It is a pleasure to welcome Cheryl Adnams to my blog, Mrs B’s Book Reviews for A Tea Break with Mrs B, a author interview series. To help celebrate the release of The Bushranger’s Wife we sat down for a chat. Thanks Cheryl!
What is your drink of choice as we sit down for a chat about your new book?
I love a good South Australian red wine but since it is so hot at the moment, I enjoy cool ginger drinks.
Can you give us an overview of your writing career to date?
I was first published in 2014 with a series of three digital contemporary books based in McLaren Vale wine region. Since then I have self-published a few contemporary books before moving into the Australian historical romance genre with “The Girl from Eureka” based around the battle at the Eureka stockade. “The Girl from Eureka” was my first historical published with Harper Collins Harlequin and has since been printed in a bind up with Darry Fraser’s “Daughter of the Murray”.
Can you tell us what inspired the creation of your new book, The Bushranger’s Wife?
The main character, Jack the Devil, was a side character in “The Girl from Eureka” and I just loved his cheeky nature. I decided he needed his own story and I really wanted to write a bushranger tale.
Why did you decide to set The Bushranger’s Wife in Central Highlands of Victoria in the 1800s?
I had done so much research into Ballarat and the Central Highlands in the 1850s and 1860s that I wanted to use that knowledge just one more time. Plus Jack was already in the area. But the story picks up his life six years after we first meet him in “The Girl from Eureka”.
Did you have an affinity with a particular character in The Bushranger’s Wife and why?
I wouldn’t say I have a particular affinity with any character, but I love Pru’s sense of adventure and her desire to break away from the limits of a woman with her upbringing.
What issues do you explore in The Bushranger’s Wife
Family secrets and betrayal, the challenges of marriage – even if it began as a marriage of convenience.
What is one thing that you really hope readers will take away from the experience of reading The Bushranger’s Wife?
Mostly the fun of it. I love the banter between Jack and Pru. Also, while many readers prefer to wait for the hero and heroine to get together at the end of the story, I liked the idea of showing that a couple can still have excitement and romance after the wedding and of course it’s a bumpy ride to happy ever after.
What does your writing space look like?
At the moment it looks like my day job space. I work full time as a learning designer and have been working at home since March 2020 which meant converting my usual writing desk into a day to day workspace. I have found that a challenge as I really don’t want to sit there on weekends as well. I tend to take my laptop out to the pub or café if I want to get some actual writing done.
When you are not writing, what do you enjoy doing?
I love swimming – either at the beach or the pool. International travel is a giant love, especially Italy. But in this Covid world my travels are limited mostly to my own state of South Australia, which isn’t a bad thing. We have a lot to offer in our own states and I think Australia has benefited from that financially since no one can go overseas.
What book would you like to read over the upcoming Christmas period?
Well, Christmas has passed and I read five books in two weeks. I must have needed the rest as I spent much of my break on the couch reading. I went back and read some old Nora Roberts favourites and a new JD Robb book. It was relaxing.
What are you working on writing wise at present?
I’ve just completed a World War 2 story and have been working on a contemporary heist book set in Italy just for fun. I am playing with a story about the big Murray River flood of 1956 but that is still in very early plotting stage.
Thank you for the lovely tea break and chat Cheryl. Congratulations on the release of your new book, The Bushranger’s Wife.
Thank you for having me. Cheryl xxx
He stole her locket … she stole his heart.
Central Highlands of Victoria, 1861
Jack the Devil’s reputation precedes him. The most notorious bushranger on the Central Highlands, nothing throws him off his game … until he holds up Prudence Stanforth and her grandmother. Jack can’t help but be captivated by the feisty Pru, with her sweeping red hair and complete lack of fear.
Weeks later, Pru crosses paths with the respectable businessman Jack Fairweather, and it’s not long before she recognises him as the bushranger who stole her beloved necklace. His price for the locket’s return is her silence … and a kiss. A kiss that sparks something inside them both.
When Pru discovers her grandmother has been keeping a devastating secret, running away with Jack the Devil is the perfect escape for her broken heart. The dangerous nature of his less-than-salubrious occupation is a poetic contradiction to her sheltered upbringing and only fuels their passion. Until that danger becomes a reality. Between the return of dark elements from Jack’s past and authorities intent on his capture, Jack and Pru must fight for their future together … or risk losing everything.
A rollicking historical tale about following your heart, finding home in unexpected places – and bushrangers – for readers of Darry Fraser and Alison Stuart.
The Bushranger’s Wife by Cheryl Adnams was published on 6th January 2021 by Mira – AU. Details on how to purchase the book can be found here.
Connect with Cheryl here:
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