Review: Put Your Feet in the Dirt, Girl by Sonia Henry

 

Title: Put Your Feet in the Dirt, Girl

Author: Sonia Henry

Published: 30th May 2023, Allen & Unwin

Status: Read May 2023 courtesy Allen & Unwin

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My Thoughts:

Despite the success of her provocative semi-autobiographical debut novel Going Under which highlighted the brutal treatment of medical interns in Australian hospitals, the stress of her Fellowship exams, a broken heart, and being on the frontline of the pandemic left Sydney GP Dr Sonia Henry desperate for a change of scenery. Told with honesty, humour, and heart, Put Your Feet in the Dirt, Girl recounts Sonia’s experiences over the next two years or so while serving as a locum in the outback regions of Australia.

Within days of joining an agency specialising in staffing remote areas, Sonia was making the long journey to the Pilbara region in Western Australia to fulfil a 40 day contract as the sole doctor in a mining town with a population of 300 people. It’s an experience that inspires a mix of awe and terror, both personally and professionally, as Sonia struggles to better understand herself while doing her best to provide health care for the people who live there. She highlights the human cost of the challenges of access to treatment equipment and resources, for both staff and patients, and the frustrating failure of the wealthy mining companies to invest their obscene profits in the health and welfare of the people who work for them.

After three months in the Pilbara, Sonia moves on to outback New South Wales, and from there, to the Northern Territory. In each region she exposes communities plagued by similar disadvantages due to a dearth of access to medical care and resources. I learned that with great swathes of regional and remote Australia having few, and/or no permanent GP’s, severely understaffed hospitals and, at best, sporadic access to specialists, chronic medical conditions, such as diabetes and heart disease, and mental health issues including depression and addiction, are badly managed, if it all. First Nations people are particularly vulnerable to poor health outcomes, though poverty among the population in general is a major contributor, especially for anyone living some distance away from metropolitan or well resourced regional centres.

Only by ‘putting her feet in the dirt’, and her interactions with colleagues, friends, and patients whom she meets on her travels, including a ringer who reads Tolstoy, a dream-walking elder, and a woman determined to end her life on her own terms, has Sonia come to understand some truths about Australia, but also herself, and she urges others to do the same.

Put Your Feet in the Dirt, Girl is an entertaining, candid, and thought-provoking memoir that I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend.

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Review: Time After Time by Karly Lane

 

Title: Time After Time

Author: Karly Lane

Published: 2nd May 2023, Allen & Unwin

Status: Read May 2023 courtesy Allen & Unwin

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My Thoughts:

In Karly Lane’s latest rural romance novel, Alice Croydon is forced to choose between the love of her life and her life-long ambition in Time After Time.

When Alice is offered the opportunity to apprentice at a world renowned fashion label in London, her highschool sweetheart Finn issues her an ultimatum. Alice is torn, she loves Finn and her life in her small country hometown of Gunnindi, but, with the encouragement of her beloved Gran, chooses to go, planning to stay just a year, hoping that Finn will forgive her when she returns.

I can’t reveal what happens after Alice makes her choice without spoiling the story completely, but when Alice finally returns to Gunnindi she is not the same person she was when she left. I liked Alice and I enjoyed her journey, but to be honest the ‘second-chance romance’ reunion didn’t quite work for me personally.

Alice’s grandmother was probably my favourite character in Time After Time, I particularly admired the decision she made to be true to herself. I also liked Alice’s colleagues in London, and laughed at her interactions with the formidable seamstress, Marcella.

Though only about half the book is set in the fictional town of Gunnindi, Lane vividly evokes Australian rural communities, and gives due recognition to its challenges, especially for farmers. I really liked that Lane raises the issue of preserving and revitalising rural industry and it’s many benefits for regional areas.

Written with the warmth, humour and heart for which Lane’s rural romances are known, Time After Time is an engaging read

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Review: Family Baggage by Ilsa Evans

 

Title: Family Baggage

Author: Ilsa Evans

Published: 8th March 2023, HQ Fiction

Status: Read March 2023 courtesy Harlequin/Netgalley

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My Thoughts:

Family Baggage by Ilsa Evans is a heartfelt story that explores family relationships, unfolding over a period of a week in early 2020.

Upon their mother’s sudden death, the task of disseminating and disposing of Enid’s belongings is left to her daughters, Kathryn, Georgette and Annie, whom she privately thought of as The Sorter, The Settler and The Sook. Gathering at their childhood home Kat, the eldest of the three, is prepared with an agenda and colour coded stickers, plus a sensible plan for the immediate care of their brother Harry, who is unable to live independently. The youngest, Annie, immediately resents her sister taking charge and seems overly concerned about getting her share, while George just wants to get through the week without breaking down completely.

There’s plenty of emotion in Family Baggage, fuelled largely by raw grief. Fond reminiscences give way to reignited resentments, Annie in particular seems determined to find fault with her sisters, annoying Kat, and bewildering George. Evans deftly captures the complicated relationship between the women, who may be in their fifties, but tend to interact with each other as if they are still children, a regression anyone with a sibling will likely relate to.

George’s discovery of her mother’s journal introduces an element of mystery to the novel. The entries eventually expose facets of Enid’s life that shocks her daughters, who react in different ways, triggering more conflict. Learning her mother’s secrets leads George in particular to reflect on her own life, and the choices she has made as a woman, a wife, and a mother. This prompted me to ponder the narrow view I have of my own mother, and that my children, now young adults, probably have of me.

Well timed humour is used to good effect, cutting through the tension that often permeates the novel. I also delighted in the oblique references to Evans’ Majic series (which was a favourite of mine).

A moving and thought-provoking novel, Family Baggage is an engaging read.

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Review: The Iron Vow by Julie Kagawa

 

Title: The Iron Vow {The Iron Fey: Evenfall #3}

Author: Julie Kagawa

Published: 3rd May 2023, HQ YA

Status: Read May 2023 courtesy Harlequin Australia

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My Thoughts:

I first read The Iron King in 2010 and I think it was one of the very first books I received from Harlequin Australia for review. While it’s not strictly necessary to be familiar with the Iron Fey series which includes the four books of The Iron Fey (The Iron King, The Iron Daughter, The Iron Queen and The Iron Knight) and The Iron Fey: Call of Forgotten trilogy (The Lost Prince, The Iron Traitor and The Iron Warrior), plus various novellas, you should have read the first two books of the Evenfall spin-off trilogy, The Iron Raven and the The Iron Sword, to enjoy The Iron Vow, which also serves as a finale for the for the whole of the Iron Fey series. I’ve read each instalment as it has been released, but if you haven’t, or you have forgotten what has transpired, given the books have been published over a 13 year period, Julie Kagawa helpfully provides a brief recap of the entire Iron Fey series in the first few pages of The Iron Vow.

“Let me tell you a story.
The story of a girl who went into the land of faeries, met a prince, and fell in love.”

As I had surmised given the previous books in the Evenfall trilogy, Meghan is the narrator for The Iron Vow, and the contrast between the teenager who first stumbled into the NeverNever and the Iron Queen of today is satisfying.

The Iron Vow begins where The Iron Sword left off, with our band of heroes, who attempted to stop the vengeful Nightmare King from breaking through from Evenfall, realising they had no choice but to enter his terrifying realm to ensure the immortal King never wakes up. So now Meghan, accompanied by her husband Ash, son Kierran, Puck, Nyx and Grimalkin, are in a deadly world with no natural glamour (hence no ready access to magic) on a dangerous mission to save not only all of Faerie, but also the Human world.

I don’t want to give too much away but the story progresses as you would expect, with the group battling their way through a hostile land populated by monstrous nightmares, offering plenty of fast paced action. They unearth secrets, find unlikely allies, and are forced to confront their own nightmares to reach their goal. To prevail  demands a grand sacrifice, and unprecedented cooperation. It’s as tense, exciting, emotional, and entertaining as you would want from this series finale.

The characters remain true to who they have become over the series. Meghan is noble, Ash is protective, Kierran yearns for redemption, Puck cracks jokes, Nyx is deadly, and Grimalkin always disappears at the first sign of trouble. I’m a little sorry to say goodbye to them after all this time, though the epilogue provides some comfort.

I’ve very much enjoyed The Iron Fey series, and I’m sure it will continue to capture the imagination of readers of young adult fantasy.

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Review: No Comment by Jess McDonald

 

Title: No Comment: What I Wish I’d Known About Becoming A Detective

Author: Jess McDonald

Published: 25th May 2023, Raven Books

Status: Read May 2023 courtesy Bloomsbury/NetgalleyUK

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My Thoughts:

A staffing crisis in the British Metropolitan Police Service led to the introduction of a controversial initiative called the Direct Entry Detective Scheme in 2017. Jess McDonald was one of 4,500 applicants, and underwent a rigorous vetting process to become accepted into the programme.

“The book I intended to write was one that bridged the gap between people’s fascination with true crime and their lack of insight about what it actually is to be a detective. The one I’ve written turns out to be far more significant.”

For thirty-something Jess, the programme had immediate appeal, not only because of her love of true crime podcasts, but because she felt strongly about justice, in part triggered by civil case she had brought against her former employer.

In No Comment Jess describes the multi-step interview process and her excitement at being one of just 30 scheme candidates to begin training in the Spring of 2018, before sharing her experience as a probationary detective in the CSU. It’s a fascinating, surprising, and sometimes harrowing glimpse into the world of modern police investigation, particularly in relation to domestic violence. As a ‘Direct Entry’ Jess faces some unique challenges, including disapproval from colleagues who don’t support the scheme, and while for months she remains motivated and determined to succeed, the excessive workload, the punishing shifts, and the erosion of her ideals wears her down.

Details of Jess’s personal life are interspersed among the narrative, and I understood why these intimate elements were included though I found them a bit uncomfortable at times.

These personal stressors, combined with the intensity of Jess’s training, induced a bout of depression that alienated her supervisor and led to workplace bullying, which directly precipitated her eventual resignation barely 12 months of graduation. She was not the only Direct Entry to leave, to date only four members of her own class remain in the service, the result, she suggests, of a number of factors.

“It was naive but, before joining the police, I had only ever thought about what I would do and achieve, what I had to give. I hadn’t spared a thought for what it might do to me.”

Written with honesty and self reflection, in a personable tone, No Comment offers interesting insight into the experience of working as a detective attached to CSU in London, albeit under unusual circumstances. I think it would be a valuable read for anyone interested in joining the police force, especially those considering the Direct Entry Scheme.

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Review: Drowning by T.J. Newman

 

Title: Drowning

Author: T.J. Newman

Published: 1st June 2023, Simon & Schuster UK

Status: Read May 2023 courtesy Simon & Schuster AU

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My Thoughts:

Ladies and gentlemen, please be seated, fasten your seatbelt, and be ready to brace for T.J. Newman’s exhilarating sophomore novel, Drowning.

Just minutes after takeoff from a Hawaiian airport, Flight 1421 suffers catastrophic failure and plunges towards the Pacific Ocean. Those that survive the ditching frantically exit the bobbing plane, but twelve people are still onboard when it begins sinking beneath the waves.

From the opening line the reader is thrust into the emergency as the pilots battle for control of the failing plane. This initiates an urgent pace that rarely lets up as Drowning unfolds (except for a short flashback) over a roughly five hour timeline. As the souls on board fight to survive, and the Navy strives to rescue them, each time salvation seems near, it slips away, ratcheting the tension exponentially.

The third person narrative shifts between that of the trapped survivors, and the rescue contingent. Among those on the downed plane which includes the Captain, two airflight attendants, an elderly couple, four unrelated passengers, and an unaccompanied minor, is Will, an engineer, and his eleven year old daughter, Shannon, who have a central role in the story. And it is Chris, Shannon’s mother and Will’s estranged wife, who as an industrial diver, becomes a key player in the rescue effort. There’s plenty of emotion as characters confront fear, loss, regret, and their own mortality.

As a former flight attendant, Newman writes with authority in regards to aviation operations, and though I can’t attest to the accuracy of the technical elements of the novel, it presents as authentic. I found the scenes easy to visualise, and much like her debut novel, Falling, I imagine Drowning will also be optioned for the big screen.

With its well executed, high stakes premise, Drowning is a thrilling read that will leave you breathless.

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Bookshelf Bounty

 

Every third Sunday of the month I share my Bookshelf Bounty – what’s been added to my TBR tile recently for review from publishers, purchases or gifts.

This month I’m linking up with Mailbox Monday

Click on the cover images to view at Goodreads

For Review 

(My thanks to the respective publishers)

 

Review: The Rush by Michelle Prak

 

Title: The Rush

Author: Michelle Prak

Published: 3rd May 2023, Simon & Schuster AU

Status: Read May 2023 courtesy Simon & Schuster

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My Thoughts:

The Rush is an exciting and gripping debut thriller from Michelle Prak set in the outback of South Australia.

Quinn is late returning to the isolated Pindarry Hotel on the Stuart Highway, where she works and lives, when, through the rain, she spies a badly injured man on the roadside, and unable to leave him there, drags him into her car.

Andrea is anxious when her husband leaves her at the Pindarry Hotel to help an elderly farmer whose property is flooding. With the pub sandbagged and their employee, Quinn, due to arrive any minute, Andrea resolves to stay calm for the sake of her sleeping two year old son, until the power goes out, and a stranger comes to the door demanding to be let in.

Hayley, traveling from Adelaide to Darwin on the Stuart Highway with her boyfriend Scott and backpackers Livia and Joost, is only concerned for her carefully planned itinerary when the rain starts on their second day of travel. But then the roads begin to flood, and as tensions among the foursome grow, Hayley finds herself in a desperate rush for sanctuary.

The Rush is a fast-paced read as it largely unfolds from the perspectives of Quinn, Andrea, Hayley and Livia over a period of about two days. Suspense is introduced early, and built on effortlessly. The threats are recognisable and engender empathy for the characters at risk. Red herrings belie a breathtaking climactic reveal, that provides a unique twist on the story’s themes.

Prak somehow renders the vast landscape of outback South Australia claustrophobic  as the characters converge on Pindarry. The violence of the storm, as it strips away modernity, releases a feral energy that enhances the oppressive atmosphere.

A well crafted addition to the oeuvre of rural Australian crime fiction, The Rush is an immersive and riveting read.

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Review: The Book That Wouldn’t Burn by Mark Lawrence

 

Title: The Book That Wouldn’t Burn {The Library Trilogy #1}

Author: Mark Lawrence

Published: 11th May 2023, HarperVoyager GB

Status: Read May 2023 courtesy HarperCollinsAU/Netgalley

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My Thoughts:

“We’re all the story we tell about ourselves….That’s all anyone ever is – the story they tell, and the stories told about them.”

The Book That Wouldn’t Burn is the beginning of an ambitious new fantasy series by Mark Lawrence.

Within the city of Crath is the Atheneum, an infinite labyrinth that holds one copy of every book that has ever been written. The Library, it is said, is the source of truth, and whomever controls it, rules the kingdom. But the Library has its own power, and cedes none.

Livira lives in the Dust outside the walls of Crath. When her village is attacked by Sabber’s she expects to die, instead she is rescued, and with the intervention of Deputy Head Yute, is admitted as an Atheneum trainee, the first of her kind.

Evar lives in a sealed chamber deep within the Library, it is the only place he has ever known. With him are Clovis, Kerrol, Starval and Mayland, not related by blood but siblings nevertheless, watched over by automatons, The Soldier and The Assistant.

Told from the alternating perspectives of Livira and Evar, The Book That Wouldn’t Burn unfolds at a good pace. It takes some time before the two protagonists intersect as the story weaves through the present, the past, and the future, in unexpected ways.

Livira, whose name means ‘weed’, is a wonderfully entertaining protagonist. Despite her outsider status, Livira earns the loyalty of friends, and refuses to give quarter to those who wish to see her fail. Curious, Intelligent, tenacious, and a little reckless, the secrets of the Library are a puzzle she is determined to solve.

Evar, who unlike his siblings has no memory of his life before the Library, is a somewhat melancholy figure, longing for something he can’t name. While Clovis, Kerrol, Starval, and Mayland all possess an obvious skill, seemingly a gift of the Mechanism that brought them to the chamber, Evar believes he has none but what they have taught him.

Exploring themes such as tradition, knowledge, power, truth, memory, war and xenophobia, our current reality is often reflected in Lawrence’s fantasy. I highlighted several blocks of text that struck me as I read, particularly those about the use, and misuse, of information.

The Book That Wouldn’t Burn is, of course, also an ode to the magic of reading, books, literature, and libraries. The Atheneum is in many ways a character itself, an infinite labyrinth of secrets, cared for by android-like guides, including a delightful mechanical raven, with their own mysterious agenda. It makes for an extraordinary setting that will appeal to any booklover.

I was taken aback by several clever twists in the plot, some of which genuinely surprised me. The story’s secrets remain elusive until the exact moment that Lawrence reveals them. There is plenty of action, from brief skirmishes to panicked chases, that accelerates as the end draws near to a cliffhanger ending. Though Livira is the more compelling character, there are moments of triumph, and of heartbreak, in both perspectives that support suspense and interest. Romance plays a low key role in the story, but there is a lot of heart in the relationships between allies.

Having not read anything by Mark Lawrence before I was pleased to find his prose is often lyrical and evocative, given to thought-provoking turns of phrase. There is also wit, warmth, and glimpses of self awareness in the writing. At times there is repetition in the narrative, but it’s only a minor issue.

A complex, intriguing, and utterly enchanting novel, The Book That Wouldn’t Burn delivers an absorbing read, and promises more to come.

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Review: Don’t Call It Hair Metal by Sean Kelly

 

Title: Don’t Call It Hair Metal: Art in the Excess of ’80s Rock

Author: Sean Kelly

Published: 16th May 2023, ECW Press

Status: Read May 2023 courtesy ECW Press/Netgalley

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My Thoughts:

“But in the end, don’t call it hair metal. It’s only rock’n’roll. And I like it. I think you might too.”

These days I’m not exactly an melophile. As a pre-teen/teen I spent pocket money on cassettes (and later CD’s), I bought Smash Hits magazine, watched Video Hits andCountdown, and listened to the Top 40 on the radio, fingers poised to press ‘Play’ and ‘Record’ to make my own mixtapes. I went to a handful of big act concerts, saw some smaller bands in pubs, and went clubbing all night. I even dated a bass guitarist in a heavy metal garage band who tried to teach me to play Led Zeppelin’s Stairway to Heaven. But then I got married and had kids and for the next decade or so The Wiggles and High 5 played on repeat. All this explains, I think, why my taste in music tends to be stuck in the 1970’s and ‘80’s. From the pop hits to the power ballads, the one-hit-wonders to, yes, hair metal, I love it all.

In Don’t Call It Hair Metal, Sean Kelly defends the integrity of the hard rock bands whose sartorial style of big hair, spandex and leather outfits, makeup and showmanship, belied their musicianship. As a musician himself, he writes with authority as he explores the influences on their sound, defined by the combination of a traditional heavy metal sound with elements of pop-influenced hooks, guitar riffs, and shreds, it’s evolution as the look and sound captured commercial interest, and its eventual decline in popularity. Commentary from iconic musicians provides insight into, and reflection on, the era of the industry, including both its music and its culture.

Among the many bands Kelly makes reference to are Twisted Sister, Bon Jovi, Aerosmith, Whitesnake, Skid Row, Stryper, Warrant, Def Leppard, LA Guns, Slaughter, Kiss, Cinderella, Poison, Europe, Guns N Roses, and Motley Crue. I ended up browsing through YouTube searching out well remembered, and forgotten, hits to watch the performances with new appreciation, and fond nostalgia.

I appreciated the moments that Kelly wrote about his own connection to the music, because for me songs are almost always tied to memories. I have to admit, a lot of the technical information in this book went right over my head, so I think perhaps it’s best suited for readers conversant with musical knowledge to extract full value from it.

While I may not know much about music, I know what I like, and whatever Kelly, or others, wants to call it, I’ll continue to enjoy playing air guitar and belting out the lyrics whenever Livin’ on a Prayer, We’re Not Gonna Take It, or Paradise City play.

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