Keneally, Meg

Inspired by the life of Mary Bryant (1765–94), Keneally’s solo debut (after the “Monsarrat Trilogy,” coauthored with her father, Thomas Keneally) is not the first to fictionalize Bryant’s story. However, this novel’s strength is chronicling the horrors convicts experienced during transport, the desperate environment awaiting them in Australia, and the daring navigation of an unknown coastline.