The Untold

By: Courtney Collins

Narrated by: Courtney Collins

With shades of Water for Elephants and True Grit, a stunning debut novel set in the Australian outback about a female horse thief, her bid for freedom, and the two men trying to capture her.


It is 1921. In a mountain-locked valley, Jessie is on the run.

Born wild and brave, by twenty-six she has already lived life as a circus rider, horse and cattle rustler, and convict. But on this fateful night she is just a woman wanting to survive though there is barely any life left in her.

Two men crash through the bushland, desperate to claim the reward on her head: one her lover, the other the law.

But as it has always been for Jessie, it is death, not a man, who is her closest pursuer and companion. And while all odds are stacked against her, there is one who will never give up on her—her own child, who awaits her.

Critic reviews

A female Cormac McCarthy*

“This extraordinary novel—propelled by the dark, rich talents of a truly brilliant writer—dazzles, staggers and amazes.” —Elizabeth Gilbert, New York Times bestselling author of Eat, Pray, Love

"[A] page-turner... Jessie, the heroine of this tale set in 1920s Australia, sets her own compass. A horse thief and sometime circus performer, she's being pursued through the hills by her Aboriginal lover and a police sergeant. The chase will leave you breathless." —Good Housekeeping

"Collins's gripping debut novel is based on a legendary wild woman . . . A fast-paced, heart-wrenching story that never loses speed, this extraordinary first novel is not to be missed.” —Library Journal (starred review)

"The dead have tales to tell, if only we could hear them... Collins richly evokes a heartbreaking emotional terrain, setting it against the sparse, brutal landscape of the Australian Outback." —Kirkus Reviews

“A captivating, epic novel that never loses its heart to scope, The Untold is a surreal saga set in a rugged, unforgiving landscape. Courtney Collins paints a devastating portrait of long-shot love.” —Patrick DeWitt, author of the #1 International bestseller, The Sisters Brothers (short-listed for The Man Booker Prize)

*Library Journal

"Collins's debut offers a fictionalized account of real-life Jessie Hickman, a female bushranger and outlaw in 1020s Australia whose story as presented here ranges from the circus life to horse-stealing to imprisonment to forced marriage to fiery escape and endless pursuit, all told in extraordinary, toughly lyrical language. A female Cormac McCarthy? Get it.” —Library Journal

“This extraordinary novel—propelled by the dark, rich talents of a truly brilliant writer—dazzles, staggers and amazes.” —Elizabeth Gilbert, New York Times bestselling author of Eat, Pray, Love

“A captivating, epic novel that never loses its heart to scope, The Untold is a surreal saga set in a rugged, unforgiving landscape. Courtney Collins paints a devastating portrait of long-shot love.” —Patrick DeWitt, author of the #1 International bestseller, The Sisters Brothers (short-listed for The Man Booker Prize)

Captivating

Raw and well preformed. Intrigued the entire story, felt unfinished at the end, but good overall!

Loved this book and especially the narration!

I heard about this book on NPR and decided to try it. I am SO GLAD I got the audiobook instead of the print version! This is the fictionalized account of an actual young woman -- a trick rider, horse-whisperer and outlaw -- in the Australian outback in the early years of the 20th century. The heroine was memorable, the landscape descriptions compelling, the plot exciting, and the surprising omniscient narrator superbly voiced by the author herself, in a soft and compelling Aussie accent. The narration made the book come alive!