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Tullagulla #2

The English Oak

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Bronte Miller and her young daughter Madeline leave England and the only home they had ever known when they venture to Australia in search of a new life. A job as Governess on Tullagulla Station in the Queensland outback seems like a good place to start, however the heat, flies and long days of work bring unexpected challenges.

As Bronte and Madeline settle into life on Tullagulla, the property is threatened by an
unexpected rural crime wave and its residents band together to assist the stock squad. Then, just as a new relationship develops between Bronte and the local vet, a shocking secret is revealed and her life is once again turned upside down.

From the bestselling author of The Cedar Tree comes another poignant novel of women beating the odds in the harsh Australian Outback.

314 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 5, 2020

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About the author

Heather Reyburn

41 books47 followers
Growing up in New Zealand’s North Island, Heather enjoyed an idyllic childhood on the family sheep and cattle farm, generating a respect for the land, and a love of both animals and reading.
Heather then wandered the world for three years before marrying and settling in rural Queensland, Australia where years of farming provided inspiration to fuel her dream to be a writer.
With eleven published books and the twelfth underway, Heather is now retired and is realising her dreams. When not writing, Heather spends her time in their large garden accompanied by two dogs and a varying number of chickens, hiking the vast expanses of Australia with her husband, or caring for grandchildren.

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5 stars
158 (54%)
4 stars
96 (33%)
3 stars
35 (12%)
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
Profile Image for Brenda.
5,330 reviews3,048 followers
October 11, 2024
Bronte Miller and her young daughter Maddie, from England, were closing in on Tullagulla, the property Bronte had taken a job on, when their car broke down. Having been told to stay with the car if anything happened, Bronte tried to find shade in the heat of the Queensland sun. It happened that Grace, her new boss, and her son Daniel, arrived and were able to take them to the safety of Tullagulla. It didn't take long before Bronte and Maddie (immediate friends with Daniel) had settled into life on Tullagulla, with the flies, sheep, dogs, chickens, and friendly people, keeping them company. Bronte loved to cook so Grace happily handed the reins to her; they settled well together, one big happy family.

When sheep began going missing from Tullagulla and other properties around the area, the Stock Squad police arrived (I thought of Dave Burrows right then!) and a plan was made. And a new vet in the area caught Bronte's eye; Cameron was a kind and caring guy and they got on well. But a long held secret threatened to upend Bronte's new life...

The English Oak is the 2nd in the Tullagulla series by Aussie author Heather Reyburn and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Wonderful, well written characters - Bronte, Grace, Tom, Beth, Greg, Squire, Henry, Cameron and the two children - set in the vast Australian outback, make this a delightful read, and I'm looking forward to #3 soon. Highly recommended.
Profile Image for Jenny.
2,485 reviews82 followers
July 14, 2020
The English Oak is book one in the Tullagulla series by Heather Reyburn. Bronte Miller needs a change from England and applies for the Governess position at Tullagull Station in Queensland, Australia. Bronte and daughter Madeline settle into their new home until things started to happen that could destroy their new life. The readers of The English Oak will continue to follow Bronte Miller to find out what happens.

The English Oak is the first book I have read of Heather Reyburn and out of sequences. Heather Reyburn engaged me with the plot of this book from the first page. I love Heather Reyburn portrayal of her characters and the way they intertwine with each other throughout this book. The English Oak is well written and research by Heather Reyburn. I like Heather Reyburn description of the settings of The English Oak that allowed me to imagine living in rural Australia.

The readers of The English Oak will learn about the role of a governess and a cook on a rural property in Australia. The readers of The English Oak will learn about the devastation that rural crime can have on a community.

I recommend this book.
Profile Image for Craig and Phil.
2,474 reviews155 followers
January 3, 2021
Thank you Heather for sending us a copy to read and review.
The English Oak is the second book in this wonderful series.
Revisiting Tullagulla and reacquainting with familiar characters is always great fun as you see how their lives have changed.
Meeting new characters infuses not only new stories and secrets but reveals how they adapt to the setting and its inhabitants.
Bronte arrives on the scene early and is apprehensive about a new chapter in her life.
A Yorkshire lass and her daughter are about to experience outback heat, culture and how they will fit into the close knit community.
After the death of her mother she embarks on a journey to Australia for change and the hope to find her long lost father.
Her back story providing hints about her father and letters from her solicitors confirming his life path add to the intrigue.
Welcomed so warmly and seeing her daughter thrive was satisfying.
Farm life and local lingo picked up easily as with few rural suitors.
Experiencing stock theft, animal illness, outback medical services and above all the sense of belonging.
I loved knowing Grace had found happiness and freedom and watching her welcome Bronte and her daughter was so characteristic of her generous nature.
Seeing the improvements to the station was satisfying and the adoption of regenerative practices refreshing.
Once again a tree symbolically had a presence and this fast paced plot reveals its connection and importance.
I look forward to catching up with Tullagulla again.
Profile Image for Diane.
606 reviews22 followers
December 16, 2024
The English oak

After the death of her mother, Bronte leaves England for Australia with her daughter Maddy. All Bronte could wish for is to be part of a family again. She still searches for her unknown father. When she applies for the position of governess on Tullagulla, Bronte and Maddy are accepted and become part of the family at the homestead.

When sheep rustling is discovered on the property, they are all in danger.

This is the second book in the Tullagulla series by Heather Reyburn. Life in the country may be hard but it is never boring. I loved this story and look forward to the other two books in the series.
168 reviews2 followers
June 2, 2020
Hard-to-put-down portrayal of outback life

This is the first book I’ve read by this author but it was fine as a standalone book, despite being book 2 in a series. I was engaged right from the start and enjoyed the author’s writing style, feeling more as though I were an invisible presence at the protagonist’s side rather than simply reading a book.

Because the protagonist was from England, seeing Australian life on an outback ranch for the first time, I now feel that I have some idea of what that is like. In addition, we have a couple of romances and a pair of mysteries woven through the day-to-day chores, social interactions and ups and downs of life. The plot took some surprising turns and the characters were varied and well-developed. Even the children were natural and believable. A thoroughly entertaining, well written book. I’ll be adding book one to my to-be-read list.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
56 reviews
July 25, 2020
AbFab

Absolutely fabulous.. was a wonderful story and great to find out what happens in the lives of the characters from The Cedar Tree (book 1) cant wait to continue the story and revisit the characters in book 3
111 reviews3 followers
January 31, 2021
Having sunk completely into Tullagulla #1 and enjoyed it so much, I wasted no time in feasting on Tullagulla #2. I was thrilled to meet old friends and new characters bringing different twists, heart wrenching, love, laughter and friendship.
I am happy to say that I was equally filled with a hankering to not put it down until it was read - eating and other necessary tasks excepted, I read it in a couple of hours today. An loved it as I did #1.
Profile Image for Ann-Maree.
1,227 reviews11 followers
June 21, 2020
It was wonderful to be back in Tullagulla again so soon. I really enjoy Heather Reyburn's style of writing you an almost feel the heat and flies buzzing around you. This book can be read a stand-alone or as part of the series, my option is to read them in order to get the full enjoyment of these wonderful characters. We get to at up with all our favourite characters from book one and get to meet two new characters that will soon warm your heart. Bronte Miller and her daughter addy take a job on Tullagulla station as a Governess and cook only a few short weeks after arriving fro England to start a new life and to find some answers. Has fate worked to put Bronte in the right place at the right time to find Happiness - Hope - Family - Love -contentment - Piece?
Profile Image for Jamie Bee.
Author 1 book125 followers
June 15, 2020
Life in the Outback

Right from the start, the author pulled me into the heroine's new, harsh world in the Australian outback. Our heroine is from Yorkshire but has decided to make a new start for her and her daughter, taking a job on a remote station in the outback. The author describes the place so well, not only at the beginning but throughout, that it feels palpable and alive, almost like a character itself. There is a good cast of characters here, but the author distinguishes them well, creating relatable, believable, and sympathetic characters. The children were absolutely adorable and believable as well. The author has some romance and mystery going on here, with plenty of twists and turns as well as the slice-of-daily-life moments of living on a remote Australian station, such a unique environment indeed. I found this to be an enjoyable read, and I highly recommend it.

I received a free copy of this book, but that did not affect my review.

My book blog: https://www.readingfanaticreviews.com
11.2k reviews129 followers
June 4, 2020
This is the 2nd book I've read written by Heather Reyburn; she has done a great job at writing a good book; I can’t wait to read more of her books.

The story line caught my attention at the very beginning and kept me interested throughout the entire book.

I loved the characters.

I received a free copy of this book via booksprout and I’m voluntarily leaving a review.
4,012 reviews34 followers
May 24, 2020
The book is a good sweet western romance read. The story has a good story line. The characters are good, and they have good chemistry. The story is an enjoyable western romance read.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.
2 reviews
June 3, 2020
The second book in the series and once again I was drawn into the life on Tullagulla.. I couldn't put the book down.. The characters, stories inside the stories and more surprises!!! Thoroughly enjoyed and can't wait for the next book!
Profile Image for Sarah Williams.
Author 19 books80 followers
May 11, 2020
Another brilliant rural Australian novel. Loved it!
Profile Image for Trish Drinkwater.
210 reviews3 followers
February 20, 2025
I loved this. Having enjoyed the first Tullagulla book so much I immediately downloaded the rest of the series. I was not disappointed.
I love the way new characters are introduced to Tullagulla but the loved characters are still very much present.
The writing is sensitive, enjoyable, relatable and so enjoyable and the characters are wonderful.
A truly beautiful book - read this series in order, you'll be pleased you did.
Profile Image for sherryl bremner.
5 reviews
March 28, 2021
I really loved the story.
However, I noticed that the word its was consistently misspelt. It usually had an apostrophe where there should not be one at all.
11 reviews
March 12, 2023
Another fantastic book. Felt like I was there on the property in the outback. So many memories of that different life. Recommended.
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews