Back On Track by Tricia Stringer was an absolutely wonderful and enjoyable read. I’ve done the Ghan trip from Darwin and Adelaide and it was great to revisit the journey and the pleasure of being on the inspiring excursion down through the centre of Australia. The descriptions of all locations brought it back for me and for that I thank Tricia Stringer for her superb writing!

The publisher’s blurb is an excellent introduction:

Ketty Clift's couture dressmaking business is thriving but the same can't be said for her staff. Lately, cracks have appeared in the team's harmony, testing relationships and causing issues with customers. Worse, the rumour that Ketty has lost her touch is circulating. So when Ketty's old friend Carlos suggests a holiday by train - on the iconic Ghan, no less - Ketty decides to take her surprised staff with her in the hope of fixing what ails them.
But it's not turning out to be the cure-all Ketty had hoped for. Her protective second-in-command, Judith, doubts Carlos's intentions and sows suspicion in Ketty's mind. Her younger staff members, Birgit and Lacey, are beset by relationship disasters and financial worries, whereas invaluable employee Ning is under pressure from her family to retire, and seamstress Tien is terrified of everything outside her comfort zone - especially the outback.
Each new stop on the way, and the surprising behaviour of some of the other passengers, affects the group and reveals something more about each of them. As the train pulls deeper into the mesmerising outback, matters seem set to come to a disturbing crescendo.
Ketty must sidestep the drama, reunite her troubled workers and save her business and relationships. But will her transformative magic work to bring them all back on track?
Tricia Stringer’s writing style and captivating with the story flowing smoothly and the tensions and conflicts between characters is interestingly woven into the fabric of the story.

Highly recommended read that was easy going but still full of intrigue and wonderful characters.


This review is based on a complimentary copy from Harlequin Australia via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

#BackOnTrack #NetGalley.

Another pleasant escapism novel from this author. I didn’t realise that this featured some characters from Tricia’s previous book ‘Table for Eight’ and admittedly that is my least liked of hers, so it took me a while to accept and settle with the book.
I found there was a lot of lead up with the characters which most likely didn’t help with the flow, as I picked the book up and down often. Once the story centred around the Ghan trip, I became more immersed in it. A pleasant read, some characters I liked, others not so but as I often say…everyone has a story.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy to read

Thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin Australia for the chance to read this book.

I am a big fan of Tricia Stringer's work, and Back on Track did not disappoint.

In this story, we meet the characters of Table for Eight again and see how Ketty Clift Couture has changed. There has been drama and tension within the business, so Ketty decides to take her employees on an exciting holiday on the Ghan.
There is a heap of drama and misunderstandings, beautiful scenery, and the beginnings of new relationships and closer friendships. Ketty also has some big changes in her personal life but meets it all with her usual zest and flair for helping people find happiness.

It is a great story to relax and enjoy with on a long weekend.

Back on Track by Tricia Stringer takes us from Sydney right up to Darwin where the Ghan train leaves from and then winds its way down through the middle of Australia to Adelaide. I've been on the trip before - book wise that is, in The Jam Queens by Josephine Moon. So it was lovely getting all reacquainted with the trip.
Ketty has taken her staff - Judith, Ning, Tien, Lacey and Brigit on the trip, to reward them and to work out what is just a bit off in the couture business that she runs. She feels a tension there and there is nothing more that Ketty likes than sorting people's lives out so that they are all happy.

Of course things don't go quite to plan and other people have cameo appearances that help or hinder along the way. Carlos too, an old friend of Ketty's joins the train , it turns out there are issues there to be looked at and possibly resolved.

I liked all the characters, my favourite was probably Lacey with all that she was dealing with at home and work. My least favourite was Judith who is  a little formal and stand offish. However each of the women have issues and it was great seeing them all eventually resolve.

I enjoyed this well written Australian story that explores issues like ageism, retirement, stories we make up in our head with out much basis and work place tensions. I also liked the touch of romance as well as the  happy, creative  working relationships.

‘I have something to tell you that may come as a bit of a surprise but I – ‘

Ketty Clift, owner of Ketty Clift Couture, is seventy-one. Her business is successful because of the tight-knit team she has working with her but lately the team hasn’t been working quite so well together. Some of the team seem anxious, and rumours are circulating that Ketty has lost her touch. And after Ketty’s old friend, Carlos, suggests a holiday on the Ghan, Ketty decides to take her staff with her.

Ketty has five staff members. Her second in charge is Judith, Lacey is the team’s young designer while Ning, Tien and Birgit are accomplished and long-serving seamstresses. But Ketty’s surprise is not greeted with quite the enthusiasm expected. Each of the women has concerns of her own: Judith is suspicious of Carlos’s motives; Birgit has just suffered a relationship breakdown; Lacey has family and financial issues; Ning’s family want her to retire, and Tien is afraid of the unknown.

Things do not go according to plan. Accommodation changes need to be made (increasing Judith’s suspicions even further) and Birgit falls for a smooth-talking fellow passenger. Lacey finds it difficult to relax (and Judith certainly doesn’t help, at least initially). Can Ketty restore harmony to her group while reassuring them that she has no intention of retiring? Can Carlos be trusted? Does Ning really want to retire? Can Tien overcome her fears?

I thoroughly enjoyed this story (and yes, I want to travel on the Ghan myself one day). Ms Stringer has a knack of developing very human characters with concerns and issues that many readers can relate to. There’s humour, there’s beauty in the outback and there are some very interesting fellow passengers.

And the ending? You’ll need to read it for yourself.

Note: My thanks to NetGalley and Harlequin Australia for providing me with a free electronic copy of this book for review purposes.

Jennifer Cameron-Smith

Another great book by Tricia Stringer and one I thoroughly enjoyed. The story of Ketty Clift and the running of her dressmaking business. This is a story about people, drama, relationships and life.

As always this book and the story flow well and it was so easy to read although it is a long book it didn't feel so long as it kept my attention and made me want to keep reading. I loved the interaction between all the people in this book, good, bad or otherwise. A book that brings to the fore human nature, personalities and differences.

This book was heart-warming yet humourous in parts, descriptive but not long-winded and I loved the setting and the places as I could relate to and picture them. I just loved reading this book and as always look forward to seeing what Tricia Stringer comes up with next.

Thank you NetGalley and Harlequin Australia, HQ (Fiction, Non Fiction, YA) for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

“Back on Track” is another wonderful, moving story from Tricia Stringer. Although not strictly a sequel to “Table for Eight”, it revisits some of the major characters from that novel. Both novels can be read independently, and both are outstanding.

Ketty Clift, of Ketty Clift Couture, is in a mildly difficult spot. Her business has weathered the pandemic fairly well, but small problems have crept in. In particular, her previously happy staff seem at odds with each other.

At 71 Ketty has no plans to retire, although perhaps she’d like to cut back a bit – but first, she needs to resolve the problems her staff have which are impacting on the business. So she arranges the team building experience of all time: she books herself and all five women on the Ghan, for the train trip of a lifetime.

In “Table for Eight” we saw Ketty as an experienced and frequent cruiser, who liked to meddle gently in the lives of those seated at her table for dinner. Most left the cruise the better for her involvement, so any readers of that novel will understand immediately why Ketty thinks a trip might help her remedy her staff problems.

As it turns out, all of her staff have problems that have nothing to do with work, although they’re impacting on what happens there. Ketty doesn’t so much try to solve other people’s problems as encourage them to look at them from a new angle, which often helps them.

One of the things I enjoy in Stringer’s work is the sympathy she has for her characters. She is kind to them all, even the less attractive (or those who are having a very unattractive moment).

Stringer’s characters are always vivid and believable, flaws and all. You can both believe in and empathise with their problems – they’re very real, the kind you might experience yourself.

The Australian setting is particularly strong here. Setting the bulk of the novel on the Ghan means that Stringer has the chance to highlight the unique landscape and animals in a way that is naturally integrated into the story.

This is a character based story, so although the plot is strong and the story telling absorbing, there are no cliff hangers or breathless dilemmas here. It’s a story about real people with real problems in a vivid but realistic setting.

As noted, this can be read completely independently of “Table of Eight”, although those who have will enjoy meeting Ketty and some of her cruising companions again. Many readers will care about Ketty and will be thrilled at the chance to follow a bit more of her personal story.

I really enjoyed this novel. It’s very readable: with a smooth writing style and an absorbing approach, the pages turned quickly. I truly enjoyed spending time with these characters, and found the various resolutions both satisfying and realistic.

I will post this review publicly closer to publication date, and will return then to add links.

What an excellent read- heartwarming, humorous, thought provoking and beautiful descriptions of a special train ride from Darwin to Adelaide. Tricia should really get commission because after reading this, booking numbers will be on the rise for The Ghan!

There is a quote towards the end of the book “I’m not quite ready for this journey to end.” And I thoroughly agreed. I cared for the characters and the trip was wonderful to experience through the characters’ eyes.

This book gets 5 stars for me. Well done Tricia.

Ketty Clift’s Couture is a dressmaking business in Sydney, Ketty the owner decides to reward her six hardworking staff members with a surprise trip on the Ghan. Ketty's noticed there’s friction between members of her team, hopefully the time away will make everyone feel more connected and in sync with each other. Ketty has lost a couple of customers, a rumour is going around that she’s on the verge of retiring and it’s not true.

Carlos is Ketty's friend and the Spaniard is staying in Australia for a year, he's wanted to go on an iconic train journey and she invites him along and they have plans for the last stop in Adelaide. Going on the trip are Judith she’s second in command and a pattern designer, Birgit and Tien are dressmakers, Lacey is in charge of technology and Ning does embroidery.

Ketty thought she knew her employees well and now she’s not so sure. Judith gets her nose put out of joint easily, Birgit has just broken up with her boyfriend and looking for a replacement, Lacey is struggling financially, and Tien is a germaphobe and she not fond of creepy crawlies and Ning's son want's her to retire and is harassing her about it.

As the train snakes it's way through the top end, Ketty meets her fellow passengers, a married couple, a secretive man, a mature lady who looks familiar, Carlos doesn’t seem himself and Judith thinks he's taking advantage of Ketty's kindness?

Rather than reuniting her workers, the trip seems to be doing the complete opposite, poor Ketty is dealing with endless complaints and drama. I have been a passenger on the Ghan, it's a wonderful experience, Ms. Stringer makes you feel like you're aboard the train and all the ladies have to do is look out the train window and see how amazing the Australian outback is and stop being so negative.

I received a digital copy of Back on Track from Harlequin Australia and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Tricia Stringer excels at exploring the complexity of relationships, she's a people person and so is the main character Ketty. You get to know her employees, their backgrounds and families, personal struggles and issues. Ketty and Carlos are characters from Ms. Stringer's previous book, Table For Eight and it was wonderful to catch up with them again.

Five stars from me, I loved reading about Alice Springs, Cooper Pedy, opal mining and living underground and traveling on the Ghan. The narrative also looks at topics such as homelessness, aging, people making assumptions about mature women and how derogatory and disrespectful it is.

I don't feel the cover works for this book. A trip on the Ghan for her staff is how it opens. Spectacular scenery. I so want to do that train trip!
But the heart of all Trisha Stringer books is relationships, and there are many to entangle in this story. Ageism is also a regular theme approached. I thoroughly enjoyed this book!

EXCERPT: Ketty's original ideas about how this holiday would go were being tossed aside layer by layer. First Ning not wanting to come then agreeing to at the last minute, the many changes to the cabin arrangements, Tien being so edgy, Lacey acting like a deer in the headlights, Birgit acting the opposite, Carlos nearly missing out altogether, Judith being on the verge of rudeness at times. And now they couldn't eat together around the one table. That's where Ketty found out so much about people, as they wined and dined. She'd wanted to be able to have that with her staff, hoping that the holiday and the food and wine would loosen their tongues. Of course, all her plans had been based on her cruising experience and so far, train travel was very different . . .

ABOUT 'BACK ON TRACK': Ketty Clift's couture dressmaking business is thriving but the same can't be said for her staff. Lately, cracks have appeared in the team's harmony, testing relationships and causing issues with customers. Worse, the rumour that Ketty has lost her touch is circulating. So when Ketty's old friend Carlos suggests a holiday by train - on the iconic Ghan, no less - Ketty decides to take her surprised staff with her in the hope of fixing what ails them.

But it's not turning out to be the cure-all Ketty had hoped for. Her protective second-in-command, Judith, doubts Carlos's intentions and sows suspicion in Ketty's mind. Her younger staff members, Birgit and Lacey, are beset by relationship disasters and financial worries, whereas invaluable employee Ning is under pressure from her family to retire, and seamstress Tien is terrified of everything outside her comfort zone - especially the outback.

Each new stop on the way, and the surprising behaviour of some of the other passengers, affects the group and reveals something more about each of them. As the train pulls deeper into the mesmerising outback, matters seem set to come to a disturbing crescendo. Ketty must sidestep the drama, reunite her troubled workers and save her business and relationships. But will her transformative magic work to bring them all back on track?

MY THOUGHTS: Oh, my goodness! So much happens in only a few days on this trip on the Ghan that it left my head spinning. Tricia Stringer is a master at depicting interpersonal relationships; cracks, chasms, glue and all.

Ketty Clift employs a disparate group of people in her couture business. From the uptight and judgmental Judith to the free and easy Birgit who wears her heart on her sleeve, this is a group of people who need not only to recalibrate their relationships with one another and their employer, but with the people they have left behind.

Ketty is clever, charming, generous, and an inveterate people watcher. She loves learning about other people's lives and meddling, just a little, to improve their outcomes. She takes people under her wing and gently steers them in the right direction; Jim and Celia being a case in point. She is adept at pouring oil on troubled water with complete strangers, but with those closer to her? Perhaps she needs to take a step away to see things more clearly.

But it is not only the relationships that make for compelling reading. Stringer's descriptions of the scenery and excursions on the Ghan made me feel like I was there, experiencing it all alongside Ketty and Co. I love travelling by train, and the Ghan is now definitely on my list of trips to take.

It was great getting to know more about all Ketty's workers, their backgrounds, their personal lives, their dreams. We also learned a lot more about Ketty herself, and Carlos, her companion. We first met Ketty and Carlos in Table for Eight, published in 2018, when Ketty is on a Pacific cruise. While it is probably not entirely necessary to have read Table for Eight before Back on Track, it does provide a lot of background information on Ketty and Carlos' relationship, and I would recommend it.

Are we going to read more of Ketty, Carlos and the crew in the future? I hope so. I feel that there is a lot more to come.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

#BackonTrack #NetGalley

I: @triciastringerauthor @hqstories

T: @tricia_stringer @HQstories

#australianfiction #contemporaryfiction #domesticdrama #friendship #romance #womensfiction

Back on Track is due for publication 04 October 2023.

THE AUTHOR: Tricia lives in the beautiful Copper Coast region of South Australia, often exploring Australia's diverse communities and landscapes, and shares this passion for the country and its people through her authentic stories and their vivid characters.

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Harlequin Australia, HQ & MIRA via NetGalley for providing a digital ARC of Back on Track by Tricia Stringer for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.

I’ve really enjoyed Tricia Stringer's stories in the past, but I’ve got to say this one didn’t quite grab me. I enjoyed the train trip on the Ghan from Darwin to Adelaide. I haven’t done it, but the descriptions were fantastic and I felt as it I were there seeing all the beautiful scenery with the characters. As for the characters, I just felt that if they all sat down and had a chat with each other, then there wouldn’t be a story. I know there were other complications and it wasn’t quite as straightforward as that, but still.

Back on track, Tricia Stringer, another fabulous book by Tricia, easy read, could not put it down, bonus my home town was mentioned as one of the towns. Great to be able to picture the areas.