Set in the early 1900s in the town of Byron, nestled in Australia's Blue Mountains, this gem of a novel tells of the blossoming Missy Wright, 33-year-old spinster and poor relation of the town's ruling family, the Hurlingfords. Missy, her widowed mother and crippled aunt live in genteel poverty , victims of the Hurlingford inheritence policy that gives riches to the male members of the family, who heartlessly abuse the women they dominate. Plain, painfully thin and doomed to dress always in serviceable brown, Missy seems fated for a dreary future until a distant cousin, a divorcee, arrives from Sydney...

"An extraordinary novel so full of suprises and delights it begs an immediate re-reading to prolong the pleasures. This is McCullough at her wicked best" Daily Post

"...a delightful reading experience. The name of Colleen McCullough will be readily recognised as the magic ingredient that sets this romance apart..." Dallas Morning News

"...aimed at every woman who has ever wanted to kick down the door and escape to a more satisfying life" Melbourne Herald

"Seductive and satisfying...minaturized in scale as THE THORN BIRDS was vast, readers will want to devour it in one sitting" Publishers Weekly