Lost and Found by Australian author Liz Byrski is a heartfelt fiction novel that captures the magic of friendship, courage, and first love.
Rose Walters, a woman in her fifties, has lived for decades in Western Australia, creating a comfortable and fulfilling life for herself. She has been a wife, a mother, a friend, but beneath the surface lies an unsettled heart over her first love, Tom.
She has never stopped wondering about the man she once loved in England and the life she left behind. With so many questions left unanswered, Rose decides to take a leap of faith and return to Rye in Sussex in need of truth and closure.
Dora Stutchbury, in her eighties, lives alone, burdened by her past and secrets. When Rose arrives on her doorstep looking for her son, she is reluctant to revisit a past she has long buried. Warily, she lets Rose in.
What begins as an uncomfortable encounter slowly becomes something sacred as they open old wounds. A new and unlikely friendship develops between Rose and Dora, and together they begin to unravel questions about the past, an absent son, a lover, and their own selves.
The narrative drifts between Australia and England, between what was lost and what remains. Byrski invites the reader to sit with her characters as they reflect, laugh, and occasionally weep. Nothing feels forced or overly dramatic; the story unfolds with the quiet beauty of ordinary lives being rediscovered.
The characters are easy to root for. Rose’s compassion, openness, and bravery make her instantly likable. She shows the reader that self-discovery and new beginnings are possible at any stage in life, and it is never too late to ask, What if and to take the chance to find out.
Dora at first was hard to like, but when you got to know her, you understood why she was guarded and had her walls up. I loved how Dora softens as her friendship with Rose develops.
While Rose and Dora are the story’s anchors, the supporting cast of characters enriches the narrative. Tom, Dora’s estranged son, and her childhood friend Molly, Rose’s best friend Chris, neighbours, family, and friends offer humour, tenderness, and the sense of a larger community quietly shaping their lives.
Liz Byrski continues to be one of Australia’s most beloved writers in women’s contemporary fiction, and this novel stands as another testament to her storytelling skills highlighting her trademark of warmth and sensitivity, to deliver a powerful story you will not forget.
I love how beautifully simple yet atmospheric this book cover is with the design and font. In the sea of similarities in cover design we see today, this classic yet modern, smart, and intriguing portal is a breath of fresh air and a standout on the shelves.
Lost and Found is a moving and deeply satisfying novel that reminds us it is never too late to seek closure, forgiveness, or friendship. It also made me think about all the things we carry with us: memories, regrets, hope, and the beauty of rediscovering oneself and proof that what is lost is sometimes waiting to be found. We just need the courage to take that first step.
I highly recommend this to readers who enjoy warm, thoughtful fiction about women’s lives, friendship, and late-life discovery.
A selection of our Beauty and Lace Club members are reading Lost and Found by Liz Byrski. You can read their comments below, or add your own review.
My love of books started at a very young age. My mum has always been a reader and encouraged me to read, buying me endless book from classic fairy tales advancing to the world of Enid Blyton, CS Lewis, Louisa May Alcott, Kathryn Kenny, Carolyn Keene, Francine Pascal. In my adult years the list of authors is endless and every room in my house is filled with books.
One of my favourite novels is Narnia which has always has a special place in my heart. I was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes in 1978 and when I was given this book to read it let me escape to another world where I felt like I was in the book with all the characters, it wasfun and exciting to escape from reality and eased the ups and downs of the disease at such a young age.
In books nothing is impossible and there is endless potential and hundreds of places to explore or being taken to places that are only made up from the authors’ great minds, the past and future to navigate, characters lives you step into taking you on an emotional rollercoaster ride or being scared out of your wits. I can experience things that I can’t in real life because they’re not possible or real. It challenges my perspective and mindset expanding my worldview.
I find joy, comfort and peace with books, many people may not get it, but I know bookworms like me truly understand. Reading makes my heart happy.
Lost and Found tells the story of Rose Walters, a 51-year-old woman living in Western Australia who feels lost and uncertain about her life. She decides to return to England after decades away to find her first love, Tom. When she arrives in Sussex, she meets Tom’s mother, Dora, and learns that Tom has died.
Told primarily through both Rose’s and Dora’s voices, the novel explores memory, loss, regret, and friendship. Despite their emotional burdens, the two women form an unexpected bond that helps them both to heal and forgive themselves.
Liz Byrski writes with warmth and sensitivity, offering a moving story about self-discovery, resilience, and the power of connection.
I did start reading this book and at first thought it has politics in it but keep reading as it does get your attention with the wonderful warm friendships, characters and a storyline that you just want to keep reading to work out what is happening.
The story is mainly about Rose Waters wanting to explore back to a past relationship with Tom and whether that love could be rekindled. It all ended abruptly, and she never knew why or what happened for it to end.
She gets a letter and decides to make the trip back to her homeland in England from her home in Australia in Western Australia. She has a very strong friendship with Chris who helps her with getting her back to England.
In England she gets to meet Dora Stutchbury who is the mother of Tom and she learns things from her re Tom. Dora warms to Rose and wants her to write her biography, a story that can be told when she is no longer alive. It’s not hard to warm to Dora who is in her early 80s.
A strong friendship can be seen between Rose and Dora and Rose is trying to piece her past life when she was 20. So many secrets and unexplained things happening.
There are parts in the book that I would be giggling and tears closer to the end of the story.
The story made me think of a past love and that brought up memories for me also but for me, the past is in the past. Must be in the future.
Many other characters in the storyline that are all entwined into the storyline. Secrets never work out and that shows in this storyline.
Liz Byrski really captures all her characters in any book she writes. The cover is totally gorgeous as is all her covers on previous books.
Thank you to Beauty & Lace & Pan Macmillan Australia for sending me this book to read.