This historical drama, part true, part fiction, is based on the mysterious lives of the author’s maternal grandparents’, Walter and Winifred, spanning most of the twentieth century.
Encompassing the Boer Wars, the end of the Victorian era and the Titanic tragedy, the characters not only travel onwards through these times but also to the colonial outposts of the British Empire.
As the first book of a trilogy, Whispers Through Time introduces the personalities, dreams and motivations of Winifred and her family. The mysteries that surrounded her life in the past intrigue her real-life grand-daughter, Heady, who tries to unravel them in the present day.
Why did young Winifred leave London alone on a ship to travel to Australia?
Why especially in June 1912, just months after the Titanic tragedy? Where did her brother, Oscar, disappear to without a trace? And what happened to her beautiful younger sister, Francesca, after her tragic love affair?
Time is an ever-present theme that waxes and wanes like a tide throughout lives. There are the what-if moments, the only if moments and the sad reality that past and present generations can never meet, forever separated by time.
Joni Scott (Ryall) lives near the beach on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland, Australia, with her husband, John and small Lhasa dog, Mix.
During her life, she has worked as an organic chemist and biochemist in hospitals and industry. She then home-schooled her two now grown children and embarked on another career running a tutoring business. This especially has been very fulfilling, helping and motivating high school students in maths and science. She believes it is never too late to learn or write a book. Whispers through Time is her debut novel, inspired by her sister’s family research.