What if staying with the man you love meant leaving everything behind?

There is little joy for Eliza, the well-educated wife of a dissolute cavalry officer, living in the colony of New South Wales in the early 1830s. Charmed by the attentions of a handsome stockman, the tempestuous ex-convict, Martin Cash, she flees her loveless marriage, abandoning her old life in search of adventure and any kind of happiness.

Society proves as harsh as the landscape around them. As Martin’s crimes combine with betrayals, their situation becomes ever more precarious.

The women partners of famous men are often lost to history. From India to Van Diemen’s Land, Eliza’s story tells the other side of the bushranger legend: the women and the disruption these men left in their wake. Eliza’s poise and courage throughout danger and uncertainty are a testament to her strength, and to the fortitiude of the women of the colonies.

An elegantly wrought tale blending history with imagination, From the Shadows speaks to the modern world of inequality and insecurity, as well as the search for companionship and peace.

Eliza’s story is one of faithful love, struggle, danger and suffering. Her resilience and courage are worth recording. Associate Professor Cheryl Taylor, James Cook University, Townsville.