Dreamtime

by Eileen Townsend

Life for young Carrie Clayton has been a series of hard knocks. Bereft of her beloved mother at an early age, she supports her drunken father and provides love for her brother, Billy. When her and Billy are wrongly accused of murder, Billy is executed and Carrie sent to Australia.

604 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1993

About the author

Eileen Townsend has been an intercessor since 1980, owner of a small pharmaceutical company for about 20 years, a nurse, and a Realtor. She was honored as Woman of the year in 2012 from The National Association of Professional Women and has been involved in politics for over 40 years trying to keep good leaders in Washington. Eileen is a mother of 4 and Nona to 3 beautiful grandchildren. She has been asking God for insight in America’s part in the end times spoken of in the Bible for several years now without getting any definite answer. After she completed a four and one-half month fast asking God to save our nation, She received insight from God about the question of America’s role in the upcoming days as well as information about what God wants from us in this end-time period. Saving our nation is the reason for this book.

Reviews

[Rita Chapman · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love sagas and Dreamtime is set in the early 1800's when English men and women who committed offences were liable for the death penalty or transportation to Australia. Carrie Clayton's brother is given the former - Carrie is sent to Australia for life. The story of how she comes to terms with their unjust sentences and carves a life for herself in NSW is a real page-turner and a delight.

[Goldenwattle · Rating 3 out of 5]

I finally finished reading this large book tonight. Not sure how much the author got correct, but an enjoyable read. Possums galivanting about during daylight hours was incorrect for the nocturnal animals for instance. I will now likely leave this book somewhere for another reader. Pass it on.

[Bluejay44 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Life for young Carrie Clayton in London’s docklands during the nineteenth century is far from easy. But she and her young brother, Billy, survive as best they can, until the day they are unjustly accused of killing their drunken father. Billy’s fate is the gallows; Carrie’s is deportation to Australia, where she will remain for the rest of her life.

On the ship out, fate intervenes, and Carrie seizes the chance to evade her convict future by assuming another identity. She leaves behind the injustices of the Old Order and sets foot on a distant shore with a new name and a new life awaiting her.

She is reborn spiritually as the land and the people cast their spell. She is determined to bury the past; but it can only return to haunt her, with tragic consequences down the generations.

***************

An attention holding story with a lot of depth. The characters are well drawn and I found myself frequently putting the story on hold while my mind considered attitutes of that time. This is the first book I have read by Eileen Townsend and I found it very thought provoking.

4.5 stars