A review by ohemgeebooks
Under the Golden Sun by Jenny Ashcroft

2.0

This book is a whole vibe right?
That gorgeous cover, the WWII historical love story set in the “raw beauty of Australia”, the promised plot that would leave me captivated.
I thought it was going to be a sure thing.

Alas, it was not.

In Under the Golden Sky by Jenny Ashcroft, we have Miss Rose Hamilton eager to leave her life behind and answer an ad to escort an orphaned five-year-old to his family in Australia. The family is not what Rose expects, and she spends the rest of the book fretting over young Walter’s happiness, her faraway fiancé, and the gruff wounded fighter pilot uncle, who just might be the key to ensuring Walter’s happiness…and her own.

I don’t know how to say this nicely, so I’m just going to say it.
This book was a slog.
It was repetitive. More than once I had to read about how Rose may or may not have squatted to pee in front of a certain other grizzly character. That was not the only thing she was constantly muddling over. Her so-called fiancé is a horrible human. I wanted more independence from you Rose. And that five-year-old had the same personality as a cookie- he was sweet. That is all.
Don’t even get me started on the telegraph tease paragraph transitions.

I’m sounding salty, I know.
And I’m still puzzling over the high ratings on GR…..
Did we all read the same book?
Can some please alleviate this itch and recommend me a good historical fiction set in Australia?

Thank you to the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book. I’ll admit I often judge a book by its cover, and this one wasn’t a win for me.