Sophisticated and thought-provoking ... an urban fairy tale for grown-ups." --Avid Ashley
***GOLD MEDAL Winner
Global Ebook Awards, USA 2016
***SILVER MEDAL Winner
Readers' Favorite International Book Award Contest, USA 2017
***GOLD AWARD Winner
Literary Titan Book Awards, USA 2017
***RED RIBBON Winner
The Wishing Shelf Awards, UK 2015
***B.R.A.G. MEDALLION Honoree
Book Readers' Appreciation Group, USA 2018
***BEST BOOK WE'VE READ ALL YEAR Finalist
Read Freely UK 2018
History, mystery, contemporary romance and magic ...
A whimsical tale about money and its unknown otherworldly origins.
It is midnight, and you are sleeping.
I am here at the table with a candle at my elbow, penning the most difficult letter I have ever had to write.
They are coming for me. Samuel Withers saw them in the village…
ENGLAND 1767
Edward Lillibridge is writing a farewell letter to his son. The controversial author faces trial for heresy after revealing, in a book, the true beginnings of money.
FAST-FORWARD TO THE MILLENNIUM
…six months before the Global Financial Crisis rocks the economy. Lillibridge's Our True Ancient History, published under the guise of fiction, is out-of print, available only at antiquarian bookshops and largely overlooked.
Until now.
Rosetta Melki, an idealist whose dream of starting a worldwide charity has been all but crushed by her sole-parent struggles, is enchanted by Our True Ancient History. Lillibridge's tale about a gold-obsessed kingdom (and the sprites they enslave: elfin clan dwellers whose currency of choice is kindness) has ignited a memory Rosetta cannot explain.
Rosettta's website surrounding the reading group she's begun with friends has inspired the emergence of other Lillibridge book clubs. Her own Sydney group meets fortnightly at a vintage bungalow, the rental home she secured to escape a gruesome intruder.
In a more affluent part of Sydney, finance executive Matthew Weissler (polished, successful, admired) has been questioning his slave-to-the-dollar existence and his marriage to a tantrum-throwing shopaholic. And now he's questioning his sanity after finding he's been followed by an elf.
Rosetta’s intruder still lurks in the shadows, but who could the stranger be? A prowler from the suburb Rosetta and her teenaged daughter fled...or a traveller from the past, determined to suppress an ancient memory that will change the world forever?
****Includes detailed Character List
What readers are saying on Goodreads and Amazon's international sites ...
... Like a delicate piece of lace ... masterfully looped and twisted into intricate patterns ...
Marta Tandori - Mystery/Suspense author
Canada
... The characterisation is very convincing; the scenes atmospheric; and unexpected twists kept me guessing outcomes. A romance element adds another dimension to this absorbing novel. The book has a depth that appealed to me on so many levels. What surprised me as much as anything was to discover that this was the author's debut novel ...
Cancerian 9
Australia
A deep, gripping and wildly creative plot.
Veritas Vincit
USA
Brilliantly enchanting ... I thoroughly enjoyed reading it.
Payal Sinha
India
... This book is the book of tomorrow, it will become a classic.
CillaWilson
Australia
The first thing that struck me about Terry’s debut novel was her seemingly effortless ability to entwine the contemporary and historical aspects of the story. At times the writing is nothing short of spellbinding, something that is rare these days, and even rarer at the beginning of a literary career.
Rosey
UK
Both the inner and outer stories were equally compelling, and made for an easy transition from one time-frame to another.
Avid Ashley
Australia