May 1st release
Pre-order now at Amazon and Smashwords. Coming soon at all major stores.
In book 4 of the Settlers Series,
we catch up with most members of the extended family from the previous three
books. Annie at 18 is the eldest Carstairs girl. She has lived out at Bathurst
west of the Blue Mountains, where she was born just after her Mama, Bella and
Papa, Tiger settled there back in 1824. After visiting her brother Tim and his
wife Jo just before Christmas 1843, Annie decides to stay in Port Philip,
seeking adventure much as her brother did when he set out with Jo the previous
year. Annie has inherited her mother’s independent streak, a character trait
that sometimes leads her to make the wrong choices.
Jacob O’Quinn works for her brother,
and the likeable young carpenter catches Annie’s eye. Jacob is quiet and
reserved in his manner, having spent his life with his widowed mother. When handsome
Zachary McDowell, the complete opposite to steady Jacob comes along, he sweeps
Annie off her feet. Heedless of advice given by others, Annie makes a choice
that turns out to be the worst she could ever make.
Restless, Annie decides to return
to her home, and Jacob makes the decision to escort her. The journey back
across the mountains proves to be a lot more eventful than she assumed it could
ever be. The road itself may have seen improvements through the years but there
will always be unexpected incidents to turn life around on its axis. A
suspected murder brings the might of the law down on the shoulders of the young
couple.
|
4 March 2020
Challenging Mountains--Settlers Book 3
Buy at your favourite online booksellerIf you enjoyed the first three books in this series:Book 4 in the Settlers Series is coming soon.
In book 4 of the Settlers Series,
we catch up with most members of the extended family from the previous three
books. Annie at 18 is the eldest Carstairs girl. She has lived out at Bathurst
west of the Blue Mountains, where she was born just after her Mama, Bella and
Papa, Tiger settled there back in 1824. After visiting her brother Tim and his
wife Jo just before Christmas 1843, Annie decides to stay in Port Philip,
seeking adventure much as her brother did when he set out with Jo the previous
year. Annie has inherited her mother’s independent streak, a character trait
that sometimes leads her to make the wrong choices.
Jacob O’Quinn works for her brother,
and the likeable young carpenter catches Annie’s eye. Jacob is quiet and
reserved in his manner, having spent his life with his widowed mother. When handsome
Zachary McDowell, the complete opposite to steady Jacob comes along, he sweeps
Annie off her feet. Heedless of advice given by others, Annie makes a choice
that turns out to be the worst she could ever make.
Restless, Annie decides to return
to her home, and Jacob makes the decision to escort her. The journey back
across the mountains proves to be a lot more eventful than she assumed it could
ever be. The road itself may have seen improvements through the years but there
will always be unexpected incidents to turn life around on its axis. A
suspected murder brings the might of the law down on the shoulders of the young
couple.
(No cover yet--but coming soon)
|
24 January 2020
Challenging Mountains (Settlers Book 3)
Buy here wherever you buy your books |
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