Welcome to Teaser Tuesday, the series where I share snippets from new and past releases and works-in-progress, and occasionally pester writer buddies to do the same. Like this week!

This week I’m delighted to welcome back well-travelled Australian author Alli Sinclair to the blog. You may remember Alli from her previous visit where we showcased her beautiful story Beneath the Parisian Skies. She’s gone in a slightly different direction with her new release. Back in time, in fact.

The book is called Burning Fields and you are going to love it, oh yes you are! Think Romeo and Juliet set in Queensland’s sugar cane fields in 1948. Throw in women’s roles in post-war society, family upheaval and loss, the struggles of immigrants in a new country, and a long-held secret, and you have cracking big story.

Here’s Alli to tell you more about Burning Fields and share a lovely excerpt.

A little bit of background:

Rosie has recently returned to the family farm in Piri River and is struggling with her father’s traditional ways and his dislike for Italians after she’s experienced independence and a more open-minded community in Brisbane. Tomas has recently arrived from Italy and finds his adjustment to the Australian way of life difficult Italy. They’re neighbours and often seek each other out for a “walk and talk” of an evening. They find solace in each other because of their inability to fit in, but what they don’t realise is they are starting to fall for each other. This scene opens with Rosie on the roadside having just replaced the spare tire on the farm ute and Tomas has encountered her. Rosie, as usual, is more than capable of looking after herself but is slowly realising she doesn’t need Tomas’s company, but she certainly wants it.

Rosie rested her gaze on the shadow of eucalypts and wattle behind him. ‘So you like the landscape here?’

‘Of course! How could I not? It is beautiful, no? Look at this,’ he walked over with the torch to the silver wattle and reached out and gently touched the yellow flowers. ‘Mother of Nature is an artist. Here,’ he broke off a flower and handed it to her. ‘Two years ago in Italy the women started to receive this flower from men they know as part of La Festa della Donna, International Women’s Day. We do this to celebrate women and to show we value what you do. We also do this to let women know you are not alone in the struggle to be considered equal.’ 

‘Wow.’ She held the flower like it was her most treasured possession. ‘I didn’t even know there were wattles in Italy. I thought they were only in Australia.’

‘I believe we imported them a long time ago. We call them Mimosa.’

‘Hmmm …’ Rosie inhaled the flower’s scent. It seemed sweeter than normal. ‘So this plant is significant for both of our countries.’

‘Yes, it is.’

‘Do you miss Italy?‘

Tomas drew his brows together. ‘Sometimes yes, sometimes no. I miss my people, the culture, history, the language. It’s a part of who I am and always will be.‘

Find out what happens to Rosie and Tomas with your own copy of Burning Fields. If you grab the ebook, you could be reading in minutes. Too easy!

Amazon.com | Amazon.au | iBooks | Kobo | Google Play

Booktopia | Angus & Robertson Bookworld | Dymocks

Want to read the first three chapters of Burning Fields? You’ll find them here.

If you’d like to learn more about Alli or her books, please visit her website. You can also connect via Facebook and Twitter using‎ @allisinclair.