Although I hadn’t read any of the books in the Jimmy Perez series for many years, I decided to pick up The killing stones after watching Shetland the TV series and thoroughly enjoying books in Cleeve’s other series (Two Rivers and Vera Stanhope Jimmy has moved away from Shetland and is living in Orkney with his partner Willow Reeves and son James. When his close friend Archie Stout is reported missing on the island of Westray, Perez goes in search of him and discovers his body on an archaeological dig with the weapon, a Neolithic stone, lying beside him. Jimmy and Willow are quickly drawn into the investigation, with Willow taking the lead as Jimmy is close to the family. Rumours are rife with tales of Archie’s relationship with an artist on the island and his preoccupation with a personal worry. The ancient murder weapon also raises questions about a professor who has built his reputation around the archaeology of the islands and a schoolteacher who is writing a book for children about Orkney. As Jimmy and Willow delve into the mystery there are many threads to follow and more murders to solve.
The book opens with a map of Westray and one of the Orkney Islands which give the reader a grasp of the stunning location of the Orkney islands, the main towns and the likely ferry routes. These add an understanding of the setting which Cleeves is so good at describing, including the wonderful standing stones, the Neolithic stones with the runes inscribed on them, the cold water of the seas surrounding the islands and the life of the islanders.
I found that it was easy to relate to the characters in The killing stones. Although I was unaware of the background to Willow and Jimmy’s relationship and may go back to some of the earlier novels to find out about it, I was able to read The killing stones as a stand-alone, relating to their committed working and personal relationship.
The killing stones was a gripping mystery, with many suspects and twisty leads, and kept me reading to the end, not knowing who committed the murders. I look forward to more books starring Jimmy and Willow.
Inverness- based author Barbara Henderson is a winning author of the Historical Association's Young Quills Award for the best children's historical fiction. Rivet Boy (first published {in Australia} by Affirm Press, 2025) follows in this pattern of excellent historical fiction for children. Rivet Boy blends fact and fiction to tell the story of a very likeable and courageous 12-year-old boy called John Nicol who finds himself breadwinner of his family (on the death of his father who was struck by a rivet) and who therefore has to find dangerous employment on the Forth Bridge construction site. In the Author's Note we find that John Nicol did truly exist and that he did survive a fall from the bridge. Of the men and boys who died constructing this bridge 57 were officially recorded but later research has identified at least 73. Some fell; some may have been pushed. Work safety practices in the 1880s were basic. John had to conquer his fear of heights and bullying, bad men (especially his boss, Cain Murdoch and his henchmen sons) to work at a job as a rivet boy handling the over six million boiling hot metal rivets required to hold the structure together.
John makes two new friends- a girl called Cora and a squirrel that he names Rusty. Their faithfulness, help and friendship provide a softness that counterbalances the privations, danger and terror that is John's lot. There are cliff hangers that lead to the turning point that will make the reader gasp..." I glance up at the bridge and bite my lip."There's an ill wind blowing..." " And this is where I made my mistake..."
In the manner of all good historical fiction, Henderson has woven real historical characters into an historical event - the building and opening of the Forth Bridge - the historic cantilever bridge in Scotland that spans the Firth of Forth. Cleverly Henderson uses the device of the newly invented autograph book for John to collect the names of important people of the times to weave them into the storyline. Indeed as Henderson found in her research, famous people did visit the site including the Crown Prince and Lady Moir, founder of the Society of Women Engineers. Mr Peebles, a kindly and instrumental guide and friend to John was indeed the real librarian at the newly opened Carnegie Library.
The Scottish language permeates the story filling it with wise sayings that bolster John in times of trouble. Each chapter heading reveals the character, ethics and strength of the Scottish thinking of the time. These include:"Beggars cannae be choosers, Luck favours the brave, Don't look a gift horse in the mouth, Luck is loaned, not owned, Nothing ventured, nothing gained, Time and tide will tarry for no man etal..." There is so much quiet wisdom in this book.
Young readers will be inspired by a story that is steeped in historical research that can show them something of the hardship, courage and resilience required of children of the same age as them living in Victorian Scotland where there was no social security net for struggling families, where children had to work and the right to schooling was not assumed.
For children studying Design and Technology at school, bridge building and engineering history is an interesting topic. Rivet Boy with its blending of plot with detailed descriptions of the process and construction of the bridge (especially the cantilever style) and the use of rivets is a fascinating and applicable, real-life read that would provoke interest in this area of the curriculum perhaps in children who wouldn't previously have shown any interest in STEM subjects such as engineering, design or technology.
Rivet Boy is an engaging, warm, historical adventure rooted in real events that brings us a character from history (John Nicol) who is an inspiring role model. This book, through its insights into Victorian child labour, engineering history and the societal shifts of the era, is of useful educational value for young readers.
The fifth book in the Thursday Murder Club mystery series is another riveting story that thrills with the return of the group, this time meeting at the wedding of Joyce’s daughter Joanna. Joyce is thrilled with Paul her new son-in-law, Ron is faced with family problems and Ibrahim is giving Connie therapy. Meanwhile Elizabeth is grieving but when told by Nick, the best man at the wedding, that a bomb had been planted under his car, she can’t resist investigating. With murder, kidnapping, and a code to crack to find a Bitcoin fortune, the gang are faced with plenty of problems to solve.
I love this feel-good series. Osman’s clever humour softens some of the darker themes that provide a background to the story. Ron’s daughter Suzi is trying to leave a violent husband who may try to murder her, while Ibrahim attempts to rehabilitate Connie, a habitual criminal. Elizabeth is gradually gaining some of her energy as her intelligence is challenged by the puzzles surrounding the murder and the missing best man, while Joyce, who often relates the story, is the one who recognises loneliness and does something about it.
It is easy to become fully involved in the lives of the Thursday Murder Club gang as they struggle with personal issues as well as solve another crime. As always, Osman brings depth to his characters and their feelings, each one memorable and different.
I read this in a couple of sittings and eagerly look forward to more in the series.
All of us who read this book become witnesses. This is the plea from Dr Samah Jabr, a Palestinian psychiatrist, who has gathered together her many essays on injustice in Palestine. It is shocking to read the dates of some of the essays: ‘The Palestinian resistance: its legitimate right and the moral duty’ (2003), ‘Case report: Imprisonment and torture-triggered psychopathology’ (2008), and many more, continuing until present day. Gaza has been under siege for more than 20 years. Samah Jabr continues to write about the psychological consequences of the Israeli occupation in Palestine. The essays are short; you can pick up the book and read from any of the sections about Gaza, or family in Palestine, or mental health under occupation, or resistance and resilience, or solidarity. The writing is succinct, powerful, and unforgettable.
While the psychiatric assessment of people she sees in her clinic might initially be labelled Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, this Western framework focussed on the individual is insufficient to deal with the complexity of continuous collective trauma living under relentless threat and systemic violence; a trauma that goes beyond personal dysfunction, and cannot be remedied by any individual change. It is a world of disaster that continues, and from which there is no escape.
There is an acronym WCNSF ‘Wounded Child, No Surviving Family’, unique to the Gaza Strip, and used only too frequently. There are dogs eating the bodies of killed Gazans, ‘a Palestinian’s body dragged by a rope attached to an Israeli military vehicle . . , forced nudity and torture’. Writing in 2023, Jabr describes collective punishment: no food, fuel, electricity, water or medical supplies, and the displacement of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians; the direct killing through bombardment, and the indirect killing through starvation and destruction of the health system. How does a psychiatrist deal with the impact of genocide? The need is huge, the resources minimal.
Jabr explains the Arabic concept of sumud: more than resilience, it the idea of perseverance and steadfastness. A symbol of sumud is an old olive tree deeply rooted in the land. The Palestinian people continue to endure and resist. Sumud is also the banner of the global freedom flotilla, the international civilian-led convoy of ships that is currently seeking to break the Israeli blockade and bring urgent humanitarian aid to Palestine.
Rallies around the world sending messages of support are important to overcome the Palestinian people’s sense of abandonment and betrayal. Rallies for solidarity provide an uplifting image of essential human compassion and kindness. Samah Jabr calls for positive change, ‘a future where the radiance of resilience and solidarity prevails over the shadows of the past and its pain’.
I found each of the essays in this collection easy to understand, and at the same time incredibly moving, but readers who would not normally select non-fiction, but would like to better understand the Arab perspective on the Palestine-Israeli conflict, might like to explore Ibtisam Azem’s fictional The book of disappearance which reveals the ghosts of the past city Jaffa beneath the greater Tel Aviv, or alternatively Rock flight by Hasib Hourani, a free-form poem starkly revealing the ongoing suffering of the people of Palestine.
During the late 19th century a strong nationalistic sentiment developed in Australia particularly as the moves towards uniting the six British colonies into one nation grew and the value of the wool industry to the economy was recognised. One of the outcomes was the growth on what became known as the Heidelberg School - a group of artists which included Tom Roberts, Arthur Streeton, Frederick McCubbin, and Charles Conder who chose to capture iconic Australian outdoor scenes that focused on the unique light and colours of the landscape and the lives lived within them.
One of the most prominent paintings to emerge was Shearing the Rams created by Tom Roberts during a visit to Brocklesby Station, Corowa, New South Wales, in the late spring of 1888 and which was eventually completed after subsequent visits in 1890.
But this wasn't just a painting of a group of men shearing sheep in a scene that could be found in any shearing shed across the country at the time - it had a unique element embedded in it. For the only person with their face completely visible is in fact, a girl, distinctive because, at the time, girls and women were not found in such sheds. The cry of "ducks on the pond" was (and remains) an indication that a female is approaching and language and behaviour needs to be appropriate. In this intriguing and enlightening story both author and artist in a perfect marriage of text and illustration, explore how this young girl came to be such an unexpected inclusion.
It is the true story of Susie Bourne, shy and all but invisible on the family farm, overshadowed by her rowdy brothers and sister, despite undertaking many of the chores that children were expected to do at the time. Like Roberts, White and Anthony have brought her to life telling a story not just of Susie (who went on to live to almost 99) but one that could lead to a comparison between the lives of children, particularly girls, in the 1890s and those in the 2020s, perhaps even sparking an investigation into not only how they have changed but why, and who was responsible.
Through narrative non fiction like this, the hidden stories of history are uncovered and shared with a new, modern audience, breathing life into little-known, sometimes long-forgotten back stories that are not only fascinating in themselves but offer insights that spark interest and inspiration decades, if not centuries, on. Who knew that a little girl who was paid sixpence by the artist to kick up dust so he could capture just the right light and atmosphere, could lead this reviewer down so many rabbit-holes?
Themes Tom Roberts, Country life, Artists.
Barbara Braxton
Maisy Hayes is not for sale by Allayne L. Webster
Text Publishing, 2025. ISBN: 9781923058545. (Age:14+) Recommended.
Maisy Hayes is not for sale by Allayne L. Webster serves up to the reader an unflinching spotlight on the effects of poverty on a teenage girl and her family. Adelaide- based Webster grew up in rural South Australia and her books including Sensitive (an IBBY Outstanding book for Young people with Disabilities) and the CBCA notable novels Paper Planes and A cardboard palace) depict with a knowing voice, the real feelings and issues that young people have but don't talk about - not even with their closest friends. Webster goes for the nitty-gritty, raw details - for situations that are excruciating and mortifying. Young people reading her books would surely find comfort as Webster writes about what most embarrasses and humiliates. She does not shy away from the cover-ups and other efforts that people without money must go to to hide the fact that they cannot afford things that others take for granted.
Maisy Hayes cannot afford tampons. There is nothing in the fridge at home. She endlessly makes excuses for events and gatherings that she cannot attend because she does not have the money. Most of her energy is used up manufacturing a false identity, thinking of ways to climb out of poverty and above all pretending to be someone other than herself. The narrative from the first person point of view of Maisy begins in a dress shop where Maisy spots a girl..."lithe frame, dry-cleaned uniform, polished Mary Janes...teeth - neat - straight and white...skin flawless..." Maisy thinks she could be an Amelia... an Isabella. She turns out to be an Arabella... "Of course." Arabella is a prefect, she wears a private school blazer, she pouts, she eats at fancy restaurants, she can buy what she wants. Maisy wants to be an Arabella. Maisy's life is very difficult. Her mother is divorced and they live in a down and out housing trust house. Maisy has a sister with a heart condition and a younger brother. She resents her mother's slack behaviour and idolises her father who left the family a long time ago. Maisy and her sister are invited to stay with her father in his mansion in Toorak. They see how the other half live and are dazzled. But is all as it seems?
Through some shocking and confronting events, Maisy comes to reevaluate what wealth really means, to take control and responsibility over her life and to make the most of opportunities. The narrative follows a satisfying full circle.
Maisy Hayes is not for sale is a book for the contemporary teenager. It will be reassuring for readers to find that others have the same fears and worries as themselves. Webster opens the eyes of readers to the poverty hiding in plain sight in classrooms and amongst peers. There are underlying, intertwined themes including sexual abuse, stalking and prostitution in the book. The important message above all else is that all may not be as it seems and that the most important thing is to be true to yourself.
Maisy Hayes is not for sale is a very true-to-life depiction of contemporary teenage school and home life in that it reveals common and everyday concerns of teenagers. It shines a light on students experiencing poverty, on broken families and other societal issues that also impact many students' lives. While Maisy's story is particular but not exclusive to her with poverty a growing problem in Australia, other issues that she deals with are universal.
Maisy Hayes is not for sale is a compelling and thought-provoking story.
Themes Identity, Poverty, Being true to yourself, Shame, Coming of age, Sexuality, Family breakdown, Serious illness.
In an author’s note to the reader, Jasinska tells us that a rusalka is a female water spirit or a nymph, young maidens who died a violent death in a lake or river. They are famous for bewitching mortals with their beauty and dragging them into the watery depths. In this story Gisela is a drowned girl with no memory of what happened to her. She wants desperately to return to her family, and when she learns that the kiss of a human could restore her life, that is what she determines to achieve.
However there is a spirit-hunting witch’s grandson who is determined to wipe out all unholy threats to the community, and it is only gradually as Kazik gets to know Gisela that he begins to empathise with her plight. It is an enemies to lovers trope, complicated by cross-gender romantic attachments. It is from handsome Aleksey that Gisela schemes to get her kiss, the same Aleksey that makes Kazik’s heart beat faster. At the same time Gisela is aware that there is a connection with Kazik that she finds more and more compelling. Kasik reveals that deep down, he know that ‘there was nothing wrong nor shameful about having many or multiple partners so long as everyone involved was happy. There wasn’t a right or a wrong way to love’. Jasinska’s romantasy presents a strong argument for consensual polyamory. It’s a kind of modern day twist on Twelfth Night.
This fatal kiss is probably at its best in portraying youthful confusion about sexuality, trying to work out what it means when one is attracted to the charming same-sex hero and navigating the borderlines between ordinary friendships and romantic relationships.
YA readers who enjoy fantasy that explores modern day relationship issues will enjoy this book, and will no doubt look forward to another in this vein, for although the plot threads are tidily resolved, the epilogue suggests scope for further adventures.
Children all over the world are fascinated by sharks and The Great Shark Egg Case Hunt, written by Kasey Whitelaw and creatively illustrated using collage techniques by Sylvia Morris, will provide an engaging look at the beginning of an egg-laying shark’s life as well as the opportunity to join in a worldwide endeavour. The hunt for shark egg cases began in the UK in 2003 and has garnered interest all over the world.
Four citizen scientists will take you on an egg hunt in their particular country. There is Noah from the UK who finds the egg case of a Thornback Skate while searching the strandline after a big storm, Ava from South Africa who finds a Puffadder Shyshark egg case while paddling over a kelp forest, William from South Australia who finds a Port Jackson shark egg case as he snorkels on a temperate reef, and Lily from Alaska who finds a Big Skate egg case in a rock pool in a rocky cove. Along with finding the egg cases, there is information about how to prepare to find them, taking care of the environment, what to do after they are found as well as how to log the find.
The delightful coloured pencil and water colour illustrations layered in a collage effect provide great visual interest and reflect the way egg cases can be found covered by seaweed and other shore and ocean matter. Of particular note are the front and back endpapers gently telling a story of their own. In the final pages is information about more egg-laying sharks and their relatives, plus more detailed facts about the egg discoveries within the book, a glossary and some general information about the Great Eggcase Hunt.
For your own interest this British video gives an excellent introduction and some important information about searching for shark, ray and skate egg cases.
In March 2023 the CSIRO launched a citizen science project called the Great Egg Case Hunt Australia, which is supported by the Shark Trust App. Research technician at the CSIRO’s National Fish Collection, Helen O'Neill says it's hoped the information could help researchers better understand different species of shark. Find out more at the following links: Join the hunt for shark egg cases - CSIRO and https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=878054526588392
Allen & Unwin, 2025. ISBN: 9781761181184. (Age:8+) Recommended.
Violet hasn’t started her project about the de-extinction of the Tasmanian Tiger due on Monday so she will be working on it all weekend. She starts well with a definition “de-extinction is the process of bringing an extinct species back to life” and online research tells her that to do this, scientists need a dunnart, a mouse sized marsupial. As Violet finds out more she shares her thoughts with Tassie, the family dog, named after the Tasmanian devil, not the tiger, in fact she finds out the correct name is the Thylacinus cynocephalus. Having fallen asleep in front of the computer the ghost of thylacines past present and future arrives and offers to show her the backwards-facing pouch they share with some other marsupials. Violet is not keen to see up its bum but is full of questions and keen for help with her project, even if it means going in a time machine with a cute but grumpy ghost. Together they visit the past, looking at habitat and how threats emerged, then they visit a laboratory in the present, looking at how a thylacine can be recreated from dead thylacine DNA pieces slotted in to their near relative, living dunnart, DNA and eggs, and finally they travel 25 years into the future to consider what the consequences might be if these extinct creatures are brought back to life.
The charming graphics in a limited blue/orange palette give a light touch to the serious science which permeates this graphic novel. Not only the pros and cons of de-extinction research are considered but also the “sticky bits” the ethical and social implications of manipulating genetics. Sometimes I thought there was too much packed into the one story but the jokes and deprecating humour kept up the pace and the end section has a summary of the research behind the narrative. Middle school students will enjoy this fun approach to what is a complex area of research so entertainingly presented.
The very hungry caterpillar's Australian adventures by Eric Carle
Penguin, 2025. ISBN: 9780241763186. (Age:0-3)
A larger board book with tactile illustrations continues the adventures of the very hungry caterpillar, this time, venturing into unknown territory in Australia. Each double page reveals an Australian image, beginning with a beach scene, where a four lined rhyming verse gives an impression of going to the beach in Australia, with a pelican, seagulls and sandcastle while young fingers will caress the sandy feel of the building. Over the page a kangaroo hops in the heat of the Australian bush and a tactile tree takes up one page. The narration dives under the sea with a tactile turtle, with images of other sea animals shown. A picnic by the river is a pleasant place to be and little fingers will find the picnic basket has a rough feel. And lastly a very bright bird inhabits the rainforest, with tempting bright shiny feathers offered as part of its plumage.
On each page can be spotted the caterpillar, making this an extra delight for younger children. Apart from feeling the different surfaces on each page, they will hear rhyming lines and words which depict parts of Australia, while learning of some of the flora and fauna Australia offers.
Themes Australia, Australian flora and fauna, Journey, travel, Caterpillars, Humour.
The Monsters Next Door is a great introduction to the horror genre for younger readers. Charlie is nothing special, especially when you compare her to the rest of her family. Her sister is a ghost who is learning to be visible, one of her brothers is a werewolf and the other has telekinetic powers, both her parents work for an organization supporting and protecting other people with powers and her home includes a cursed doll.
Just as her parents are departing for a well-deserved and vital holiday neighbours move in across the street and although they appear nice and normal, Charlie can’t help feeling that something is not adding up.
Charlie is a likeable older sister who is struggling to be responsible, keep her family safe and worrying about her parents. At times she comes across as bossy or superior but in reality she is just doing what she can with her “ordinariness” to survive. She is a strong character who guides the story and ensures that her family stays together. The rest of the family and other characters are all well written and create tension and work really well within the story.
This story is completely engaging while being just a little bit frightening!!! Readers who like to be kept on the edge of their seat will enjoy this book, especially those who are looking for something a bit more in depth than the Goosebumps series. This book is bound to be one that will become a favourite for readers who want to be scared or are looking for an introductory horror story. I would recommend this book for any school or home library as it is one that I really enjoyed.
Mr Duckins teaches Year 4 - perhaps the smallest Year 4 class in the world - but that's by-the by. His students adore him because he believes that the whole world is a classroom and he encourages them to explore their dreams, no matter how wacky they may be and even if it means you feel safest sitting under your desk rather than at it. He doesn't believe in tests or homework, and most often he is the initiator of the craziest learning opportunities., getting himself into more trouble than those he teaches.
So when he shares the students' favourite book 66 000 Sick and Stinky World Records and discovers that that very day is the last day to submit an entry into that year's lists, he sets off a chain of events that involve eggs, chickens and their bums and emus. Can he eat 1000 eggs in a day? Assuming he can obtain 1000 eggs!
Using text, fonts and illustrations and the sort of language and humour that its target audience of newly independent readers loves, this is another in the new Paw Print series designed to encourage emerging readers to continue reading. And for those who would like to read more about such teachers - maybe wish they were in such a class - you might introduce them to the series about Mr Bambuckle by Tim Harris so they can continue to develop their skills.
Themes Teachers, Eggs, Records, Emus.
Barbara Braxton
I will swim next time by Emily Joof & Matilda Ruta
Floris Books, 2023. ISBN: 9781782508298. (Age:3+)
When the child's mother takes them to the sea for the first time, they are scared and confused by its size, noise and constant movement and is happy to be snuggled in the baby carrier, safe in her mother's arms. As she grows and gets older, her mum takes her to the lake and the river but they still remain unknown and scary although each time she gets a little braver as she learns more about who lives there through the storybooks her wise mother shares. Will she ever have the courage to dip her toe in the water?
Fear of new experiences beyond our comfort zone is common, particularly for our youngest and this is a gentle reminder that it is okay to be cautious and take time to adjust to new things. It's also a reminder to parents that development is not a competition and patience and support are more likely to succeed in the long run, whether that is overcoming a natural reticence for water or something equally as daunting.
While this is an American publication with a Junior Library Guild sticker, (an indication of quality that many US school librarians rely on for collection development), it is particularly relevant to Australian audiences because so many children live in close proximity to water,. and the non-gender specific text and illustrations mean it can work with both boys and girls - there is no differentiation with fear, and it could spark conversations about other things that are causing concerns and venturing forward one step at a time, because there is most likely going to be a next time.
Don’t pick this up expecting to read the usual crime thriller, despite the blurb on the back cover. Although the latter part of the novel examines a true crime case, there are no easy answers. The murderers are three teenagers mindlessly spending the day passing time with their victim. If there is a real villain in this story it is addiction. The four all drop in and out of methamphetamine highs and at the end of it all there is a dead body.
Catt, an author and critic, is the central character. She is an avatar for Chris Kraus herself, and the first two sections of the book are largely autobiographical, recounting her childhood in an aspirational middleclass family with much focus on her developmentally delayed sister Carla, and then her adult life partnered to a repeatedly relapsing alcoholic. Catt herself was a bit of a wild child, taking risks and experimenting with alcohol and drugs. But she comes through that stage of life and emerges as a successful writer giving presentations around the country. The question is, how is it that she survived that risky teenage period, but others don’t? And what can be done to help those young people?
If anyone should have answers, you might think it would be Catt’s husband Paul, a youth counsellor. But he suffers himself with alcohol addiction, and despite good intentions and numerous ‘fresh starts’, he finds himself constantly returning to the bottle. As a counsellor seeing the wave of teenage meth addiction, he wonders if there is anything that actually works for the kids he is supposed to be helping.
The novel as a whole is told in a detached kind of way, placing events in the context of social changes and Trump campaigns, a narration without explanations of emotions, motives and actions. The reader is given insight into daily lives, and social media interactions, but there are no simple explanations. It is a tangle of moments, people drifting in their lives, with decisions that go nowhere. I’m reminded of Diana Reid’s Signs of damage, a refutation of the idea that you can comfortably explain current behaviour by examination of past trauma. Kraus’s latest book raises more questions than it answers, and will leave you pondering the issues long afterwards. This book would be of interest to readers interested in psychology and social issues.
Themes Addiction, Social media, Delinquency, Alcoholism, Poverty.
Niven herself confesses to having enjoyed books in her youth that left her “in a constant state of chilled, delicious unease” and in this book she has managed to share that experience with a new generation of YA readers. This book is set within a gothic-inspired educational institution in the USA with a cohort of mostly privileged teens who each carry their own strengths in the creative writing arena, but they also bear personal weaknesses and struggles. In a term-break in the bleak cold weather of a snowy winter, a specially selected cohort is chosen to participate in a live-in competitive creative writing workshop that also involves a psychological ‘deep-dive’ to support their creative process. The leader of this workshop is herself an old-scholar and successful author who has succeeded despite a problematic book released with the accusations of plagiarism, and the pall of the death of her classmate during a similar workshop. Her leadership is both creatively influential and suspect, but each teen is feeling the power of the insights she shines on their writing. But for those who grieve, who battle insecurity within their families or friendship circles, or the challenge of resurrecting a romantic relationship, there is a growing sense of discomfort and doubt about the patron who leads them, but who also has the power to dismiss them with minimal notice. Is she to be trusted at all or is she a monster?
This book is compelling and darkly intriguing. The dark thriller carries an ominous and eerie atmosphere over an ‘academic experience’ that is designed to offer an impressive reward to the participants. When competition creates divides between fellow students that make them feel manipulated and undermined, there is also a psycho-social threat over them. This is reminiscent of the ‘Hunger Games’ challenge amongst teens and the tension is akin to E Lockhart’s YA thrillers. The injection of distrust and the foreboding storm-like weather adds its own dark tension. The romance aspect (two teens restore a physical and romantic relationship that had essentially disintegrated prior to the workshop experience) is woven with grief and friendship dilemmas and other concerns for the teen participants. Can they survive to tell their stories? The manipulation of them all is evident, but as readers we are constantly left wondering if it is we who are being manipulated. This is an awesome YA thriller for readers aged 15+. Niven can create a dramatic storyline while also giving hints about how to write well, so those who want to explore life as a writer will also find gems within the pages. This story would make an excellent Teen film! (Ironically, this is exactly what Niven implies happens in the novel itself.)
Themes Thriller, USA education and students, Privilege, Mystery, Romance, Friendship, Competition, Creativity, Grief.
