Rhonda Forrest Books In Order

Publication Order of Jess & Daniel Books

Publication Order of Silkworm Secrets Books

Publication Order of We'll Meet Again Books

Publication Order of Whitsunday Books

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

Publication Order of A Bindarra Creek Mystery Books

Publication Order of Bindarra Creek Christmas Romance Books

Rhonda Forrest is an Australian English and History teacher and also an award-winning author of historical and contemporary fiction novels.

Most of her novels are about social issues, family life, and relationships set in uniquely beautiful Australian landscapes.

She made her debut when she published “The Shack by the Bay,” her debut novel in 2016. She initially published her novels under the pseudonym Lea Dave, but ultimately went back to using her real name to write.

According to Rhonda, her novels are usually fueled by her passion for history, literacy, and traveling all over Australia.

Forrest currently makes her home in Queensland where she lives with her husband. She has two homes, one a 100-year-old cottage that overlooks Whitsundays waters and another on Tamborine Mountain.
She also loves to connect with readers in her newsletter and on social media profiles on Facebook, Goodreads, and Instagram.

Forrest was born in Brisbane, Australia but spent much of her childhood in Rochedale, which during this time was a very rural area whose economy was all about farming.

Rhonda loved growing up in Rochedale, as she spent a lot of her time riding horses, playing in the woods, and living in a small community where everyone knew each other.

She got married when she was 21 and together with her husband they moved to Bannockburn, where they would spend the next three decades.

Along with a huge coterie of animals, it was here that they made lifelong friends and raised their three daughters.

By the time she was forty, she had gone through running her own business and had been employed in many different jobs.

After working in all manner of jobs and bringing up three daughters, Rhonda would become a high school teacher of History, English, and creative writing. In 2015 she started teaching English to refugees that were newly arrived in Australia.

After many years of living in Bannockburn, the family packed up to go live in Tamborine Mountain. Soon enough they bought another home in Whitsundays and she now spends much of her time writing in either of the idyllic settings of her homes.

Rhonda Forrest’s journey toward becoming an author began when she was just a child. In her childhood, she loved reading and was often surrounded by all manner of books. Her mother was a huge lover of books and always gave her books that she was done with.

Nothing was denied to her and she still remembers how she was in thrall reading works from the likes of Jackie Collins, Harold Robbins, Wilbur Smith, and James Michener.
It was at this time that she started thinking that maybe she would grow up to become a fiction author. Still, it would not be until she was in her forties that she seriously started thinking she needed to seriously pursue her lifelong dream.

During this time, she used to spend a lot of time ocean fishing, which gave her all the time to start thinking of what she wanted to write. Once she started writing, the words just flowed and she knew she had found her new passion.

As for influences, Rhonda has asserted that her biggest has to be Colleen McCullough the Australian author. It was after she read “The Thorn Birds” in 1977 that she seriously thought about a career as an author.

“Elizabeth’s Star” by Rhonda Forrest is a work set in Queensland in 1941 where Michael McTavish, a drover, is leaving behind his young kid to join the 2/22 AIF.

He is heading to Rabaul, New Guinea, a very small town in the midst of steep jagged mountains, impenetrable jungles, active volcanoes, and shores lined with tranquil bays.
On the other hand is Joanie that is newly arrived in New Guinea as her father Reg invited her to manage his prosperous trading store with him.

Meanwhile, the tendrils of war are heading closer to Australia and the islands north of it, and many that have made their home in Rabaul are invited to go to Australia where it is safer.

Some decided to stay and others went away to Australia and it is not clear how distance and separation will impact love and life circumstances for people that have been living together for years.

Based on actual events, this showcases the unfolding of the lives of Joanie and Michael as well as those of their friends and family. It makes for a moving tale of separation, loss, and love.

Rhonda Forrest’s novel “Until We Meet” is set in 1940 and introduces Bud who has just joined the Navy hoping to become a submariner in the US Army.

Barely two years later, there is the Pearl Harbour bombing, and those that make their home in New Guinea found themselves in the path of a hostile Japan.

In Rabaul, Joanie is making preparations to leave behind many of her friends and her fiance.

Meanwhile, the Tavurvur volcano has burst forth spewing its contents onto the surface leaving the small and ill-equipped Australian defense force to keep the town safe.

The troops and the administration of the island are also dealing with huge numbers of Japanese forces attacking and soon enough it is every man for himself.

While some people will definitely live through it, more than 1000 men lose their lives when Montevideo Maru, a Japanese prisoner of war ship is sunk by an American submarine.
Bud the American submariner finds his life intrinsically linked to the destiny of many others in Rabaul.

“We’ll Meet Again” by Rhonda Forrest is the story of Grace who had moved with Henry and Down her mother and father from Canberra to Brisbane.

Her father had been offered a new job and Grace was to join the University of Queensland to complete her studies and become a veterinarian.

When she met Ewan, he was heading to the University and he had accidentally knocked her over. Grace and Ewan fell hard for each other and their meeting just felt right as they were both almost finishing their studies and were in their early twenties.

However, not everyone was happy with their relationship and soon they separated. Over the years, Grace has flashbacks of their time together. Will they ever be reunited and make come true the many dreams they had together?

It makes for a great story of family, love, and a connection between those that suffered separation and loss but also a story of love, chance, and hope.