With help from those she meets on her journey, CeCe begins to believe that this wild, vast continent could offer her something she never thought possible: a sense of belonging, and a home. As something deep within her responds to the energy of the area and the ancient culture of the Aboriginal people, her creativity reawakens once more. When CeCe finally reaches the searing heat and dusty plains of the Red Centre of Australia, she begins the search for her past. In Adelaide, her fate becomes entwined with Mrs McCrombie’s family, including the identical, yet very different, twin brothers: impetuous Drummond, and ambitious Andrew, the heir to a pearling fortune. Ī hundred years earlier, Kitty McBride, daughter of an Edinburgh clergyman, is given the opportunity to travel to Australia as the companion of the wealthy Mrs McCrombie. There amongst the backpackers, she meets the mysterious Ace, a man as lonely as she is and whom she subsequently realises has a secret to hide.

En-route to Sydney, CeCe heads to the one place she has ever felt close to being herself: the stunning beaches of Krabi, Thailand. In desperation, she decides to flee England and discover her past the only clues she has are a black-and-white photograph and the name of a woman pioneer who lived in Australia over one hundred years ago. Dropping out of art college, CeCe watches as Star, her beloved sister, distances herself to follow her new love, leaving her completely alone. Following the death of her father, the elusive billionaire Pa Salt – so-called by the six daughters he adopted from around the globe and named after the Seven Sisters star cluster – she finds herself at breaking point.

CeCe D’Aplièse has never felt she fitted in anywhere.

The pearl free online