The Cartographer's Secret by Tea Cooper ~ a Review

by Susan Roberts

A map into the past. A long-lost young woman. And a thirty-year family mystery.

Amazon affiliate links are used on this site. A free book was provided for an honest review.

November 2021: Harper Muse; 978-0785267317
audio, ebook, print (400 pages); historical fiction

Tea Cooper takes her readers back to Australia in this well-written historical fiction book.  I have read many of her earlier books and she always describes Australia so beautifully that it makes you want to plan a trip there.

The Cartographer's Secret takes place in two time periods - 1880 and 1911 and is about the same family at these two times.

1880 - Evie loves to make maps of the areas around her home.  When an Australian paper offers a thousand-pound reward for proof of where a famous Australian explorer disappeared,  Evie decides that with the help of her father's research papers, she can discover what happened to him.  While on her quest, Evie disappears and this mystery continues to puzzle her family for years.

1911 - Letitia goes to see her great aunt to tell him about the loss of her brother.  The family land has all been left to her brother at the death of the great aunt.  Letitia finds a beautiful map in the home that may give a clue to the disappearance of her Aunt Evie. As she sets out to find the truth, she realizes that there are secrets in the past that maybe should be left secret.

This is a book with strong female characters who are stronger than most women in their time periods.  

Be sure to read the author's Historical Notes at the end of the book to see which characters were based on real people.

Buy The Cartographer's Secret at Amazon

Susan Roberts lives in North Carolina with her husband of over 50 years.  She grew up in Michigan but now calls North Carolina home. She enjoys reading, traveling, and spending time with her family. She reads almost anything (and the piles of books in her house prove that) but her favorite genres are Southern fiction, women's fiction, and historical fiction. Susan is a top 1% Goodreads Reviewer. You can connect with Susan on Facebook.

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