Beyond the Orchard
by
Anna Romer
Beyond the Orchard by Anna Romer is set along the Great Ocean Road which, as the names suggests runs along Victoria’s South Coast between Geelong and Port Campbell, although others would have it continue much further for the tourist trade.
Back to Beyond the Orchard. The only towns mentioned are Apollo Bay, Geelong and Ballarat, an inland gold mining town, now a city. It is there that reality ends and fictions commences.
In 1993, our heroine, Lucy, in Beyond the Orchard is engaged to an Englishman when she returns home upon her grandfather’s death. The story line then commences to swap between 1993 and 1930 as Lucy uncovers some secrets of her ancestors and other people who frequented Bitterwood, the ancestral home of the 1930s.
I enjoyed the story although it was difficult, at times, to follow as an audio book. Again I re-iterate that the narrator’s voice did not do much to help this book. She was crisp and clear, however, a mere twenty-four hours after completing Beyond the Orchard I cannot remember one ‘character’ voice. Therefore, as alluded to above, this made transitions between 1993 and 1930 difficult to follow, especially when driving.
I did enjoy the story (a big plus for my reading) and thought it worth three and a half stars for the story and half a star for the nearby setting. I think Beyond the Orchard would be a better ‘read’ or if you opt for the audio version avoid driving when listening.
I think Beyond the Orchard
is a
with a half star bonus for the nearby setting
Goodreads readers have rated
Beyond the Orchard
an average of 3.98 stars from 195 ratings and 67 reviews
Beyond the Orchard
can be purchased on-line at
Fishpond, Booktopia, and Amazon
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