The Long Road Home — Fiona McCallum

Alice Hamilton is enjoying her new life in Ballarat with the freedom to explore her future now she's stepped away from the constraints of her upbringing. She's learnt the hard way that knowledge is power, and is looking forward to her legal studies, then making a difference as a lawyer with heart.

But while Alice's life is looking up, back in Hope Springs the world of her former husband Rick Peterson is unravelling. After a chance meeting a few months earlier, Rick and Alice have reconnected. And it's fortunate they have, because Rick is about to need Alice's friendship like he's never needed it before.

Rick has always felt a bit lost - as a farmer, he could never admit he didn't feel the deep connection to the land that the only son and third generation farmer should. And now he's suddenly being forced to come to terms with just why his heart isn't in it and what's behind his fractured relationships. Has his whole life been a lie - and if so, where did that lie begin?