LILI WILKINSON; Scatterheart

Author: Lili Wilkinson
Novel: Scatterheart
Blurb: Hannah Cheshire is rich and spoilt. She has servants to wait on her hand and foot–and Thomas, a passionate young tutor who fills her head with stories.

Then one day her father disappears and she is left to fend for herself. Alone and penniless, she is sentenced to transportation for a crime she didn't commit.

Once Hannah considered Thomas beneath her: a servant, a commoner. Now she thinks of him more and more.

But will she ever see him again?

One girl's adventure to find happiness becomes a fairytale within a fairytale. A romantic story of power and love.

Review: This book was a gift from my sister and I loved it.

All the books I read at the moment seem to be about strong women defying the tight constrains of their society. In this case, Hannah has grown up in the height of luxury; rich father, educated tutor and she a person of Quality. What more could a girl ask for....?

What about freedom of thought? Movement? Education? and Travel? What about adventure?

This is a story about a girl who is forced to grow up suddenly and in the worst circumstances. She is classified a convict and transported to Australia in 1814. On her journey, Hannah meets a variety of people, all doing what they must to survive. In many ways this story is confronting; Hannah might not be real but she goes through some really horrible things, things that many women would have suffered on the sea voyage to ‘east o' the sun and west o' the moon’.

What I liked best about this one was the characters. They weren't perfect. The heroine was sometimes horrible, selfish and did things I never would but she was more real because of it all. Hannah endeared herself to me despite everything and even when she was making stupid mistakes I never stopped caring for her or her friends.

The writing itself isn’t challenging but the words pull you in never-the-less. I read this book in a day. I couldn’t put it down because I was so worried about Hannah, Meg and Molly. Now that I know what happens, I think I will read it again, savour the story this time instead of charging through.

I'll give this one four out of five stars!

Thanks sis.