How would you respond if your death sentence was commuted to life on an island prison half a world away?

Robert Bright and Mary Ann Goulding are beginning life on the island prison of Van Diemen's Land, serving their sentences under the strict control of a martinet Governor. Two real people caught up in the hopelessness of an unequal, class-ridden society who fight back as the new nation of Australia is forged.

The Helots' Tale, Redemption - is part II of a deeply-researched two-part novel that transports the reader back in time, weaving intriguingly amongst the real people and real events of an age when the British Empire was in full flow. It describes the adventures of two of the 160,000 souls transported to the new world colonies of Australia in the 1800s.

If you have enjoyed the novels of Charles Dickens you will be interested in more than one reviewer's comments such as: "many echoes of Dickens in the detail, language and well-researched background of this story" and other reviews:

????? "I couldn't put it down"

????? "Fascinating and very well researched"

????? "Wonderfully descriptive narrative makes for a most immersive and engaging reading experience"

Did they beat the system?