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Morgan's Run

3.85 of 5 stars 3.85 · rating details · 1,729 ratings · 131 reviews

In a story of breathtaking scope, Colleen McCullough returns to the magnificent setting of her international bestseller The Thorn Birds.

Following the disappearance of his only son and the death of his beloved wife, Richard Morgan is falsely imprisoned and exiled to the penal colonies of eighteenth-century Australia. His life is shattered but Morgan refuses to surrender, ov...more

Paperback, 848 pages

Published January 2nd 2002 by Pocket Books (first published 2000)

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Apr 24, 2008 Bruce rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: fans of McCullough and 18th Cent. England

One's reading life is too abbreviated to waste on books that are long on page length and short on information. As evidenced by her otherwise excellent Masters of Rome series and this bit of over-researched fluff, McCullough desperately needs an editor. Morgan's Run (aka "life," as in, "I had a good run" as well as the name of a government-sanction rum distillery on Norfolk Island) is a biography of Richard Morgan, freeman of Bristol transported by a typical late 18th century British miscarriage...more One's reading life is too abbreviated to waste on books that are long on page length and short on information. As evidenced by her otherwise excellent Masters of Rome series and this bit of over-researched fluff, McCullough desperately needs an editor. Morgan's Run (aka "life," as in, "I had a good run" as well as the name of a government-sanction rum distillery on Norfolk Island) is a biography of Richard Morgan, freeman of Bristol transported by a typical late 18th century British miscarriage of justice to Norfolk Island (a First Fleet colony of convict-settled Australia). The book begins with the announcement of the War of Independence in 1776 (albeit from a typical Bristol tavern point-of-view) though Richard's transporting aboard the Alexander doesn't take place until 1788. This represents 236 mind-numbing pages into the book with arrival in Botany Bay awaiting the turn of yet another 100 pages, meaning that more than half of the book's 600 pages are dull and irrelevant prologue in which Richard Morgan is more acted upon than actor.

Things pick up a bit as Morgan is taken from Plymouth for a year's sail to arrive in Botany Bay. Through revealed competence and an apparent encyclopedic memory, Morgan becomes head man among his small set of convicts. Unfortunately, most of the conflict is fleeting and quickly resolved (or abandoned), and the laconic Morgan makes for such poor company that even McCullough appears glad for opportunities to abandon him as the focus of her narrative (chiefly toward the end when she introduces a new character from off the Lady Juliana of the Second Fleet). As always, McCullough captures the tenor of the times and dialogue well, but she appears overwhelmed by ephemera: descriptions of daily weather, Morgan's random accounting of the Norfolk Island sawpit intake for a given week, what Morgan plans to have for dinner of an evening based on current garden inventory, the sequential moves in a game of chess, the distribution list of the latest litter of terrier puppies, and so forth. (And her afterword suggests she hoped to write a follow-up?!) The book was as substantial as styrofoam, cumbersome, bulky, and in need of compression. More worth a skim than a full read.(less)

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Dec 29, 2012 Frances Fuller rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: fiction

Do not read this if you have even a very basic knowledge of Australian history.

I cannot call this a historical novel because this author thought by throwing in some names and events she could make history out of fiction, it doesn't work that way. I have tried to read her books before and found them ponderous and excessive in description to make up for plot. Decided to give it another go and fight my way to the end. Mistake.

What I find interesting about the readers who wrote reviews, they either...more

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Dec 12, 2012 Hilary G rated it 1 of 5 stars

A week ago, it wasn't looking at all likely that I would finish this book in time to write this review. I felt as if I was reading the book in real time, as if by the time Morgan had been in gaol for a year, I had done my time as well So when he was condemned to seven years transportation, my heart sank, and I thought I might not finish the book until 2010.

Still, Christmas is a time for miracles, and the additional leisure time afforded by my Christmas break helped me to struggle through to the...more A week ago, it wasn't looking at all likely that I would finish this book in time to write this review. I felt as if I was reading the book in real time, as if by the time Morgan had been in gaol for a year, I had done my time as well So when he was condemned to seven years transportation, my heart sank, and I thought I might not finish the book until 2010.

Still, Christmas is a time for miracles, and the additional leisure time afforded by my Christmas break helped me to struggle through to the end. I'm afraid struggle is the right word because, despite the book addressing a subject in which I have a real interest (transportation to Australia), I found the level of detail tedious in the extreme.

Colleen McCullough's research for this book was, no doubt, impressive, but I think it led her into the trap of being unable to discard any of the fascinating (to her) information she had found out, whether or not it contributed to the story. There was lots of stuff I felt could have been left out and a bit or rigorous editing might have given the story a bit more pace. As it was, the story progressed by a series of frozen tableaux or lectures on 18th century life. The impression that the writer wanted to be writing not just any old story but hi-story was reinforced by footnotes explaining things that added nothing, such as the difference between Imperial and American measures. I'm not convinced people ever said things like "I am of a mind to see what is afoot", but even if they did, they don't now and I found the archaic words and constructions (vouchsafe, espouse, athwart etc) faintly embarrassing. I prefer my history to be historical rather than counterfeit contemporary fly-on-the-wall. The Fatal Shore by Robert Hughes would be (and is) my sort of book for enlightenment on the subject of transportation to Australia.

If I have to read 800+ pages about someone's life, someone like Richard Morgan would be very low on the list of lives worth the effort. Quite frankly, despite all the dramatic things that happened to him, he bored me. He bored me in the first few pages, when he dandled his son William Henry on his knee in the tavern, he bored me when he wrote his philosophical letter to Jem Thistlethwaite at the end and he bored me all the time in between. There was something horribly passive about him. Good family man who loved his wife, worshipped his children and was no doubt respectful to his elders. Yawn. Solid craftsman for whom happiness was a warm gun. Yawn. Honest citizen blowing the whistle on fraud. Yawn. Duped sap of the first sexy piece to cross his path. Yawn. I had a strong sense that Colleen McCullough made this guy up as she went along and he became what he needed to be at each part of the story. An example: I recall no mention of books in the first part of the story, yet in a later part books suddenly became the air that he breathed. There was no REAL development of Morgan as a character, he merely acquired qualities he needed just when he needed them, and these qualities were reported by others rather than derived from what went before. I reckon he was percolated through one of his own dripstones (yawn) and as lacking in charisma as filtered water is lacking in taste. I thought Morgan a very dull hero. It's people's weaknesses that make them interesting, not their strengths. I guess McCullough tried to make him more interesting by repetitive mentions of how "handsome" and by giving him rippling muscles? I wonder who will play him in the TV adaptation? I'd die of boredom with a Richard Morgan and was horrified to see from the author's afterword that she still has more to say about him. Enough! More is less. Let him rest in peace.

My biggest quarrel with the book is that it is so sanitised and romanticised. It reminded me of Swiss Family Robinson, Coral Island, Swallows and Amazons, Lost in Space. McCullough did try a bit of gritty realism, but it always looked superimposed. Whenever Morgan was getting a bit too saccharine with his polished walls, fresh vegetables or porcelain tea cups, she had someone flogged or something in an attempt to balance the books. But there is so much that seems to be missing. Despite the curious inverted snobbery that now makes it fashionable to have a convict ancestor, these were not all honest peasants who stole trifles when they were drunk or starving. There were real criminals too, who I think must have had much more of an influence on McCullough's brave new world. Apart from Kitty right at the end, no-one seemed too bothered about leaving England, no one was homesick. I'm sure that wasn't so, from what I know (a rather limited sample of one, I admit) the parting from family and friends was almost unbearable and dreams were dreamed of pardon, or of return home when a sentence was served. Funnily enough, I think there would have also been more humour, because it is one of the things that helps us to survive. The only humour here was the long-running sheep shagging joke, which wore very thin.

You will have gathered by now that I was not exactly enchanted by McCullough's tale. I thought it at least twice too long. For me, her hero was dull as ditchwater. The story was clumsily constructed, you could see the joins. No one bothered closing the curtains when the scene shifters came and went. But I must give her some credit. Her research seems to have been thorough and her writing seems competent. I expect those who enjoy this type of fiction will enjoy this very much. Unfortunately, I am not one of those and reading the book was something of a chore. The greatest impression left me by the book was relief that the reading of it was behind me and not ahead of me. Had it not been about transportation to Australia, I doubt I would have finished it at all.

* * * * *
Reviewer's Afterword
There really was a Richard Morgan on board the Alexander when the First Fleet sailed. He was tried at Gloucester, Gloucestershire on 23 March 1785 for assault and stealing a metal watch with a value of 163 shillings. He was sentenced to transportation for 7 years and left England on the Alexander aged about 25 at that time (May 1787). He had no occupation recorded. He died in 1837. He married Elizabeth Lock on 30 March 1788 though he was probably married in England and when he was sent to Norfolk Island in 1790 he lived with another woman. (I actually feel a bit more well disposed towards McCullough for weaving a complex story around these few facts.

(less)

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May 10, 2010 Helmisade rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: historical-fiction, waste-of-time, places-in-the-world, have-a-copy

I wanted to throw this book out of the window at least 5 times while reading it. Yet somehow I struggled to the bitter (horrible) ending. I have two main complaints:

1. Richard Morgan is seriously annoying. No real human is that perfect all the time. He has the perfect body, perfect mind, perfect manners, perfect skills for every situation and perfect ability to control himself no matter what happens. During hundreds of pages the man never does anything wrong and everyone adores him. Personally I...more

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Aug 25, 2010 Edith Clayton rated it 2 of 5 stars

This starts out with Richard Morgan living a fairly peaceful life in Bristol, England in 1775. He suffers some major losses, is wrongfully convicted of a crime and, along with many other convicts, is shipped off to what is now Australia, in order to help relieve England's severely over-crowded prisons. I was glad to learn about this historical event about which I previously knew nothing, but ... McCullough obviously did lots of research for this book & it seemed she was determined to include...more

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Oct 02, 2010 Lynnda Ell rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

As an emerging writer, deep into learning the skills of the craft, I read a lot of professionals' advice. Most experts suggest that a novel be developed with a plot full of action. Not surprisingly, then, I find that most books - regardless of genre - follow this model. Not so with Colleen McCullough's Morgan's Run.

This historical novel, based on the founding of The Botany Bay colony, centers on the life of one man, Richard Morgan. Begun in the mid-1700s, the story tells of the ricochet effect...more

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Aug 20, 2011 Jacquie South added it · review of another edition

I started this a couple of years ago, but it didn't grab me, so I went onto something else. Desperate for a book recently, I picked it up again, and started it again (taking quite a while to realise I had actually read the start before!). Again, I didn't really like the start of the book, but got through it this time, and it was worth it. Once Richard is convicted and sent on board ship in London to await transportation, the story really starts to become interesting. I enjoyed reading about life...more

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Jul 11, 2011 Mike rated it 4 of 5 stars

It's quite interesting to compare this to "The Fatal Shore" by Robert Hughes. That book is a masterful, well-researched non-fiction account of the founding of Australia, while this novel examines the same issue in the form of a fictional story (that apparently is loosely based on some actual real lives). This novel also focuses on the appalling ocean voyages of the first settlers, and the founding settlements at Norfolk Island as well as Australia. Once again Colleen McCullough --- a Ph.D. neuro...more

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Feb 10, 2012 Marcris rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: romanzi

La storia sarebbe avvincente se non fosse troppo piena di dettagli inutili e che appesantiscono la lettura. Brava l'autrice per la ricostruzione storica, ma senza esagerare!

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Feb 09, 2011 Kemosabe rated it 4 of 5 stars

Wrenching story of England around the time of America’s revolution. With the importation of convicts shut off to England’s colonies, a scheme is hatched to send them to Australia. With uncanny realism McCullough recreates the harshness of life in England, their despicable criminal justice system, and their treatment of prisoners. Survival of the grueling year long voyage to Botany Bay and implantation of the colony in extremely hostile conditions takes the ultimate in human courage and adaptabil...more

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Feb 09, 2011 Jenny rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: historical-fiction

This has been the shelf for years and I finally got around to reading it. The story takes place in the late 1700s after the American Revolution, in Bristol, England, on a slaver/convict transport vessel, and eventually in Norfolk Island by way of Botany Bay, Australia. Colleen McCullough does amazing research to provide incredible details about life in whatever period she is writing, using language which is not too modern and describing things as they might be perceived by the character who know...more This has been the shelf for years and I finally got around to reading it. The story takes place in the late 1700s after the American Revolution, in Bristol, England, on a slaver/convict transport vessel, and eventually in Norfolk Island by way of Botany Bay, Australia. Colleen McCullough does amazing research to provide incredible details about life in whatever period she is writing, using language which is not too modern and describing things as they might be perceived by the character who knows nothing of what we know today. Not only does it help the reader to feel a part of the time and place, but this serves to feel that you're going deeper into that time period to understand the regular person's experience of those history stories that we superficially learn about in school.

In particular, by reading this novel, not only did I learn a bit more about the settlement of Australia by British convicts (the obvious history lesson here), but the state of the lives of the working class English really gave me an insight about American culture and its revolt against government taxation, which continues until this day. For example, the British pervasiveness of licensing every aspect of commerce in England was insane. Unlike in America, where licensing (more or less) serves the purpose of ensuring safety and compliance with social norms, in England it served only to raise revenue for the government. (Yes, I realize that regulation in America also provides a revenue stream, but I don't wish to have that argument here.)

As to the particulars of the story, Morgan is Richard Morgan, a real-life historical figure in Norfolk Island history (Norfolk Island is in the middle of the Tasman Sea between Australia and New Zealand, and a part of the Commonwealth of Australia). He was convicted of larceny in England and eventually sentenced to 7 years' transportation to Botany Bay. The story tells the epic of his life and how his steady character, work eithic, insight, and luck allowed him to make a new life for himself on Norfolk Island.

The author lives in Norfolk Island, and as a result I'm sure her basic familiarity with the story of the island and Richard Morgan is more than most folks have, particularly non-Australians. I don't know much about it, so I can't attest to how much liberty has been taken with the history. Having read this, I do want to read more about Australian history, in general, realizing that I really know very little about it beyond the basic concept that it was settled primarily by convicts who were resettled there.

If I had one complaint about the story it would be that Richard Morgan dosen't seem to have any fatal flaws. Granted, things happened which led to the conviction (right or wrong) which were certainly influenced by his character, but ultimately things seemed to have worked out better for him as a result. This story certainly glorifies him. I suppose that is the liberty of historical fiction.

Aside from the somewhat greater appreciation of the circustances leading to the American Revolution and Australian settlement that I now I have, I also really liked the handling of the character of Stephan Donovan (fictionalized, although there was a Stephen Donovan, Midshipman, in the First Fleet). In Morgan's Run, he is an openly gay "Miss Molly" who is Morgan's best friend. All very interestingly written.(less)

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Oct 27, 2009 Les rated it 3 of 5 stars

I had to put this book down for awhile. I was having problems going with the flow of the authors words and sentences and paragraphs. You know how it is when you first pick up a book and are on page 16 before you know it, sometimes while you're still standing in the store? Well this didn't work for me, plus the fact that I'm not ready right now to devote myself to a large epic. I'm saving it for another time. I like the idea of the main character helping to define the future of Australia...it jus...more

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Dec 26, 2008 Betita rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: emprestado

Fabuloso!
No inicio estava a pensar que iria ser enfadonho, com todas as descrições com que nos brinda ;) mas afinal foi um daqueles livros que nos enchem de emoção!
A Viagem em si, os 12 meses em que ele passa pelas mais variadas privações, é uma viagem maravilhosa: as descrições da costa do Brasil, de Cabo verde, a passagem pelo Cabo da Boa Esperança...
Depois vem a parte humana que também essa foi uma bela "viagem"!
Sem duvida que ADOREI este livro, só espero que, como é referido nas notas finais...more

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Jun 22, 2011 Stefan Wit added it · review of another edition

A classic epic that will garner many admirers. This historical fiction is my idea of a great novel. Get lost in Elizabethan London at a time when all criminals, whether proven guilty or not, were condemned to hard labor in a harsh land; Australia and the colonial islands adjacent. Follow every man's (and woman's) hero to verdant Norfolk Island in the Pacific, and feel his pain and pleasure as he does his bit towards taming the wild land and the even wilder inmates. Another great read from McCull...more

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Apr 06, 2013 Ruth Bonetti rated it 2 of 5 stars

Years ago I enjoyed McCollough's 'Thorn birds.' She can write.
But I had about four attempts to finish this book and only persevered because it covers two aspects of colonial history that interest me; the First Fleet and Norfolk Island. McCullough has either done masses of research or has a thorough research assistant but she could have been more selective with it. The first section begins in August 1775 and so there's a long trudge through a history dump of laborious background about the Americ...more Years ago I enjoyed McCollough's 'Thorn birds.' She can write.
But I had about four attempts to finish this book and only persevered because it covers two aspects of colonial history that interest me; the First Fleet and Norfolk Island. McCullough has either done masses of research or has a thorough research assistant but she could have been more selective with it. The first section begins in August 1775 and so there's a long trudge through a history dump of laborious background about the American slave trade. Most of the book's 600 pages need a ruthless and judicious editor.

Richard Morgan is a paragon of hard work, intelligence and faithful service. His life turns sour when his daughter Mary dies of smallpox, then his wife drops dead soon after. But after the loss of his beloved son William Henry he turns to drink and falls prey to a crooked woman who enthrals him then proves fickle with the crook who traps him. The upshot is that he is convicted for seven years' transportation.

The section about the Morgan's time in Bristol Newgate and then Gloucester prison are interesting. Then there is interminable detail about life and work dredging mud from a hulk, Ceres in the Thames. The main focus of the journey to Botany Bay on Alexander is given to his friendship with a 'Miss Molly' homosexual sailor Stephen Donovan, who nurses an unrequited passion for Richard that will continue right through to the Norfolk Island years.This unsatisfactory relationship is given most flesh through the book; most other characters are mere names, and even tagged with repetitions of descriptors like 'Cousin James-the-druggist' there are too many to keep track of. I must admit my skim-reading caused confusion; after wondering about the identities of MacGregor and Tobias I realise they are a dog and cat respectively.

The plodding and ungainly language attempts to capture dialect and the era. But once the First Fleet arrives in Botany Bay, the author rouses into a more lively, natural style. There are some glaring incongruities never the less; on page 332 Donovan speaks of the French ship 'La Perouse was given up as lost a year ago. Now – here he is.' Even with out the feminine 'La' a ship is usually female?

McCullough gives sympathetic landscape painting, especially of Norfolk Island. Morgan can do no wrong and all respect him from commanders down. But his shallow relationships extend to his de facto wife Kitty, whose Cinderella plainness allows only one asset, the eyes that remind Richard of his lost son. Eventually their prosaic coexistence grows to lukewarm love, and Kitty blossoms into motherhood but it is hardly grand passion. The Author's Afterword indicates that she writes about real people, ancestors of her husband. 'The saga of Richard Morgan is not ended; he was to live for many years to come and experience yet more adventures. I hope to continue with his family's story.' That's enough, thanks.(less)

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Jan 19, 2013 Eleclyah rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 5-stelle-preferiti, romanzi-storici, autori-australiani, commentati

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.
L'avevo preso semplicemente perché costava cinque euro invece che dieci. La trama m'ispirava, anche se certo non mi aspettavo faville.
“Il più bel romanzo della McCullough”, diceva il giudizio in fondo.
Io della McCullough non aveva letto ancora niente... ma sono rimasta subito affascinata dalla trama.
All'inizio non accade molto, ma nonostante la quasi assenza di eventi l’ho letto con piacere. È scritto bene, senza ridondanze eccessive o troppe nozioni inutili. Solo quello che serve per la trama....more

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Jul 15, 2012 Judi/Judith rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This novel is based on the true story of Richard Morgan who is the real life 4 times-great, grandfather of Coleen McCullough's husband. The novel took me on an adventure that I had never even dreamed of in this riveting, bigger than life novel. Richard Morgan led a somewhat average life in England in the late 1700s but his unjust conviction of a crime that he didn't commit and his exile first by ship, under the most deplorable conditions that one could imagine, sent him on journey that gave him...more

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Nov 28, 2009 Phair rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: book-club, historical-fiction

Listened first to the abridged audio read by Tim Curry- excellent. It was then selected by my f2f discussion group so I read the book as well. Always like stories set in days of Australian penal colony and this one was good. The parts on the ship were quite graphic in describing the hardships but I liked the cleverness of the main character in his preparations for survival in the prison ship. Also like the way the main character built his homestead in Australia. Great adventure. Wish it would h...more

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Feb 11, 2010 Fiona rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: historical, setting-australia, 2010, library-book

Not long ago I read The Thorn Birds by Colleen McCullough and so I surprised myself by reading this book so soon afterwards as I do not tend to read the same author twice in such close proximity.

In The Thorn Birds I recognised a good author although the story itself did not interest me. In Morgan's Run the two were combined together - a great story written by a good author.

McCullough has a very definite style and voice in the way she writes. I think the most important part of a book is the autho...more Not long ago I read The Thorn Birds by Colleen McCullough and so I surprised myself by reading this book so soon afterwards as I do not tend to read the same author twice in such close proximity.

In The Thorn Birds I recognised a good author although the story itself did not interest me. In Morgan's Run the two were combined together - a great story written by a good author.

McCullough has a very definite style and voice in the way she writes. I think the most important part of a book is the author and how he or she writes because in the end, it doesn't actually matter what the book is about eventually - a good author could make watching paint dry sound riveting. Not that either of these books was like watching paint dry!

Morgan's Run is about the first convicts to be sent to Australia after the American revolution put a stop to them shipping them over there. So, merry olde England decided that it would be a good idea to ship them out to an unknown country and leave them there.

The story follows Richard Morgan, a character of whom you will fall in love with - it's impossible not to. I get the feeling that McCullough seems to like tall men with long dark curly hair as that is how she described Father Ralph in The Thorn Birds too. In fact, it seems all the decent, good attractive characters in this book happen to have long dark curly hair - which is absolutely fine by me as I happen to like that in men too.

One thing that seems to be a running criticism with McCullough is that she can spend ages describing certain things in such detail and then quickly rush through something else that is quite important in about a paragraph, so much that if you're not careful you could miss it.

She writes with a calm confidence that I find very trustworthy - part of her style feels as if she is nurturing you, the reader and then sometimes there is a harder edge - more straight forward and informative. It is a rather peculiar style I think but I like it and it works. It makes me feel as if I am really there, part of the history and the 'world' she has created - but not quite lost or abandoned to it.

I have not read very much about Australia, I confess it is a very hot country and I feel more comfortable reading books in cold or wet countries, which I know makes very little sense on the face of things. Australia always seems so far away and you do not hear of it very much which should be more of a reason to go out and read more about it, which I fully intend to do.

I really enjoyed Morgan's Run and can't wait to startThe First Man in Rome soon - sometime this year!(less)

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Apr 03, 2009 Betty rated it 3 of 5 stars

This is a fictionalized account of Richard Morgan who was sent to Australia with the first convict ship in 1787, and all the horrors of those ships. Morgan was the ancestor of Colleen McCullough's husband, as well as singer Helen Reddy and several other prominent people. McCullough is a much-published author, but I felt her sentence structure and punctuation difficult and had to read several passages a second time to figure out what she was saying. I don't know if this is a different Australian...more

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Aug 12, 2011 Becky rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: historical-fiction

Fascinating story of a man named Richard Morgan who is transported as a convict to Australia in the 1780's. As always, McCullough's attention to historical detail is staggering, while still creating compelling characters and sending them on page-turning adventures. The first 100 pages dragged a little, but it was worth it because once Morgan was sent to Bristol Newgate prison I couldn't put the book down. From his time in prison to the long journey by sea on a convict ship with horrifying condit...more

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Dec 12, 2010 !!!angryradish!!!! rated it 3 of 5 stars

McCullough's work is hard to get through as it can be over the top with excessive information about stuff like how they distilled rum back in pioneering times. She has some weird sexual themes in all of her novels. I respect her as an author though because while she has the same broad themes in her books, like December/June relationships, sexually repressed men, etc, each book has very different characters that express those themes. It's historical fiction. It's good for that.

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Aug 02, 2011 Marie Theron rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I find it amazing that Colleen McCullough can write a novel like this in between writing the wonderful Masters of Rome series of which I have read four.

All her books are well worth reading. South Africans had their own issues that sometimes corresponded with the circumstances of these Australian settlers in 'Morgan's Run' The questions the author asked at the end of the book were very relevant.

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Feb 05, 2009 RebaReader added it

I read this because I was going to Australia for the first time and this was easy to get my hands on. I haven't read much of Colleen McCullough since The Thorn Birds, which I remember loving. This was very long, longer than it had to be, but it kept my atttention enough to get me all the way through it. I was also reading some history on the side, so it was interesting to see what she focused on.

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Sep 09, 2010 Claudia rated it 5 of 5 stars

This was a challenging read. The author does SO MUCH historical research, and includes lots of period language, descriptions of items that I'm not familiar with, etc. This makes it slow going, but the story was SO good. The main character, Richard Morgan, was a real person sent from England as a convict to colonize Australia. Fascinating historical fiction.

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Mar 26, 2012 Inga rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: colleen-mcculough

Mana pirmā grāmata no šīs autores un es to DIEVINU! Man patīk viņas rakstīšanas stils - detaļas, kas tik sīki un pamatīgi aprakstītas, vēstures stunda, kuru pat nebūtu iemācījusies skolas solā zēžot. Viņa neraksta par tā laika bagātniekiem, kā citas autores. Viņa iedziļinās nabadzīgo, bet strādīgo ļaužu vidū, kas pelna iztiku ar smagu darbu. Netaisnība, nodevība un uzticība. Viens vīrietis, viena dzīve, cits laiks.

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Sep 27, 2012 Meg rated it 5 of 5 stars

Loved the book. All about the original settlers of Australia, the hardships they had as British prisoners, the conditions on the ships that took them there, and how the survivors managed to overcome the odds using very rudimentary knowledge of science, eg. water purification. The best thing was that it profiled in a fictional way a real person.

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Aug 06, 2012 Kristy rated it 3 of 5 stars

A monstrous book, which I really enjoyed, thanks to the last 300 pages... which is where the plot as described in the synopsis on the back of the book actually happens. The unfortunate thing is that you have to get through almost 600 pages of tragedy, 1700s time period speech, and sickening descriptions of imprisonment to actually get there.
Yes, the characters are riveting, and it is an "epic saga". But it shouldn't take a writer nearly 600 pages to actually get to the point of the story -- Ms....more

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Feb 08, 2009 Toni Osborne rated it 3 of 5 stars

This novel is a heavy read; full of historical details of the 18th century colonization of Australia. The author has created for the reader a great drama and a powerful story. For some it could be somewhat boring as McCullough often gets bogged down in period trivia but I enjoyed it and found this novel very entertaining.

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Apr 10, 2011 Jo rated it 3 of 5 stars Recommends it for: no one

This book was definitely challenging to read. I had to make myself finish it. Sometimes there was SO much detail that I couldn't understand what she was writing. I would have to go back and re-read it or just skim over it. It was "ok", but knowing what I know now, I would NOT choose to read it. I do not recommend it.

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About Colleen McCullough

Colleen McCullough AO (born 1 June 1937) is an internationally acclaimed Australian author. Colleen was born in Wellington in central west New South Wales to James and Laurie McCullough.

She grew up during World War II. In her first year of medical studies at the University of Sydney she suffered dermatitis from surgical soap and was told to abandon her dreams of becoming a medical doctor. Instead,...more

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Books by Colleen McCullough

The First Man in Rome (Masters of Rome, #1)

Fortune's Favorites (Masters of Rome, #3)

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