Moonlight and the Pearler's Daughter

About the book

Fortune favours the brave in Lizzie Pook's mesmerising debut novel, Moonlight and the Pearler's Daughter.

1886, BANNIN BAY, AUSTRALIA.

The Brightwell family has sailed from England to make their new home in Western Australia. Ten-year-old Eliza knows little of what awaits them on these shores beyond shining pearls and shells like soup plates the things her father has promised will make their fortune.

~~~

Ten years later and Charles Brightwell, now the bays most prolific pearler, goes missing from his ship while out at sea. Whispers from the townsfolk suggest mutiny and murder, but headstrong Eliza, convinced there is more to the story, refuses to believe her father is dead, and it falls to her to ask the questions no one else dares consider.

But in a town teeming with corruption, prejudice and blackmail, Eliza soon learns that the truth can cost more than pearls, and she must decide just how much she is willing to pay and how far she is willing to go to find it . . .

'Adventure, feminist heroine, crocodiles and jellyfish, dangerous men, secrets, grief love and hope... Its not just good, its important. Lizzie shines a light on a dark part of British history with grace, skill, sensitivity and honesty. I LOVED IT Nikki May, author of Wahala