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Rivers End #0.5
Martha
1972. It is four years since Martha Ryan’s world crashed around her. Fleeing to England to
study teaching, she had left everything behind. Her beloved seaside town of River’s End, her big sister, Dorothy, and the one man she loves beyond reason.
After the untimely death of her father, she finds a new home in Ireland. There, she buys a cottage, embarking on a career as a teacher in the small town, and travelling during every long school holiday. She finds friendships, relationships, and adventures.
But dreams haunt her. Deep down, she longs for her home town in Australia, and to see Dorothy. Will a life well lived be enough, or is one letter the turning point to risk everything she’s come to love?
Martha is a short companion story covering fifty years in about sixty pages. Read first, or alongside any of the books in the series.
study teaching, she had left everything behind. Her beloved seaside town of River’s End, her big sister, Dorothy, and the one man she loves beyond reason.
After the untimely death of her father, she finds a new home in Ireland. There, she buys a cottage, embarking on a career as a teacher in the small town, and travelling during every long school holiday. She finds friendships, relationships, and adventures.
But dreams haunt her. Deep down, she longs for her home town in Australia, and to see Dorothy. Will a life well lived be enough, or is one letter the turning point to risk everything she’s come to love?
Martha is a short companion story covering fifty years in about sixty pages. Read first, or alongside any of the books in the series.
58 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 31, 2019
100 people are currently reading
120 people want to read
About the author
Phillipa Nefri Clark
110 books373 followersPhillipa lives just outside a beautiful town in country Victoria, Australia. She also lives in the many worlds of her imagination and stockpiles stories beside her laptop.
She writes from the heart about love, dreams, secrets, discovery, the sea, the world as she knows it… or wishes it could be. She loves happy endings, heart-pounding suspense, and characters who stay with you long after the final page.
With a passion for music, the ocean, nature, reading, and writing, she is often found in the vegetable garden pondering a new story.
She writes from the heart about love, dreams, secrets, discovery, the sea, the world as she knows it… or wishes it could be. She loves happy endings, heart-pounding suspense, and characters who stay with you long after the final page.
With a passion for music, the ocean, nature, reading, and writing, she is often found in the vegetable garden pondering a new story.
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
May 27, 2019
Firstly can I say how much I love this cover, then I will say how much I loved this short story, MS Nefri Clark has bought us a novella to explain what happened to Martha when she left River’s End and then returned to the love of her life.
Martha is one of my favourite characters in this series and learning about her emotions and what she went through when she left River’s End showed so much more of her character and strength, the joy of teaching, her little cottage by the sea in Ireland and the friendships she made as well as the wonderful places she traveled to, it also showed the heartbreak that family can cause, the rift between her and her sister Dorothy, not being close to her mother and the death of her father, and of course the love for Thomas the man she would always love.
This is a quick read that left me feeling very good, I have loved this series from book one and this novella is a wonderful extra that is sure to answer a few questions for those who love River’s End and the characters that we have gotten to know and love. Thank you Phillipa Nefri Clark for telling us a little more about Martha, this is a must read for all who have read the series and I strongly recommend this series.
Martha is one of my favourite characters in this series and learning about her emotions and what she went through when she left River’s End showed so much more of her character and strength, the joy of teaching, her little cottage by the sea in Ireland and the friendships she made as well as the wonderful places she traveled to, it also showed the heartbreak that family can cause, the rift between her and her sister Dorothy, not being close to her mother and the death of her father, and of course the love for Thomas the man she would always love.
This is a quick read that left me feeling very good, I have loved this series from book one and this novella is a wonderful extra that is sure to answer a few questions for those who love River’s End and the characters that we have gotten to know and love. Thank you Phillipa Nefri Clark for telling us a little more about Martha, this is a must read for all who have read the series and I strongly recommend this series.
November 7, 2023
Martha is a novella and a great introduction to the Rivers Ends Series. This was a quick read and very enjoyable read. I can already see that Martha is going to be one of those characters who will stay with you long after the series is finished. Looking forward to the rest of the series.
September 9, 2023
I adored the Stationmaster’s Cottage by Phillipa Nefri Clark which I read a few years ago and thought it about time I continued reading the River’s End Series. Almost picked up Jasmine Sea then remembered the two prequels Martha and Taming the Wind which are best read before starting book two.
This prequel wrapped up some loose ends and was a splendid read. Loved knowing more about Martha, one of my favourite characters.
This prequel wrapped up some loose ends and was a splendid read. Loved knowing more about Martha, one of my favourite characters.
July 9, 2019
Martha is an excellent short novel giving us back-story to Phillipa Nefri Clark's novel, The Stationmaster's Cottage. We follow Martha from 1972 in River's End, Australia, when she flees all she knows and loves following her breakup with her forever love Thomas.
Martha chooses to attend schooling in Ireland, where her mother and father now reside among paternal family. We have an occasional flashback to Australia, giving us insight into the relationship between Martha and Thomas, and a steady march through the mostly uneventful life of Martha. After college, she buys a small house near the school where she will begin teaching and settles herself into a simple, single life. Her summers are spent traveling around the world, often with a married couple she met in Egypt, and she doesn't really date, nor consider that her life is not complete as it is. And thus it goes. She loses her father, a grievous blow, and eventually her mother re-marries. Her sister Dorothy is married with children and seem content to remain in Australia. Martha doesn't want the memories a trip home would bring, and eventually, the sister's lost touch except for exchanging birthday and holiday cards. Their mother still owns the maternal family home in Australia, the Palmerston House, but she and her new husband continue to rent it out and reside in Ireland and England.
And then, in 2009, there is a letter from her sister Dorothy. Dorothy would like to clear up Martha's perception of the events of 1968. She needs for Martha to return to River's End so they can speak one more time of the engagement party for Martha and Thomas when Martha's world fell apart. Dorothy has heart problems, and cannot travel. But can Martha make herself return to the place where her dreams turned to dust?
I received a $.99 electronic copy of this prequel to The Stationmaster's Cottage, River's End Book I, from Phillipa Nefri Clark. I have read this story of my own volition, and this review reflects my honest opinion of this work.
Author gift 99
Reviewed on June 25, 2019, at -Goodreads, AmazonSmile, and BookBub. Not available at B&N or Kobo.
Martha chooses to attend schooling in Ireland, where her mother and father now reside among paternal family. We have an occasional flashback to Australia, giving us insight into the relationship between Martha and Thomas, and a steady march through the mostly uneventful life of Martha. After college, she buys a small house near the school where she will begin teaching and settles herself into a simple, single life. Her summers are spent traveling around the world, often with a married couple she met in Egypt, and she doesn't really date, nor consider that her life is not complete as it is. And thus it goes. She loses her father, a grievous blow, and eventually her mother re-marries. Her sister Dorothy is married with children and seem content to remain in Australia. Martha doesn't want the memories a trip home would bring, and eventually, the sister's lost touch except for exchanging birthday and holiday cards. Their mother still owns the maternal family home in Australia, the Palmerston House, but she and her new husband continue to rent it out and reside in Ireland and England.
And then, in 2009, there is a letter from her sister Dorothy. Dorothy would like to clear up Martha's perception of the events of 1968. She needs for Martha to return to River's End so they can speak one more time of the engagement party for Martha and Thomas when Martha's world fell apart. Dorothy has heart problems, and cannot travel. But can Martha make herself return to the place where her dreams turned to dust?
I received a $.99 electronic copy of this prequel to The Stationmaster's Cottage, River's End Book I, from Phillipa Nefri Clark. I have read this story of my own volition, and this review reflects my honest opinion of this work.
Author gift 99
Reviewed on June 25, 2019, at -Goodreads, AmazonSmile, and BookBub. Not available at B&N or Kobo.
August 22, 2020
Tying up loose ends.
Martha left Rivers End following a disastrous breakup with the only man she will truly love, and she has been away for almost fifty years.
This short story tells of where she went, some of the people she met, and the countries she visited.
I loved the way the author has tied up all the loose ends in one of my favourite character's life.
This whole Rivers End series has been thoroughly enjoyable, and is highly recommended.
Martha left Rivers End following a disastrous breakup with the only man she will truly love, and she has been away for almost fifty years.
This short story tells of where she went, some of the people she met, and the countries she visited.
I loved the way the author has tied up all the loose ends in one of my favourite character's life.
This whole Rivers End series has been thoroughly enjoyable, and is highly recommended.
June 16, 2019
I read this prequel after reading the rest of the series - back to front I know, but that's how things fall sometimes - and loved it. I learnt a lot more about Martha's life, which filled in gaps but also set up what was to come in such an ingenious way I was hooked. It's a short story that leaves you wanting more. Recommended.
June 17, 2019
Martha: A Prequel to The Stationmaster’s Cottage by Phillipa Nefri Clark gives the reader the background behind one of the main characters in the Stationmaster’s cottage. You are taken back in time to the early 70’s when Martha leaves River’s End and her life there to travel to Ireland. Having already read The Stationmaster’s Cottage it filled in the gaps nicely.
August 13, 2019
Martha by Phillipa Nefri Clark has received a Chill with a Book Readers' Award.
www.chillwithabook.com
A lovely short story and well written.
Pauline Barclay - founder of Chill Awards
www.chillwithabook.com
A lovely short story and well written.
Pauline Barclay - founder of Chill Awards
June 18, 2019
A quick story that I felt confused through the entire thing. Not sure why, guess it was just me
July 30, 2019
Martha Ryan’s world falls apart. She leaves behind her town, Dorothy, her big sister, and the love of her life. After her father’s untimely death, she moves to Ireland. She starts a new life. New job teaching, a new home but she misses her old life. She receives one letter. Can she go home? Will she risk everything for love? It’s a wonderful read. It a wonderful prequel to The a Stationmaster’s Cottage. Loved it
June 6, 2019
"Martha: A prequel to The Stationmaster's Cottage" by Phillipa Nefri Clark was a marvelous, short read. Circa 1972 and Martha Ryan has left her hometown of River's End, her family, and her past to travel to Ireland. We get the backstage pass of learning about Martha's life after the death of her father. We see what she is facing here that makes her into the person she becomes in the continuation of this book series. Amazing writing, and keeps your attention from start to finish.
May 1, 2021
❤️ Martha ❤️
WOW! Intriguing story! I wish I had read this and the prequel, “Taming the Wind” before reading the “Stationmaster’s Cottage”. This whole series is so good. To get the full impact, just start at the beginning and read all the way through, then go to the Charlotte Dean mysteries. There is so much love, action, mystery and regret but you will definitely love this whole series. Get out the hankies, a cup of tea and a plate of cookies and let the reading marathon begin!
WOW! Intriguing story! I wish I had read this and the prequel, “Taming the Wind” before reading the “Stationmaster’s Cottage”. This whole series is so good. To get the full impact, just start at the beginning and read all the way through, then go to the Charlotte Dean mysteries. There is so much love, action, mystery and regret but you will definitely love this whole series. Get out the hankies, a cup of tea and a plate of cookies and let the reading marathon begin!
February 5, 2020
Martha: Prequel to The Stationmaster’s Cottage: River’s End Mystery Romance Book 1 is by Phillipa Nerfi Clark. This book goes back and tells what happened to Martha while she was absent from River’s End after a fight with Thomas. Did she make the right decision or was that decision made for her? Was her life in Ireland and in her travels across the globe enough for her or did she need to return to River’s End to finish things at last?
September 2, 2022
Started reading book #1, saw this and took time to read it before moving back to book #1. Filled in the gaps, needed or not - personal choice. I am glad I took the time to read this short story before moving on in book 1.
September 16, 2022
Knowing the background to Martha I understood her character a little more. I really came to like this lady more and more as the series unfolded and wanted to know more about her before she returned home.
October 30, 2023
Fills the gaps from Stationmaster’s Cottage
I enjoyed reading this book. It fills the gaps from Stationmaster’s Cottage, which was very intriguing.
I definitely recommend, especially if you’re also reading Stationmasters Cottage.
I enjoyed reading this book. It fills the gaps from Stationmaster’s Cottage, which was very intriguing.
I definitely recommend, especially if you’re also reading Stationmasters Cottage.
July 11, 2020
Great start to a series. Looking forward to The Station Master's Cottage! Full of mystery and a lost love.
July 3, 2021
Yet another great read
I really have enjoyed all the River’s End stories. They are so hard to put down. Many nights of no sleep.
I really have enjoyed all the River’s End stories. They are so hard to put down. Many nights of no sleep.
July 28, 2021
A short novella after Taming the Wind, but setting up the scene for book 1.
January 30, 2025
Great information
Having already read this series it was nice to have this companion short story about Martha's time away from River's End. It makes me want to re-read the series.
Having already read this series it was nice to have this companion short story about Martha's time away from River's End. It makes me want to re-read the series.
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews