Based on a true story.

In 1864, at age 43, tragedy strikes the family of John Joseph Layburn, forcing him to flee his Yorkshire home and set out on a journey that will take him around the world to the colony of Australia. But will he make his mark in the New World or will tragedy scupper his dreams forever?

"Curse the Bells is a story of a man with a keen sense of adventure. Not afraid to take risks, he lived life to the full and reaped the rewards of success."ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Hailing from the mid-north coast of NSW at Valla Beach, author Douglas Wakeling combines his passion for the written word, history and family ancestry in his first book. Since the late 1980s he has pondered over his family lineage, particularly the story of John Joseph Layburn, his great-grandfather, and his passage from Otley, England to the small country town of Carcoar in NSW, Australia.