The Other Side of the Season in Aussie Readers

Jan 04, 2016 Brenda rated it it was amazing

Shelves: aussie-authors, sent-by-publisher, contemporary-fiction, uncorrected-proof, own-read, arc, 2016-release

Sidney Hill and her brother Jake arrived at Watercolour Cove with Jake unaware his sister had decided on the detour before Byron Bay. They had left the Blue Mountains and their mother for a holiday after Sidney’s heartbreaking split from her boyfriend of seven years, Damien. In leaving, she had also lost her job and her home – she felt now was a good time to do some research into her family’s past as her mother refused to discuss it.

In 1979, thirty five years prior to Sidney and Jake’s arrival i Sidney Hill and her brother Jake arrived at Watercolour Cove with Jake unaware his sister had decided on the detour before Byron Bay. They had left the Blue Mountains and their mother for a holiday after Sidney’s heartbreaking split from her boyfriend of seven years, Damien. In leaving, she had also lost her job and her home – she felt now was a good time to do some research into her family’s past as her mother refused to discuss it.

In 1979, thirty five years prior to Sidney and Jake’s arrival in Watercolour Cove, it was a ramshackle seaside town with a different name. Seventeen year old David and his older brother Matthew lived high on the hillside of a banana plantation which had been in their family for generations. David wanted to be an artist – his dreams didn’t include remaining on his family property, while Matthew was happy to take over the reins when necessary. On the property next door, young Tilly and Albie had been adopted by the couple owning it – their young lives were spent working on the farm and being friends with David and Matthew next door.

But with unexpected suddenness, the winter of 1979 brought tragedy and loss to the families on the top of the hill. Lives would never be the same; heartbreak and grief would cascade on and on through the years. When Sidney and Jake made their way to Watercolour Cove in 2015 was it coincidence? Or was it fate?

The Other Side of the Season is Aussie author Jenn J. McLeod’s fourth novel, and in my humble opinion it is her best yet! I absolutely loved it. Emotional and heartbreaking, the author’s talent for making me dislike one of the characters intensely and then to feel sympathy and caring for her as I read on in the story was incredibly well done. The author also reduced me to tears a couple of times when the unexpected happened…

The Other Side of the Season is predominantly a story of love – with the love of family first and foremost. It is set mainly in the banana plantations on the Coffs Coast of New South Wales with the fictional town one I’ve been to and loved to visit many times. I have no hesitation in highly recommending this novel to all.

With thanks to Simon & Schuster for my uncorrected proof copy to read in exchange for my honest review.
...more

18 likes · Like · see review

Nov 11, 2019 Kathryn rated it liked it

Shelves: fiction, australian-authors, gr-giveaways, released-2016, reading-list-2019

3.5★ I enjoyed this, however it was fairly obvious from almost the beginning where it was going. But it was still an enjoyable read to get there. One of the characters was especially manipulative, and I know we weren’t meant to like the things done by that character, but I didn’t quite “buy” the turnaround later on.

I was also irritated by the fact that one of the character’s kept insisting that “family is forever” and yet didn’t act with any commitment toward anyone they seemed to consider famil ...more

1 like · Like · see review

May 01, 2016 Janine rated it it was amazing

Shelves: for-review

This novel tells the story of Sidney and her brother Jake who are heading up the NSW coast to Byron Bay. They get as far as the banana growing area of Coffs Harbour called Watercolour Cove and Sidney is on a mission to discover information about her family and her grandfather, who is imprisoned in the jail in the area. The story is told in different time periods, past, middle and present. There are so many likeable characters in this book, each with a past. Sidney is recovering from a break-up w ...more

Like · see review