The Secret Year of Zara Holt: A richly imagined story of fashion, scandal, betrayal and undying love

by Kimberley Freeman

A richly imagined novel of love, fashion, scandal and one captivating woman's passionate life.

We wove magic between us with our words, soul to soul, and when the sun cracked the horizon he kissed me goodnight and promised me he'd write as soon as he arrived in London.

'You won't,' I said, feeling the morning cold. 'You'll forget me.'

He stood up. 'You'll see,' he said. 'We belong to each other now. Always will.'

Melbourne, 1927. The summer flowers smell like Christmas the night Zara Dickins meets Harry Holt. Zara is wearing a dress she has designed and made white organdie over a short black slip, with black embroidery and a crimson taffeta sash. It's party season and the university crowd are celebrating end-of-year exams. Zara loves dancing with the boys and flirting with them, but it's a game to her. Nothing serious. Until Harry.

He plans to be a politician once he finishes law. She, a fashion designer, if she can find a way to break out of the secretarial pool. When he takes her hand, she doesn't want to let him go.

The spark they ignite that night will last forty years.

Portsea, 1967. When Australian Prime Minister Harold Holt disappears while swimming, his wife Zara loses herself in the memories of their volatile relationship. She always believed Harry when he said no matter what happened, he'd never leave. Their bond has stretched to London, Europe, India, America. It has survived anger, loss and heartbreak, media scrutiny, secrets and lies. But now all Zara wants is for Harry to come home.

A vibrant and compelling story inspired by the fascinating life of fashion designer and businesswoman Dame Zara Bate.

'Utterly captivating' KATE FORSYTH

'Compelling . . . An intimate and immersive memoir-like narrative . . . The Secret Year of Zara Holt will resonate with fans of Bonnie Garmus's Lessons in Chemistry, Taylor Jenkins Reid's The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo and Freeman's previous historical fiction novels' BOOKS+PUBLISHING

'A beautiful book . . . Compulsory reading for fans of The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo' THE AUSTRALIAN WOMEN'S WEEKLY

'A rewarding, immersive read' THE AUSTRALIAN

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Audiobook

480 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 28, 2025

About the author

Pen name of Kim Wilkins.


Kimberley was born in London and her family moved back to Australia when she was three years old. She grew up in Queensland where she currently lives.

Kimberley has written for as long as she can remember and she is proud to write in many genres. She is an award-winning writer in children’s, historical and speculative fiction under her birth name Kim Wilkins. She adopted the pen name Kimberley Freeman for her commercial women’s fiction novels Duet and Gold Dust to honour her maternal grandmother and to try and capture the spirit of the page-turning novels she has always loved to read. Kim has an Honours degree, a Masters degree and a PhD from The University of Queensland where she is also a lecturer. She lives in Brisbane with her young family.

Reviews

[Craig and Phil · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ve been a huge fan of Kimberley Freeman’s work for many years.
Loving her stories, her divine writing and adoring every book she has written and have been eagerly awaiting a new book for some time now.
Now the wait is over, The Secret Life Of Zara Holt mixes fact with fiction and it’s a truly sublime read.
In the Melbourne summer of 1927, Zara Dickens meets the charismatic Harold Holt.
While Zara plans to have fun for the season her attraction to Harry is undeniable.
A whirlwind romance begins…..
Harry’s agenda is law then politics and Zara goes into fashion designing.
Their adventures cross the globe together and sometimes separately.
Always leading back to the other and spanning over forty years.
There’s always been an excitement when I’ve sat down to read a book by this trusted author as I know I will be mesmerised and entertained.
I was soon swept away by the narrative and beauty of the story.
Taking the reader on an astonishing journey of a woman’s life, career, love and passion.
Lovers of historical fiction especially ones that infuse and blend well with real history will idolise this book.

[Elaine · Rating 4 out of 5]

An enjoyable read especially for those of us who lived through the years and events described.

[Liisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½ (4.5 stars)

Disclaimer: I work with the author. And yes, I was nervous—what if I didn’t love it? But there was no need to worry. This book swept me away.

Set across four tumultuous decades, The Secret Year of Zara Holt is a beautifully imagined tale of love, betrayal, ambition, and the tangled cost of loyalty. We follow Zara from a heady Melbourne summer in 1927—where she meets the magnetic Harry Holt—through the decades that follow, navigating fashion, motherhood, public scrutiny, and private heartbreak.

Inspired by the life of Dame Zara Bate, Freeman paints Zara with depth and complexity: a woman of style and substance, forging her own path in a world that often wanted to silence her. I adored the glimpses into her career in fashion (those design details! 😍), and the portrayal of her enduring friendship with Betty was a highlight.

The prose is engaging, the historical detail vivid, and the emotional beats hit just right. Yes, Harry’s betrayals are difficult to read, but the novel doesn’t shy away from the messiness of love and legacy—it embraces it.

A poignant, empowering read that lingers long after the final page.

Perfect for fans of Lessons in Chemistry, Rodham, and The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo.

[Rori Rockman · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have loved Kimberley Freeman and followed her career ever since she first came on the American scene in 2010 with Wildflower Hill. Here's why: I absolutely love dual timeline novels, and Kimberley Freeman writes the best dual timeline novels of any author I've come across.

And then, after eight years off, Freeman wrote another book -- and it wasn't a dual timeline novel. Instead, it was a historical fiction novel inspired by a real person's life. And I have several problems with this sort of book:

1. When books are inspired by a real person, they usually end up having plot points that are shaped by the person's real life, rather than actually having good plot devices that advance the plot. Some of the events that happened in this book just felt kind of -- there. Not contributing to any sort of larger mystery or building up to the climax of the book.

2. This book took place over a time span of roughly forty years: Zara was a teenager at the start of the book, and in her late fifties by the end of this book. I am not a fan of these sorts of books because they tend to have very loose plots: even if there is some sort of scandal or love affair or secret, it becomes some brief sub-plot for a chapter or two rather than being central to the book.

3. Since there's no dual timeline element, you're reading from the same person's point of view for nearly 500 pages, and that just gets old. I want to get in someone else's head for a while.

4. And speaking of being in one person's head, if I had to choose one person's head to be in, it really wouldn't have been hers. She's a fashion designer married to a politician, and there's a fair bit about fashion but not a whole lot about politics. That doesn't exactly align with my own interests.

So the thing is, for the type of book that it is, it's actually quite good. Freeman is a tremendously talented writer; she knows how to draw up complex characters and evoke emotions in the reader. I also think it's worth commending a writer who breaks out of a formula that she has used over and over again. But personally, I wish she had just stuck to her formula.

Also, over and over again, this book reminded me of another book I've read: Mademoiselle Chanel by C.W. Gortner. If you read this book and liked it, then I recommend that one as well.

[Sue Gerhardt Griffiths · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 ⭐️s

A work of fiction about the real-life story of Zara Holt - the wife of former prime minister of Australia, Harold Holt who mysteriously disappeared while swimming at Cheviot Beach near Portsea, Victoria on 17 December, 1967

A captivating read.



Audiobook via BorrowBox
Published by: Bolinda audio
Read by Janet Watson Kruse
Duration: 15 hrs, 49 min. 1.25x Speed

[Elly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Historical fiction ✔️
Romance ✔️
What more could you want in a book. Captivating story and had me hooked. I wanted to keep reading on!

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

I knew nothing about this woman, this story, or Harold Holt other than he drowned. This was so interesting and I kept stopping to Google if elements were true. And gosh I’m glad I didn’t live in this era as a woman…
I just didn’t like the modern day ‘year’ premise. It just wasn’t integrated enough to feel purposeful, particularly given the title was based on it. ‘The Secret Life of Zara Holt’ and I might have 5 starred it. I know, I’m petty. Be glad I don’t teach you English. No one ever gets 100% 🤣

[Penny · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well written and engaging, though the first third was the best part. The middle section was really glossed over, I would have enjoyed more about how Magg reopened and how her friend was able to come back from London. It all became a bit repetitive and like a memoir, not fiction. But the detail was fabulous, especially the section in India, and Melbourne in the early 30s.

[Maggie · Rating 5 out of 5]

A brilliant book. Such a fascinating story. Definitely one of my books of the year.

[Peita Byer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very well written and imagined, this is deeply researched and evocative. Dame Zara was a talented woman with her fashion house business, though at times she can seem shallow. Nevertheless what a life she led with Harold Holt.
A very good read.

[Verna · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book.

[Amanda · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found this book difficult to read because I felt I could see the potential of the story but it just never reached the story I wanted to be told. I felt underwhelmed at the end and if anything felt that the main character became an anti-hero in my mind. I read to the end but lost my thirst for the story probably a third of the way through when I realised the narrative wasn’t going to evolve into anything more than the beige of the core rhetoric. I enjoyed the first third the most.

[Abbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Secret Year of Zara Holt is a fascinating and intimate glimpse into the complicated life of Zara Holt, wife of former Australian Prime Minister Harold (“Harry”) Holt. Zara isn’t your typical political spouse—she’s a whirlwind of contradictions: dreamy yet determined, wild yet deeply loyal, distracted yet fiercely creative.

From the beginning, Zara is portrayed as someone who notices beauty everywhere, drawing inspiration for her fashion designs from nature and the world around her. Her artistic streak, however, made her a “terrible secretary”—she struggled to focus on mundane tasks and preferred to live in the imaginative, almost “off with the fairies” space that fuelled her creativity.

Her relationship with Harry Holt is central to the story. Their connection is magnetic, but also toxic. Harry was captivated from the moment he noticed her lipstick perfectly matched her shawl, and he repeatedly demanded after arguments that she reassure him with “You’re mine.” Zara’s love for him was unwavering, even as he pursued affairs and remained emotionally insensitive to her needs. Despite Harry’s selfish tendencies, it’s clear she adored him, and he in his own way loved her too—though on his terms.

What struck me most is Zara’s resilience. Though her husband offered little encouragement for her career, she built her business in fashion and design with sheer determination, becoming a respected creative force in her own right. She may have been flighty in some ways, but when it came to carving her own path, Zara showed grit and independence.

Overall, this book paints a portrait of a woman who loved passionately, lived creatively, and pushed forward despite personal turmoil. Zara Holt was far more than a politician’s wife—she was an artist, a dreamer, and a woman who lived unapologetically in her own complicated way.

[Chrissie Bellbrae · Rating 5 out of 5]

Firstly, thanks to Hachette for an advanced reader copy.

I cannot more highly recommend this fabulous historical fiction novel – one of the best I've read this year. (And that's saying something!)

I always enjoy an historical narrative based on a real person, and learning about historic events through a woman's eyes and experience.

Freeman has brought Zara Holt to life with so much passion and verve that at times, it was hard not to smile. And cry, and shake the book for Zara's frustratingly impetuous decisions too. I made the mistake of Googling the 'real-life' Zara halfway through, wanting to know how close to the truth it came, but the fluency of the prose still managed to keep me guessing until the end. I honestly savoured every page, and took my time reading, and not rushing through it.

What a woman! What an incredible life! It was terrific to see Melbourne through the character's eyes, during eras that were both familiar and past history. It's a city I know well, and was painted so beautifully that I was drawn to Zara and Harry's world as though I was there with them. The descriptive prose as Zara travelled the globe and the places and people she met were fabulous too. I'll be Googling pictures of interiors next! I adored the fashion, and most of all, the fight of an ambitious woman who was ahead of her time— or perhaps— born at the right time to make an impact on others.

This is a love story above all else, beautifully written with characters so well drawn (and flawed) that they leap off the page. If Zara and Harry were half as exuberant and sparkling as they have been characterised, I only wish I had met them in the flesh!

[Esha · Rating 1 out of 5]

If anyone were to write my life story, I’d want Kimberly Freeman to do it—less biography, more glossy reimagining. Think sweeping narrative dressed up as a PR campaign. In Zara Dickins: A Life, you’d get the embellished saga of the woman who was briefly married to Australia’s Prime Minister before he vanished while swimming—an unsolved mystery now mythologised.

Freeman would frame it as a grand, romantic fantasy: Zara, the impossibly wealthy heiress who, despite marrying before Harry, after Harry, and dating him during each in-between, still becomes the central figure in his vanishing act. In this telling, Zara helps Harry—who had spent his life clawing to the top—to vanish on his own terms. Except, it’s never really Harry’s story. Not when Zara Dickins is involved.

Here was a woman so rich she founded a global business empire while the rest of Australia was living off ration cards. Her life was gilded with privilege, travel, and endless reinvention. Yet, somehow, she managed to tether herself to one of the country’s most enduring mysteries.

Like today’s influencers, Freeman and Zara would spin Harry’s disappearance into a legacy about her. And honestly, if I were Harry—surrounded by the spectacle of Zara and her curated tragedy—I too might feign a disappearance at sea. It’s not a love story. It’s the tale of a spoilt rich girl determined to stay centre stage, no matter whose life she hijacks.

[Annie Robson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one was a truly captivating read. A clever and impeccably researched work of fiction woven about the real-life story of Zara Holt - the wife of former Australian Prime Minister Harold Holt, who disappeared, presumed dead, while swimming at Cheviot Beach in Victoria on 17 December 1967 (I was but a few days old 😊).

Many conspiracy theories surrounded the former PM’s disappearance, as his body was never found, the most notable being that he was a Chinese spy and had been collected by a Chinese submarine! I won’t spoil the story here, but the imagined/real? thread through this book is a little different.

However, the novel is much more about the passionate, dreamy, self-doubting, but always down-to-earth
Zara in her own right - from the teenage girl who loved frocks and parties to successful businesswoman in the world of fashion (who ultimately well out-earned her husband, though remained constrained by the limitations placed on women both in commerce and socially at the time).

I found this book illuminating and utterly enchanting. Five stars.

[Clare · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hats off to Kimberley Freeman for elevating women’s history through this beautiful sweeping portrait of Dame Zara’s life.

Freeman draws the reader in to the drama of a passionate love story while gradually layering in deeply rich characterisation of the very human, hopelessly flawed Zara and Harry, and their friends.

I was naively unaware of Dame Zara’s story before I read this, I was impressed to discover how much of Freeman’s work is grounded in reality and am now obsessed with learning more about the life of this amazing Australian woman.

[Rosie Baker · Rating 3 out of 5]

Entertaining book, I enjoyed it, but characters somehow manage to feel a bit flat in places and there’s a few major loose ends just never mentioned. Her ex husband? Her friend Betty’s children? The war? All the politics- just get skimped over

It could have done so much more with the conspiracy theory weaved in and at the end.

And the final problem is - it’s not about a secret year?! The title promises something, and delivers something completely different. The title is a massive mis-direct.

[Denise Tannock · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fabulous book that I didn't want to finish! The story of Zara Dickins is amazing as was Zara herself, a businesswoman ahead of her time. I loved reading so much of Australia's social history and about Harold Holt's rise up the political ladder. What a shock it was when he disappeared at Cheviot Beach, Victoria!!! This is a highly-recommemded read if you remember these times and an enlightening read if you don't. I don't often give ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ so it must be great.

[Sophie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Freeman writes clearly but the plot was exhausting - the same plot points went around and around and while that might’ve been the point (?) it made this book club novel draggg for me. All the characters are flawed and unlikeable at times, I don’t really care for fashion and the lack of acknowledgement of privilege was a missed opportunity. Also - as with all historical fiction - I’m left wondering which bits were actually true??

[Rosanna De Vito · Rating 4 out of 5]

More of a 3.5 but being generous. The title is a bit of a misnomer and the back quarter of the novel feels rushed compared to the first half, but it overall flowed well. A fascinating reimagining of the personal story of one of Australia's most intriguing PM's wives Zara Holt, who was a successful business woman and society figure in her own right, bringing her story to a new generation of readers like me. I learned a bit of history here too which was a nice bonus.

[Athene Alleck · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another fantastic historical fiction from one of my all time favorite authors. It was brilliant to see a woman of this era in full colour and not greyed out by the patriarchal view of what simply was or wasn’t done back in those days. Loved every page and the structure was very clever.

[Jen Chipperfield · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh, this wasn't about a single year and felt like the 40ish years the story spanned over. Over detailed in some areas and under detailed in others...like, what happened to her ex husband and did he completely ignore his son after they split? What a privileged life they led.

[Sandra · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an interesting book. I wouldn't normally have read about Zara and Harold Holt, but as Kimberley Freeman is one of my favourite authors, I borrowed this book from the library. I am left wondering just how much of it is fiction.

[Don Baker · Rating 5 out of 5]

This great story is described as being "women's fiction" which I believe is misleading. It's a well-crafted work, which will appeal to all readers, young and old.

[Britt · Rating 4 out of 5]

so underrated!!!

[Ann Koenig · Rating 4 out of 5]

This mesmerising novel about Zara Holt is a great read - I really enjoyed reading about times that I recall.

[Bernd Meyer · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 rounded up

[Melissa Coles · Rating 5 out of 5]

I did enjoy this story

[Emma Leticia · Rating 2 out of 5]

Super dragged out