The Widow of Ballarat

Darry Fraser, who hails from Kangaroo Island, is fast carving a name out for herself in the Australian historical fiction world. Her latest and third novel, The Widow of Ballarat, takes the reader by the hand and places them in the heart of the goldfields of Ballarat, immediately after the famed Eureka Stockade. At the heart of this tale is Nell Amberton, a woman who finds herself in an impossible position following the shock murder of her cruel husband. The Widow of Ballarat is a sprawling Australian saga, reminding us of the trials faced by women in the 1800s in the midst of the gold rush.

The Australian landscape is home and hearth – the rural, the coastal, the arid lands and the desert. The history, the hidden stories, the catalysts create the powerful connection between her characters and are the drivers in her stories. Apprenticed on a number of contemporary novels and novellas, she returned to writing Australian historical fiction, which is her favorite genre. She lives and works on the beautiful Kangaroo Island off the coast of South Australia.