Author: Fleur McDonald
ISBN: 978-1-76029-395-6
RRP: $29.99
Publisher: Allen & Unwin
Copy: Courtesy of the Publisher
Fleur McDonald has made a name for herself in the rural genre but the novels I have read of hers have been more suspenseful. Suddenly One Summer is her tenth novel and another colourful rural fiction heavy on suspense.
I finished reading this too long ago and let life get in the way, now I’m unmotivated and procrastinating so have spent too much time thinking about some of the characters in McDonald’s work.
The leading lady in Suddenly One Summer is Brianna Donahue, a West Australian farmer, wife and mother whose own mother mysteriously disappeared when she was just three years old. Her body has never been recovered so there has been no closure for Brianna and her father Russell as they continue to farm in Merriwell Bay where she disappeared from.
Brianna is spread thin with her work on the farm and raising the boys almost single-handedly while Caleb is a fly-in fly-out criminal lawyer in Perth.
In a horrific birthday disaster her eldest son Trent goes missing early one sweltering summer morning. The search is heart-breaking and enough to bring back memories of a long ago search that didn’t end so well. Trent is found but this sparks a series of events that leave us questioning much of what is going on in the story.
Across the border in small town South Australia Detective Dave Burrows, who has featured in previous novels, receives a call from an elderly farmer reporting stolen sheep. The first visit to the farm shows Dave and his parner that the farmer is beginning to show signs of dementia, and he is living all alone. Detective Burrows is not one to turn his back on someone who is clearly in need and does his best to try and find help for him.
Detective Burrows is the character I spent too much of the afternoon thinking about because I know he is a recurring character in at least some of McDonald’s novels but I’m not sure just how many. These novels are all stand alone, there is no series, but Detective Burrows and his wife Kim have featured in multiple though I’m not sure how many.
Alternating chapters tell the unfolding story of Brianna, her rocky marriage and life on the farm; and the interesting case Detective Burrows is investigating of the missing sheep. All the while you are left wondering how the stories are connected.
As if speculation about the connections between Brianna and the Burrows case isn’t enough to keep you turning pages long after lights out there is also the scattered snippets about a mysterious badly beaten woman found wandering the highway with complete amnesia.
McDonald has written a suspenseful jigsaw of a story that doesn’t fall into place until the final long held secrets are brought to light.
I live in a small country town, it’s a town that’s growing and isn’t that far from suburbia, but I really have no idea about life on a farm. I know that things are different on a farm and life for kids is different, there are different responsibilities and different rules but I couldn’t get past the ages of the children in this one, I feel that I would have connected better had they been a few years older. This may be normal freedoms for farm life but I couldn’t get my head around it or come to grips.
Suddenly One Summer was a book that kept me guessing with suspenseful storylines, slow burning clue drops and a big finish. I really enjoyed it and it was another one that made me want to go back and catch up on all the novels in her backlist that I have missed.
Suddenly One Summer returns McDonald to her rural roots after the release of The Missing Pieces of Us earlier this year. She is definitely not an author to miss and I will be keeping her on my watch list. Her next release is another novel with Det. Burrows and I will keep it on my radar.
Suddenly One Summer is book #47 for the Australian Women Writer’s Challenge 2017.
Fleur McDonald loves to hear from her readers and you can find her on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
Suddenly One Summer is published by Allen & Unwin and available now from Angus & Robertson Bookworld, Booktopia and where all good books are sold.
Thanks to Allen & Unwin 20 of our Beauty and Lace Club members are reading Suddenly One Summer so please be aware there may be spoilers in the comments below.
I devour books, vampires and supernatural creatures are my genre of choice but over the past couple of years, I have broadened my horizons considerably. In a nutshell – I love to write! I love interacting with a diverse range of artists to bring you interviews. Perhaps we were perfect before – I LOVE WORDS!
Thanks for the opportunity to read Suddenly One Summer by Fleur McDonald.
This is a great book f anyone wanting an engrossing read over Christmas – or anytime of the year for that matter!
The seemingly unrelated stories of Brianna and her family in Western Australia and Detective Burrows in country South Australia are both interesting and intriguing in their own rights.
Fleur McDonald paints a vibrant picture of the trials of country life for our farmers and the work of the police in country towns. Added to this is the tension in Brianna’s marriage and the realisation that things are quite what they seem.
The characters are well written and totally – undeniably – believable. The twists of the plot make this a page turner that will keep you guessing to the end.
Do yourself a favour – read Suddenly One Summer!
Suddenly One Summer by Fleur McDonald
This is the first book of Fleur’s that I have read. The book seemed to have three separate stories; one involving Brianna and her lawyer husband and their two children who lived and worked on an outback family farm with her father; the other about Detective Dave Burrows who was investigating a farm related theft; and lastly a woman who finds herself badly hurt and without any memory of how she became in this predicament. It was only at the very end that it all came together and linked all the characters and their stories.
It was skillfully written and I really didn’t predict the ending. An engaging read that will keep you interested throughout.
Thank You Beauty and Lace Book Club and Allen & Unwin for another great read that I am happy to recommend.
If you are looking for a book that takes you through the Australian Outback and throws in some twists and turns , Suddenly One Summer by Fleur McDonald is the book for you.
This book describes the hardships of those working on the land. It’s through the story of Brianna that we see what it’s really like.
It’s a very thought of story which I thoroughly enjoyed.
I would recommend this book to a friend.
Thank you Beauty and Lace.
Thank you for the opportunity to read Suddenly One Summer by Fleur McDonald.
It is the story of Brianna who works a farm in WA with her father, while her husband is a fly in, fly out lawyer. She has two young sons and near the start of the book one of them goes missing. This parallels her own mother’s disappearance many years earlier, except her mother was never found. While her son is found it highlights problems in her marriage.
There is another story going on of a police officer in rural SA investigating the theft of sheep and/or wool. Guy who reported it does not seem to be coping too well and there are a few questions about his ability to thrive on his farm alone. This leads to talk of his family and we find out they were fairly secluded and there is a secret.
There are also snippets of a story about a lady who wakes up in a shed with no memory of her life or who she is.
I love the way these stories are interwoven and that there were secrets to come out even at the end. Brianna seemed overwhelmed, but her story was told realistically, so I could sympathise. The police officer Dave was thorough and really suited to country policing, knowing how to get the best out of people.
I really enjoy Fleur McDonald’s writing and this book was another keeper.
I enjoyed reading this book immensely, the storyline wasn’t predictable and I loved the twists that were added, definitely a pageturner for sure.
There were some parts that possibly could be altered such as the age of Brianna’s children as I know having children that age myself, some things they get up to aren’t necessarily believable but it all still makes for a good read.
Suddenly One Summer by Fleur McDonald was an enjoyable and intriguing read. Having read a couple of Fleur mcDonalds books before, I really wanted to read this one and it definitely didn’t disappoint.
The book tells us two different stories that are set in Australia in different states. The first, set in Western Australia, is the story of Brianna and her family who live on a farm. The second is set in South Australia and features Detective Burrows , who is also a recurring character in a few of Fleur Mc Donald’s novels. These are told in alternating chapters. Each chapter keeps you guessing as to how the two stories will connect. And WOW! when they do.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and will definitely recommend it to others. Thank you Beauty and Lace and Allen & Unwin for giving me the opportunity to read and review this wonderful book.
This book gripped me from the first page. Usually I can very quickly predict how books will end, this one, however, kept me guessing until the very end. Just when I thought I’d figured it out it twisted again.
This is the first book from this author that I have read and I have to say that Fleur is a wonderful, very talented, storyteller. The descriptions made me feel like I was there and yet didn’t overwhelm the story, the characters were authentic, although I must admit I did wonder about the maturity and freedoms given to the Terrors – although that could just be me as a city slicker.
Overall a fantastic book that I’d highly recommend and I can’t thank Beauty and Lace Book Club and Allen & Unwin enough for choosing me to receive a free copy to read and review. Fleur McDonald will definitely be added to my favourite authors list and I can’t wait to read more of her books.
Suddenly One Summer by Fleur McDonald
What a wonderful read… This is a story for anyone who wanders what life in the country is like. I was able to really connect with the story as only days ago I drove through country NSW, VIC and SA. It has always been a mystery to me how the people live in the country and this story satisfied my curiosity.
This story draws us into the life of Brianna Donahue, a young mum with two adventures boys, who is trying to juggle life on a farm and a challenging marriage.
Brianna’s life is turned upside down with any mothers worst nightmare- her son goes missing. This leads to twists and turns and a side story of a detective that has you guessing right up to the end.
I would recommend this book to anyone.
SUDDENLY One Summer is not your average rural book. Fleur McDonald leaves you questioning right up to nearly the end of this novel. This is not the kind of story that you can guess what happens from the first chapter.
Brianna Donahue’s mother disappeared when she was just three and her body was never found, and now Brianna works the same land with her father Russell while raising her two children, with her husband being a fly-in, fly-out lawyer in Perth.
When Brianna’s son goes missing, Brianna questions the strength of her marriage and whether her husband is finding romance elsewhere.
McDonald’s longtime character, Detective Dave Burrows, returns in this story and he travels more than 2000km to interview elderly farmer Guy who is in the early stages of dementia. Dave and his partner Jack question whether Guy really has had sheep stolen or whether it’s the dementia making him believe there were sheep. Dave’s wife, Kim – also a longtime character of McDonald’s, gets involved as she researches Guy’s family history.
Guy’s story and Brianna’s story becomes entwined and, as Brianna battles bushfires threatening her family’s property, secrets will come out that will change their lives.
This is one novel I couldn’t put down and had me guessing until the end. It is suspenseful and exciting and heartwarming, all at once.