Thirteen-year-old shepherd Tom must defend himself against a ruthless killer, tracking him through the outback in this thriller set in colonial era Australia. It's 1840, and life in colonial Australia is brutal. This is an intense book which is set over a short number of days as Tom tries to survive by outwitting his pursuer with only a fellow shepherd (who won’t stop talking) and his beloved dog to support him. The style of writing is very evocative and really gave me a sense of how tough life would have been in the 1840s both in Queen Victoria’s Britain and outback Australia especially for a young boy on his own. It really gives you an insight into the prejudices that both prisoners and aboriginals would have faced during this period. A great historical thriller.

The story is set in colonial Austrila. Tom Clay is a young convict who works as a shepherd in New South Wales. He tends the sheep for his master alongside other convicts in the bush. Dan Carver is also a convict. He is a vicious man who has vowed to kill Tom and the other convicts. Tom was just thirteen years old when he was caught poaching and sentenced to seven years. Set in 1840. The storyline old over a short amount of days. Tom has to try and outwit his persuer. Tom has his dog and fellow shephard with him. I liked the authors writing style. There's some gore and violence some wouldn't recommend it to the faint hearted. We get an insight in how to persue a someone out in the wilderness. Trigger warning: some animals are killed or wounded. I would like to thank NetGalley, Text Publishing and the author Catherine Jinks for my ARC in exchange for an honest review. #Shephard #NetGalley

I didn't like this book at all. Very bleak and violent and never endingly desolate and desperate.. Some reviewers have suggested that is is aimed at YA but I wouldn't have wanted to read this when I was YA age. I read an e-ARC courtesy of Netgalley and the publshers.