What do you think?
Rate this book
Stars in the Southern Sky
Stars in the Southern Sky is an historical saga set in the "most isolated town" of Australia. From its passionate people, to its mystic wildlife, the outback becomes its own character in Elizabeth Haran's novel about learning how to thrive in the face of adversity.
London 1954: When Estella is abandoned by her lawyer husband, James, her life of luxury crumbles. Not only had he left his job and frittered away their savings, James was cheating on Estella - with her cousin Davinia. But the family secrets didn't end there.
Heartbroken, Estella turns her back on England. Her distant uncle Charlie beckons her to Australia, where she accepts a new position - village veterinarian. She had studied veterinary medicine, but she'd never had a real job. As Estella sets off for the outback, she carries secrets of her own: she is pregnant with James' baby.
Day one in the bush brings the young Londoner to tears. Kangaroo Crossing, population thirteen, was not what Estella had expected. Sweltering. Dusty. Fly-infested. From the gruff propeller plane pilot to the perpetually drunken town doctor, the locals eye the newcomer with suspicion.
After a series of harrowing events, Estella strives to prove herself capable of the job. Just as the villagers of Kangaroo Crossing start to accept Estella - and a romance starts to blossom - her past catches up with her. She's been hiding things from them.
Back in England, James has gotten wind of the baby. His new wife, Davinia, can't have children - but her lavish inheritance depends on an heir. James will stop at nothing to get what is his. Can Estella save her baby - and herself - from the wild Australian bush? Will she ever learn to love again?
London 1954: When Estella is abandoned by her lawyer husband, James, her life of luxury crumbles. Not only had he left his job and frittered away their savings, James was cheating on Estella - with her cousin Davinia. But the family secrets didn't end there.
Heartbroken, Estella turns her back on England. Her distant uncle Charlie beckons her to Australia, where she accepts a new position - village veterinarian. She had studied veterinary medicine, but she'd never had a real job. As Estella sets off for the outback, she carries secrets of her own: she is pregnant with James' baby.
Day one in the bush brings the young Londoner to tears. Kangaroo Crossing, population thirteen, was not what Estella had expected. Sweltering. Dusty. Fly-infested. From the gruff propeller plane pilot to the perpetually drunken town doctor, the locals eye the newcomer with suspicion.
After a series of harrowing events, Estella strives to prove herself capable of the job. Just as the villagers of Kangaroo Crossing start to accept Estella - and a romance starts to blossom - her past catches up with her. She's been hiding things from them.
Back in England, James has gotten wind of the baby. His new wife, Davinia, can't have children - but her lavish inheritance depends on an heir. James will stop at nothing to get what is his. Can Estella save her baby - and herself - from the wild Australian bush? Will she ever learn to love again?
- GenresHistorical Fiction
551 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 31, 2003
61 people are currently reading
36 people want to read
About the author
Elizabeth Haran
32 books45 followersElizabeth Haran was born in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe (known as Southern Rhodesia.
Afterwards, her family moved to England and wandered from there to Australia. Today she lives with her husband in a seaside suburb of Adelaide in South Australia. She has two grown sons. Her passion for writing she discovered early 30s.Previously she worked as a model, owned a nursery and worked with young children in a primary school.
facebook. Elizabeth Haran Australian Author
Afterwards, her family moved to England and wandered from there to Australia. Today she lives with her husband in a seaside suburb of Adelaide in South Australia. She has two grown sons. Her passion for writing she discovered early 30s.Previously she worked as a model, owned a nursery and worked with young children in a primary school.
facebook. Elizabeth Haran Australian Author
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
August 3, 2017
Stars in the Southern Sky is a stand alone book by Elizabeth Haran.
Estella was happily married, lived in a grand house in London, and had a very well off husband who was a lawyer. When she found out she was pregnant she couldn't wait to tell him the news. But before she had the chance, her world fell apart when she catches him kissing her cousin Davinia! When she approaches him he tells her that they are broke, they'll have to sell all their assets, oh and he wants a divorce because yes he's been having an affair and is leaving her for her cousin!!! She can't tell him about her pregnancy because he also added that he's glad they had no children because he doesn't want to be a father. Besides that, if he did decide to stay with her, she'd know that it was only because of the baby. So at a loss for what to do, where to go, and desperate for comfort, she packs her bags and turns up on her Aunt Flo's doorstep.
Her mother and father divorced when she was small because they moved to one of Australia's most isolated towns, and her mother couldn't cope with life there. She packed up herself and Estella and returned to England. Over the years she didn't let on to Estella that she knew where her father was, or that he desperately wanted contact with her. Her Aunt Florence, knew though and when everything fell to pieces for Estella, Flo finally broke her promise and told Estella about her dad being a vet in Kangaroo Crossing, but that sadly he had recently died, and the townsfolk are looking for a new vet. It's something Estella is trained to do, and the job comes with lodging, plus she will be too far away for her ex to ever know that she is pregnant. It sounds perfect, so with the help of her aunt and her Uncle Charlie in Kangaroo Crossing, arrangements are made and she starts her epic journey to Australia.
From there the story is phenomenal. Estella being a woman, a young woman, and never having actually practised being a vet has to win over very stubborn Australian farmers. She has to learn to live with the absolute essentials in life, her home doesn't even have running water. The weather is ridiculously hot, the flies don't let up, and before she is even there for a day she ends up collapsing and in hospital from dehydration. Not a good start to her time there. So much is against her, but she is determined to win over the people. At first she just wants to earn money to earn her plane fare home, but as time goes on will that change. Can she get the people to trust her, can she ever acclimatise herself to her new surroundings, how can she bring up a baby in such an isolated place? Did she make the wrong move by going there?
Estella's story had me gripped from the moment I read about her husband wanting a divorce. How she coped in Australia with all the problems that she had to overcome had me hanging on to every word. It isn't just her story that is captivating though, it is the perfect description of the people there, the landscape, the wildlife, the way of life. It felt like if I closed my eyes I might open them again and be there with Estella. I loved her interaction with the aboriginals, I loved picturing the stars in the sky, the stunning animals, even the horrid dusty heat and living in drought conditions. Even though Estella struggled, I could easily picture myself leaving my home and taking up a life just like hers. Am I insane, maybe, or just maybe the author made me appreciate the beauty of an isolated spot in Australia despite the hardships one would have to endure.
The way the author describes the characters deserves mention too. There was so much difference between them all, even the station owners who all have the same needs, each have their own individual personality. Then there's Estella's uncle who is a real hoot, and god forbid when his pub runs out of beer. Doctor Dan and Murphy two men that are interested in Estella both have very big issues to deal with from their pasts, and then there is general store owner, a man whose trust in her is the first step towards her earning the trust of the other town people.
The book was perfect from beginning to end, it made me run the whole gamut of emotions, including tears. Not just tears at sad moments, or happy tears, but also huge tears for the absolute beauty of the way the story ends. I cannot fault this book at all, it's perfection and I cannot recommend it enough.
I voluntarily reviewed an advanced readers' copy of this book.
Estella was happily married, lived in a grand house in London, and had a very well off husband who was a lawyer. When she found out she was pregnant she couldn't wait to tell him the news. But before she had the chance, her world fell apart when she catches him kissing her cousin Davinia! When she approaches him he tells her that they are broke, they'll have to sell all their assets, oh and he wants a divorce because yes he's been having an affair and is leaving her for her cousin!!! She can't tell him about her pregnancy because he also added that he's glad they had no children because he doesn't want to be a father. Besides that, if he did decide to stay with her, she'd know that it was only because of the baby. So at a loss for what to do, where to go, and desperate for comfort, she packs her bags and turns up on her Aunt Flo's doorstep.
Her mother and father divorced when she was small because they moved to one of Australia's most isolated towns, and her mother couldn't cope with life there. She packed up herself and Estella and returned to England. Over the years she didn't let on to Estella that she knew where her father was, or that he desperately wanted contact with her. Her Aunt Florence, knew though and when everything fell to pieces for Estella, Flo finally broke her promise and told Estella about her dad being a vet in Kangaroo Crossing, but that sadly he had recently died, and the townsfolk are looking for a new vet. It's something Estella is trained to do, and the job comes with lodging, plus she will be too far away for her ex to ever know that she is pregnant. It sounds perfect, so with the help of her aunt and her Uncle Charlie in Kangaroo Crossing, arrangements are made and she starts her epic journey to Australia.
From there the story is phenomenal. Estella being a woman, a young woman, and never having actually practised being a vet has to win over very stubborn Australian farmers. She has to learn to live with the absolute essentials in life, her home doesn't even have running water. The weather is ridiculously hot, the flies don't let up, and before she is even there for a day she ends up collapsing and in hospital from dehydration. Not a good start to her time there. So much is against her, but she is determined to win over the people. At first she just wants to earn money to earn her plane fare home, but as time goes on will that change. Can she get the people to trust her, can she ever acclimatise herself to her new surroundings, how can she bring up a baby in such an isolated place? Did she make the wrong move by going there?
Estella's story had me gripped from the moment I read about her husband wanting a divorce. How she coped in Australia with all the problems that she had to overcome had me hanging on to every word. It isn't just her story that is captivating though, it is the perfect description of the people there, the landscape, the wildlife, the way of life. It felt like if I closed my eyes I might open them again and be there with Estella. I loved her interaction with the aboriginals, I loved picturing the stars in the sky, the stunning animals, even the horrid dusty heat and living in drought conditions. Even though Estella struggled, I could easily picture myself leaving my home and taking up a life just like hers. Am I insane, maybe, or just maybe the author made me appreciate the beauty of an isolated spot in Australia despite the hardships one would have to endure.
The way the author describes the characters deserves mention too. There was so much difference between them all, even the station owners who all have the same needs, each have their own individual personality. Then there's Estella's uncle who is a real hoot, and god forbid when his pub runs out of beer. Doctor Dan and Murphy two men that are interested in Estella both have very big issues to deal with from their pasts, and then there is general store owner, a man whose trust in her is the first step towards her earning the trust of the other town people.
The book was perfect from beginning to end, it made me run the whole gamut of emotions, including tears. Not just tears at sad moments, or happy tears, but also huge tears for the absolute beauty of the way the story ends. I cannot fault this book at all, it's perfection and I cannot recommend it enough.
I voluntarily reviewed an advanced readers' copy of this book.
July 3, 2021
Tohle byla má první kniha, od této autorky a rozhodně ne poslední. I když jsem ji rozečítala poměrně s obavou, musím říct, že mě moc mile překvapila. Nádherný příběh odhodlání, lidské síly, přátelství a vzájemné pomoci. To vše podkresleno drsnou australskou krajinou, domorodci a nepřízní osudu. Za mě super, jen malinko mě zklamal ten neskutečně přeslazený a naprosto neuvěřitelný konec, za to, hvězdička dolů. I když i ten svým způsobem, hlavně ke knihám červené knihovny staršího data vydání, tak nějak patří.
May 17, 2018
I really enjoyed this story with all the information and history of Australia outback living as well as the dilemma of the main character. Her supporting characters were loveable. The animals, and the information on how natives survived in the outback was interesting if a little gross. I found myself thinking about the story when I wasn't reading it. So I stayed up late to read it in 2 days!
March 8, 2019
1950's Australia
This novel is set in mid 20th century Australia in an isolated town in the outback. A woman from.a privileged lifestyle flees to Australia after a devastating break with her husband.
This novel is set in mid 20th century Australia in an isolated town in the outback. A woman from.a privileged lifestyle flees to Australia after a devastating break with her husband.
February 24, 2013
Nebo možná 3,5...hlavně, knížka v češtině nemá 600 stránek, ale 366..
Odehrává se v roce 1954, kdy se Estella v jeden den dozví, že je těhotná a hned na to, že ji její manžel podvádí s její vlastní sestřenicí. A protože James (manžel) je bezpáteřní had, který dluží všude kam se podívá a peníze jsou pro něj víc než jeho žena, požádá o rozvod. Zdrcená Estella chce jediné a to vypadnout daleko od něj, ani mu neřekla, že čeká miminko. Její teta navrhne, aby odjela do Austrálie a obsadila volné místo veterinářky po svém biologickém otci v Kangaroo Crossing. Estella souhlasí, sbalí se a odjede. Knížka se pak soustředí na její sžívání s naprosto odlišnou kulturou v jiném prostředí.
Je to taková oddechovka. Autorku jsem si docela oblíbila, tohle je vlastně druhá knížka, kterou jsem od ní četla, Zrádné útesy se mi líbily víc. Myslím, že hezky vystihla střetávání dvou kultur (sem tam to bylo opravdu moc idilické) a možná bych jí vytkla i to, jak lusknutím prstů v podstatě vyřešila (hrozná) traumata z minulosti několika postav. Ale je to neškodná romantika (nad kterou prostě nechcete přemýšlet), která potěší.
Odehrává se v roce 1954, kdy se Estella v jeden den dozví, že je těhotná a hned na to, že ji její manžel podvádí s její vlastní sestřenicí. A protože James (manžel) je bezpáteřní had, který dluží všude kam se podívá a peníze jsou pro něj víc než jeho žena, požádá o rozvod. Zdrcená Estella chce jediné a to vypadnout daleko od něj, ani mu neřekla, že čeká miminko. Její teta navrhne, aby odjela do Austrálie a obsadila volné místo veterinářky po svém biologickém otci v Kangaroo Crossing. Estella souhlasí, sbalí se a odjede. Knížka se pak soustředí na její sžívání s naprosto odlišnou kulturou v jiném prostředí.
Je to taková oddechovka. Autorku jsem si docela oblíbila, tohle je vlastně druhá knížka, kterou jsem od ní četla, Zrádné útesy se mi líbily víc. Myslím, že hezky vystihla střetávání dvou kultur (sem tam to bylo opravdu moc idilické) a možná bych jí vytkla i to, jak lusknutím prstů v podstatě vyřešila (hrozná) traumata z minulosti několika postav. Ale je to neškodná romantika (nad kterou prostě nechcete přemýšlet), která potěší.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews