In the newest addition to her Love Down Under series, Queensland author Cynthia Terelst shares her interest in sustainability with her readers.
While the message is all about balance, because it is a romance novel, the theme is love.
Terelst has the utmost respect for farmers, knowing that without them Australia would not survive.
In Down The Rabbit Hole, opinions about caring for the environment are not forced upon the readers, rather readers are shown what can be achieved, while balancing the needs of farmers.
Terelst drew on her learnings from completing a Bachelor of Commerce with a major in Sustainable Business at the University of Southern Queensland and extensive research.
Many early readers have complimented her on the environmental aspect of her novel and her delicate handling of such a polarising subject.
Terelst said, “When I began writing my blurb, I introduced the main character as an environmentalist and was told that label would turn off a whole segment of readers, that it was too divisive.
The environmental aspect of my novel is just a part of the storyline, it is not the story.”
The story is the romance between two lifelong friends, Emily and Luke. Terelst introduces readers to a small cast of “exceptional three-dimensional characters” set in a fictional Queensland town.
Down The Rabbit Hole not only explores small town life but the complicated dynamics of family relationships. Bullying plays a big part in the story with a villain referred to as “the WORST and therefore a great character”.
“Romance authors always like to keep ideas fresh for readers,” Terelst said.
“Yes, we all know that there is going to be a happily ever after ending, but how the characters get there is always unique.”
From early reviews it is clear that the author has achieved this. Reviewers have said that Down The Rabbit Hole “is different to other books with this particular trope (friends to lovers)” and “I’ve never read a novel that utilised flashbacks like this, so I enjoyed that very much”.
Another way Terelst has put a twist on an everyday trope is how readers glimpse a side of small town life they may not have seen.
The small town in Down The Rabbit Hole is unlike others most authors write about. Usually, small towns have their quirks and news travels fast, but they are lovely little places that give off warmth.
In Alma, it is the opposite, the townspeople are horrible. Unlike most of Terelst’s novels, this town is completely made up. Her conscience would not allow her to base it on an actual town.
Down The Rabbit Hole is available in both eBook and paperback through Amazon, Ingram Spark and online retailers.
Signed copies are also available by contacting the author at cynthiaterelst@gmail.com
