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David Field
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A Far Distant Land: A saga of British survival in an unforgiving new world (The Australian Historical Saga Series Book 1) Kindle Edition

by David Field (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
3.8 out of 5 stars 1,407 ratings
The first in a heart-warming series of Australian sagas!

Perfect for fans of Colleen McCullough, Kate Grenville, Deborah Challinor and Aaron Fletcher.

A journey to a new world, but can you ever leave your old life behind...?

Australia, 1788

After eight long months at sea, The Lady Penryn has docked in Australia – transporting over 100 female convicts from England. Amongst them is a young woman calling herself Mary Murphy, serving seven years for offences of dishonesty. Second Lieutenant Daniel Bradbury of New South Wales Marine Corps, looking to start a new life in Australia, is in charge of the female prisoners.

And when Mary is bullied on board, he steps in and rescues her.

As the passengers come ashore and begin creating the new settlement of Port Jackson, Mary and Daniel grow closer, but it soon becomes clear that Mary is not who she first pretended to be.

The unfamiliar and unforgiving climate, the ever-present threat of native attack, and the residual snobbery of the old English society that travelled with them across the Equator, combine to throw obstacles in the path of this new settlement.

And growing tensions threaten to pull Daniel and Mary apart.

But in the end, nothing can stand in the way of what destiny has prescribed for them…

A Far Distant Land is the first historical novel in The Australian Saga Series: a set of books chronicling the early years of British settlement in the 18th and 19th centuries.

THE AUSTRALIAN SAGA SERIES:
BOOK ONE: A Far Distant Land
BOOK TWO: Eye For An Eye
BOOK THREE: A Colony Divided
BOOK FOUR: All That Glitters
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  1. Book 1 of 4
    The Australian Historical Saga Series
  2. Print length
    244 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Accessibility
    Learn more
  5. Publication date
    May 11, 2021
  6. File size
    1.4 MB
  7. Page Flip
    Enabled
  8. Word Wise
    Enabled
  9. Enhanced typesetting
    Enabled
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There are 4 books in this series.

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Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B091FW9P43
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Sapere Books
  • Accessibility ‏ : ‎ Learn more
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ May 11, 2021
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 1.4 MB
  • Simultaneous device usage ‏ : ‎ Unlimited
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 244 pages
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1800552302
  • Page Flip ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Book 1 of 4 ‏ : ‎ The Australian Historical Saga Series
  • Customer Reviews:
    3.8 out of 5 stars 1,407 ratings

About the author

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David Field

David Field

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David was born in post-war Nottingham, and educated at Nottingham High School. After obtaining a Law degree he became a career-long criminal law practitioner and academic, emigrating in 1989 to Australia, where he still lives.

Combining his two great loves of History and the English language he began writing historical novels as an escape from the realities of life in the criminal law, but did not begin to publish them until close to fulltime retirement, when digital publishing offered a viable alternative to literary agencies, print publishers and rejection slips.

Now blessed with all the time in the world, his former hobby has become a fulltime occupation as he enjoys life in rural New South Wales with his wife, sons and grandchildren to keep him firmly grounded in the reality of the contemporary world.

Customer reviews

3.8 out of 5 stars
1,407 global ratings

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Top reviews from the United States

  • Paula
    4.0 out of 5 stars Review of Far distant land
    Reviewed in the United States on January 30, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    The history I felt was very well written the determination of these people to start over in a new country with great potential The colorful ones that were going to change and turn this country around to their benefit. I love to read historical fiction my first having to do with Australian history
    One person found this helpful
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  • maclaugh
    5.0 out of 5 stars a very fictional account of the founding of an English penal colony on the Australian continent
    Reviewed in the United States on November 8, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    To say this work is entertaining as historical fiction does not do it justice. The entire premise and subsequent yarn is just too entertaining to make it a history, but the absolute trials and tribulations of the colonists are so captivating that the product is just readable fiction.
    Highly recommend.
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  • Kindle Customer
    4.0 out of 5 stars Good Read
    Reviewed in the United States on October 20, 2023
    Verified Purchase
    While David Field has authored a fine novel about New South Wales the mix of real history and fiction does not come close to the stories told by Colleen McCullough, Aaron Fletcher or especially Bryce Courtenay. Still A Far Distant Land is a good read.
    One person found this helpful
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  • john2415
    4.0 out of 5 stars good read
    Reviewed in the United States on November 20, 2023
    Verified Purchase
    excellent story. great characters. sometimes moves too quickly. Good description of the birth and growth of a colony in Australia.
    One person found this helpful
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  • Kindle Customer Sharon Schulze
    5.0 out of 5 stars A great read.
    Reviewed in the United States on December 4, 2023
    Verified Purchase
    I'm usually hesitant at first starting a series, I read the reviews, so many use gratuitous sex to sell their novels. The book had a great love story and left the rest to our imagination. Such an interesting history in Austrailia, the experiment should have failed. Interesting that America could have been the experiment if we hadn't won independence a few years before.
    2 people found this helpful
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  • Superior.Shores
    5.0 out of 5 stars A Rare 5-Star Review
    Reviewed in the United States on March 24, 2023
    Verified Purchase
    I have probably only given two or three five-star reviews. This book deserves five stars only because it tells the history of Australia, not from an outsider’s point of view but instead from one of the founding members of the colony. Field has taken the characters of this amazing story and made them so personal, that the reader is living the discovery and settlement right alongside everyone.
    This teaches history the way it should be told.
    2 people found this helpful
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  • ronemtz
    2.0 out of 5 stars Romance and Run-on Sentences
    Reviewed in the United States on February 21, 2025
    Verified Purchase
    It feels like it was written by two different authors.

    Cookbook Romance: See a partner, get married, have children, all on some future Island Nation. So whatever happened to the indigenous population?

    I won’t go on the next book.
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  • Kindle Custome
    5.0 out of 5 stars History well told
    Reviewed in the United States on December 15, 2023
    Verified Purchase
    Not being well knowledgeable in English history (being an American "colonial" I had no real knowledge of Australian history, so this was an excellent way to get started. Very live characterization of the first settlers and their struggles made for very enjoyable reading.
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Top reviews from other countries

  • Mike John Coombs
    4.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyable Rambling Saga
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 30, 2023
    Verified Purchase
    Nothing like my usual genre but proved to be a refreshing change, well drawn characters interact to transform a bleak penal colony in a hostile environment into a fledgling colonial society.
    Report
  • bookworm27
    4.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyable
    Reviewed in Australia on June 2, 2021
    Verified Purchase
    I found this story enjoyable although I felt it was lacking a little. Could have had more depth to it.
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  • ron matsu
    4.0 out of 5 stars An entertaining read along with Australian history
    Reviewed in Canada on August 16, 2021
    Verified Purchase
    The creation of a settlement by convicts and soldiers is intriguing. The author weaves in a romantic saga along with the limitations of the successive governors of this new colony.
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  • Kindle-Kunde
    5.0 out of 5 stars Very exiting
    Reviewed in Germany on August 30, 2021
    Verified Purchase
    Interesting to read a fiction how australia was born. Although little stories grow big
    Nevertheless enjoyable to read .
    Looking forward
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  • Sheryl-lee Moroni
    5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent tale of first colonial days in New South Wales
    Reviewed in Australia on March 4, 2024
    Verified Purchase
    I liked the weaving of historical facts around the characters. As a fourth generation Australian it is very interesting to relive those early days of Australia’s colonization.
    Report

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