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The Man from Outback
Australia, 1964. Mari Curtis is invited to Ninna-Warra station under false pretences. But why doesn't the handsome station manager want her there?
"Lucy Walker is Australia's Queen of Romance. She writes just what the reader ordered." Daily Mirror
Mari thought she had come to Australia for a holiday. Then her uncle reveals why she was really brought from England to the outback. Can she forgive him and make the most of her new home? Kane Manners isn't pleased to meet the young new arrival. He thinks Mari should return to England immediately. Could an expected tragedy change his mind? Despite Kane 's remote nature, Mari sees kindness in his eyes. Then he makes a surprising announcement. Will she accept his offer? What secret is Kane hiding from everyone around him? Does it involve the beautiful woman he visits at nearby Half Moon station? Mari must experience danger and heartache before the truth can be revealed. Lucy Walker's gentle, clean romances give readers a fascinating insight into the landscape, people and customs of rural Australian in the mid-twentieth century.
"Lucy Walker is Australia's Queen of Romance. She writes just what the reader ordered." Daily Mirror
Mari thought she had come to Australia for a holiday. Then her uncle reveals why she was really brought from England to the outback. Can she forgive him and make the most of her new home? Kane Manners isn't pleased to meet the young new arrival. He thinks Mari should return to England immediately. Could an expected tragedy change his mind? Despite Kane 's remote nature, Mari sees kindness in his eyes. Then he makes a surprising announcement. Will she accept his offer? What secret is Kane hiding from everyone around him? Does it involve the beautiful woman he visits at nearby Half Moon station? Mari must experience danger and heartache before the truth can be revealed. Lucy Walker's gentle, clean romances give readers a fascinating insight into the landscape, people and customs of rural Australian in the mid-twentieth century.
Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1964
About the author
Lucy Walker
105 books26 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.
Lucy Walker (1907–1987) was the most famous of a few pseudonyms used by Dorothy Lucie Sanders (née McClemans). She was born in Boulder, Western Australia, on 4 May 1907. Her father was of Irish stock, a minister of the Church of England. Her mother was from New Zealand. Dorothy began writing at an early age, despite her father’s scepticism about her ability.
A qualified teacher from Perth College (1928), she taught in state schools in Western Australia until 1936. She continued teaching later in London while her husband, a fellow school teacher whom she married in 1936, completed his doctorate in education.
They returned to Perth, Australia in 1938 but Dorothy Lucie Sanders only began her writing in 1945, producing articles, short stories, and later novels. In 1948 her first novel, Fairies on the Doorstep, was published.
As Lucy Walker, she wrote about 39 romance books:
Fairies On the Doorstep (1948)
Who Leaves the Crowd (1952)
The One Who Kisses (1954)
Sweet and Faraway (1955)
Come Home Dear (1956)
Heaven is Here (1957)
Master of Ransome (1958)
Kingdom of the heart (1959)
The Stranger from the North (1959)
Love in a Cloud (1960)
The Loving Heart (1960)
The Moonshiner (1961)
Wife to Order (1961)
The Distant Hills (1962)
Down in the Forest (1962)
The Call of the Pines (1963)
Follow Your Star (1963)
The Man from Outback (1964)
Reaching for the Stars (1964)
A Man Called Masters (1965)
The Other Girl (1965)
The Ranger in the Hills (1966)
The River Is Down (1967)
Home at Sundown (1968)
The Gone-Away Man (1969)
Shining River (1969)
Six for Heaven (1969)
Joyday for Jodi (1971)
The Bell Branch (1971)
The Mountain That Went to the Sea (1971)
Ribbons In Her Hair (1972)
Pepper Tree Bay (1972)
Pool of Dreams (1973)
Girl Alone (1973)
Monday in Summer (1973)
Runaway Girl (1975)
Gamma's Girl (1977)
So Much Love (1977)
These romance novels were very successful in Australia and overseas. The stories were meticulously researched; the writer travelled extensively in the Western Australian outback, recording details of scenery, personalities and social customs in her notebooks and diaries.
Other pseudonyms used by this author: Shelley Dean, Dorothy Lucie Sanders, and Lucy Walker.
Dorothy Lucie Sanders was widowed in 1986 and died the following year. Her daughter and two sons survived her.
Lucy Walker (1907–1987) was the most famous of a few pseudonyms used by Dorothy Lucie Sanders (née McClemans). She was born in Boulder, Western Australia, on 4 May 1907. Her father was of Irish stock, a minister of the Church of England. Her mother was from New Zealand. Dorothy began writing at an early age, despite her father’s scepticism about her ability.
A qualified teacher from Perth College (1928), she taught in state schools in Western Australia until 1936. She continued teaching later in London while her husband, a fellow school teacher whom she married in 1936, completed his doctorate in education.
They returned to Perth, Australia in 1938 but Dorothy Lucie Sanders only began her writing in 1945, producing articles, short stories, and later novels. In 1948 her first novel, Fairies on the Doorstep, was published.
As Lucy Walker, she wrote about 39 romance books:
Fairies On the Doorstep (1948)
Who Leaves the Crowd (1952)
The One Who Kisses (1954)
Sweet and Faraway (1955)
Come Home Dear (1956)
Heaven is Here (1957)
Master of Ransome (1958)
Kingdom of the heart (1959)
The Stranger from the North (1959)
Love in a Cloud (1960)
The Loving Heart (1960)
The Moonshiner (1961)
Wife to Order (1961)
The Distant Hills (1962)
Down in the Forest (1962)
The Call of the Pines (1963)
Follow Your Star (1963)
The Man from Outback (1964)
Reaching for the Stars (1964)
A Man Called Masters (1965)
The Other Girl (1965)
The Ranger in the Hills (1966)
The River Is Down (1967)
Home at Sundown (1968)
The Gone-Away Man (1969)
Shining River (1969)
Six for Heaven (1969)
Joyday for Jodi (1971)
The Bell Branch (1971)
The Mountain That Went to the Sea (1971)
Ribbons In Her Hair (1972)
Pepper Tree Bay (1972)
Pool of Dreams (1973)
Girl Alone (1973)
Monday in Summer (1973)
Runaway Girl (1975)
Gamma's Girl (1977)
So Much Love (1977)
These romance novels were very successful in Australia and overseas. The stories were meticulously researched; the writer travelled extensively in the Western Australian outback, recording details of scenery, personalities and social customs in her notebooks and diaries.
Other pseudonyms used by this author: Shelley Dean, Dorothy Lucie Sanders, and Lucy Walker.
Dorothy Lucie Sanders was widowed in 1986 and died the following year. Her daughter and two sons survived her.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
April 28, 2021
This one should be entitled ‘ Mineral Exploration Secrets of the Outback’ Vol. V
February 13, 2024
Review after reading 2nd time
The reason Kane Manners marries Mari even though she has just turned 18 and he is 30 years old is explained very well at the end of this book. And he does have a good reason--actually two. However it's still no reason to portray this girl as a child and that's what Lucy Walker does. She's much too young. She could have been much smarter. I didn't like her or Kane and it's not often I dislike the tall, strong, slim, blue or grey eyed men in her stories. Not recommended.
She's Too Young, He's Too Old
The newest publication from Lucy Walker is disappointing. Why pair a child of 17 with a 30 year old man? Mariana is not yet 18 when her uncle takes her from England to his cattle station in Australia. There she meets Kane, the station manager, who cautions her not to ride her horse to the neighboring station - - obviously a mystery here--and looks at her sternly. However, he is also very kind and Mariana is soon in love with him. She cannot understand why he asks her to marry him. Nor could I.
The reason Kane Manners marries Mari even though she has just turned 18 and he is 30 years old is explained very well at the end of this book. And he does have a good reason--actually two. However it's still no reason to portray this girl as a child and that's what Lucy Walker does. She's much too young. She could have been much smarter. I didn't like her or Kane and it's not often I dislike the tall, strong, slim, blue or grey eyed men in her stories. Not recommended.
She's Too Young, He's Too Old
The newest publication from Lucy Walker is disappointing. Why pair a child of 17 with a 30 year old man? Mariana is not yet 18 when her uncle takes her from England to his cattle station in Australia. There she meets Kane, the station manager, who cautions her not to ride her horse to the neighboring station - - obviously a mystery here--and looks at her sternly. However, he is also very kind and Mariana is soon in love with him. She cannot understand why he asks her to marry him. Nor could I.
March 13, 2023
One of her best. No modern romance writer can hold a candle to her. No steamy scenes, but brings back to life the outback life of the 1950's and 60's and 1970's. Makes me nostalgic for a life I never even knew, such is the power of her writing !!
July 29, 2017
Love this story, a favourite.
July 27, 2025
I loved this one. The story was laser focused on the H/h, which you don't often get in these vintage (1964) novels. The heroine was young - 17 and then 18 - but she was sensible, spirited and didn't take herself too seriously. Hero was older - 30 maybe? Her uncle's partner and an owner of his own station (which is mysteriously rented out and off limits to everyone in the North). He's tall and quiet and just yummy with his cloud kisses and hand holding and wide shoulders. *happy sigh*
So the story opens with heroine arriving from England with her uncle. She thinks she's on holiday, but her father is dying and uncle is worried about her being alone in the world. She had been planning to elope with a neighbor boy, but her father put a stop to it. She thinks she's heartbroken at the time, but she's already getting over it.
After meeting the hero, she's way over that infatuation.
Hero is gobsmacked when he meets her. Heroine thinks it's because he doesn't like her, but it's obvious hero likes her *too* much. After news of her father's death reaches her, hero proposes.
Heroine has a huge crush on him and is excited to be married.
They travel to a pearling town on the coast and marry. Some friends give them their bungalow for their honeymoon and the author does not fade to black. Hero has no intention of consummating the marriage because heroine is so young, but he does let her down kindly. Heroine is upset, but talks herself into accepting the status quo - for now.
Girl is going to wear him down.
And she does - eventually. She turns 18 the next day. She buys furniture with him. Learns to drive, ride, and all the delights of the Outback.
There's a black moment when the hero inadvertantly steps on a flower she's been nurturing. Hero is not slow on the uptake. He knows she wants children to love and the flower is a metaphor of her fragile hopes. He doesn't shy away from that conversation.
And it's those conversations that earned this story such a high rating. I loved how they communicated. I enjoyed the heroine's thought patterns and how the hero listened and learned to keep up with her.
The mystery of the hero's land is finally solved (uranium mining) and hero can finally relax and take his bride to bed. He is direct about his love for her and how long he's wanted her. Heroine's lips on his bare shoulder are all he needs to know. It's very sweet and a hard-won HEA.
So the story opens with heroine arriving from England with her uncle. She thinks she's on holiday, but her father is dying and uncle is worried about her being alone in the world. She had been planning to elope with a neighbor boy, but her father put a stop to it. She thinks she's heartbroken at the time, but she's already getting over it.
After meeting the hero, she's way over that infatuation.
Hero is gobsmacked when he meets her. Heroine thinks it's because he doesn't like her, but it's obvious hero likes her *too* much. After news of her father's death reaches her, hero proposes.
Heroine has a huge crush on him and is excited to be married.
They travel to a pearling town on the coast and marry. Some friends give them their bungalow for their honeymoon and the author does not fade to black. Hero has no intention of consummating the marriage because heroine is so young, but he does let her down kindly. Heroine is upset, but talks herself into accepting the status quo - for now.
Girl is going to wear him down.
And she does - eventually. She turns 18 the next day. She buys furniture with him. Learns to drive, ride, and all the delights of the Outback.
There's a black moment when the hero inadvertantly steps on a flower she's been nurturing. Hero is not slow on the uptake. He knows she wants children to love and the flower is a metaphor of her fragile hopes. He doesn't shy away from that conversation.
And it's those conversations that earned this story such a high rating. I loved how they communicated. I enjoyed the heroine's thought patterns and how the hero listened and learned to keep up with her.
The mystery of the hero's land is finally solved (uranium mining) and hero can finally relax and take his bride to bed. He is direct about his love for her and how long he's wanted her. Heroine's lips on his bare shoulder are all he needs to know. It's very sweet and a hard-won HEA.
October 25, 2024
I wanted to like this as the storyline was interesting, but the writing just isn't very well done. The characters are two dimensional and lack depth. I love outback stories, but this is vapid.
March 16, 2023
The Man from the Outback
Happy story, but not quite my cup of tea,bit too probable,things slotted into place too quickly,but will read future books by author,because I love the Outback settings.
Happy story, but not quite my cup of tea,bit too probable,things slotted into place too quickly,but will read future books by author,because I love the Outback settings.
June 13, 2023
The age gap was a little too much for me. Specially because the h wasn't very emotionally mature.
When they met she was 17 and he was almost 40. They married a little over a month later and very conveniently the wedding day was also her 18th birthday.
It gave me some icky feelings.
When they met she was 17 and he was almost 40. They married a little over a month later and very conveniently the wedding day was also her 18th birthday.
It gave me some icky feelings.
August 6, 2016
Touching and romantic.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews