Book Review – Two women, two centuries, linked by a priceless opal

The Woman in the Green Dress by Tea Cooper sparked my interest the minute it arrived in my mailbox.

Tea Cooper is an Australian writer with a long list of successful novels which focus on strong women characters in various periods throughout Australian history. Just as she did in her book The Naturalist’s Daughter, The Woman in the Green Dress takes us back on a journey in time, to two different time zones in our historic past – 1853 and 1918 with two heroines who both have a mission to discover the truth that will bring clarity and purpose to their lives.

Della Atterton (1853) is the daughter of a taxidermist. After his death, she continues his work in a remote area of the beautiful Hawkesbury River in New South Wales. Her enigmatic Aunt Cordelia sells the work that Della creates from the local wildlife to customers in Sydney in a shop called ‘The Curio Shop of Wonders’.

Meanwhile, in post-war 1918 a grief-stricken young English widow Fleur Richards arrives in Sydney following the death of her husband Hugh in the war. Having received an inheritance from him, she is unwilling to accept it until she learns if he has any living relatives. She also wants to find out more about Hugh, as their time together was very brief.

Tea Cooper skilfully manages to meld these two separate women’s stories together as both go on their journeys of discovery – although 65 years separates them. Throughout the two stories, the elusive search for a priceless opal is the thread that links the two women. Della enlists the help of handsome Captain Stephan von Richter who himself is searching for the opal on behalf of his benefactor.

I do not want to give away too much, but I was drawn into this wonderful book with the author’s wonderful descriptions of historic New South Wales towns in both time periods. The flora and fauna and also her sympathetic and sensitive depiction of the local ‘New Hollander’ people add to the tone of the book. It is obviously very well researched as historic peoples and events lend an authenticity to the story as we read of a Sydney thriving and bustling with characters busy reinventing themselves from their British roots.

The Woman in the Green Dress by Tea Cooper was a mesmerising read. I will not elaborate on the significance of the green dress but will leave it up to the discerning reader to discover this for themselves. I thoroughly enjoyed this book which had just the right amount of adventure, romance and mystery to keep me reading on way into the small hours. The ending itself is a triumph, but I will leave that up to you to find out for yourself. The Woman in the Green Dress by Tea Cooper. Highly recommended by me.

The Woman in the Green Dress, by Tea Cooper, is available in printed and digital editions from the publisher HQ Fiction.