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The Burning Island

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The Burning Island

By: Jock Serong
Narrated by: Danielle Carter
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About this listen

A father’s obsession. A daughter’s quest.

Eliza Grayling, born in Sydney when the colony itself was still an infant, has lived there all her 32 years. Too tall, too stern - too old, now - for marriage, she looks out for her reclusive father, Joshua, and wonders about his past. There is a shadow there: an old enmity.

When Joshua Grayling is offered the chance for a reckoning with his nemesis, Eliza is horrified. It involves a sea voyage with an uncertain, probably violent, outcome. Insanity for an elderly blind man, let alone a drunkard.

Unable to dissuade her father from his mad fixation, Eliza begins to understand she may be forced to go with him. Then she sees the vessel they will be sailing on. And in that instant, the voyage of the Moonbird becomes Eliza’s mission too.

Irresistible prose, unforgettable characters and magnificent, epic storytelling: The Burning Island delivers everything fans have come to expect from Jock Serong. It may be his most moving, compelling novel yet.

©2020 Jock Serong (P)2020 W F Howes Action & Adventure Fiction Historical Fiction Sailing

Critic Reviews

“There is some kind of magic in the way Jock Serong conjures places and times and people.” (Lucy Treloar)
All stars
Most relevant
I feel that this story should have some content warnings. It’s a good yarn and interesting, but there was confusion in the accents of the narrator which interferes with the flow of the story.

Content Warnings

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Wonderful characters; beautiful storytelling and absolutely perfect narration make this one of the best books you’ll hear.

Incredible story

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Good story that held my attention. Somewhat spoiled by the over melodramatic end. The historical context of Tasmania circa 1830 is interesting too

A cracking but fanciful yarn

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Based on a lot of fact this wonderful fiction story about Elisa, her father and a search around the Bass Straight islands is gripping poignant and sad. It shows how our aboriginal people were treated by the English in the 1830s. Well researched, written and narrated I will be looking for Jack's other books

Wonderful, Interesting, Historical Semi Fiction

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Preservation was a stretch, but a plausible one that gripped my attention. Burning Island moved from fanciful through fantasy to become intolerable, while the prose became ever more flowery as the story fell apart. A disappointment.

Progresses from fanciful to farcical

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I loved that I learnt more of the history of Australia in a way that was easy to follow and understand. Took a little while to get going but eventually I couldn’t stop listening.

Perfect way to appreciate things of historical significance

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Jock is a brilliantly engaging writer with a knack for Australian storytelling. Highly recommend this and his other works.

Fantastic as always

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Suspenseful, interesting and intriguing. Strong female characters and well rounded characters.
Easy listening overall.

Another good read from Jock Serong

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Yet again the story, which was a good one, was let down by the narration. I give myself points for my persistence, as there were times when it was painful to hear the narration. Having said that, if you can tolerate it, then the tale is a good one. Unfortunately, not a great one:(

A good story, poorly delivered

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Serong has written some excellent books - this isn't one of them. A minor plot twist at the end cannot save the dull narration, meandering plot and unsympathetic characters.

A disappointment.

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In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.