The White Rose

Reviewed By  Janet Mawdesley       April 9, 2015

 

Author  Madilina Tresca

Distributor:     
ISBN:                 978-0-9925521-5-2
Publisher:         Short Stop Press
Release Date:    

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Set in Sydney in the eighties this is a tale which blends the days of the early settlers into modern times when a book released by author Christopher Marriston, telling the story of a curse which has been a part of his families history since the times of the convicts, sets off a cataclysmic chain of events which will almost destroy a family.

The tale is more than just a family story as the curse is alive and well, which Sydney woman Skyla Lachlan can attest to, as it struck her with devastating effect as young woman, deeply in love with her fiancé.

Several years later and happily married she drops her sons at school and on the way back listens to a radio interview with Christopher Marriston and is driven to purchase his book. The little she hears during the interview describes almost perfectly what happened to her years before when she was left standing at the train station, her life in shreds, her future torn apart.

By purchasing the book she finds that she has plunged herself and her family into the final saga of a curse placed by a gypsy girl and destined to last for seven generations.

Fascinating in that it combines the old and new days of Sydney into perspective through the eyes of a modern woman attempting to work out just what happened when the curse of the White Rose, as it was known, struck with what turned out to be destructive powers and why it happened to her. Where is the link, why has the curse struck her and appears to be going to do so once again?

The plot is extremely good as it contains all the elements of a very enthralling read, combining an intriguing mystery moving between the modern and early days of Sydney.

The characters are believable, the pace fast enough to hold the interest but far too complex to really enjoy.