Thorn on the Rose

It is 1939 and Jenny Morrison, distraught and just fifteen years of age, has fled the tiny logging community of Woody Creek for a new life in the big smoke.

But four months later she is back – wiser, with an expensive new wardrobe, and bearijng another dark secret…

She takes refuge with Gertrude, her dependable granny and Woody Creek’s indomitable midwife, and settles into a routine in the ever-expanding and chaotic household.

But can she ever put the trauma of her past behind her and realise her dream of becoming a famous singer? Or is she doomed to follow in the footsteps of her tragic and mysterious mother?

Spanning a momentous wartime decade and filled with the joys and heartaches of life in rural Australia, Thorn on the Rose is the spellbinding sequel to Pearl in a Cage, confirming Joy Dettman’s place as one of our most gifted storytellers.