Teddy’s family farm holds a number of secrets, including some buried underground in an old farmhouse. When Teddy’s grandmother, Deirdre, engages an archaeologist to dig the house up, the secrets revealed shock everyone, with readers experiencing the emotional impact via evocative scenes of events from the 1950s. The Cowgirl is a heartwarming cross-generational story about rural women’s resilience, dreams and sacrifices, as well as the relentless labour and responsibility of farming life. In her second novel, Anthea Hodgson delivers on the promise she showed with her popular debut novel The Drifter and cements her place amongst the much-loved writers of contemporary Australian rural fiction.