At his graduation from Edinburgh University in 1885, the promising young medical student, William Cameron, coughs blood into his handkerchief. He is told his only chance to recover from tuberculosis is to leave his beloved Scotland for the hot, dry climate of Australia.
In Melbourne, William meets Jeannie Robertson, an equally reluctant Scottish immigrant who came to Australia with her fiercely opinionated, widowed mother, in pursuit of her two, gold-prospecting brothers.
This true story follows William and Jeannie on their respective journeys from Scotland to a new life in Australia. Even as they find each other in the 'Marvellous Melbourne' of the 1890's, tuberculosis claims William again, and he and Jeannie are forced to relocate to the hottest and driest outpost of the colony-Mildura.
Their 'grand investment' in the fledgling Mildura Irrigation Scheme turns into a long struggle against drought, rabbits and financial ruin that engulfs the entire settlement. While Jeannie adjusts to life in a small rural community, William fights a secret war against the advance of his disease, experimenting with home-made anti-toxins on the only research subject available to him-himself.
Clouds Will Break is a story of perseverance, courage, family and love, set in the widely-contrasting worlds of the Scottish Borders, Melbourne and outback Victoria in the second half of the 19th century.
