Secrets Between Friends

Secrets Between Friends

Friendship is a million little moments, but can it survive this one?
Three friends embark on a luxury cruise to celebrate their ten-year reunion in this heartfelt story of how long-held secrets can catch up with even the best of friends.

Life was about living, experiencing and emotions. The good and the bad. You had to laugh to cry. You had to love to hurt. You had to jump to fall or fly.

Best friends Abbie, Jess and Ricki are setting sail on a cruise ship, rekindling the excitement of a school excursion they took ten years earlier to the historic port town of Albany, the oldest city on the stunning turquoise coastline of Western Australia. But are they truly prepared for what this voyage will reveal?

Ricki, a dedicated nurse, harbours a dream she hasn't chased. Is she actually happy or stuck in a rut?

Jess, a school teacher and single mother to little Ollie, had a tough upbringing but found her way through with the help of her closest male friend, Peter. But Peter has bought an engagement ring and is ready to propose to Ricki...

Abbie had it all: a career, a loving boyfriend and a future, but a visit to the doctor bears scary news. Her world is tumbling down and she feels adrift at sea.

Secrets Between Friends is a poignant novel of romance, family dynamics and friendship. Through her highly relatable, sympathetic characters, beloved Australian storyteller Fiona Palmer writes about issues, experiences and emotions we have all faced while posing the ultimate question: What is really important in this life?

After writing eight bestselling novels set in rugged rural Australia, Fiona Palmer set herself the challenge of writing a story that takes place on Western Australia's gorgeous coastline, which she regularly visits. Secrets Between Friends contains the same engaging storylines, emotions and hearty characters as the books Fiona's passionate readers know and love, only it is set on this wider landscape. Before becoming an author, Fiona was a speedway driver for seven years and now spends her days writing both women's and young adult fiction, working as a farmhand and caring for her two children in the tiny rural community of Pingaring, 350km from Perth.

Secrets Between Friends
Hachette Australia
Author: Fiona Palmer
RRP: $29.99

Interview with Fiona Palmer

Question: What inspired the story of Secrets Between Friends?

Fiona Palmer: My good friend and fellow author Rachael Johns called and asked if I wanted to go on a cruise with her. I jumped at the chance to try something new and have a possible new story to write about. The moment we booked ideas for a story began to take hold and I even wrote the first three chapters before getting on the cruise. We had a great time and Rach helped brainstorm the title, why the book is dedicated to Rach. If she hadn't have called me....this book wouldn't have happened.

Question: What did you learn about your own friendships whilst writing Secrets Between Friends?

Fiona Palmer: I think you can have great friends who you don't see often but when you need them they are there no matter how much time has passed. Life gets busy and we can neglect friends or not spend much time with them but it doesn't mean we don't care. I love that about my friends. Forgiveness is also a big aspect. Understanding that we are all different but that's what makes us unique and why tolerance is a big part of life. We are just humans, we do the wrong thing thinking it's for the right reasons and all sorts of crazy stuff. But if everyone held a grudge it would be a sad world.


Question: Are the characters based on anyone you know?

Fiona Palmer: No. The characters become their own people as I start to write. I need them to be a certain way, and that's how it starts off but as I work through the book they seem to come to life and have their own little quirks and traits that I hadn't planned on. To me they almost become real people who I have spent so much time with. It's like having imaginary friends.


Question: How much of your inspiration comes from real life and real people?

Fiona Palmer: I'd be lying if I said it didn't. I write from experience, from the real life things that have happened, or I've seen or heard to the people I've met over the years. Whether I know it or not. I think tiny snippets of people I have met or their strength or passions have possibly worked their wait into my characters. It's hard not for life to shape my writing. We observe life, characters on the train or at the airport and use these in our work. I never set out to write a character based on a while person, but this character might have little traits from about ten people I know. Real life is where I get my inspiration from, and years of reading and watching movies. It all helps.


Interview by Brooke Hunter

Secrets Between Friends
Hachette Australia
Author: Fiona Palmer
RRP: $29.99