A Tasmanian East Of EdenThe Lost Valley is sweeping saga of ambition, betrayal and dangerous love.Tasmania, 1929: Ten-year-old-twins, Tom and Harry Abbott, are orphaned by a tragedy that shocks Hobart society. They find sanctuary with their reclusive grandmother, growing up in the remote and rugged Binburra ranges – a place where kind-hearted Tom discovers a love of the wild, Harry nurses a … where kind-hearted Tom discovers a love of the wild, Harry nurses a growing resentment towards his brother and where the mountains hold secrets that will transform both their lives.
The chaos of World War II divides the brothers, and their passion for two very different women fuels a deadly rivalry. Can Tom and Harry survive to heal their rift? And what will happen when Binburra finally reveals its astonishing secrets?
From Tasmania’s remote highlands to the Battle of Britain, and all the way to the golden age of Hollywood, The Lost Valley is a lush family saga about two brothers whose fates are entwined with the land and the women they love.
– Praise for Jennifer Scoullar –
‘Outstanding writing. The beautiful portrayal of Tasmania’s remote highlands, the bush settings, the wild animals … all done in a way to make the reader feel deeply involved in the story.’ AWW Australian Historical Fiction Round Up
‘Wonderful historical fiction … Jennifer is a great storyteller not unlike Bryce Courtenay, so this will appeal to anyone who likes that genre.’ Librarians’ Choice
‘Scoullar’s writing has a rich complexity. Poetic and visual … the landscape vivid and alive.’ Reading, Writing and Riesling
The Lost Valley is book 2 in the epic Tasmanian Tales series that began with Fortune’s Son. Buy it now to discover why Jennifer Scoullar is one of Australia’s favourite story-tellers!
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I read book one in this series and couldn’t wait to read this book # 2. Marvelous story- line development continues. I could not put this book down. Exciting ending.
This is the second book in the Tasmanian Tales series, a series of stand alone novels, and it draws you in like the tempting music of a carnival. Twin brothers, set against each other almost from birth, growing up in 1930s, Tasmania. They take separate paths into adulthood, one driven by greed, the other driven by heartache.
The characters are so well crafted it’s sickening. You don’t only see the transformations in the twins from boyhood to adulthood, but the factors that build their characters, both good and bad. The secondary and tertiary characters are also well crafted, something that’s difficult to do with tertiary characters.
The plot is absolutely wonderful, with foreshadowing and redemption and edge of your seat plot twists. It has all the drama of Colleen McCullough’s Thorn Birds along with vivid descriptions of Tasmania’s wildlife, nature, and mining towns.
While it is lengthy (over 500 pages), it pulls you in and refuses to let go until you’re forcibly torn away by dinners that need to be made or sleep that won’t be forestalled. Touted as a Tasmanian East of Eden, The Lost Valley is an epic tale that should be made into a movie. I can’t wait to read the other books in the series.
With my first reading of Jennifer Scoullar books, I was hooked. I completely enjoyed the series, The Tasmanian Tales. I quickly read all three. I was interested in the learning more about this area of the world, conservation of land and their animals in Tasmanian and Australia. All three are great stories of secrets, betrayal, loves and determination. Great story telling.
Learned about Australia’s wild life. Very slow in the beginning, but a good Read.
Love books about New Zealand, of the early to mid century era, very good read part 2 of the series. Read part 1 first
The story is about the lives of two brothers, Tom and Harry. It is very interesting and sometimes tragic. A must read!!!
Travel to the homeland of Tasmanian devils and tigers – exotic and endangered animals. Twins and a childhood friend lose family and dreams during WWII. Characters are tested by caregiving and privation. Can they transcend childhood rivalry and reclaim good lives they enjoyed in woodlands and mountains? How can they save what is precious and endangered?
Great story of getting your s**t together during the war, but just a bit different on the Tasmanian Island. What a great story and great characters!
This book brought me to an area of the world I have no familiarity with. Great tale.
the story was interesting but didn’t care for the bad language. Almost stopped reading after a few chapters because of that. Liked the Australia connection.
I liked the setting and the romance of the Australian bush.
Kept my interest. Story was different.
Many thanks to Beauty and Lace and Pilyara press for the opportunity to read and review The Lost Valley by Jennifer Scoullar.
This is the second book in The Tasmanian Tales by Scoullar, the first being Fortune’s Son which I was also privileged to have had the opportunity to read and review. Embarrassingly, I did not realise until I saw a comment by Michelle from Beauty and Lace that this was the second book in a series! On a positive note however, it does mean that this book clearly is able to be read and thoroughly enjoyed as a stand-alone book.
The tale begins in extraordinary fashion. A beautiful scenario of a couple in love celebrating their 20th wedding anniversary, crystal vases crammed with roses, a silver ice bucket with her favourite French champagne, oysters and poached salmon as the sun sets, an evening dancing to their favourite tunes in the drawing room, just the two of them, the twins away at boarding school, staff having the night off. The perfect evening, oh, apart from the first paragraph of the tale:
“Mr Robert Abbott, close friend of the Premier and Hobart’s most prominent businessman, was forty-one-years old when he took a rifle and shot his wife in the head. He then turned the gun on himself.”
Suddenly for 10-year-old twins, Henry (known as Harry) and Tom, their world is turned upside down. The official line is that a mysterious intruder burst into the family home blasting their parent’s lives from them. As a result, they have been removed from boarding school and sent to live with their father’s mother Isabelle, the black sheep off the family who they haven’t had any contact with since they were four, at Binburra, her remote homestead in the Tasmanian highlands.
We watch as the boys grow into young men with very divergent personalities, Tom loves the rugged landscape, Harry feels trapped and begins to develop a growing resentment towards Tom, culminating in an incident that nearly costs Tom his life and sets in motion a lifelong division between the twins.
In addition to the boys, Scoullar also develops the characters of 3 women who will have a significant impact on Harry and Tom’s lives. Their father’s mother Isabelle, who ran off with another man leading to a long estrangement from the rest of the family, Emma, who idolises Tom and shares his deep love of animals, and Kitty, an actress beauty who sees Tom as the perfect accessory as she breaks into Hollywood.
As the mountains of Tasmania and Binburra yield up their long-held secrets, events from World War II have a cataclysmic effect on Harry and Tom’s lives and relationships.
Scoullar’s love of Tasmania is again evident in this tale, as is her fascination with the Thylacine, the presumed extinct Tasmanian Tiger. A wonderfully written book that leaves you enraptured by her descriptions of the environment, riding a roller coaster of emotions as you experience the lengths Emma is forced to go to in order to provide medical help to her beloved mother, and the unforeseen impacts this will have on her life, the highs and lows experienced by Harry and Tom and the impact that their parent’s untimely death has on them.
A highly recommended read. I give it 4.5 stars.
This book is set in Tasmania which made it very educational for me. Good plot, great descriptions of the natural environment in which it is set. A bit different and enjoyable for me.
I know evenness about Tasmania than I do about Australia so I really enjoyed reading about new landscapes which fit in well with purpose of the book I will definitely read the other two in the series. You should too.
The Tasmanian Tales:
Fortune’s Son #1 – So sad and so heartbreaking, the heartwarming multiple storylines about Tasmania, her culture and her creatures was so interesting and intriguing; it was another hard to put down story. The well-written characters, the author’s vivid descriptions, and talented storytelling abilities place the reader deep into the weave of a beautiful tapestry of love, sacrifice and the culture and wildlife of Tasmania, with glimpses of AU. Bear is my favorite character next to Tasmania. 5*
The Lost Valley #2 – This story begins in 1929 with most of the family involved from Fortune’s Son. This book is so sad and so heartbreaking, as well as so heartwarming, intriguing, interesting and uplifting. The vivid descriptions woven with the old and new storylines make a substantial tapestry of love and sacrifice amongst the history of Tasmania, her people and her creatures and her culture. The 600 plus pages just flew by and I could not put this book down until I read the last page. I chain read all the books I had by this author and never once was bored or tired of reading about AU and Tasmania. the excitement over finding such a talented and creative storyteller/author never stopped. Rereading these books in the future, which is something I seldom do anymore, is a certain possibility. 5*
The Tasmanian Tales end.
The Wild Australia Stories Series:
Brumby’s Run #1 – This is my first read by this author and I love it. I felt like I was there in those areas of AU. The vivid descriptions, the variety of everyday characters, the horses and all the background information just kept me glued to the pages. I could not put the book down and I had another book to review: this book came from my library. I took my time savoring every word and the storylines and was happy the author stayed home, instead of writing about the US or some other place, sharing the lifestyles and traditions in her neck of AU. The extra material not usually found in many books was extremely interesting and enjoyable to read about: the depth of the training; horse breeds; and even the proper handling of the environment. All the background information added substance to the tapestry of the story. I will read every book I can find from Ms. Scoullar. 5*
Currawong Creek #2 – This book is just as great to read as Brumby’s Run. Clare is a difficult person to like. She flip-flops between sensible and plain stupid too much and to extremes. She does running away well but not working out problems. Good storylines full with plenty of love, sacrifice and the power of healing with the use of therapy animals. The other main characters were good and interesting, along with most of the secondary characters. There are good expectations and a couple of surprises concerning friendship. Again, I felt as if I was there through Ms. S’s vivid descriptions. This is a feel good story complete with romance and shared loves. 4*
Turtle Reef #4 – This story is wonderful and heartbreaking. I found Ms. S’s vivid descriptions about the sea and her creatures, and the reefs, their functions and survival against man interesting and intriguing. The dugongs are very interesting and I learned quite a bit about them. Through Einstein the octopus, I gained a respect for the species, especially after learning about the sacrifices the females make for their young. This is y favorite of the three books that I’ve read so far. As interesting as the creatures were, the human characters held up their end – interesting, talented and varying from wonderful to damaged but always believable. Einstein and Aisha were my favorites with Zoe pulling in third. 5*
Journey’s End #5 – Wonderful and heartbreaking, this heartwarming story has a touch of romance making Journey’s End another top favorite of mine. All four stories were great, but Turtle and Journey grabbed my heart and made tears flow. I enjoyed Ms. S’s wild AU stories with her well-written characters and her vivid descriptions placing the reader deep into the tapestry of intriguing storylines and interesting background on AU and her wildlife. Dusty was my favorite character and Taj lent a mysterious element to a well-written story. 5*
The Wild Australia Stories Series end.
Interesting “Cain & Able” story.
The characters were very real…not all good…not all bad. There were realistic reasons for the paths of their lives and the history of their times was woven into the plot with skill. The Tasmanian tiger’s endangered species status was informative and the ending was satisfying. The writing was concise and emotional. Although easy-to-read, it was still a page turner. I enjoyed this book very much.
I liked the book. Love reading books around this time period when things were genuine.
Interesting facts about Australia were worked into a plot that took some dark turns.