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The Jacaranda Tree
Setting out for Australia in the shadow of a gypsy's warning, Arabella Darracott is shipwrecked off the shores of Wales where she is rescued by notorious Lucien Sinclair, a rich ex-convict whose crime is linked to a dangerous secret. Original.
365 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1995
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148 people want to read
About the author
Rebecca Brandewyne
61 books175 followersBorn in Knoxville, Tennessee, Rebecca lived in Knoxville and then, later, Chattanooga for the first few years of her life. After that, she and her family moved to Kansas, where she grew up, spending her summers in Alabama, visiting both sets of her grandparents. She says she's just a country girl with a dash of big city sprinkled in for spice. But having traveled extensively in the United States, Canada, Mexico, Europe, and the Caribbean, she moves easily between the publishing world of New York and her hometown.
Rebecca graduated cum laude with departmental honors from Wichita State University, earning a B.A. in journalism, minors in history and music (theory and composition), and an M.A. in communications [mass (broadcasting) and interpersonal (dyadic relationships):]. During the course of her education, she was fortunate enough to study at various times under, among several other distinguished instructors, three Pulitzer Prize-winning journalists and one of the foremost authorities in the field of interpersonal communication. Twice a recipient of the Victor Murdock Scholarship, Rebecca taught interpersonal communication at the university level before becoming a published writer.
She was twenty-one when she started work on her first novel, No Gentle Love. She finished the book a year later and sold it to Warner Books some months after her twenty-third birthday, making her, at that time, the youngest romance author in America, a record that stood for ten years before finally being broken. To date, Rebecca has written over thirty consecutive bestselling titles, including novels and novellas on the following lists: New York Times, Publishers Weekly, USA Today, Los Angeles Times, Magazine & Bookseller, Ingram, B. Dalton, and Waldenbooks, among many others.
Her books have been translated into a number of foreign languages, including Chinese, Czech, Dutch, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Rumanian, Russian, Spanish, Swedish, and Turkish; and they have been published in over sixty countries worldwide. Many have been selections of the Doubleday Book Club and Literary Guild. Hardback editions of several titles have been published by Severn House, and large-print editions of some books are also available from Macmillan Library Reference and Thorndike Press. Rebecca currently has millions of books in print in the United States alone.
From Affaire de Coeur magazine, she has won: the Classic Award for Classic Romances, for Love, Cherish Me, 1990; the Golden Quill Award for Best of the '80s Historical Romances, for Love, Cherish Me, 1990; the Bronze Pen (Wholesalers' Choice) Award, 1989; the Silver Pen (Readers' Choice) Award, 1988, 1987, and 1986; and a Gold Certificate for The Outlaw Hearts, 1987.
From Romantic Times magazine, she has won: the Reviewer's Choice Nominee for Best Historical Romantic Mystery, for The Ninefold Key, 2004; the Reviewer's Choice Certificate of Excellence for Victorian Historical Romance, for The Jacaranda Tree, 1995; the KISS (Knight in Shining Silver) of the Month for Best Hero, for The Jacaranda Tree, 1995, and for Swan Road, 1994; the Career Achievement Award for Futuristic Romance, 1991, for Passion Moon Rising and Beyond the Starlit Frost; the Reviewer's Choice Award for Best Historical Gothic, for Across a Starlit Sea, 1989, and for Upon a Moon-Dark Moor, 1988; the Historical Romance Novelist of the Year Award, 1987; and the Reviewer's Choice Award for Best Western Romance, for The Outlaw Hearts, 1986. Rebecca has also been named one of Love's Leading Ladies and inducted into Romantic Times magazine's Hall of Fame.
http://www.brandewyne.com/castle/gall...
Rebecca graduated cum laude with departmental honors from Wichita State University, earning a B.A. in journalism, minors in history and music (theory and composition), and an M.A. in communications [mass (broadcasting) and interpersonal (dyadic relationships):]. During the course of her education, she was fortunate enough to study at various times under, among several other distinguished instructors, three Pulitzer Prize-winning journalists and one of the foremost authorities in the field of interpersonal communication. Twice a recipient of the Victor Murdock Scholarship, Rebecca taught interpersonal communication at the university level before becoming a published writer.
She was twenty-one when she started work on her first novel, No Gentle Love. She finished the book a year later and sold it to Warner Books some months after her twenty-third birthday, making her, at that time, the youngest romance author in America, a record that stood for ten years before finally being broken. To date, Rebecca has written over thirty consecutive bestselling titles, including novels and novellas on the following lists: New York Times, Publishers Weekly, USA Today, Los Angeles Times, Magazine & Bookseller, Ingram, B. Dalton, and Waldenbooks, among many others.
Her books have been translated into a number of foreign languages, including Chinese, Czech, Dutch, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Rumanian, Russian, Spanish, Swedish, and Turkish; and they have been published in over sixty countries worldwide. Many have been selections of the Doubleday Book Club and Literary Guild. Hardback editions of several titles have been published by Severn House, and large-print editions of some books are also available from Macmillan Library Reference and Thorndike Press. Rebecca currently has millions of books in print in the United States alone.
From Affaire de Coeur magazine, she has won: the Classic Award for Classic Romances, for Love, Cherish Me, 1990; the Golden Quill Award for Best of the '80s Historical Romances, for Love, Cherish Me, 1990; the Bronze Pen (Wholesalers' Choice) Award, 1989; the Silver Pen (Readers' Choice) Award, 1988, 1987, and 1986; and a Gold Certificate for The Outlaw Hearts, 1987.
From Romantic Times magazine, she has won: the Reviewer's Choice Nominee for Best Historical Romantic Mystery, for The Ninefold Key, 2004; the Reviewer's Choice Certificate of Excellence for Victorian Historical Romance, for The Jacaranda Tree, 1995; the KISS (Knight in Shining Silver) of the Month for Best Hero, for The Jacaranda Tree, 1995, and for Swan Road, 1994; the Career Achievement Award for Futuristic Romance, 1991, for Passion Moon Rising and Beyond the Starlit Frost; the Reviewer's Choice Award for Best Historical Gothic, for Across a Starlit Sea, 1989, and for Upon a Moon-Dark Moor, 1988; the Historical Romance Novelist of the Year Award, 1987; and the Reviewer's Choice Award for Best Western Romance, for The Outlaw Hearts, 1986. Rebecca has also been named one of Love's Leading Ladies and inducted into Romantic Times magazine's Hall of Fame.
http://www.brandewyne.com/castle/gall...
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
June 19, 2017
This is my kind of Brandewyne: there's passion, a subplot that didn't overtake the romance, colorful prose minus the purple, well-researched historical details and last, but never least, a dreamy alpha hero who didn't ever waver from his devotion to the heroine (hell yeah!).
Here are the five reasons why I love Lucien, and the main reason why this Victorian romance set in 1850s colonial Australia held my interest.
*mild spoilers*
Lucien is . . .
1. Compassionate. Nursed Arabella back to health after rescuing her from a ship wreck, and hired her guardian's servants to work for him after suspecting they'd lose their jobs.
2. Smitten. Loved and wanted Arabella so much that he remained celibate after meeting her, and thought her beautiful despite her plainness.
3. Brave. Saved Arabella from a crocodile, fighting it with his hands and only a knife!
4. Romantic. Had his cabin decorated as a flower garden for their wedding night.
5. Skilled. The man's talented tongue was as mighty as his sword, er, penis.
So, it's only right that a kick-ass hero like this is paired with a heroine who deserved him, and not one whose ass you want to kick, right? Unfortunately, Brandewyne stays true to form here and pairs her hawt hero with a weak-ish heroine. The kind of person whose supposed, strong moral convictions vaporized as soon as her traitorous body received a taste of Lucien's lusty lance of pleasure. Huh? So what was the point of all that prior anxiety? You know, when his ex-convict status bothered the crap out of you and preserving your reputation was so imperative?
In spite of Arabella's hypocrisy and other minor quibbles (like the predictable murder mystery), I still enjoyed this a lot. And cheered on when Lucien found the happiness he deserved!
Here are the five reasons why I love Lucien, and the main reason why this Victorian romance set in 1850s colonial Australia held my interest.
*mild spoilers*
Lucien is . . .
1. Compassionate. Nursed Arabella back to health after rescuing her from a ship wreck, and hired her guardian's servants to work for him after suspecting they'd lose their jobs.
2. Smitten. Loved and wanted Arabella so much that he remained celibate after meeting her, and thought her beautiful despite her plainness.
3. Brave. Saved Arabella from a crocodile, fighting it with his hands and only a knife!
4. Romantic. Had his cabin decorated as a flower garden for their wedding night.
5. Skilled. The man's talented tongue was as mighty as his sword, er, penis.
So, it's only right that a kick-ass hero like this is paired with a heroine who deserved him, and not one whose ass you want to kick, right? Unfortunately, Brandewyne stays true to form here and pairs her hawt hero with a weak-ish heroine. The kind of person whose supposed, strong moral convictions vaporized as soon as her traitorous body received a taste of Lucien's lusty lance of pleasure. Huh? So what was the point of all that prior anxiety? You know, when his ex-convict status bothered the crap out of you and preserving your reputation was so imperative?
In spite of Arabella's hypocrisy and other minor quibbles (like the predictable murder mystery), I still enjoyed this a lot. And cheered on when Lucien found the happiness he deserved!
January 19, 2019
The Jacaranda Tree was the last historical romance Rebecca Brandewyne published with Warner Books. After that, she wrote a few contemporaries, some paranormals, and a few gothic mysteries for Harlequin, before disappearing from the writing field. The Jacaranda Tree is about an Englishwoman seeking employment in Australia and finding love with a former convict after they get shipwrecked together. It's a murder mystery written in Brandewyne's gothic style.
Since I wrote this comment in my reading updates for The Jacaranda Tree: "This is RB'S Frankenstein, with plot points and verbatim scenes gutted from her previous books and stitched together into this one," I'd figure I'd make a Frankensteinian review from my notes.
1) Started The Jacaranda Tree by Rebecca Brandewyne and figured I'd play a drinking game. Rebecca Brandewyne always repeated the same terms or cliches over and over in every book. Grab your choice of poison and take a sip (or a guzzle) whenever you come upon of these terms:
-retrousee nose
-halcyon days
-gothic
-labyrinthine
-perditious
-mat/pelt of hair on his chest
-coppery taste of blood on lips
-Gypsy/ Gypsy curse
-sloe eyes
-sweeping moors
-bastard
-twilight dim
-of her own volition
-aquiline nose
-smoking a cheroot
I'm on page 88 and am on my second glass of sherry. (Have to justify it somehow, and this is better than just cuz I'm bored!)
2)If Jennifer Wilde is the king of the run-on-sentence, then RB is the queen of the subordinate clause!
3)Lots of info-dumping history/ecology lessons here...I know the author graduated Magna Cum Laude and is a Mensa member, but is this really necessary?
4)Arabella and Lucien make love. Arabella sees Lucien's "Murderer's Brand"... Lucien is now Michael Myers while Arabella does her best Jamie Lee Curtis imitation.
5)Well the bad point was that this was the worst RB I've ever read. Good thing is that it was still an ok book, though not near her best. JT was my least favorite of Rebecca Brandewyne's historicals, mainly because it was a verbatim regurgitation of conversations, plot points and love scenes from other books (mostly from
and
).
6)It was painfully obvious who the villain was, and there tons of cliches throughout (the serial killer who put coins on the eyes of his victims, for example). But even so, it wasn't bad. The love scenes were beyond purple prose, they were ultra-violet, but I liked that. If it had been the first RB I'd read, I would've enjoyed it more.
3 stars
Since I wrote this comment in my reading updates for The Jacaranda Tree: "This is RB'S Frankenstein, with plot points and verbatim scenes gutted from her previous books and stitched together into this one," I'd figure I'd make a Frankensteinian review from my notes.
1) Started The Jacaranda Tree by Rebecca Brandewyne and figured I'd play a drinking game. Rebecca Brandewyne always repeated the same terms or cliches over and over in every book. Grab your choice of poison and take a sip (or a guzzle) whenever you come upon of these terms:
-retrousee nose
-halcyon days
-gothic
-labyrinthine
-perditious
-mat/pelt of hair on his chest
-coppery taste of blood on lips
-Gypsy/ Gypsy curse
-sloe eyes
-sweeping moors
-bastard
-twilight dim
-of her own volition
-aquiline nose
-smoking a cheroot
I'm on page 88 and am on my second glass of sherry. (Have to justify it somehow, and this is better than just cuz I'm bored!)
2)If Jennifer Wilde is the king of the run-on-sentence, then RB is the queen of the subordinate clause!
3)Lots of info-dumping history/ecology lessons here...I know the author graduated Magna Cum Laude and is a Mensa member, but is this really necessary?
4)Arabella and Lucien make love. Arabella sees Lucien's "Murderer's Brand"... Lucien is now Michael Myers while Arabella does her best Jamie Lee Curtis imitation.
5)Well the bad point was that this was the worst RB I've ever read. Good thing is that it was still an ok book, though not near her best. JT was my least favorite of Rebecca Brandewyne's historicals, mainly because it was a verbatim regurgitation of conversations, plot points and love scenes from other books (mostly from
and
). 6)It was painfully obvious who the villain was, and there tons of cliches throughout (the serial killer who put coins on the eyes of his victims, for example). But even so, it wasn't bad. The love scenes were beyond purple prose, they were ultra-violet, but I liked that. If it had been the first RB I'd read, I would've enjoyed it more.
3 stars
March 8, 2012
Exciting story, filled with adventure, danger, and passion. The setting is colonial Australia, and the author does a wonderful job describing and creating the atmosphere of the early years of Australia as a penal colony. The hero, Lucien Sinclair, has been sentenced and served a prison sentence of 14 years hard labor for a crime he didn't commit. He then strikes it rich in the gold fields during the early gold rush period. He also becomes a prominent leader of the "Emancipation" movement. During a journey across parts of Australia to inspect land that he may be interested in purchasing, he comes upon a barely alive body washed-up on the Australian shore after a fierce storm has destroyed and sunk a cargo/passenger ship in the coral reefs. Through his own personal care this "Mermaid" survives and a burgeoning romance begins. Lucien is all "Alpha" male and sets the pages on fire with his domineering and lustful character. His "mermaid," Arabella, tries to deny her attraction to him with little success, fearing her shameful downfall and ostracism from society should her months of close contact with Lucien without a proper chaperone be discovered. Even though he has saved her life, the aristocracy is an unforgiving lot. However, she has much more to worry and fear once she arrives back into civilization and becomes the prey of a madman, serial killer of women. Definitely a wonderful, pulse-stimulating read!
October 28, 2010
This author is pretty much my favorite romance novelist, but I found myself a little disappointed with this book.
While I was still able to enjoy it, I pretty much figured out the main "twist" if it can even be called that, I was pretty disappointed with the way she unveiled who the real killer was. Then again, since I pretty much knew from the get-go who it was going to be, I have a biased opinion.
Anyway, despite the predictability, it's a sweet story of love.
While I was still able to enjoy it, I pretty much figured out the main "twist" if it can even be called that, I was pretty disappointed with the way she unveiled who the real killer was. Then again, since I pretty much knew from the get-go who it was going to be, I have a biased opinion.
Anyway, despite the predictability, it's a sweet story of love.
August 25, 2017
I know that The Jacaranda Tree is touted as a classic romance; however, this was way too dated for me. The romances of the 90s are strange and really not for me. Times have changed and I'm cool with purple prose not flowing on every page that I read.
August 1, 2012
4 and 1/2 Stars! Another Great Romance from Brandewyne and Another Great Escape, this time to 19th Century Australia
Brandewyne serves up a suspenseful tale of 19th century Australia and a society that consisted of those trying to recreate London in the far continent, the Exclusivists, and those sent there against their will, primarily convicts, who struggled to survive, and once freed became the Emancipists, looking to better their lives.
Set in the period 1855-1870, this is the story of Arabella Darracott, a highborn young English lady, who while in Yorkshire was told by a Gypsy that she would one day experience a ship wreck on the “other side o’ the world” where she would become a prisoner and encounter a demon “neath a purple-bloomin’ tree.” Later, upon her father’s death, she sails to Australia to join her guardian. But her ship breaks up on the Great Barrier Reef and she finds herself rescued and nursed her back to health by a dark, handsome stranger named Lucien Sinclair. Unbeknownst to Arabella—when she falls in love with him—he is a wealthy former convict who was convicted of murdering his wife, Verity. To add to that, in Sydney, someone has been murdering prostitutes and calling them “Verity” as he slices them up Jack the Ripper style.
Brandewyne vividly portrays the lot of the women transported to Australia, often for petty crimes (or no crime at all) and forced into lives of prostitution. And she shows us the prejudice against those who were sent to Australia for ostensible crimes, which prejudice continues to this day. (People there are quick to assure you none of their ancestors were the ones transported.) Arabella is a wonderfully likable woman, a risk taker, who thinks for herself. Lucien is a man hardened by life’s blows yet he survives to overcome those who would oppose him and to take the woman he has claimed.
Brandewyne is a great storyteller and I have come to love her romance novels. This one is among them and I highly recommend it.
Brandewyne serves up a suspenseful tale of 19th century Australia and a society that consisted of those trying to recreate London in the far continent, the Exclusivists, and those sent there against their will, primarily convicts, who struggled to survive, and once freed became the Emancipists, looking to better their lives.
Set in the period 1855-1870, this is the story of Arabella Darracott, a highborn young English lady, who while in Yorkshire was told by a Gypsy that she would one day experience a ship wreck on the “other side o’ the world” where she would become a prisoner and encounter a demon “neath a purple-bloomin’ tree.” Later, upon her father’s death, she sails to Australia to join her guardian. But her ship breaks up on the Great Barrier Reef and she finds herself rescued and nursed her back to health by a dark, handsome stranger named Lucien Sinclair. Unbeknownst to Arabella—when she falls in love with him—he is a wealthy former convict who was convicted of murdering his wife, Verity. To add to that, in Sydney, someone has been murdering prostitutes and calling them “Verity” as he slices them up Jack the Ripper style.
Brandewyne vividly portrays the lot of the women transported to Australia, often for petty crimes (or no crime at all) and forced into lives of prostitution. And she shows us the prejudice against those who were sent to Australia for ostensible crimes, which prejudice continues to this day. (People there are quick to assure you none of their ancestors were the ones transported.) Arabella is a wonderfully likable woman, a risk taker, who thinks for herself. Lucien is a man hardened by life’s blows yet he survives to overcome those who would oppose him and to take the woman he has claimed.
Brandewyne is a great storyteller and I have come to love her romance novels. This one is among them and I highly recommend it.
January 9, 2020
I think this may have been the first romance novel I ever looked at. It was something my mom left lying around. Ha.
So, 2020 Beth is a bit aghast this is one of the first romance novels I ever read. Rife with racist slurs, dubious consent, on page rape, and a host of other problematic themes and issues, I've decided to quit after getting about halfway through.
I like the Australian setting and the discussion about the plight of those sent to Australia as punishment for crimes they may or may not have committed, but the same consideration is not shown to the Aboriginal natives depicted in the story. Lucian the hero is shown to be a kind, white savior to those natives he "knows" but still makes comments that made me quite uncomfortable.
The sex scenes are quite scorching but the dub-con is what makes it difficult for me to enjoy now that I know better. Please don't make your love interest drunk to get them in to having sex for the first time. No no no.
So, 2020 Beth is a bit aghast this is one of the first romance novels I ever read. Rife with racist slurs, dubious consent, on page rape, and a host of other problematic themes and issues, I've decided to quit after getting about halfway through.
I like the Australian setting and the discussion about the plight of those sent to Australia as punishment for crimes they may or may not have committed, but the same consideration is not shown to the Aboriginal natives depicted in the story. Lucian the hero is shown to be a kind, white savior to those natives he "knows" but still makes comments that made me quite uncomfortable.
The sex scenes are quite scorching but the dub-con is what makes it difficult for me to enjoy now that I know better. Please don't make your love interest drunk to get them in to having sex for the first time. No no no.
August 31, 2020
I read this decades ago and loved it so much that I decided to re-read it.
This is HOT romance with adventure, historical history, plus a murder mystery all rolled into one.
Wherever Rebecca Brandewyne is, I wish her well. Her books were always amazing. It was awesome having a bestselling author in my own hometown.
This is HOT romance with adventure, historical history, plus a murder mystery all rolled into one.
Wherever Rebecca Brandewyne is, I wish her well. Her books were always amazing. It was awesome having a bestselling author in my own hometown.
July 11, 2018
J'ai beaucoup aimé : L'histoire, les personnages (j'aime les personnages de caractère comme Lucien, qui ont bossé pour avancer dans la vie), le lieu (Australie), différent des autres livres A&P se passant à la même époque.
October 10, 2020
I should've known that the jacaranda bonsai I planted a week before scooping this up at a Goodwill was an omen. The bonsai, like my interest in this book, never grew.
August 7, 2025
Nothing special but I was intrigued.
H is nice but the h was selfish and not likable.
H is nice but the h was selfish and not likable.
April 13, 2012
Belle histoire et héros insupportable lol
December 13, 2014
Really good historical romance..
April 18, 2017
Gothic Romance....good leisure reading.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews