Tricia Stringer

Three independent women of three different generations are at the centre of Tricia Stringer’s 14th novel, Birds of a Feather.

Septuagenarian Eve Monk is not at all pleased when a shoulder injury requiring surgery threatens her highly prized independence, and it’s with great reluctance that she hires registered nurse Lucy Ryan as home help. With her partner, a FIFO worker, often absent, young mother of two, Lucy, is uncomfortable with juggling work and childcare, and isn’t sure working show more for Eve is good idea. Nevertheless, the two slowly warm to each other, much to the annoyance of Eve’s goddaughter, Julia, who arrives unannounced after finding herself at a professional and personal crossroad.

Exploring the themes of independence, friendship, careers and family, among others, each woman, though at different stages in their lives, struggle with similar issues in Birds of a Feather. This is a character driven story as Eve, Lucy and Julia confront the spectres of their pasts and find the courage to determine new futures.

To be honest it took me a while to warm to all three characters. I initially thought Eve to be brusque and demanding, Lucy overly anxious, and Julia rude and selfish. As the story progresses however each becomes more nuanced and I came to admire their many strengths. The development of their friendship is gratifying, and I was cheered by the supportive bond they formed, and drew strength from.

Set in mid 2021 Stringer doesn’t overlook the impact of the CoVid-19 pandemic, which has affected both Lucy and Julia, but it doesn’t have an active presence in the story per se. Most of the novel takes place in a small coastal town, named Wallaby Bay, on the Spencer Gulf in South Australia. I liked the depiction of the community, whose main industries include tourism and prawn-trawling, and the minor conflicts of its residents add colour and interest to the story.

Warm, sincere and thoughtful, Birds of a Feather is an engaging contemporary novel sure to delight readers, new and old. show less

Keeping Up Appearances is an engaging contemporary rural fiction drama from bestselling Australian author, Trish Stringer.

In the small South Australian town of Badara the suggestion to raise money to repair the community hall. Home to several local groups, including a new fitness class, the decision is made to stage a ‘Celebrate Badara’ event to include a fair, local tours, a formal dinner and the opening of a time capsule buried fifty years before.

Life-long resident and retired show more schoolteacher Marion Addicot is happy to take charge of the event, until the memory of the spiteful contribution she and her best friend made to the time capsule as sixteen year olds comes back to her.

Though she wouldn’t dream of refusing to help, Marion’s wealthy sister-in-law, Briony Hensley is exhausted at the thought of taking on yet another responsibility, but that concern is eclipsed when her adult children return home with revelations that threaten her well ordered world.

Town newcomer and single mother of three, Paige Radcliffe, isn’t at all interested in the celebration, or the women involved, whom she fears will judge her, but when the fitness class needs a space during the renovations to the hall, and the old store premises attached to her rented home are commandeered, Paige realises she may have misjudged them.

Each woman grapples with their own personal issues over the course of a few months, though there is a common thread, all are desperate to keep up appearances to protect themselves, and others, from real and imagined consequences. But the truth has a way of coming out. Stringer thoughtfully explores their worries and fears and the ways in which they handle the aftermath. Marion, Briony and Paige all exhibit personal growth

Stringer is excellent at creating authentic communities for her main characters to inhabit. I enjoyed the small town setting which is populated with ordinary people at different ages and stages of life, all of whom are well-drawn, and further enrich the story.

An engaging novel about secrets, charades and community, Keeping Up Appearances is a warm-hearted, satisfying read. show less

The Model Wife is a wise, warm, and wonderful story of a woman in search of herself from Australian author, Tricia Stringer.

“The model wife spends her time taking care of her family and putting them before her own needs.” - The Model Wife by Mrs Gladys Norman, London, 1928

When Natalie King is confronted with a potentially life threatening health crisis, the busy 58 year old wife, mother and teacher, is left reeling. Reflecting on her past, and contemplating the direction of her future, show more she finds she desperately needs a break and, ignoring the century old wisdom of ‘The Model Wife’, flees north to Broome, leaving her family to fend for themselves.

“Everyone had a piece of Natalie and somehow she’d lost herself in the process. She’d never done anything outside anyone else’s expectations of her.”

Stringer’s portrayal of Natalie’s ‘paradigm shift’ is thoughtful and realistic, and likely one every wife and mother can relate to. After years of tirelessly working to ensure the needs of her family and community are met, Natalie realises that she has largely ignored her own. Away from the constant demands on her time and energy she has the space to consider what she wants moving forward.

“Don’t let anyone should you.”

Natalie’s timing couldn’t be worse though, it’s tailing season on the farm keeping her husband, Milt and middle daughter, Bree, busy; both her youngest and eldest daughter’s, Laura and Kate who seem to have something on their mind, are visiting; and her sister-in-law is demanding an increased share of the farm’s income. Stringer thoughtfully explores the individual issues at hand, as well as the change Natalie’s absence makes to the family dynamics. I appreciated the authenticity with which the author both portrayed and developed the multi-generational characters. I also liked the way in which issues specific to a farming lifestyle, like property succession, are explored.

“Natalie had simply had to lose herself to find her way home.”

A well written, engaging story of the everyday challenges of life and love, I enjoyed A Model Wife, and am happy to recommend it. show less

I was intrigued by this story because there aren’t that many stories set on the wonderful Murray River in Australia and also, there are houseboats involved. If you’re familiar with the Murray, you’ll also recognise the sight of houseboats idly wandering down the river. It’s always looked to me to be a perfect relaxing type of holiday, avoiding the hustle and bustle of city life, and then docking at beautiful towns like Echuca-Moama (one town for each side of the river, that also show more happen to be in different states) or Mildura. It sounds idyllic, but for Savannah running a houseboat business is the exact opposite…

Savannah’s called in to help her brother in the business she’s guarantor for, J & S Houseboats. Jaxon’s suddenly decided to take a holiday and Savannah’s in between jobs. She’s also broken in spirit, following a bad car accident that took her livelihood as a fitness instructor away and devastated her family. Savannah arrives at Jaxon’s property near the tiny town of Riverboat Point to be confronted with a completely different world. It’s quiet, almost eerie. When neighbour Ethan comes by to let a hand, he’s nice but Savannah worries that she’ll be too reliant on him for assistance. He’s also rather hot, and Savannah’s not looking for a relationship.

Ethan’s a war veteran from Afghanistan and is isolated from his family, his parents not believing in war or his choice to fight overseas. His hapless brother draws Ethan in to help after an accident, but Ethan’s still drifting, unable to focus after two tours of duty. His friend is Gnasher, a Vietnam veteran who fills his days with alcohol. Ethan doesn’t want to end up like him, so he’s trying to stay busy. Helping out Savannah and meeting the neighbours Belinda and Ashton draws him into action like he’s never seen before…

Right from the start, I could feel a tension and sense of eeriness underpinning Riverboat Point. My memories of the Murray are all happy ones, so I wasn’t sure if I was right in sensing this or just disappointed that Savannah’s experiences of the river weren’t matching mine. For the first half of the book, I thought it was just me wondering about the motives of some of the characters (especially Belinda), but then the sense of something not quite right picked up and the story entered full-on suspense mode. I enjoyed the second half much more as there was a lot more action, drama and hanging-on-a-knife edge suspense. Plus, there was more of Gnasher, who was a delightfully quirky character that becomes fully fleshed out in this part. My only disappointment was that there was not more to Jaxon’s disappearance; but as an amateur sleuth, I think I’m doing well.

I did like how Stringer revealed both Savannah and Ethan’s histories just a little at a time, which left me wanting more. It was like a puzzle, taking the parts of their histories and trying to marry them to a full history. This broken couple truly deserved the happiness they found with each other and Savannah’s foray into the Riverboat Point community shows just how welcoming a small town can be. I also enjoyed reading about the other side to having a houseboat that weren’t so glamourous, from dirty customers to pumping the sewer tanks. Just goes to show that everything has a less than perfect side!

This is a solid story and will appeal to fans looking for rural romance with a suspenseful side.

Thank you to Harlequin for the eARC. My review is honest and not influenced by the receipt of the eARC.

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