Homecoming by Kate Morton

March 18, 2023

Homecoming by Kate Morton

Outside a small town in southern Australia, a young family is found dead on Christmas Eve 1959, following a picnic lunch. There is no obvious cause of death. Worse yet, the youngest child is missing, apparently taken from her crib by wild dogs (dingoes). Sixty years later, a journalist returns to Sydney to look after her ailing grandmother who was injured in a fall, and learns more about her own family history than she ever expected.

I have read all of Morton's previous books and was happy to get an eARC of her latest. Like her earlier books, this is a story of family secrets and tangled relationships, set at a country house. It's a book-within-a-book, with dual timelines set in 1959 and 2018.  A true crime book is set within the framework of the 2018 storyline. I suspected the family secret about halfway through and I was right (I watch way too much true crime TV). Morton's tale will appeal to fans of Joshilyn Jackson, Diane Chamberlain and Ann Patchett.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an eARC for review.

Southern Australia

Exiles by Jane Harper

December 21, 2022

Exiles by Jane Harper

Aaron Falk, AFP officer, returns for a third case, this time in the wine country of Southern Australia near Adelaide. Falk has been invited to stand as godfather for his friends' new baby son, with the christening set to coincide with the local food and wine festival. But what should be a happy occasion is overshadowed by the mysterious disappearance of a young mother, as well as an unsolved hit-and-run case that continues to affect the community. As Falk learns more about the woman's disappearance, he begins to suspect that she didn't vanish by choice.

I really enjoy Harper's Aaron Falk series. Her detective is intelligent and professional, but also has a vulnerable human side. Harper writes clever intelligent mysteries that wind in all of the seemingly unrelated threads in a satisfying manner. I did not enjoy her previous standalone novel (The Survivors) that much, so I am glad that she returned to Aaron Falk. Readers who enjoy the Harry Bosch series will enjoy this mystery series set in Australia.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an eARC for review.

Wine country in Southern Australia

Wellmania by Brigid Delaney

December 5, 2022

Wellmania by Brigid Delaney

After almost two decades of partying hard every night, Australian journalist Brigid Delaney details her search for health via the multi-billion dollar wellness industry. After being prescribed drugs for high blood pressure and high cholesterol in her late 30s (more commonly prescribed to people in their 60s), she decides she is going to change her life and fix her health naturally.

The first half of the book is very interesting as the author talks about undertaking a controversial 101 day fast, then getting into an intensive six-week yoga program that includes taking a 90 minute yoga class daily. Later she experiments with various types of mediation an retreats. One of the things that she notices is that when you start pursuing health via one of these intensive programs, it brings up all the shit that you have stored down in the basement that you'd rather not think about (relationships, wasted years, why you go out drinking every night, etc.). She also talks about the wellness industry itself which is supposed to be for everyone, but then places like Lululemon sell yoga pants for over $100 a pair and the largest size they come in is a 10. But then in the second half, she frequently drifts off into politics and the state of the world (pre-Covid 19) and gets off track. The takeaway is that if you decide to do any of these things for yourself, the most beneficial is vedic meditation.

The book is supposed to be made into a movie next year.

An advanced yoga pose - Delaney notes that unless you're born with a specific type of body or are willing to take a 90-minute yoga class every day, it's unlikely that most of us will ever be able to achieve this level.

The Survivors by Jane Harper

March 4, 2021

The Survivors by Jane Harper

Twelve years ago, a local girl drown during a horrific storm, as did two young men who were trying to rescue one of their brothers. Kieran Elliott, the guy they were sent to rescue, has always blamed himself for all three deaths since he was in one of the cliff caves with a girl (another girl, not the one who drowned). Now he has returned to his hometown to help his parents pack up their house in preparation for a move to the city. Shortly after Kieran arrives with his wife and daughter, a young art student is found dead on the beach. Kieran is immediately suspected.

Slow moving, character driven, and all of the characters were unlikeable. The Survivors in the title was a statue of three people looking out to sea, and I never really understood what it had to do with the story, other than it was located near the mouth of the caves. All of Harper's books are set in Australia - I believe this is the first one not set in the outback.

I have enjoyed all of Jane Harper's previous books, but this one was a miss for me. If you haven't read her before, read either The Dry or The Lost Man.

The eastern tip of Australia is the place to go to surf.

Vanishing Falls by Poppy Gee

August 7, 2020

Vanishing Falls by Poppy Gee

Celia Lily lives in the town of Vanishing Falls on the Australian island of Tasmania.  She has it all - she is rich, beautiful, is married to a doting husband, and lives in a mansion.  But then she disappears one evening after returning home from a charity event.  The town residents immediately suspect her husband, who has some expensive hobbies like orchids and art collecting, and at least one unsavory secret vice.  But just about everyone in this town has secrets that they would rather keep hidden.  Did Celia disappear of her own volition, or did someone else make her vanish?

Although the premise really appealed to me, it was a slog to finish this one.  Almost all of the main characters were unlikable, and the one that you were supposed to like was somewhere on the autism spectrum.  Nothing wrong with that, except that she didn't understand sarcasm, irony or other figures of speech, as well as not having a filter.  This is fine at first but her meltdowns and other actions start to wear on the reader.  The atmosphere was oppressive as well - it rained almost constantly, and when it wasn't raining, it was snowing.  I personally don't need to be hit over the head repeatedly about the setting and the rotten characters (didn't have to hear about the guy with the meth addiction scoring drugs and getting high quite so often).  I got bored about halfway through due to the repetitiousness and started skimming.  The solution to the mystery wasn't even all that interesting.  The only reason I read it was that I received an eARC from the publisher, so I felt obligated to finish it.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an eARC in return for a review.

Boy Swallows Universe by Trent Dalton

January 30, 2020

Boy Swallows Universe by Trent Dalton

Loosely based on the author’s life growing up in Queensland in Australia, this is a story of coming-of-age meets survival.  Eli Bell and his older brother August live with their mother Frances and her boyfriend Lyle, both heroin dealers, in the suburb of Darra outside Brisbane in Queensland, Australia.  August is mute following a childhood trauma, while Eli searches for what it takes to be a good man.  Lyle is the only father figure that Eli remembers, and he loves Lyle deeply and wants to believe that Lyle is a good man, despite his profession. But unexpected events force Eli out of childhood, as he attempts to navigate a world of crime, drugs, and domestic abuse.

Normally I don’t care for books with juvenile narrators since the point of view is usually pretty narrow, but Trent Dalton has written a pair of very engaging characters in Eli Bell and his brother August.  Eli's voice is full of poetry and unexpected humor, a combination of adolescent adventure and adult experiences.  Most of the characters are based on people that Dalton knew as a child - I did love the inclusion of Arthur “Slim” Halliday, an actual criminal best known for his jail escapes, who Dalton knew when he was a child.  However, I don’t think the episodes of magical realism added anything to the narrative, and the last 50 pages of the book stretch the reader’s belief a little too far.  Other than that, the first 400 pages of the book are a wonderful read, not always pleasant or happy, but always heartfelt.

The Mother-in-Law by Sally Hepworth

June 23, 2019

The Mother-in-Law by Sally Hepsworth

Just about everybody in this mystery has at least one thing they’re hiding, and you really can't believe anything that they say (the ever-popular unreliable narrator).  Lucy Goodwin has been married to Oliver Goodwin for about ten years.  She never really hit it off with her mother-in-law, Diana (although she did hit Diana once!), and everyone in the family knows it.  Otherwise, Diana is universally loved and admired, so when she is found dead under suspicious circumstances, the spotlight immediately finds Lucy.

Interesting characters and a fast-moving plot kept me turning the pages on this one.  It was a refreshing change from all of the "Girl" and "Perfect" books that have been published recently (Gone Girl, Girl on the Train, Good Girl, Perfect Nanny, Perfect Wife, Perfect Mother, etc.).  I highly recommend it for vacation or the beach, or just on the patio with a glass of wine.