Author: Jennifer Scoullar
ISBN: 978-1-925827-00-2
RRP: $32.99
Publication Date: 27th August 2018
Publisher: Pilyara Press
Copy: Courtesy of the Publisher
The Lost Valley is the second book in The Tasmanian Tales trilogy by Jennifer Scoullar but it is one that I think would stand on its own merits if you came to it without having read Fortune’s Son. It has been so long since I read the first book, and I no longer have the time to go back and re-read, that I don’t remember it clearly so it wasn’t fresh in my mind and that didn’t make a difference. I will be interested to read what our members thought if they hadn’t read Fortune’s Son.
Tom and Harry Abbott are orphaned in 1929, at 10 years old, when their parents are killed in tragic circumstances. They can’t stay in Hobart so they are sent to live with their estranged grandmother, Isabelle Abbott, in the Binburra ranges. The move allowed the boys space to grieve, and to grow. Tom fell in love with the wild woods surrounding his new home and made the most of the room to roam and explore. Harry grew a festering resentment towards his twin and a wildness that would not be tamed.
The Abbott twins are as different as twins could be, and they always have been. Harry was the apple of his father’s eye with his interest in maths and the family businesses where Tom was more interested in aviation and books. The bond Harry shared with his father was much stronger than Tom’s, who shared a special bond with his mother. They both missed their parent’s terribly but it was Harry who vowed to track down the person responsible and seek vengeance.
The Lost Valley spans decades and watches over many changes in the world, yet it is a much smaller page count than I would have expected. The twins grow up in the remote Tasmanian mountains and instead of the isolation bringing them closer it seems to allow cracks to form in their bond and rivalries to grow.
Isabelle Abbott was quite reclusive when she took on the boys, retreating into herself after the death of her husband. Her time with the grandsons she had been estranged from helps to bring her back to life, reignite her passions for life and for conservation.
Once again Scoullar has penned a tale of the untamed Tasmanian wilds, the plight of the Tasmanian tiger and the fight that conservationists and naturalists put up to protect the natural habitats and the process of creating National Parks. This environmental side of the story is deftly woven into a tale of sibling rivalry, love, jealousy and romance against a backdrop much bigger than the Tasmanian forests.
Six years in the mountains and finally things come to a head, it’s clear that they need more than can be offered at Binburra so they head into Hobart. Tom meets Emma, a girl about his age with similar ideals, and they spend some time together until she needs to race home to a sick mother. Harry finds a job and stays on in the city while Isabelle and Tom return to their mountain home.
The Lost Valley is the tale of Tom and Harry through the years of apprenticeships, the second world war, love, courtship, marriage and tragedy. It is a tale of sinister rivalry between brothers and the resounding effect bad blood can have for years, the lengths that some will go to.
Scoullar has penned characters that are real and relatable in situations I don’t even want to fathom. This was a story that definitely set me on an emotional roller coaster.
Emma was a young girl who had to step in when her mum had a stroke, leaving her studies and her job behind; as well as her volunteer work in the Zoo. She was left to support her family, do all she could to support her mum’s recovery and in the end she also had to find work. She found herself in a horrible position with very few options and she did what she had to do for her family. She was young and naïve but she was also strong and resourceful. She was an admirable young lady who had to face far too much in her life.
The Lost Valley takes us far from the valley and into Hobart, London and the middle of World War II where a pilot with nothing left to lose risks it all. This is a story that paints a vibrant picture of the Tasmanian mountains and tells an intriguing tale of twins ripped apart by resentment, jealousy and greed.
The Lost Valley is an historical saga that will capture your heart and your imagination. I would recommend it to fans of intricate family drama, passion and romance with an environmental vein.
I love the ending, and it has left me wanting to know what comes next. Not a cliffhanger must know but a sneaky little tease that leaves it open for another book a decade or two down the track. I will be interested to see where it goes from here, but I’m also satisfied with the way it all wrapped up.
The Lost Valley is #37 for the Australian Women Writer’s Challenge 2018.
Jennifer Scoullar can be followed on Facebook, JenniferScoullar.com and Twitter.
The Lost Valley is published by Pilyara Press and is available now through Booktopia, Angus & Robertson Bookworld and where all good books are sold.
Thanks to Pilyara Press 20 of our Beauty and Lace Club Members will be reading The Lost Valley 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!
A spectacular addition to any library is the novel ‘The Lost Valley’ by Jennifer Scoullar. A tremendous thank you to Beauty & Lace and Pilyara Press for supplying this book for review.
Not a large book but it’s certainly packed with drama. Ultimately the story of twin brothers, Tom and Harry Abbott who lose their parents tragically at the age of 10 and are raised by their nurturing grandmother in a rural property in Tasmania’s wilderness.
Such complicated relationships these two very different boys have. Their stories continue on into adulthood, World War II fighting, their respective romances and marriages. The author presents really gritty characters, the reader learning intricate details of the twin boys and their chosen partners. How people’s lives divert through life and find their way back to their true loves.
Elegantly portraying the beauty of a pristine Tasmanian landscape and the unexpected connection with the existence of the Tasmanian Tiger.
It is a book of life, turmoil, strength of character, resentments, resilience and love.
Giving it the highest of recommendations.
What an amazing book to receive as my introduction to Beauty and the Lace!
Set in the early part of the last century, it is the story of the Abbott twins, Harry and Tom, and how different twins can be. They both had many bumps in the road, but they both were drawn to their childhood home “Binburra’. One wanted the farm for its potential wealth and the other had hopes to save some of the last remaining Tasmanian Tigers.
Greed, love and death all featured throughout the book and helped to tie it all together.
Having not read the first book of the series, “Fortunes Son’, I was worried that I wouldn’t pick up the story straight away, but as soon as I finished the first page, I couldn’t put it down! (And I then wanted more! So I quickly purchased fortunes son, which was just as amazing!)
Jennifer Scoullar was able to vividly write the environment that the story was based in, and often felt that you were also walking alongside the Tasmanian Tigers! She has reinvigorated my hope that there may be some tigers in the far South West of Tasmania!
I would HIGHLY recommend reading the story!
I hope there is more to the Tasmanian Tales!
Thanks!
A really good read about twin brothers whose circumstances and reactions to events in their lives end up giving them very different lives.
The author gave a very vivid description of Tasmania in the early 20th century. Including the early environment movement and particularly the Tasmanian Tiger which linked several of the characters.
It was such an easy and interesting read that I did it in two sittings
4.5***** Thanks to Beauty and Lace Book Club and Pilyara Press for providing me with an ARC of this fabulous book.
This book certainly put my emotions through the wringer, being an empath I tend to really feel for the characters I connect with in books and Jennifer doesn’t shy away from putting her characters through some highly emotional and trying situations. This is the second book in the series, though it can be read as a standalone.
This story covers quite a few years, concentrating on the lives of twin brothers Tom and Harry who couldn’t be more different from the other. Set in Tasmania and stretching to the UK during WW2 we follow these boys who become men as they pursue their dreams, fall in love and fight the demons they’ve carried with them.
Focusing once again on the protection of the environment, we fall in love with Binburra and its flora and fauna.
The ending of this book was very enjoyable and hopefully we get to visit this family and the land again somewhere in the future.
The Lost Valley by Jennifer Scoullar is the second book in The Tasmanian Tales, but don’t worry if you haven’t read the first book (Fortunes Son) it’s completely standalone.
After reading Fortunes Son (also thanks to Beauty and Lace) it was nice to read the next one, The Lost Valley follows on a good 20 years later from where Fortunes Son ended.
Ten year old twins Tom and Harry Abbott are left orphaned after a tragedy that claims their parents, the troublesome twins are sent to live with there Grandmother at her remote property Binburra in Tasmanians wilderness.
Although twins the boys couldn’t be more different, sweet caring Tom loves nature and has a strong connection with his grandmother, Harry is very competitive especially with Tom, he also harbours a dark side which grows as he gets older. There different natures and circumstances lead the brothers to having a falling out and as World War II starts they lose all contact.
Both brothers fall in love and marry two vastly different women, but have they married the right women for them.
The brothers reunite again, can they put aside for there differences and heal their rift, especially as Binburra reveals its long held secrets which has the potential to forever separate them.
I enjoyed reading The Lost Valley, although maybe not quite as much as Fortunes Son, some of the story line was predictable but there were a couple of twists I didn’t quite see coming.
Thanks to Pilyara Press and Beauty and Lace for the chance to review The Lost Valley.
The Lost Valley is full of drama with love and lost of love ones. I felt like I was on a rollercoaster ride with the story I enjoyed it.
The Tasmanian tiger and the zoo animals were good to read about in the 1929s.
We have Harry and Tom who are very different from each other Harry has a temper Tom is gentle they both love Emma but Emma has her own troubles trying to live.
The Lost Valley has drama love and the lost of love ones. I found the story to be a rollercoaster ride I like the story about the zoo, Tasmanian Tiger.
We have two brothers who are very different from each other Harry has a temper Tom is gentle they both fall in love with Emma but Emma has her own problems trying to live in the 1929s.
A good read you wont be bored with this one.
Absolutely loved every little bit of this book!! Have always been fascinated with the Tasmanian Tiger and I really do hope that they do exist exactly as described by the book in a little forgotten corner in the tasmanian wilderness! The magical , mystical tale of this wonderful beast is just a part of the wonderful story! The characters are so real so human so full of life with their frailties and strength in times of hardship. The complex relationship between the two brothers is brilliantly told. The book brings to life Tasmania just before and after the second world war. My favourite bits of the book is at the family homestead Binburra as the author really brings to life the richness and solitude and magic of the Tasmanian bush.
A thoroughly entertaining read on so many levels! Really glad I got to review this book!!
I really loved this story and found that even though this is the second book in a trilogy it is great as a stand alone book and you dont have to worry that you have not read the first book.
The story is set in Tasmania in the 1920’s. Twins, Tom and Harry end up living with their grandmother in her homestead Binburra. Tom is very kind and gentle while Harry is one thats not so trustworthy. The boys have their battles which dont end as they enter adulthood. Tom’s attraction to the beautiful Emma is something he holds close to his heart and he feels that she is his special love but things happen in Emma’s life and she has to leave to care for her mother but even so Tom feels that in time they will reunite.
This story takes many turns and really is a fantastic read. I loved how we heard about the Tasmanian Tiger and the zoo.
I would very much love to read the other two books in this series.
Tom and Jack Abbott are orphaned at the tender age of 10 under very sad circumstances. After boarding school and money of no concern they are placed in the charge of their paternal grandmother who has had nothing to do with the twins after being estranged from the family many years ago.
The twins are like chalk and cheese with much animosity,jealousy and greed along with their goals being very diverse. Tom is quiet and passionate in continuing with his grandmothers legacy of maintaining the natural environment of her property Binburra as well as being as free as a bird and flying whilst Harry is entrenched in rebuilding his fathers empire and being rich along with other things.
The story is set in the first half of the 20th century encompassing the depression , ww11, the desperately poor and what they do to make a living and of course their love lives.
I loved this well written book from start to finish being totally unaware that it was the 2nd book in The Tasmanian Tales. Many thanks to Beauty and Lace and Pilyara Press for the opportunity to read and Review this great book.