Beyond the Purple Hills
First published in hard cover in 1996, Beyond the Purple Hills was Heather Graves first full length novel.
“Maggie McDiarmit takes after her father Dermot in every respect: her wild red hair, her love for fine horse flesh – and her weakness for picking pockets. After Maggi and Dermot have stolen the passage money, the McDiarmit family travels steerage to Australia, land of opportunity, where Dermot dreams of discovering a fortune in the gold fields. A handsome young country gentleman on a visit to Melbourne unwittingly provides him with the stake money, so Dermot and his sone Tully set out for the Eureka field. Maggi is left in the not so tender care of Mother Bullivant, “benefactress” of the poor, who plan to train her as a skivvy and place her in the first available position.
Maggi has other ideas. Fortunately she has made a friend in Melbourne: Peg Riley, a singer and dancer whom she met on the voyage out. With Peg’s encouragement Maggi embarks on a career as a saloon entertainer. But old habits die hard and when her pickpocketing skills come to light Maggi is forced to flee from the city. To facilitate escape she accepts grazier Callum MacGregor’s offer of a domestic position on his family’s property, Lachlan’s Holt. Callum, propelled by tragedy to the head of his family, seems wise beyond his years and Maggi instinctively trusts him. In fact it is almost as though she has met him before.
Maggi has other ideas. Fortunately she has made a friend in Melbourne: Peg Riley, a singer and dancer whom she met on the voyage out. With Peg’s encouragement Maggi embarks on a career as a saloon entertainer. But old habits die hard and when her pickpocketing skills come to light Maggi is forced to flee from the city. To facilitate escape she accepts grazier Callum MacGregor’s offer of a domestic position on his family’s property, Lachlan’s Holt. Callum, propelled by tragedy to the head of his family, seems wise beyond his years and Maggi instinctively trusts him. In fact it is almost as though she has met him before.When Maggi reaches Lachlan’s Holts she realises why. Callum’s younger brother, Hamish, from whom he is bitterly estranged, is none other than the young man her father robbed in Melbourne. Hamish has every reason to scorn and denounce her – but seeing his brother’s undisguised interest in Maggi, he takes a more subtle revenge…”
Published by Judy Piatkus 1996. ISBN 0 7499 0333 3.
