Paula Xiberras
Fifteen years ago one of Allison Rushby’s girlfriend’s moved to Tasmania for a dream home where she could keep horses. This tree change means that Allison is a visitor to our state, however of recent times Allison has been much further afield in England where she had the occasional moan about the weather while she wrote her new novel ‘The Heiresses.’
‘The Heiresses’ is a period drama (the blurb says think Downton Abbey!) of strong young women who must navigate their way through a male centred world. On their side is a feminist aunt who helps them see and seek their independence. This novel has a very original twist with the girls being triplets.
This fact gives credence to the oft quoted power of 3 as the girls find they need each other to overcome the obstacles that fall in their way.
Allison said the idea of the protagonists being triplets came to her after watching a lunchtime episode of Dr Phil where the odd genetic background of a family being interviewed on the show, got her thinking about how complex biological relationships could be sorted out in a time where the genetic technology we have today didn’t exist. Allison’s husband is a medical specialist so that gave her a good adviser for her novel.
The girls in the novel are named after Greek Goddesses which give them an invincible quality. Their names include the meanings of flourishing and glory and when we leave the girls we know they are and will continue to flourish gloriously. Their aunt’s name Hestia suitably means ‘hearth’ and to the triplets Hestia indeed represents hearth and home.
With such a wondeful start in a novel full of the twists and turns of the double helix it seems that Allison will be keeping herself busy with a sequel and pre-sequel.
It says in Allison’s bio that as a girl she wanted to have pierced ears and be a ballerina, the former she achieved and the second she has definitely metaphorically achieved in leading us on a dance of DNA!
The Hieresses by Allison Rushby is out now published by Macmillan.
