Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience.

would like to thank netgalley and the publisher for letting me read this book

kept me reading right to the end so i must have enjoyed it as you dont loose sleep for just any book

Brilliant - I loved this book. Just kept me guessing along the way and the relationships between the characters were well thought out. I would look for other titles by this author

I absolutely loved reading this book! Having lived in the hard Australian outback myself, I could easily visualise the story whilst reading it. It truely paints a brutal picture of how harsh life was for the early settlers in Australia in amongst the gold rush.

This reminded me of several of Bryce Courtney's books. The style is very Australian which helps with the atmosphere and overhanging dread about what happens next. A terrific page turner thast kept me reading well beyond my lights out time. The characters are very real, so much so that one can "see" them in ones mind eye, a terrific feat in this modern era. I could have done with a glossary of Aussie terms but it just meant Wiki was forced to answer more questions. It would make a cracking film or TV series because we meet the characters over a sensible a time frame that allows us to continually build our characters into real people. A cracking good read and I would read a sequel since the characters could stand more exposure.

When Toby and Paddy O'Rourkes parents are murdered by outlaws, and Paddy is seriously injured - they have to grow up quickly. Once Paddy is recovered, they have to leave their homestead and live in the camps digging for gold trying to make a living.
They meet up with Frank and Maree and their two daughters Annie and Betty and team up to improve their chances of making their fortune.

Events take various turns over the next two years that see the boys grow and their journey back home.

A great story of love,determination and revenge.

This story follows the lives of two brothers in Australia during the Gold Rush. Their homestead is attacked by Outlaws , their parents killed and one brother seriously injured. Their fight for survival is thoroughly absorbing. Great historical fiction.

This one hooks you in and keeps you close right to the finish. Characters are well thought out, plot is well conceived and as adventure writing goes, it's a hell of a ride. Toby and Paddy O’Rourke, Australian brothers who lose their parents in an attack, which renders Paddy mute. Setting out across Australia to make their fortunes with little to aid them aside from their own sense, and each other. This is full of ups and downs- there are parts which are emotional and tragic but there is also real love, deep support and an underlying story of a new colony bursting to life. Highly recommend.

This was a hard book to read. I actually had to put it down for a time because I knew some more heartache was coming and I wasn't ready for it. But the characters were so engaging and I was so desperate for a happy ending for them that I needed to carry on.

I cared for the main characters immediately, I was instantly sucked in and invested. I put the book down only because I couldn't bear to read something awful happening to them. And a lot of awful things do happen, this book knocks them down and drags them back up again. It holds no punches, and I cried for joy and relief when something good happened in the middle.

The ending was completely satisfying and, though maybe it would have been satisfying if we'd had one or two less of those punches, you could feel the characters' relief at coming to the end of their journey. You too will be overjoyed, and relieved.

Absolutely brilliant, but make sure you have something light hearted to follow it with, your heart will need a rest.

Set during the Australian Gold Rush this book was an enjoyable if somewhat predictable read.
Although I found thr main characters easy to relate to and to like, I felt that the storyline lacked a little something and was perhaps in the main just a little bit predictable.
Nonetheless, glad I read it and happy to give three stars.

An adventure story based in Australia, set during the Ballerat gold rush and focussed on two families. The story is well written but for me the plot is a bit too predictable. Non the less an enjoyable story which I recommend.

Not my usual sort of read but a very enjoyable adventure tale that rattled along. The historical background of Australia at the time of the gold rush added an interesting dimension and was well researched. The story transported me to a different time and place which is just what you want from a good book.

Set in the mid-19th century Australian gold rush the story tells of the coming together and subsequent merging of two completely different families, one of two local orphaned brothers and the other of a man and wife with two young daughters newly arrived from England but missing the older son who died on the passage out. Would a man really take his wife and children on such a hard and dangerous gamble?
A fairly simple story written in an enjoyable style although the plot and sub-plots are therefore fairly predictable. A pleasant, easy read with few surprises where the goodies win (well, most of them).
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this opportunity to give an unbiased review.

Set during the Australian Goldrush, this wasn't a story I was expecting to become so invested in, but it drew me in from the start. We see young Toby O'Rourke, aged 19, and his 15 year old brother Paddy out on their homestead. We witness the brutal murder of their parents by the evil Anderson and his henchmen. Paddy is badly injured in the attack. Local well to do, Pelha, tricks the boys out of their farm and they set off for the gold fields. On the way they meet the Hocking family, newly arrived from England and they decide to set up together. The story tells of the struggles on the minefields, of love and life in a harsh climate and of opportunity and justice. I became engrossed in the story and willed a happy outcome. #bloodinthedust #netgalley

Set in Australia in the mid 19th century, the book tells the story of two families from very different backgrounds whose lives become entwined. The narrative is interesting, enjoyable and pacy, and the plot is well constructed with carefully drawn characters. It’s a simple story well told; the simplicity being a very welcome change from the complex, often unfathomable plots which are the current vogue. Great holiday reading.

The gold rush in Victoria, Australia is the backdrop for this excellent story of Toby O'Rourke whose parents have been murdered by bushrangers raiding their small homestead. Not only do we get a great story of a young man maturing in the most difficult conditions and circumstance we also get a very real look at what life must have been like for those trying to build the new colonies of Australia. No cell phones, no TV, no internet, no electricity, no nothing - just imagine how you would fair in this environment, far less carve out a more comfortable life for yourself. Great book.

This is an enjoyable and interesting read and worth 3.5 stars. It is an unusual story, about the gold miners in Australia back in the early days of the colony as it then was. It touches on the cause of the indigenous Aborigine tribes, and their treatment by the British governors of the time.

The narrative moves along well enough, though the direction the plot is taking is always predictable, due entirely to the author’s style of writing. He flags up every development in advance as the story moves along. Therefore there are no surprises.

One or two issues that bother me about this story are the implausibilities of a strong family man persuading his entire family, including two young daughters, to travel to the other side of the world on a remote chance of finding enough gold to make their fortune. Their young son Tom was evidently the driving force behind the idea, but I don’t feel that a young son would have had such influence over his father and mother, given the era in which the story is set. The weeks-long sea journey alone was immensely hazardous, and I believe most wives and mothers would have balked at this whole venture!

On arrival, despite many weeks aboard ship, the family seem to know none of their fellow travellers when they arrive at the crowded Melbourne transit camp. They then travel on to the diggings entirely alone, knowing no one, until they meet up with Toby and Paddy.

The mother and two daughters endure over two years of privations and hardship of the diggers camps. There did not seem to be any other women or children, until quite far into the story, when another wife befriended the beleaguered Maree. As Maree is portrayed as a strong woman (she had to be), I’m not convinced that she would not have forced the abandonment of her husband’s crazy search much sooner.

A good story, just needed a bit of tightening up, and I would have liked to have known more of the family’s background before they reached Australia, similar to the detail we learned about Toby and Paddy’s back story.

My thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for my advance copy of this book.

A well written piece of historical fiction- I enjoyed the way the language was used and the descriptions really brought the land to life. The characters were the type with whom you connect with instantly and start rooting for! A unique and interesting novel.

This is the story of two brothers as they struggle to rebuild their lives after they lose their home after their parents are murdered
It is a story of triumph over adversity, a love story and an adventure story set on the backdrop of the Australian gold rush

A tale of revenge with an eye to a historical family saga. The landscape seems accurate, if the characters are a little too trusting in their initial naivety. The book cast a light on the building blocks of colonial Australia.