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Beales' debut novel follows the haunting journey of Georgie Carruthers. The Great War is over, and Carruthers guiltily leaves her wounded fiancé behind to travel to the Patagonia region to become a governess. It's a sparsely populated area, but it's also experiencing unrest as a war is brewing between workers and landowners. Georgie is caught between the world of her employer—the widower Ian Creed—and the horse trainer, Raul. The result is a complex love triangle that is reminiscent of novels by Daphne Du Maurier.
Beales has created a highly detailed book that transports its readers to this vast South American region, bound not just by the Andes Mountains but by two oceans, the Pacific and the Atlantic. Not only does the landscape leap off the pages, but so do the author's characters. Georgie is a very interesting protagonist because of her past and the current situations Beales writes her into. There is a revolution brewing, and the tension is high, not only outside of the Creed house, but inside as well. Mrs. Creed, Ian's mother, seems stuck in the past. That's one of the main themes here: the Creeds are stuck in traditional colonial expectations, while the world around them is changing.
The author does a good job of showing the contrasts between the wealthy and the working class. Even in her supporting characters, Beales gives attention to detail, especially with Marta, a maid in the Creed household. She's one of several tragic characters in the book. Beales' writing style is beautiful. It's clear that this is a well-researched novel that has been meticulously edited. The way the narrative shifts from Georgie's point of view to diary entries and Marta's own story is excellently done. In essence, Beales has written an unforgettable book.
RECOMMENDED by the US Review
A 2026 Eric Hoffer Book Award Category Finalist