Searching for Sylvia

by Joanna Stephen-Ward

Sylvia has been missing for thirty years. Will her daughters ever find her?
Tordorrach is 70,000 acres of drought stricken land in the Australian outback. Why do a group of wealthy people from London want to buy it?
Shamus, the owner of Tordorrach, lives in poverty. His homestead is derelict and he is heavily in debt. The new owners run Outback Experience holidays on Tordorrach. Shamus becomes one of the gardeners, and he and his wife Mary move to a comfortable cabin on the property. Why does he hate the new owners so much that he plans to murder one of them?
The idyllic life of the new owners is shattered when the body of a woman is found buried on Tordorrach. Forensics find a bullet in her body. Who was she? And who murdered her?

ebook

Published April 30, 2019

Reviews

[Kelly Van Damme · Rating 4 out of 5]

Searching for Sylvia is set in the Australian outback, mainly in Tordorrach, an estate that was magnificent once upon a time, but has lost its lustre, mainly because of the drought and subsequent neglect. I’m totally in love with Australia so it was very easy for me to fall in love with this setting too. (to be clear: ours is a long-distance love, I’m terrified of spiders, and after reading this book, I’m terrified of snakes too, so I’m not sure this is the country for me…). Joanna, born in the Australian outback, writes with surety and knowledge.

There are four very clearly distinguishable parts. The first part sets the board and we meet the pieces: we get to know the main characters and we get a feel for them. Joanna’s style shines through: some of the characters are goodness personified, and one of them… Well, one of them drove me up the walls! There was the character I loved to hate! Despite some redeeming qualities, I couldn’t warm to him, but I suspect that was the idea all along. Don’t search for Sylvia in this first part; her storyline takes off in the second part, when all the family ties have been revealed and new ties are formed. Still Sylvia remains obscure and other pieces are moving across the board instead. This is the part where Tordorrach is restored to its former glory and becomes a resort. This is given quite a lot of attention, ranging from how the ranch will be managed to TripAdvisor-like reviews. I think some readers might experience this as fluff, but I enjoyed it. I was genuinely interested in the inner workings of Tordorrach and I was rooting for the estate and its owners. The third part is where the search for Sylvia finally ends and where we deal with the repercussions of that. The fourth part is about repercussions of another kind and is for you to find out, since this is a spoiler-free blog. In this part all loose ends are neatly tied up as well, leading to a finale that is not twisty, not very surprising, but entirely satisfying nonetheless.

Throughout the novel, there’s another storyline: the diary of an ancestor that has been found in Tordorrach. I loved this part: the mysterious nature of the diary, finding out who exactly it belonged to, and learning more about the ancestor and his life.

Overall, a very enjoyable and satisfying story, written in the very distinguishable style that is Joanna’s, both in terms of characters and actual writing style, which is a bit abrupt perhaps, but very unique and one I appreciate and enjoy. If you’re looking for a standalone novel that’s a bit of a family saga with thriller and crime elements in a gorgeous setting, be sure to look into Searching for Sylvia!

[Ruth Matheson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set in the Australian outback, the title character is a mother who suddenly disappeared from her children’s lives never to be found or traced. As adults, the girls and their cousin have the chance to buy back their childhood property and begin to try and find out whatever happened to their mother.

The book is very descriptive of living in the outback with all its trials and hardships and I was easily transported to Tordarrach. There are also a couple of other themes running through the story – love, jealousy, family history, revenge and conciliation.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading the book and would certainly recommend it. Thanks to Bloodhound Books for the ARC to review.

[Claudia Marie Hopkins · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was my first time reading s book by the author and it will not be last. She did a wonderful job with her characters developing then and showing the many sides that we all have and what we choose to share. There was drama, mystery and story telling that draws the reader in wanting to know more about everyone. She really was able to show that what we see and observe is not always true and that we must all be ok deeper into ourselves and those around us as there is so much more if we see and listen. Great read. Great work. Please don miss this one.

[Nerys Roberts · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mysterious buyers snap up a homestead in the Australian outback. The previous owner had put it up for sale as he was heavily in debt after the drought. He was offered the chance to become the new owners’ manager but he refused and ends up being their gardener. There has always been a mystery about the property as Sylvia Halland, a young wife and mother, left abruptly while suffering from post natal depression but has never been traced. Did she leave or did something more untoward happen to her? An old journal also gives insight to two British families with links to the property.

This isn’t the normal genre that I read but I really enjoyed this one - conflict, murder, revenge and family history is pulled together into a really good read.

Thanks to Bloodhound Books and Joanna Stephen-Ward for the ARC of this book in return for an honest review.

[Lel Budge · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set in Australia, this is a family drama with a twist…

It starts with Paul, a solicitor who comes home to his wife how tells hims she is leaving him for someone else….leaving her boring life and boring husband…..He decides it’s time for a new life and leaves Sydney for a small, remote town of Cobar.

He continues to work as a solicitor and loves his new life….then comes a mystery buyer of the near derelict homestead, Tordorrach. The current owner, Seamus is reluctant to sell to the English despite being heavily in debt, but eventually sells. Seamus is a nasty, belligerent piece of work and alienates everyone around him including his long suffering wife, Mary.

The new buyers are all related, and lived at Tordorrach many years before and are still troubled by the sudden disappearance of Sylvia, mother to Grace and Juliet at the time. They employed a private detective, but unfortunately nothing could be found….

They also find an old journal written by an ancestor, which adds a little history to the family.

A lot of this story is about the renovation of Tordorrach and the setting up of a new business, from the cabin fittings to menu’s, which helps builds a wonderful picture of the estate, the new owners and their relationships amongst themselves and those around them.

A body is then found, buried a long time ago……murdered…..is this Sylvia? And just who In this small town knows what happened?

All is revealed in an emotion packed confession, will this be the end of it now ? ….

A slowly paced but totally immersive read from start to finish….I really enjoyed it.

Thank you to Bloodhound Books for the opportunity to participate in this blog tour and for the promotional materials and a free copy of the ebook in exchange for my honest, unbiased review

[Ranjana · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not as compelling as The Doll Collector.