In 1806, William Thornhill, an illiterate English bargeman with a quick temper but deep compassion, steals a load of wood. As part of his lenient sentence, he is deported, along with his beloved wife, Sal, to the New South Wales colony in what would become Australia.

The Secret River is the tale of William and Sal’s deep love for their small, exotic corner of the new world and William’s gradual realization that if he wants to make a home for his family, he must forcibly take the land from the people who came before him.

This magnificent, transporting work of historical fiction moves between the slums of nineteenth-century London and the convict colonies of Australia. It's a compelling story of the early pioneers of New South Wales, based on the author's own family history.