“The women in our family hold so many secrets, and our secrets hold so much power over us.”

Three generations of women hold these secrets, and their unravelling is the essence of this intriguing novel. The late grandmother, Nellie, the mother, Margaret and the two girls, Camilla and Susie are the people burdened with legacies from the past. Growing up on a remote farm in outback Australia, the two Anderson sisters are chalk and cheese. Camilla is a sensible, hardworking, and law-abiding older sister while Susie is wild, reckless and in pursuit of pleasure and adventure. Susie dies suddenly on the eve of her 40th birthday, causing great grief to her family. Then Camilla receives a packet of letters from her sister, and the contents lay a trail of breadcrumbs for her to follow. She sets off overseas to England and France to experience places Susie had visited and loved. Secrets begin to come out into the open.

This book starts slowly but the stakes are raised, gradually, until the twists and turns of this mystery truly get into their stride. The portrayal of the sisters’ relationship is excellent. The bond that holds sisters together is strong, even when there is irritation and alienation. Intra-family relationships and the dynamics of family are well portrayed.

The London and Devon settings are convincing (I’m English) but the best location is France, and the tiny but exquisite Ile de Clair. The narrative comes to life when Camilla reaches there. The description of the island is lyrical and made me yearn to visit such a place. Described using all the senses, it is enlivened in a vivid way. Sun, swimming, eating and drinking, beaches, cottages and quirky locals – all are portrayed in such a visceral way that you feel you have been there yourself.

There is some nice writing: “The hairs on Susie’s arms stood up, soldiers on hills of goose bumps.” This among many others caught my attention.

Overall, this is a satisfying read. Characters are initially a little one dimensional, but they grow richly as the novel proceeds. Going backward and forward in time is handled well and the plot’s momentum, though many layered and intricate, is sustained expertly.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Australia HQ for the free electronic copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review. #TheWayFromHere #NetGalley

Thanks NetGalley for my advanced copy of this amazing book. Letters lead the characters and readers on a journey of discovery that bring to light a mystery and history within a family. Great read and highly recommended

Jane Cockram has written a beautiful narrative around the choices we make in life and how they impact the future in The Way From Here.

After Susie dies just before her fortieth birthday a request arrives for her sister Camilla to travel to England and France to spread her ashes.
What follows is a journey to Susie's past that embraces her whole family's history.

There are lots of twists in this tale and plenty to keep the reader guessing,
The prose is delightful with descriptions of island life across a span of years.
I particularly enjoyed Margaret's character and of course all of the best books have a villain. This one does not disappoint.
If you love a good mystery this book could be for you.
Thanks to Netgalley and Harper Collins for an advance reading copy.

“The Way From Here” by Jane Cockram, exposes family secrets through posthumously delivered letters, a trip to faraway places and strangers who are more than they seem. Dark secrets cause pain and disruption and healing is difficulty.
Three generations of women, linked by their experiences both on a station in Australia and in Europe become entangled with an upper-crust family the Rowes. Nellie, the grandmother, their nanny during the war years..emigrates to Australia pregnant with Margaret who herself travels to London in 1968 and finds herself in a difficult situation. Nellie appeals to Lucinda, her former charge for help and the act plays out on the Île de Clair.
In 1998, Susie, Margaret’s younger daughter “runs away” to London after a traumatic event and Nellie sends her an enigmatic letter leading to her own discoveries of her family legacy. When Susie dies accidentally, she leaves her sister Camilla six letters and instructions on where to read them.
While the main characters and settings were vibrant, the plot is sometimes unlikely and motives unclear. We see Camilla’s relationships with mother and sister but her husband and children are incidental. I didn’t really “like” any characters apart from perhaps Nellie.
Thanks to NetGalley for the advance digital copy in exchange for an honest review.

A page turning story of heart ache, love, vindictiveness along with a touch of jealousy, cheating and stealing.
Stealing not only love but a baby. Great story also of the love sisters have for each other no matter what.
A grandmother hoping a granddaughter finds her true self via a painting.
Enjoyed the journey to finally getting the answers to a family history

I love sister mysteries, and family secrets, so THE WAY FROM HERE was the perfect book for me, as it spun both themes into a suspenseful story that touched my heart.

Camilla has always been the sensible, rational Anderson sister, whilst Susie was the wild, spontaneous, rebellious one. When Susie dies tragically just before her 40th birthday, Camilla is left with just a bundle of letters from her sister, urging her to go overseas and visit places from Susie’s past that changed her life and put a distance between the sisters that Camilla could never fully explain. Intrigued, Camilla sets off to France to walk in her sister’s footsteps and solve the mystery of what happened to her that long ago summer that had such a lasting effect on Susie’s life ....

I loved the way Cockram portrayed Camilla and Susie’s sister relationship, a bond that seems tenuous at times and yet draws the siblings together time and time again, despite the differences in their personalities. Camilla’s quest to find out about her sister’s past was as touching as it was intriguing, and I was instantly hooked and fully invested in finding out the answers for myself. It certainly also helped that Cockram sets her story on a picturesque little French island, adding some delicious armchair travel to the mix. The more clues Camilla uncovered, the clearer it became that this was one family mystery that would go deeper than just your average misstep on a youthful backpacking adventure. We learn how all the women’s fates in the family are connected, from the sisters to their mother and grandmother, each of their decisions affecting the rest of their lives as well as future generations.

THE WAY FROM HERE is a story about three generations of women bound by a secret that will have far-reaching effects on all of their lives. All relationships are wonderfully drawn, dipping into a well of emotions that touched my heart and made me connect to each character on a visceral level until I felt like a participant in the story rather than just a casual observer. Nellie, Margaret, Susie and Camilla each have unique voices that tell their side of the story as we gradually uncover the dark shadow that has lain over the family for generations. Intriguing and bittersweet, this book will appeal to readers who love a good character driven sister mystery.

Thank you to Netgalley and Publishers HQ Fiction, subsidiary of HarperCollins Aust Pty Ltd for this uncorrected copy to read, comment and review.

This is a beautifully descriptive read. While it is about relationships and secrets, the author takes the reader on a wonderful journey contrasting the harshness of the family's property in Australia to the picturesque island of Îsle de Clair. The author has given voice to both sisters in this read which ultimately reveals the histories and secrets of their Nana and Mother.

From the Kimberley country is the farming property of Matilda Downs, two sisters Camilla (Mills) and Susie, opposites as sides to a coin in personalities argue about a driving practice. Susie is a new learner and bored with the big wet pressures Camilla into taking her out in the old farm vehicle. As usual Susie wins out with Camilla reluctantly placating her. It's not driving practice weather, the ground has turned into a quagmire of deep mud making driving difficult even for the most experienced driver. Susie is just one of those people that has to push the barrier and ignoring Camilla's pleas to slow down results in the car crashing and taking their mother's much loved horse with it. Unable to come to terms with the guilt of the death of the horse and with no concrete plans after finishing her school education Susie decides to head off to the UK with Nana Nellie's blessing; these two are close while Camilla is close to their mother, Margaret.

Susie, furnished with information from Nellie who had immigrated to Australia as a young woman, takes up her new life in London. The last letter she receives from Nellie contains newspaper clippings and a request to go and view a particular painting. Susie, sitting in front of the painting, can't make out the connection. When a young man sitting next to her wakes up from his sleep Susie starts to discuss the painting with him. She does a pick up line, invites him for a drink and then to his house where sitting having a small picnic, David's mother turns up and makes the wrong assumption about Susie. After a small discussion about Îsle de Clair, Susie decides on her course of action, cancels all her plans and job and turns up uninvited to the small island. It's here on Îsle de Clair that Susie starts putting two and two together regarding her family's connection to David's.

Returning to Australia, Susie is unsettled, different; finally she returns to London. She has an accident and from this Camilla receives six letters from her with instructions of where to go and what to do. Camilla follows the same path as her sister had done, finally ending up on the same small island but where here, her mother unexpectedly arrives knowing full well that Camilla with her tenacity will discover her secret.

A wonderful contemporary novel. Very well written and easy to read - but hard to put down. A story of secrets - three generations of secrets. Secrets that lead to connections from the past for a mother and two sisters. Truth and lies - deception, concealment and regret. A highly recommended novel for contemporary readers and a well-earned five stars.

A really enjoyable read. I am a historical fiction fan but decided to try something just a little different for a change and I was pleasantly surprised.
The book has all the elements of a family saga - secrets, lies, intrigue and mystery.
Three generations of women with a story told across time. Camilla (Mills) following the death of her sister undertakes a quest for answers through letters that her sister has left following her death. Mills sets off to France to fulfil her sisters wish of having her ashes scattered in a place she was connected to in her youth. Their mother Margaret turns up unexpectedly in France and Mills learns more about her mother and grandmother Nellie. All their lives are intertwined with events from the past. A great weekend read.

A really beautiful story. Jane Cockram is a very talented story teller. First time reading one of her books and definitely want to try more.

I personally loved this book from cover to cover. Following the story of Susie (her sister and mother) and her adventures as a teenager in Europe. Uncovering the mysteries of her days spent with newly found friends and the lies that were finally revealed after her death that would of made her adventure completely different. Family deceits and events untold, makes this a not to be missed read!

Camilla's retracing of her sister's life through posthumous letters and directives about where to scatter ashes, seems at first to be a nice travelogue, but there wouldn't be much of a story in that. I knew there was a story in there and that I had to be patient, just like Camilla. And I'm glad I kept going because there was a story in there. There was in fact, more than I expected which is gratifying, with some even more gratifyingly unexpected twists. A thoroughly enjoyable way to spend a wintry day curled up on the couch (or with a cocktail by the pool.)

As primarily a reader of crime and legal fiction, this doesn't fit my normal reading genres. However, I decided to give this one a read and I'm glad I did.
Definitely elements of intrigue and mystery which held my attention in this family drama.

Camilla Anderson has been left a series of letters from her younger sister, who has recently passed away at a young age. The letters leave instructions only to be opened in certain places, where Susie wants some of her ashes spread. They take Camilla on a journey to Europe, far from the life she's familiar with back in Australia.

Family secrets become apparent tying generations of the Anderson family, and Camilla learns a lot about her sister, her mother and of course, herself.

A light summer read that unravels the secrets of three generations of women. I didn’t think I would like this book based on the first part as I found the characters a bit flat. The plot is driven by letters from a sister who has died, and relies on some big coincidences. But the descriptions of an idyllic summer on an island brought the story to life and its twists and turns kept me reading until all was resolved in the end. I enjoyed reading the book.

I very much enjoyed reading The Way From Here.

It’s about families, secrets, and lies. Susie and Camilla, sisters, are the main two protagonists, although their mum, Margaret and a man called David also play pivotal roles. It’s 1998 and Susie, who is 19 and on a gap year, meets David in London, who is 29. She feels very drawn to him. She follows him to France.

Susie during her 39th year, leaves six letters for Camilla (Mills). She dies shortly afterwards in an accident while putting up lights for her 40th birthday party. She wants Mills to go to France to put what happened there when she was 19 to rest once and for all.

As well as through Susie’s letters to Mills, the story is also told through the sisters and via Margaret’s view. We flitter back and forth from the present day, going back to 1998 and then to 1968, which is narrated by Margaret.

Mills (dutifully) heads off to fulfil her sister’s last wishes, which includes travelling to France and scattering her ashes. Mills has always been sensible and dutiful whilst Susie has been a free spirit. The journey is full of surprises, including Margaret showing up unexpectedly in France on the barely known French Island that Susie visited at 19. Mills makes discoveries about Margaret and about her nan, Nellie. There’s also a vile character called Lucinda (David’s mum) who features in the story.

We learn that Susie has always felt guilty about what she believed happened to her friend, Isabel on the French island of Ike de Clair when she was 19, as a result of Lucinda’s mendacity. It changed her life irreparably. While Susie was away, she was in contact with Nellie, who lived in London in the 1940s, and whom she learns something fascinating from. She embarks on a journey as a result. She never tells anyone what happened overseas when she returns home to Australia. She is changed immeasurably by her overseas experiences. She has a number of lost years, not going to university as had been planned. Through Susie’s letters to Mills we learn a lot about her as she was in her younger years, hearing about her sadness and her happiness.

The book is about three generations of women in a family, as well as about David who Mills and Margaret meet up with on the French Island in the present day when he’s 51 years old. All of their lives are intertwined because of past happenings. Secrets buried for decades are revealed. Nasty, superior Lucinda gets her comeuppance from Margaret, which was a part of the story I quite enjoyed. There are many twists and turns in this story, which kept my interest piqued. The settings in the book are beautiful. There were hints of Atonement in parts.

I recommend this book to others. Many thanks to Netgalley and Harper Collins for giving me a free ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. (less

Jane Cockram, The Way From Here, HQ Fiction Harlequin Enterprises (Australia), 2022

Thank you NetGalley for this uncorrected proof in exchange for an honest review.

Velazquez’s version of the story of Martha and Mary, where Martha is busy in the kitchen and Mary sits at the feet of Jesus listening, and the accompanying adulation of Mary’s attitude in comparison with that of Martha has always struck me as unfair to Martha. So, with this prejudice I come to the story of a thoughtless, lively, living in the moment sister who is compared to her advantage with her organised sister. I found Susie an almost intolerable character in the early part of this novel. Her assumptions about her attractiveness to men and patronising attitude to Mills (as Camilla is known to her family), her behaviour that brooked little opposition, the letters that she almost demanded Camilla read and act upon in the event of her death made her an uneasy character for me to identify with, have empathy with, to want to get to know better.

Camilla’s desire to follow her sister’s instructions, despite financial constraints, and to the detriment of her marriage, her recall of the unease provoked by her at a family Christmas but haste to find her own behaviour wanting, and her continuing loyalty seemed to me worthy attributes. However, returning to the story of Martha and Mary, I begin to question my feelings: Mary and Martha can be described as the Yin and Yang of the female character – should I really endorse the almost martyrdom of Martha/Camilla? This complexity about the sisters’ characters, their family relationships and their own relationships is an engaging part of a novel which in some ways follows a well-worn path of bringing together the past and present through a series of revelations. In this instance, the letters written by Susie to Camilla, their content, and the events, immediate and distant past are the basis of the narrative.

The painting theme is not out of place. Velazquez’s painting, like that sought by Camilla is in the National Gallery, London (Room 30). Camilla’s first part of the journey on Susie’s behalf begins in London, at the National Gallery, seeking the painting of a horse, usually found in Room 34. Camilla and Susie’s grandmother, Nellie, has spoken of the painting in her last letter to Susie who travelled to London when she was nineteen. Nellie refers to having seen the painting in a grand house in Devon during the war years, before she came to Australia. Nellie’s life in London and Devon, and Susie’s life in London and on the Ile de Clair are one focus of the story. The others are Camilla’s journey, and that of her mother, Margaret, to establish not only Susie’s truth, but that of Nellie, and Margaret and the Rowe family.

Susie has written the letters just before celebrating her fortieth birthday. They lead Camilla and Margaret on an absorbing journey into the past, which highlights differences between the Australian backgrounds of Susie’s family, and that of the Rowes. The way in which the class differences are developed, as it becomes clear that the horse painting was part of Nellie’s past as a nanny rather than as a visitor to a home large enough to house it, is poignant. Susie’s brashness becomes less abrasive when contrasted with the cold cruelty she has encountered, and Camilla’s and Margaret’s relationship prospers with the journey and its outcome.

Jane Cockram has brought together an engaging story, which, although familiar in some of the concepts, is enhanced by its Australian context and the historical links with Europe through the characters and their stories.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with this book for an honest review.

This was really enjoyable to read. It flicks between the current time and Mills story and the past with her sister Susie’s story and how they are interwoven after Susie’s death.

The two sisters are opposites in all ways and the story aims to show how you need a bit of light and dark, a bit of adventure and a bit of safety to get through life. It also shows that things are not always just what they seem and how a single moment can impact a life forever.

I didn’t expect the twists that happened throughout the book, but they added to the storyline and made it more enjoyable.

This book will be available on March 2, 2022.

'The Way From Here' is an intriguing story about the complications of families, their secrets and the damaging effects of lies. It also explores how some decisions made in the heat of the moment can have regrettable consequences. And how the timing of actions can affect a person’s life. In 'The Way From Here' it all starts with the viewing of a special painting where certain characters cross paths just because they are in a particular place at a certain time. And from that brush with fate, difficult events transpire and later once hidden truths and actions are exposed; leaving a very different portrait of the families involved.

The novel opens with Letter 1 of 6 written by Susie Anderson during her 39th year. She dies in a freak accident while setting up lights for her 40th birthday party. These letters are addressed to sister Camilla (known further as Mills). They are Susie’s insurance policy that her story will be told, in case she dies before she gets the chance or does not find enough courage to talk about her life in France and England during her gap year.

Besides through Susie’s personal letters to sister Mills, the story is also told through each of the sisters in their own timelines (Susie’s past and Mills current year) and later their mother’s viewpoint is added taking us back and forth from 1998, 1968 to present day.

Mills sets out on a mission to fulfil her sister’s last wishes: to read the letters while at certain destinations and to spread her ashes. This journey will unveil some unlikely surprises: including a trail of identity deception. Even more amazing is that some of these revelations will relate to their mother and grandmother and their connections to an obscure French island and a London setting. These letters and destinations are meant to shed light on Susie as a person and the reasons for her actions. And to change Mill’s perspective on her sister. Susie is the free spirit. Mills is the steady organised one. Two sisters that are very different. As with most sisters, they have had their battles and at times circumstances have kept them apart or caused them to be less connected. Susie hopes these letters explain everything and will heal their rifts. In essence, her ultimate goal in providing this task is to bring restoration, healing and release. But it brings so much more than even Susie could have imagined. For certain facts are withheld that only Mills can uncover. Too late, though, to free Susie of her guilt.

We learn quickly that while Susie is away, she is in close contact with her grandmother through many letters for they share a special bond. It is at this time, one of the letters from her grandmother sends Susie on a mission that changes the course of her life. Susie returns from her trip in 1998 changed but never shares what happened to her while she is away. It is not until after her death in the form of letters to her sister that we learn (along with Mills) what occurred. This part of the journey includes opening these letters at certain locations and seeing particular people as instructed by her sister. In the first letter Susie relates some of her favourite memories with Mills, but also conveys some of her sad ones. We learn a lot about this woman as a teenager and adult.

This novel is my first read by Jane Cockram (this is her second release) and I would be interested in exploring her debut after reading The Way From Here. The pace is appropriate as we learn about each character and it ramps up as the plot thickens--taking us through many twists, turns and surprises. There is a carefully crafted complexity to the story and each layer eventually is revealed at appropriate times. There are a number of characters to keep focused on so you need to keep watch and tuned in always.

When I finished reading 'The Way From Here' I went back to chapter one and re-read it. All the things mentioned there take on an even greater meaning and helped cement everything that happened throughout the novel. In that way, the novel is circular. The last chapter ends with a letter in the same way the novel starts with one. Susie has the first and final say. This circular pattern of continuity is a perfect way to tell this kind of story. Everything makes sense. Like with a puzzle—once all the pieces are in place, you get the complete picture (in case you missed anything on the journey). It leaves you thinking afterwards about everything you read and saw and heard through the characters. The settings are lovely and memorable, too.

Though the concept of using letters to tell a passed character’s story is not unique (remember P.S. I Love You) and sending the one left behind on a journey (in this case the older sister), 'The Way From Here' offers a freshness in its telling and plot. Details are finely placed, too. Even the title is cleverly taken from a line in the last of the six letters written.

Thanks to HarperCollins and Netgalley for the opportunity to review this novel. This is a fascinating story I recommend and give it 4.5 stars.

Closer to release date, my review will be posted on my website, Goodreads, LinkedIn and all social media sites. Upon publication date it will appear on Amazon AU.