The Giving Star by Frances Dall’Alba is an engaging rural romance with family, a small town community, and troubled teens. It is set in Richmond, Queensland – authentic Australian dinosaur country.
Sally Barkworth volunteers at the local council animal pound in Malanda. She is a dedicated teacher with a special interest in troubled youth.
Ben Angwin arrives to collect his grandfather’s missing cat, Moby. The collection does not go smoothly, and their first impressions of each other linger with them both.
Five months later, Sally heads to the small outback town of Richmond. She is to run a program for troubled preteens. It is financially backed by the government to prevent the downward slide of drugs and absences from school. The program includes a stay at an outback station, with dinosaur fossicking as part of the program.
Ben and Sally’s paths cross yet again. It is Ben’s family property where the program is based, and he is the paleontologist. They both establish that neither of them is looking for a partner. However, as they work together, they discover there is definitely chemistry between them.
Ben is still struggling with the death of his wife and concern for his grandfather, as his instincts tell him something is wrong. And, Sally has her own baggage from a previous relationship and past events.
Will Ben find the confidence to move on and try his luck with romance again? With their misunderstandings, will Sally decide that their relationship is worth fighting for?
The book is Book 3 of the Sway of the Stars series. You do not need to have read the previous books, although some well-loved characters do make appearances.
The relationships between Ben and Sally and the teenagers they are working with keep you engaged. These are wonderful, relatable characters, as are many others in the story.
The book is an excellent read. There are twists and turns, humour and seriousness. It is not just a love story, but one of compassion and caring characters working with troubled youth.
The historical and factual account of the dinosaur history of the area adds a wonderful dimension to the story. I love how Frances always sets her books in an actual Australian town; her books never disappoint.
A selection of our Beauty and Lace Club members are reading The Giving Star by Frances Dall’Alba. You can read their comments below, or add your own review.
I love to read, any book on any topic. I now love ebooks as they are easier to store, I was running out of bookshelves! My other interests are family, gardening and our beautiful King Charles spaniel dog who is my reading companion.
Frances Alba did not disappoint in this book and more importantly, as a third in the series, it can be read as a stand alone, like I did. It appeared to me to be more of a side step following Sally. I adored this crossing of Ben and Sally and how their lives became woven around each other. It was a romance in the true sense of the word but also capturing the essence of living in the outback along with its trials and tribulations while also highlighting something that both rural and metropolitan readers can relate to.
This book is part of Frances Dall’Alba’s Sway of the Stars series but is easily read as a stand alone book. As usual, it is well written and a great story which keeps you interested until the end.
Sally and Ben meet through Sally’s work at the animal shelter. Ben is there to collect is grandfather’s cat Moby. They have many clashes and fall outs but I think Moby is the link bringing them together.
This book is very much recommended.
The Giving Star by Frances Dall’Alba is a delightful, easy read. While it is book three in the Sway of the Stars series, it read well as a stand alone book.
Sally is a teacher who has set up a program to help troubled kids. She also volunteers at the local animal shelter where she first meets Ben when he comes to collect his grandfathers’ cat. Ben is a palaeontologist and his family property happens to be the one being used for the program.
Both Sally and Ben have past issues to resolve. Will they be able to overcome past hurts to get their happily ever after? Set in the outback around Richmond amid dinosaur bones and troubled youth, this is a heart warming story of love and hope.
Thank you to Beauty and Lace and Poinsettia Publishing for the opportunity to read and review this great read.
Sally was preparing for the big move, her plans to work with at risk children, building their strengths and helping them cope ready to start. She would relocate to the outback, Richmond, where she had secured a house and community involvement on a property. Its make or break time. But first, to make one last effort to find the fluffy “stray” cats home from the shelter she volunteers at.
Ben worries about his grandfather regularly. His health having declined since the loss of his partner, Ben’s Gran. Even with Gwen in his grandpa’s life, but something is off with her, Ben just can’t put his finger on it. Splitting time between his grandparents and the Richmond property taking its toll. Hopefully this call regarding a cat turns out to be beloved Moby’s and it makes a difference.
In tue Frances Dall’Alba style the romance, innuendo, twist/drama are all there. I just couldn’t wait until the end to see how it would all resolve!
The Giving star by Frances is a sweet romance with a bit of spice mixed in.
An enjoyable read with a few different storyline’s that all fitted together nicely and kept the story flowing and my interest piqued.
Sally Barkworth relocates to the outback dinosaur town of Richmond to start up her dream program of helping troubled teenage boys, where she meets the hunky Ben Angwin, who also just happens to be helping her out with her program , but Ben has been hurt in the past and is not quite sure if he’s ready to hand his heart over again.
I enjoyed the development of Sally and Bens romance as well as all the other bits, the boys program, the dinosaur, Grandpas illness that all added to and made the story.
Thanks you Beauty and Lace and Book Siren for the copy to read.
The Giving Star by author Frances Dall’Alba was one of my favorite romance novels for this year. This read truly delivers on family, the beauty of a small close-knit community and the beauty of seeing troubled teens become a better version of themselves with the help of a program run by a small team of caring, nurturing and supportive adults.
After moving to Richmond (known as dinosaur country) Sally brings her dream of running a program that helps troubled teen boys to fruition along with the assistance of one very handsome Ben Agwin. Will his past issues that are still hurting him today be what tears him and Sally apart or will it be their common love of helping teen boys who are helping with the unearthing of bones of a dinosaur they’ve affectionately named Penny be what brings them all together. This book has the right level of sweetness to balance the tiny part of spice!
Thank you to Beauty and Lace book club and Book Siren for my copy to read and review.