Right as Rain is rural romance with a message from award winning writer, Tricia Stringer.
It is an emotion-filled tale of how the best intentions can so easily lead to misunderstanding and heartache if dreams give way to the demands of others.
Fresh from her working holiday in New Zealand, and nursing a newly broken heart, Mackenna ‘Mack’ Birch returns to her family property, Woolly Swamp Farm, to find her place usurped by an errant brother and a shifty farmhand. Her plans to save the farm fall on deaf ears: her father, once a close ally, seems disinterested and her mother shoots down every suggestion. Yet Mack is determined. She pushes through adversity and begins to see her dream take shape. Then a visitor arrives – Adam, the man who broke her heart. As Mack begins to flail under the pressure of saving the farm and her dream, she must guard her heart and her property.
Mack is a strong character and as the story unfolds the author keeps us guessing about her romantic interest. As she faces down opposition, Mack must deal with her wounded heart, confusion about her family’s behaviour and the antics of the new farmhand. The mother’s actions, rational from her perspective (which we know) but baffling to her daughter, provide a visceral sense of frustration as we are pulled into Mack’s emotional journey. The author knows this world and there is a reasonable degree of description about a working sheep farm, but like the tasting plates Mack serves in her fledgling Gatehouse restaurant these are delivered in digestible portions.
Right as Rain is certainly a satisfying romance. Yet this is also the story of the struggle faced by a farming community and one woman’s fight to save the property she loves.
[retweet][facebook]
Don’t forget…
Drop by Writers’ Block on Saturday 8th February for a virtual bite and a glass of wine with the author Tricia Stringer where we discuss Right as Rain, country living and winning awards.