Alone by Gillian Wells is a story full of suspense, crime and romance.
Rachel lives alone on her property in central Queensland. Sam, her husband has died. She loves the land and her way of life, but it is a challenge managing a cattle station on her own.
Rachel has been considering her options but a brief visit in the dead of night by her estranged son throws her plans into turmoil.
At age ten, her son Johnny suffered an accident. A head injury caused his behaviour to change overnight. At age fourteen he attempted to kill his father, Sam. Johnny then leaves home and has had no contact with his parents for six years, when he returned demanding money.
Finally, the news has reached him of his father’s death and he has returned, threatening Rachel, demanding his share of the inheritance.
Rachel knows he will never be satisfied with the amount left to him in the will.
The morning after Johnny’s nighttime visit, she comes across the body of a stranger on her property. Rachel wonders if the two events are connected.
Mike, a police officer who arrives to investigate the body in the paddock, befriends Rachel. He rings her every day to check she is ok. As their friendship develops, Rachel knows there is something he isn’t telling her.
Pat, an artist, turns up and asks to camp on her property to paint the landscape. Rachel agrees as she feels safer with somebody there. But Pat is definitely hiding something.
These events have unsettled Rachel and she realises how vulnerable she is living alone. The threatening visits by her son are now more frequent and he is accompanied by members of his motorcycle gang.
As the threats escalate to actions Rachel has tough decisions to make.
This is a story you can’t put down. It is action-packed with twists and suspense. You so want Rachel to be safe and find a solution to all her problems.
A great read.
ISBN: 9781922444134
Publisher: Shawline Publishing Group
A selection of our Beauty and Lace Club members are reading Alone by Gillian Wells. 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.
Thank-you Beauty & Lace for giving me the chance to read & review ‘Alone’ an e-book by Gillian Wells.
Set in outback Queensland, Rachel is left to the running of a cattle station after her husband Sam dies. Decisions need to be made for her future but further heartache for Rachel is on the cards, can anyone cope with so much alone?
Life challenges in the form of a dead body, an attractive police officer, an artist, an estranged son with criminal links and the loss of beloved pets. Rachel begins to question can she really cope with all that is asked of her and maybe it is time to give it all up.
The story really pulls you in, needing to know how Rachel can be safe and not alone, a great read. Thank-you ‘Beauty & Lace Bookclub’ for the opportunity to read ‘Alone’ an e-book by Gillian Wells.
Thank you so much Donna for you kind words I am so pleased you enjoyed Alone. It is always good to hear what people think of what one writes and I really appreciate your review. Regards Gillian
I really enjoyed ‘Alone’ by Gillian Wells. I couldn’t remember what it was about before reading it and so went into it blindly and what a thrill that was! Sometimes it’s good to read a book with no idea what it is going to be about. Rachel is a strong, proud character whom I really felt that I could relate to despite not having any shared experiences, her character was just written very well. Mike was awesome, but you find out one of the reasons why he was awesome in the end (no hints here!). I wasn’t expecting any of the ending so it was a great surprise. I did have a feeling about something that was going to happen and it didn’t – which is a good thing not being able to predict the storyline. Thank you Beauty and Lace for letting me review this book, I will be recommending it to all of my friends >:o)
What a wonderful book, could not stop reading, Rachel is an amazing character so determined to run her cattle ranch by herself even though she has suffered so much tragedy ( no spoilers )
Her son Johnny turns up one night demanding money and threatening Rachel, he has changed so much since he had an accident as a young child he is not a nice person at all as readers will discover,
Mike is also another great character in this book,
Romance, vandalism, suspense this book has it all
An excellent read
Thank you Simone a recommendation is wonderful and much appreciated. I am so pleased you liked Alone. It is always good to hear what people think of a book and different people often find different things to enjoy. Thanks again Gillian
Thank you Deborah, I am so pleased you liked Alone, it is always good to hear what people think and what they ‘take ‘from a book. I appreciate your review.
Alone an e-book by Gillian Wells is a true-blue Australian drama full of the highs and lows experienced by so many who choose to live on the land.
It vividly portrays the loneliness, the isolation, the toil and the unrelenting challenges whilst at the same time capturing the intoxicating lure of this way of life.
The main character, Rachel has been alone and managing the family cattle farm since her husband’s sickness and untimely death a few months earlier. Whilst she is an extremely capable person, his demise has meant she only has herself to rely on and the harsh reality of her situation become apparent when she makes a horrifying discovery. On top of this her estranged son who she hasn’t seen for years, shows up demanding a share of his dead father’s estate, and threatening her.
Rachel certainly has a lot to contend with, and the remoteness of her situation makes her plight even more dire.
Alone is a real page turner and the characters are well portrayed. Also the descriptions of both the way of life and the camaraderie of outback communities and the characters who pass through from bikies to swagmen are well done. This is an entertaining and mostly satisfying read, although I did find it came to a fairly abrupt conclusion.
Thank you Deborah, I am so pleased you liked Alone, it is always good to hear what people think and what they ‘take ‘from a book. I appreciate your review.
Outback Australia and Rachael was having to find her way on her own, husband Sam having passed away and her troubled son estranged. Her friends knowing she was independent were there but didn’t push. The big decision, stay and try to run the cattle farm that had been handed down Sams family, or sell and make a life in town. So tied to the land and space, this was a hard call.
A scary visit and threats from her son Johnny shook her to the core. He demanded the sale, making Rachael both fearful and challenged.
The tale of fear and fight, challenges and heartbreak followed. Holding on to see if Rachael will find her way, right to the last chapter.
A warming read hitting on our vulnerabilities, Thanks beauty & lace & Gillian Wells for an escape into a drawing read.
I am sorry everyone of you that has posted wonderful comments on Alone. For some reason my computer keeps jumping when I try to write individual comments so this is to all of you. I really appreciate you time to review Alone and your thoughts. For me it is better to hear what people think than anything else. I write because I love to tell stories I always have. So of course I love to share them too. so thank you everyone. let us hope this one doesn’t jump too!
I really enjoyed reading Alone. It was well written, loved the characters, and there were so many twists and turns to keep you hooked.
It also highlights the plight of farmers in rural settings and the difficulty for families when sickness strikes.
I would definitely recommend this book and look forward to reading more books from this author.
Rachel is a very likeable character and as this story is based around her you can forgive any slip ups she may have during the journey of this time.
Recently widowed and trying to manage her farm by herself and at times with the help of her close neighbours she has to now cope with the return of her estranged son who is vying to take the farm from her. He will do whatever it takes as he is a bad person and has a bad past. Not caring for his mother or how he hurts her.
Mike has recently moved to the area as a police officer and with a past of being on his parents farm he forms a friendship with Rachel and they become close. Another character in Patrick, who has been roaming the country for years and tries to endear himself to Rachel.
This is a great story of how people in the county help each other, how the harshness of farming can cause problems and how strangers can help.
Gillian Wells has captured it all!
Alone by Gillian Wells is a real page turner, Rachel is a widow who just wants to stay on the farm she built with her husband but her son who had a childhood accident that changed him and his own mother is now scared of him as you’ll discover very quickly. A dead body and a new policeman all change the path Rachel is on I thoroughly enjoyed this book and loved every page, Thank You for the opportunity to read and review a wonderful book.
Rachel is recently widowed and living alone on her property in rural Queensland. One evening her estranged son (Johnny) turns up, demanding his inheritance from his father’s estate. The next day, Rachel stumbles across a dead body on her property – is this connected to Johnny?
Then Mike, a police officer enters her life to investigate the mysterious body. Mike and Rachel become close friends and he calls almost every day to check on her as Johnny continues to pop in and out of her life, threatening and frightening her.
There are so many themes in this book including vulnerability, loneliness, sadness, romance, substance abuse and friendship. I really enjoyed the setting in rural Queensland – made easy to imagine by the graphic descriptions.
It is action packed, fast paced and has a few twists – you want to get to the end to see how Rachel’s life pans out!
Thanks to Beauty and Lace for the opportunity to read and review this ebook.