Mitji lived with the Aboriginal tribe for as long as she could remember, but with her white skin, thin nose, and red hair, she does not look like the rest of the tribe. As she nears womanhood, her oddness has made her an outcast and she must leave her people. She goes on a walkabout, in search of the walypalya, the tribe with red hair and white skin like her own, who had come from the great waters—perhaps they would receive her kindly and let her stay with them. On her wanderings she comes upon a white man, lying half-dead in the blazing heat, and nurses him back to health. Together they made their way to his home. There, Mitji becomes known as Meg and comes to understand that she was herself one of the walypalya. There are new dangers amongst this tribe and Meg must confront the terrors of a long sea voyage before she can find happiness on the other side of the world. Only the knowledge gained from her Aboriginal tribe can guarantee her survival and that of her friends.

Madeleine Brent was the pseudonym used by Peter O’Donnell, who also created the legendary thriller heroine Modesty Blaise. Madeleine Brent’s real identity was one of publishing’s best kept secrets. The nine Madeleine Brent romances include Tregaron’s Daughter, Moonraker’s Bride, Kirkby’s Changeling, Merlin’s Keep, The Capricorn Stone, The Long Masquerade, A Heritage of Shadows, Stormswift, and Golden Urchin.