Penelope Janu’s new book The Summerfield Saddler was inspired by classic Aussie country song ‘Tenterfield Saddler’. To celebrate its release we asked Peneleope to tell us about her favourite Country music!

There are some songs that touch our hearts and minds the first time we hear them and that will always be a part of our lives. One of Australia’s great country songs is the Peter Allen classic ‘Tenterfield Saddler’, a story of three generations—a grandfather, son and grandson—from Tenterfield in country NSW. I can’t say exactly when I thought ‘One day that song will inspire me to write a book’ but ‘Tenterfield Saddler’ tells a powerful story and the grandfather in that song provided inspiration for the saddler Gordon Henry in The Summerfield Saddler.

Memorable songs, like novels, are all about storytelling. ‘Tenterfield Saddler’ is a beautifully told and poignant story of love, loss and hope. In The Summerfield Saddler, Gordon Henry, a saddler, is passionate about rehabilitating an old mining site in his beloved country town of Summerfield. When he becomes too unwell to continue the fight, Mackenzie, his saddler granddaughter, is forced to step in. She also loves her hometown, but leading the fight to rehabilitate the land means working with a renowned documentary team led by the enigmatic adventurer, scientist and Norwegian Kit Thorsen. Kit is known around the world. After losing her father, Mackenzie’s world revolves around her ailing grandfather. Falling in love was never a part of their plan but one verse led to another …

Many writers, just like readers, like to spend time with their characters while listening to music, and that music can play into the mood of the story. While writing The Summerfield Saddler, Taylor Swift and Keith Urban were at the top of my playlists. Keith Urban’s ‘You’ll Think of Me’ is a heartrending song of love and loss and his ‘Cop Car’ is about finding love in all the wrong places that end up so right. Fun fact: Mackenzie Henry’s kelpie in The Summerfield Saddler is named Keith Urban (of course he has brown-blonde fur and blue eyes …).

Taylor Swift’s early music, songs such as ‘Teardrops on My Guitar’ and ‘Our Song’, are storytelling at their best. And as every Taylor fan knows, while she might have moved away from her country roots, the influence is still clear in the storytelling elements of her more recent songs. Stories fill every track of her latest album The Tortured Poets Department, from the teen romance vibes of ‘So High School’ to the upbeat angst of ‘I Can Do It with a Broken Heart’. And for a Taylor Swift and Keith Urban song – with Tim McGraw – you can’t go past ‘Highway Don’t Care’, another story beautifully told.

Country songs paint pictures in our minds and introduce us to characters we care about in the same way our favourite rural romance titles do. This holiday season might be the perfect opportunity to find a country playlist and start reading The Summerfield Saddler.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Penelope Janu

Penelope Janu lives on a farm in the Southern Highlands of NSW with a distracting husband, a very large dog and, now they’re fully grown, six delightful children who come and go. Penelope has a passion for creating stories that explore social and environmental issues, but her novels are fundamentally a celebration of Australian characters and communities. Her first novel, In at the Deep End, came out in 2017, followed by On the Right Track, On the Same Page, Up on Horseshoe Hill, Starting from Scratch, Clouds on the Horizon, Shelter from the Storm and Sunshine through the Rain, as well as three novellas, The Six Rules of Christmas, The Countdown to Christmas and A Fairytale for Christmas. Penelope enjoys riding horses, exploring the Australian countryside and dreaming up challenging hiking adventures. Nothing makes her happier as a writer than readers falling in love with her clever, complex and adventurous heroines and heroes. She loves to hear from readers, and can be contacted at www.penelopejanu.com.

 Don’t miss The Summerfield Saddler!

Join the small community of Summerfield in this warm-hearted, charming romance about trying not to fall in love – and failing – from an award-winning Australian author. For readers of Stella Quinn and Fleur McDonald. Mackenzie Henry is happy enough with her life in the small town of Summerfield. She loves her work as a saddler, the bushland surrounding her home, and the feeling of safety her beloved grandfather brings her. She doesn’t want anything-or anybody-else. So when her grandfather asks her to lead the fight to rehabilitate land destroyed by an open-cut mine, and work in front of the camera with a Norwegian documentary-making team, Mackenzie fears her life will be tipped on its axis. And she’s right. The documentary not only reignites old resentments but unearths secrets that threaten her family’s reputation and her own safety. To make matters worse, the enigmatic scientist, filmmaker and adventurer Kit Thorsen is a threat to the heart Mackenzie has kept safe. Handsome, arrogant and infuriating (read: Viking), Kit is in equal parts as fascinated and frustrated by Mackenzie’s mix of independence and vulnerability as she is by his. Given the demons in both of their pasts, they should run a mile. Will the compulsion that brings them together unite them or tear them apart? ‘A rural story that has it all … simmering romance […], a complex heroine and a swoon-worthy hero. What’s not to love?’ Karly Lane, bestselling Australian author Get the book here