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Canvas
THREE WOMEN. ONE PASTORAL DYNASTY. ONE LAST WILL AND TESTAMENT DESTINED TO TEAR IT ALL APART.
Alice McKinley inherits Dunedin, the family’s crumbling pastoral estate in Victoria’s Western District and soon discovers the sprawling sheep station is on the brink of bankruptcy.
A posthumous gift from her grandmother, Cecily reveals a Pandora’s box of riddles, clues and cryptic correspondence, including a journal written by her ancestor, Florence.
Alice is catapulted into a frantic search for something she’s not even sure is real — a missing masterpiece commissioned by her family in the 1870s. It’s an heirloom rumoured to be worth millions and would save Dunedin from financial ruin.
As Alice delves deeper into the family archives, she uncovers more than she bargained for—a tangled web of intrigue stretching from the giddy world of colonial squattocracy, the wool boom of the 1950s and the realities facing rural families in the new millennium. Can she save her family’s great legacy?
REVIEWS:
Reader Praise for Canvas:
“Couldn’t put it down!”
“Sarah Hope is a natural storyteller”
“Better than the Thorn Birds”
“An absolute page turner with brilliant twists”
“Didn’t want it to end!”
“Loved it. Well written across the generations. The family history entwines to solve a long time family mystery. GREAT read.’
“It was fabulous and well done!”
“So well written and interesting! I have enjoyed it immensely. Thank you.”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
SARAH HOPE grew up in Melbourne, Australia where she discovered a passion for writing, art and theatre from an early age. She has since lived most of her life in country Victoria, Australia and raised a large family there. She has an honours degree in Fine Arts from the University of Melbourne, and for a number of years was a senior newspaper journalist and advertising copywriter. As well writing, she is a practising artist and potter with a mild obsession for beautifully curated interiors, homewares and rambling gardens.
Canvas is Sarah’s first novel and you can find out more about her at www.sarahhope.com.au, where you can also follow her travel blog; on Instagram at @sarahhope_author, @artisantradingco and @australiancountryhouse and Facebook.com/SarahHopeAuthor.
Time is running out...
Filled with tales of hidden love, dark family secrets, and chance encounters, Canvas is a sharply observed and compelling family drama, interwoven across generations and set in the heart of Australia’s iconic grazing country...
Alice McKinley inherits Dunedin, the family’s crumbling pastoral estate in Victoria’s Western District and soon discovers the sprawling sheep station is on the brink of bankruptcy.
A posthumous gift from her grandmother, Cecily reveals a Pandora’s box of riddles, clues and cryptic correspondence, including a journal written by her ancestor, Florence.
Alice is catapulted into a frantic search for something she’s not even sure is real — a missing masterpiece commissioned by her family in the 1870s. It’s an heirloom rumoured to be worth millions and would save Dunedin from financial ruin.
As Alice delves deeper into the family archives, she uncovers more than she bargained for—a tangled web of intrigue stretching from the giddy world of colonial squattocracy, the wool boom of the 1950s and the realities facing rural families in the new millennium. Can she save her family’s great legacy?
REVIEWS:
Reader Praise for Canvas:
“Couldn’t put it down!”
“Sarah Hope is a natural storyteller”
“Better than the Thorn Birds”
“An absolute page turner with brilliant twists”
“Didn’t want it to end!”
“Loved it. Well written across the generations. The family history entwines to solve a long time family mystery. GREAT read.’
“It was fabulous and well done!”
“So well written and interesting! I have enjoyed it immensely. Thank you.”
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
SARAH HOPE grew up in Melbourne, Australia where she discovered a passion for writing, art and theatre from an early age. She has since lived most of her life in country Victoria, Australia and raised a large family there. She has an honours degree in Fine Arts from the University of Melbourne, and for a number of years was a senior newspaper journalist and advertising copywriter. As well writing, she is a practising artist and potter with a mild obsession for beautifully curated interiors, homewares and rambling gardens.
Canvas is Sarah’s first novel and you can find out more about her at www.sarahhope.com.au, where you can also follow her travel blog; on Instagram at @sarahhope_author, @artisantradingco and @australiancountryhouse and Facebook.com/SarahHopeAuthor.
Time is running out...
Filled with tales of hidden love, dark family secrets, and chance encounters, Canvas is a sharply observed and compelling family drama, interwoven across generations and set in the heart of Australia’s iconic grazing country...
537 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2018
2 people are currently reading
16 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
January 31, 2019
This was a 3.8 stars for me. This was an enchanting historic story of three different women and how their lives were entwined. I found the story fascinating as it was set around the Grampians in Victoria, Australia which is not far from where I live and even closer to where I have a rural holding. Towns of Hamilton (known as Michell) in the novel and Dunkeld, Melbourne and Portland were all mentioned.
A strong debut for Sarah Hope and I hope (no pun intended) that she publishes more work. I wonder if some editing may have helped the story as not only was it 537 or 538 pages but at times I had trouble with the three family trees working out who was who.
All in all a pleasing read and certainly worth delving into if you enjoy Australian rural historical fiction.
A strong debut for Sarah Hope and I hope (no pun intended) that she publishes more work. I wonder if some editing may have helped the story as not only was it 537 or 538 pages but at times I had trouble with the three family trees working out who was who.
All in all a pleasing read and certainly worth delving into if you enjoy Australian rural historical fiction.
July 13, 2020
Historical fiction, deeply layered and beautifully told.
It had me at the first page.
To weave a story around five generations of pastoralists, told through the voices of three strong, yet realistically flawed women, demonstrates Sarah Hopes skill as a writer and researcher. The style of writing, the voices, speak truly for their respective eras; Florence in the 1870's, Cecily in the 1940s, 50s and modern day, and Alice - the grandaughter of one, great great niece of the other. Within each chapter, the nuances of the period were delivered seemlessly, transporting me in turn to the lives and times of the women and their families.
Woven through were historical references to our country's beginnings; the Eureka stockade, considered shocking in its own time rather than a tribute to liberty as it is now and small, yet poignant, references to the treatment of indigenous locals by the 'squatocracy'.
Further depth was added by the writer's knowledge of fine arts and the intricate search for a missing painting that may save the property from financial ruin. The search inevitably uncovers the the truth about Florence and Cecily, assisting Alice to find the strength to deal with her own familial and intimate relationships.
The author's great love of Victoria's western district leaps from the page, as does her knowledge of fine arts and Australian and English arts history.
Highly recommend.
It had me at the first page.
To weave a story around five generations of pastoralists, told through the voices of three strong, yet realistically flawed women, demonstrates Sarah Hopes skill as a writer and researcher. The style of writing, the voices, speak truly for their respective eras; Florence in the 1870's, Cecily in the 1940s, 50s and modern day, and Alice - the grandaughter of one, great great niece of the other. Within each chapter, the nuances of the period were delivered seemlessly, transporting me in turn to the lives and times of the women and their families.
Woven through were historical references to our country's beginnings; the Eureka stockade, considered shocking in its own time rather than a tribute to liberty as it is now and small, yet poignant, references to the treatment of indigenous locals by the 'squatocracy'.
Further depth was added by the writer's knowledge of fine arts and the intricate search for a missing painting that may save the property from financial ruin. The search inevitably uncovers the the truth about Florence and Cecily, assisting Alice to find the strength to deal with her own familial and intimate relationships.
The author's great love of Victoria's western district leaps from the page, as does her knowledge of fine arts and Australian and English arts history.
Highly recommend.
June 21, 2020
I found myself really invested in the characters. For me, a sign of a good book is when I continue to think about the characters and the story, long after I finish the final chapter.
I love Australian books and being able to relate to the characters and the region. Growing up in Ballarat and then moving to a farm in the Western District, I really enjoyed reading the description of the settings.
At 537 pages, it was lengthy. With plenty of twists and turns I had trouble putting it down. Overall Canvas is a great debut novel. It was well written and researched by Sarah Hope. I hope there are more books to follow.
I love Australian books and being able to relate to the characters and the region. Growing up in Ballarat and then moving to a farm in the Western District, I really enjoyed reading the description of the settings.
At 537 pages, it was lengthy. With plenty of twists and turns I had trouble putting it down. Overall Canvas is a great debut novel. It was well written and researched by Sarah Hope. I hope there are more books to follow.
January 29, 2019
Loved it. Didn't want it to end.
March 16, 2019
Didn't actually finish this book, I think I had expected so much it just didn't deliver. Found the writing not to my taste, in saying that I will probably try it again in a few months time.
April 21, 2019
Fabulous! Brilliant writer with an incredible story line. Great characters to get stuck into with many twists and turns. Great to learn more about the Grampian area through a great story line.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews