A home. A disappearance. And a mystery that spans a century...

When Cass leaves London with a fractured heart, she plans to settle in Australia, specifically in the beautiful area of Victoria coastline where she spent so many happy holidays. Yet when she arrives, her house is not quite what she'd envisaged - doing a place up is one challenge, living with things that go bump in the night is quite another.

Years earlier, Minna and her mother have escaped war-torn Europe to join the fairgrounds. There, Minna meets Albert, a man clearly who wants a wife who will also be a full-time worker on the farm near Venus Bay. Albert has no interest in Minna, nor tolerance of her desire to become a writer. When he, and then Minna, both disappear, the mystery of what has happened to them stays buried, seemingly forever...

It will take Cass, and the discovery of a hidden book, to unravel the secrets of a childhood and a marriage, and a story that will also help her live again.

Two women, decades apart, and a house that brings them together.

What readers love about Julie Brooks:

'Such a wonderful story. Set across two timelines, two hundred years apart - I loved the way things wove together beautifully' (The Heirloom) ★★★★★

'Beautifully written...A story which kept me hooked, with mysteries to uncover' (The Keepsake) ★★★★★

'A truly delightful story with fastidious attention to detail...the plot twists and redirects expectations in what makes a thrilling read' (The Secrets of Bridgewater Bay) ★★★★★