The Stone in the Road by Frances Dall’Alba is a story of hope, love, and the ability to overcome the challenges life sends your way.
Samdarra Station is a cattle station doubling as a rehabilitation and detox clinic, it is there that Kelly Sheppard meets Patrick Van Der Meeliko. Kelly is a nanny to the station owner’s children, and she has her secrets.
Kelly has been asked to teach Patrick to drive, something she is not looking forward to. She finds him
rather annoying and unsettling.
Patrick has his secrets too. Through hard work at the station, he has been able to defeat his drug
dependency. He feels alive in a way he never has before. The station life is so different from his life in
Boston. Apart from the counsellor, no one knows his last name or about his life of wealth and privileges.
Patrick is drawn to Kelly, she is a universe away from the women he had associated with in Boston.
He even likes the nickname she has given him – “Yanko”.
During a driving lesson, the brakes on the jeep fail, sending them tumbling down an embankment, coming to rest on the edge of a very steep drop. Trying not to move while waiting to be rescued they begin to share their stories.
Patrick went first, sharing why he had turned to drugs to dull the guilt and pain. Just as Kelly began to share her story, the jeep tipped on its side into the void. Patrick is sent to Brisbane for surgery and to recover.
Kelly, whose injuries were less serious, receives a letter from her parents informing her that she has
inherited a property from her grandfather. Not wishing to continue her conversation with Patrick, Kelly leaves Samdarra.
Patrick decides to follow her.
The property Kelly has inherited is overgrown and run down, as she could do with the help she lets
Patrick stay. Unexpectedly the chemistry between Kelly and Patrick develops. Life is perfect.
Kelly’s parents arrive, they share their news and Kelly makes a hard choice.
While Patrick was working at the property, he picked up a dirty stone and put it in his backpack.
Sometime later when cleaning it he realises the historical importance of Kelly’s family history.
Will this stone be able to bring them back together?
This story holds your interest from the first page, it is hard to put down.
Two people who are trying to overcome the guilt from their past, heal and move forward. There is heartbreak and tragedy to make you cry. There is also forgiveness and love as they realise what really does matter.
This is the second book in the Australian at Heart Series. It is not necessary to read the first to follow
the story. The first in the series is The Little Blue Box, where we meet Patrick, his Dad and his sister in Boston, as well as his Australian step-sister. That book too is an excellent read.
The third book in the series is The Silk Scarf and I look forward to reading that too.
Thank you to Beauty and Lace and Poinsettia Publishing for the opportunity to read this wonderful
story.
A selection o f our members are reading The Stone in the Road 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.
This story has a little mystery, a bit of tragedy and a splattering of romance, a cover most tale that draws you to want to hear the ending.
Kelly is protective of her past, it drove her to where she is now. Patrick is recovering from his past, but there is more to this American than meets the eye.
To her, Yanko (Patrick) is a distraction, a frustration and an impossible possibility. But still she is drawn to him, that is until the accident.
Family history takes Kelly on another path, of discovery and history that she wasn’t entirely prepared for. At least she had Patrick keen to assist.
Patrick was keen to prove himself, have Kelly want him for him and not his family or history. Will she still want him if she knew.
I thoroughly enjoyed this story, thank you to Beauty and Lace & Frances Dall’Alba for the chance to read.
Another lovely story albeit sad too! Kelly and Patrick (Yanko). A start of Kelly tolerating the Yankie Patrick when the both worked on the same property. Both with secrets a skeletons they want to forget or even banish.
Kelly is lead to a property she has inherited which also has family skeletons. Patrick is drawn to her and their relationship develops. Sadness and tragedy along with love and happiness keeps the story moving.
(My earlier more in-depth review has disappeared. I apologise for the brief review now)