The Heather to the Hawkesbury

The Heather to The HawkesburyFour Scottish families brave a new life in a strange land.Torn from their homeland by starvation, four Scottish families are forced to leave the Isle of Skye and seek a new life in Australia. Mary Macdonald, her husband Murd, and their family, her brother Fergus MacKenzie, sister-in-law Caro MacLeod, cousin Alex Fraser, and all their loved ones are compelled to emigrate from Scotland because of the Potato famine and Clearances.The story follows these families as they journey from Scotland to the New South Wales colony in the 1850s. Mary struggles to cope with the changes and losses in the first months of settlement. Although the other women rely on her, she is nearly overwhelmed. Mary can't settle in this fierce land and pines for home.Together, the families endure hardships such as accidents, loss, floods, and relentless work, ultimately forging a strong bond with their new homeland. Trials, tribulations, and triumphs mark their saga as they establish themselves in Australia.Will Mary ever find peace and contentment where danger and sickness have taken loved ones? Can her love for Murd sustain her through the turmoil of life? And what becomes of the brooch given to Mary as she leaves her mother? A Scottish/Australian Historical family saga. Set in Scotland during the Clearances to New South Wales, Australia, in the mid-1800s.