Black Sheep
Read an extract
Play sample
  • Published: 26 September 2023
  • ISBN: 9781761340123
  • Imprint: William Heinemann Australia
  • Format: Trade Paperback
  • Pages: 512
  • RRP: $32.99
Categories:

Black Sheep

From the bestselling author of Khaki Town

Formats & editions
Paperback
24 Sep 2024
Tr. Paperback
26 Sep 2023
EBook
26 Sep 2023
Audiobook
26 Sep 2023
Buy from…
Amazon Booktopia Dymocks QBD Readings Your Bookstore Abbeys Boomerang Find local retailers Find local retailers Collins Fishpond Gleebooks Harry Hartog Kinokuniya Robinsons The Nile Mighty Ape

Judy Nunn's new blockbuster is a sweeping historical novel about a prosperous sheep-farming family and the enigmatic young man they let into their lives . . .

'Sensational story-telling.' Australian Women's Weekly
'One of Australia's great storytellers, excelling in merging fact with fiction . . . a combination of page-turning drama, relatable characters and real historical events.' Weekend Australian

'Sweeping historical fiction at its best.' Better Reading

Black sheep - there's one in every family . . .

Orphaned at sixteen, James Wakefield was determined to be a gun shearer like his father. Now he’s killed twice, changed his name, and is on the run from the law.

He had his reasons for both murders, and he felt no joy in taking life … Or did he?

Ben McKinnon, meanwhile, is heir to the vast Glenfinnan sheep property near Goulburn, New South Wales. He too has a secret that, if ever revealed, would shatter the privileged lives of his father, Alastair, and his sisters, Jenna and Adele.

When fate brings James and Ben together, a powerful friendship is forged, both men gladly becoming the keeper of the other’s secret.

Then Ben insists his new friend come to work at Glenfinnan Station. Has James finally found the family he’s always longed for? Or has the McKinnon dynasty just unwittingly adopted a black sheep?

From the Shearing Wars of Queensland to the exclusive gentlemen's clubs of Sydney, Melbourne and London; from the woolsheds of Goulburn, to the trenches of the Western Front, Judy Nunn once again brings Australian history vividly to life.
  • Published: 26 September 2023
  • ISBN: 9781761340123
  • Imprint: William Heinemann Australia
  • Format: Trade Paperback
  • Pages: 512
  • RRP: $32.99
Categories:

About the author

Judy Nunn

Judy Nunn’s career has been long, illustrious and multifaceted. After combining her internationally successful acting career with scriptwriting for television and radio, Judy decided in the 90s to turn her hand to prose.

Her first three novels, The Glitter Game, Centre Stage and Araluen, set respectively in the worlds of television, theatre and film, became instant bestsellers, and the rest is history, quite literally in fact. She has since developed a love of writing Australian historically-based fiction and her fame as a novelist has spread rapidly throughout Europe where she has been published in English, German, French, Dutch, Czech and Spanish.

Her subsequent bestsellers, Kal, Beneath the Southern Cross, Territory, Pacific, Heritage, Floodtide, Maralinga, Tiger Men, Elianne, Spirits of the Ghan, Sanctuary, Khaki Town and Showtime! confirmed Judy’s position as one of Australia’s leading fiction writers. She has now sold over one million books in Australia alone.

In 2015 Judy was made a Member of the Order of Australia for her "significant service to the performing arts as a scriptwriter and actor of stage and screen, and to literature as an author".

portrait photo of Judy Nunn

Also by Judy Nunn

Stories from the Otto Bin Empire
Sanctuary
The Long Weekend
A Poem for Sally
Showtime!
Khaki Town
Adam's Mum and Dad: The third story from the Otto Bin Empire
See all

Discover more

Article
The 10 bestselling fiction books of 2023

Check out our top-selling fiction books this year.

Article
Black Sheep book club questions

A sweeping historical novel to read with your book club.

Video
Black Sheep by Judy Nunn

OUT NOW: https://www.penguin.com.au/books/black-sheep-9781761340123 Judy Nunn's new blockbuster is a sweeping historical novel about a prosperous sheep-farming family and the enigmatic young man they let into their lives . . . Black sheep - there's one in every family . . . Orphaned at sixteen, James Wakefield was determined to be a gun shearer like his father. Now he’s killed twice, changed his name, and is on the run from the law. He had his reasons for both murders, and he felt no joy in taking life … Or did he? Ben McKinnon, meanwhile, is heir to the vast Glenfinnan sheep property near Goulburn, New South Wales. He too has a secret that, if ever revealed, would shatter the privileged lives of his father, Alastair, and his sisters, Jenna and Adele. When fate brings James and Ben together, a powerful friendship is forged, both men gladly becoming the keeper of the other’s secret. Then Ben insists his new friend come to work at Glenfinnan Station. Has James finally found the family he’s always longed for? Or has the McKinnon dynasty just unwittingly adopted a black sheep? From the Shearing Wars of Queensland to the exclusive gentlemen's clubs of Sydney, Melbourne and London; from the woolsheds of Goulburn, to the trenches of the Western Front, Judy Nunn once again brings Australian history vividly to life.

Article
A brief guide to Judy Nunn

A guide to Australian author Judy Nunn and a few of her most popular books.

penguin pop image
penguin pop image