Where In All the World

Media Release www.batemanbooks.co.nz

Where in All the World by Vanessa Croft

‘Where in All the World is a compelling historical novel rich in detail with vivid prose and memorable characters. I was fully immersed in this sweeping tale as it moved from Aotearoa New Zealand to England to Africa. Filled with tension, romance and dramatic twists, it will have you reading late into the night.’ — Olivia Spooner, author of The Girl from London and The Songbirds of Florence.

This astonishing debut novel is a tale of love, betrayal, and self-discovery contrasted with the wild beauty of colonial New Zealand and the turbulent heart of Africa. The story celebrates one woman’s resilience in the face of oppression, and her unbreakable desire to chart her own course.

Where in All the World begins in 1895 and Harriet Watson longs for a life beyond her family’s grand Canterbury homestead, Rāwāhi. The spirited 22-year-old is eager for romance and adventure, which arrive in the form of dashing Curtis De Courcy, an English explorer sent by her match-making aunt.

When Harriet accepts Curtis’s proposal, her father suspects his intentions lie more with Harriet’s dowry than her heart. To prove himself and win Harriet’s hand, Curtis sets out on a daring expedition across Africa. He returns a hero — but Harriet’s dreams quickly fade into a grim reality. Harriet soon finds herself ensnared in a marriage of illusion and quiet control and is forced to make a choice that will change everything.

Although a work of fiction, Harriet’s story was inspired by the life of Gertrude Edith Watt — a little-known daughter of Aotearoa New Zealand, whose legacy has been largely forgotten.

Gertrude was raised in a wealthy Hawke’s Bay household, and at a marriageable age was introduced to British-born adventurer Ewart Grogan. Following a whirlwind romance, he proposed, but history tells us her stepfather, James Coleman, objected due to Grogan’s lack of means.

Ewart is famed for his longitudinal traverse of the African continent, which he reportedly accomplished to win Coleman’s approval and earn Gertrude’s hand in marriage. His travelogue, From the Cape to Cairo: The First Traverse of Africa from South to North (1900), is still widely available today.

Where In All the World reimagines Gertrude’s story by giving her a voice and exploring a path she might have taken, had circumstances allowed. It is an acknowl­edgement of an overlooked daughter of Aotearoa who honoured her country by carrying herself with dignity and loyalty despite the consid­erable hardships she faced. Real historical atrocities in the Congo Free State form part of this story. While Where in All the World examines colonial abuses of the past, such injustices sadly persist today.

Vanessa Croft is a Canterbury based historical fiction writer. Born in Australia, her childhood was spent in Nigeria and Papua New Guinea as a civil engineer’s daughter, and these remote locations fostered her love of travelling, writing and the natural world. After extensive travel in her youth, she returned to Australia to study Arts, majoring in Humanities and minoring in Media. While building a career in research and communications, Vanessa nurtured her passion for literature, particularly historical fiction. This is her first novel.