England, 1920, and the world is slowly recovering
from a war that has changed everything. Lulu Pearson is back at
the large country house in Sussex of her guardian and great aunt,
Lady Clarice Pearson. But those dark years of the war had given
her a taste of independence, as, despite the disapproval of Lady
Clarice, she had left the safety of their country home for London
where she drove buses.
Born with a heart defect, Lulu confounded the doctors by thriving.
She has always been regarded as ‘different’ by her peers – set apart
in the early years by her Australian accent, ill-health and lack of
immediate family. Now, at twenty-six, she has finally come to
terms
with that difference and follows her own destiny as a sculptress.
The future looks bright for the beautiful and talented Lulu, for she
is on the brink of great acclaim following a highly successful
London exhibition. Then a mysterious letter arrives from Tasmania saying
she is the owner of a yearling called Ocean Child.
On the other side of the world in Tasmania, Joe Reilly, the scarred,
thirty-year old veteran of Gallipoli and Fromelles, is faced with a
dilemma. His reputation and that of his family’s racing stables,
hangs in the balance, for although Ocean Child could revive his
fortunes, the colt cannot be raced all the while Lulu denies
ownership.
Clarice Pearson is deeply troubled. Lulu seems determined to
return to Tasmania and discover the identity of her benefactor, but Clarice is equally determined she should stay in England. Lulu’s
spiteful mother, Gwen, is still in Tasmania, and her knowledge of Clarice’s scandalous past is a powerful weapon to be used against
Lulu – the daughter she’s shunned and resented since birth.
Disowned by Clarice, Lulu tearfully leaves for Australia with her
closest friend, the debutante and socialite, Dolly Cartaret.
Neither
of them can know they are being watched from the quayside by a man
who has been secretly shadowing Lulu for years.
