Publisher's Synopsis
The trials and tribulations of Mary Ann Goulding and Robert Bright continue...Transported to Van Diemen's Land to serve their sentences we join them as they work their time as assigned 'servants', actually little more than slaves on this island prison. Fighting against the restrictions imposed on them, they suffer the penalties proscribed by Governor Arthur, the martinet in charge of implementing the British government's plans.We follow them to the recently founded town of Melbourne and watch as they strive to build a life through tragedy and desperate times. The momentous discovery of gold sees huge disruption and changes all around as they live through the era of bushrangers like Ned Kelly, the massacre at the Eureka Stockade and the growing confidence of a new land with the first Australia vs England test match and the first running of the Melbourne Cup.Their fast-paced ever-changing life witnesses the building of a pioneering family and the creation of a new nation.
