New South Wales, 1840. Tom Clay, transported to Australia at age twelve for poaching in Suffolk, has always loved animals and been good with them. It’s people he has trouble with, especially the murderous types British courts have inflicted on their infant colony in the name of justice. But as long as Tom can stick to tending sheep at the outpost station, he’s got a loyal dog, Gyp, and life’s not so bad.

Trouble is, Dan Carver, a fellow employee of the same rancher, has killed a couple of their coworkers and seems to be just getting started on the others. Consequently, young Tom, who, by rights, should be learning his letters in an English school, has to move fast to save his skin and that of Rowdy Cavanaugh, a glib jokester whose crime in England was passing counterfeit coin. His garrulousness, which he either can’t control or doesn’t care to, makes stealthy movement difficult if not impossible, and may cost Tom and him their lives.

I should add that the phrase “by rights” doesn’t exist for criminals like Tom, or for anyone else sent to Australia for punishment — “lagged,” it’s called. Therefore, even if Tom somehow manages to evade Carver and alert the rancher, he’s likely as not to hang for Carver’s murders. Nobody believes a “lag,” and when it’s one lag’s word against another, the stronger, older man will likely prevail.

As you may have guessed, this excellent thriller — I defy you to start it and put it down — has more to offer than unending sequences of reversals, gripping though they are. Shepherd tells the grisly, heart-breaking story of how lags come to Australia, or how Tom does, and the various stratagems he must employ to stay alive, let alone avoid flogging or any other casual brutality his masters may devise.

In beautifully crafted, brief flashbacks that seamlessly flow with the main narrative, you learn about the boy’s harrowing sea journey from England, the filthy so-called majesty of the law, and his dreadful childhood in a family of poachers: “I don’t think I’ve slept easy since I was in my mother’s womb.” Shepherd spares nothing, yet I never find the violence gratuitous or sense it’s included for shock value.

I wish the novel didn’t start with a prologue, and Jinks doesn’t need to tell the reader what’s coming, because her first chapter pulls you in right away. However, I like the writing in the prologue, which shows you much about young Tom in few words.

The passage suggests both the author’s gift for spare, direct prose and characterization: “I’m going to die among beasts I don’t understand and plants that kill me.” For Tom’s a born tracker, the one advantage he possesses in his attempt to escape Carver or get the drop on him — plans and circumstances change rapidly. How the boy copes with the natural world would make a novel in itself, for his knowledge and ingenuity constantly surprise; yet, as the prologue says, he’s conscious of what he doesn’t know.

His skill and humility set him apart from the other colonists. He’s also alone in his admiration for the Black indigenous people and their understanding of the land, flora, and fauna. He fears them too, because of what they might do, though Carver’s and their boss’s treatment of them troubles Tom. There’s muted social commentary in that as well, and though the indigenous folk linger on the fringes of the narrative, you sense them watching the whites act like maniacs.

This slim volume has a lot going for it — a lightning-paced story, a landscape physically rendered in emotionally resonant detail, and a teenager fighting not only for his life, but to live decently, in a place where no one understands the concept. Few Australian novels reach our shores, unfortunately, unless a major house picks them up. I wish more Americans knew about this small press in Melbourne, Text, which has given us Shepherd and also A Room Made of Leaves, by Kate Grenville. ( )

Tom Clay is a young English boy from Suffolk who gets pinched and tried for poaching to survive - he is sentenced to serve out his time in the foreign land of New South Wales, Australia. Tom is stationed at a shepherd's hut where he becomes painfully aware that he is but a boy living in the company of very violent men. Preferring the company of beasts and nature he steers clear of people who talk to much - like Rowdy Cavanaugh, the new hand. Dan Carver is a killer who relishes causing suffering and he's coming for Tom & Rowdy. Can Tom outwit Carver with his impressive instincts about the world he lives in - even when it's foreign- AND get Rowdy to shut up long enough to not get caught?

I have never read a novel by Catherine Jinks but I can definitely see myself reading her other novels if they are anything like this one. Shepherd is a very fast-paced novel and allows you to get lost in Tom's experiences. This book is in a time period and setting that are very different from the novels I usually read but that definitely doesn't make it any less interesting. If anything it makes the events of the book just that much more harrowing for Tom, things are quite different in this era than that of the Victorian era. His experiences (confrontational and regular day to day) are very well written and bring his character to life.

I would highly recommend this book to fans of suspense, thriller and possibly to those who enjoy Victorian era fiction with the previous elements. This book does have some potential sensitive subjects - animal cruelty, people cruelty, race and death descriptions but for the time period I don't believe to be considered out of the ordinary. Thank you to NetGalley & Text Publishing for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review. ( )

Shepherd is a fast paced story that I would almost consider a novella or short story. At a little over 200 pages, I was able to finish it in one day. Set in Australia in the mid 1800’s, the story follows 13 year old Tom Clay, who is left orphaned after his mother’s death in childbirth, and his father is hanged for crimes committed. Left without a support system, Tom turns to poaching to survive. After being caught by authorities, he is interned to a remote area tasked with tending a small flock of sheep. His companions are fellow criminals, none more dangerous than Carver, a murderous criminal who has already tried to kill off Tom once. Tom got the better of him once, and now Carver returns. With the help of Rowdy, an older boy who mysteriously shows up at Tom’s humble hut, the two boys begin a fight to the death. Drawing on all his life experiences, Tom must outwit and outpace Carver and his murderous goons. A visceral tale both of man’s cruelty to one another and one boy’s will to survive, this is a nail biting thriller sure to entertain. Author Catherine Jinks does a good job of filling a lot of backstory into a relatively small number of pages. Thank you to Netgalley for the copy for review. ( )

I was given this ARC by Netgalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Thirteen year old Tom Clay has been sentenced to life on the Australian frontier, shepherding sheep, for the crime of poaching. He is the youngest out there and doesn't fit in. His father had told him over and over again how dangerous it is to talk, to keep quiet so as not to get caught. Tom knows that it's best to go unnoticed.

There is a fellow camp mate who has committed many gruesome crimes, a violent man by the name of Carver. He's already murdered two of the other shepherds. Now he's killed Joe, set fire to the hut, and hunting Tom and another camp-mate, Rowdy. They make their way back to their boss's farm only to find that Carver has already murdered everyone there. Will they both survive or will they both perish?

This book was a page turner. With Tom being so young and in so much danger, I found that I couldn't put the book down until I finished it. There are many twists and turns, surprises that I didn't see coming. I absolutely loved the end! ( )