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Sword in the Stars

Sword in the Stars
Once & Future Book Two
Once & Future Review
Written by Amy Rose Capetta and Cori McCarthy
Space Opera, Fantasy, Historical, Retelling, LGBT
368 Pages
Publishing June 16th 2020
Thank you to Bloomsbury Australia
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★★★★
Once and future collide when Ari, Merlin and the Knights of the Rainbow attempt to steal a magical chalice from Earth's medieval past in order to save humanity's future, irreparably entangling our spaceage heroes with the original King Arthur.

Ari plays a risky game of lies and chivalry and Merlin confronts his nemesis, his older self, while all the time they must preserve the time continuum to eventually return to their own future. When the Lady of the Lake interferes, Merlin and Ari realise how much their future has been manipulated by her exquisite machinations of the past. Nin offers a way to release King Arthur's spirit from Ari's body, to end the cruel cycle that keeps them all prisoner and allow them home. But at what cost?

This galaxy altering conclusion unravels the dark truth of Merlin's origins and inspires a new hope for the Once & Future universe.

Every generation, the legendary King Arthur is reawakened and for Ari Helix, she's the first female Arthur and destined to become the heroine that previous Arthurs have forsaken. After withstanding the onslaught from the Mercer Corporation, the group of unlikely companions are travelling back to the middle ages, when King Arthur was an adolescent boy courting the effervescent Guinevere in Camelot. It's imperative that the new residents of Camelot adhere to the original tale as they find themselves enacting the roles of Guinevere, the royal knights and Lancelot, King Arthur's champion, in order to pilfer the chalice and ensure that Arthur is placed upon the throne. 


Sword in the Stars is a brilliantly diverse and vivacious narrative exploring capitalism and genocide. In the world envisioned by A.R. Capetta and Cory McCarthy, the Arthurian legend blossoms and although Once & Future is a wonderfully entertaining read, Sword of the Stars is a fantastical adventure and superbly written finale. Journeying to the historic Camelot, our characters arrive in the midst of King Arthur courting Guinevere, the young King besotted with Gwen who is fatigued and heavily pregnant. Ari gallantly arrives on horseback, assuming the role of Lancelot, the King's champion and who was rumoured to have romanced Guinevere, befalling the young King and Kingdom. Merlin arrives in Camelot rapidly aging in reverse, he must avoid the senior and forbidding Merlin who exists in this world, Merlin being an advisor to a young Arthur. 


Britannia Camelot is a lively and spirited community, intrigued by knight Lamarack. Lamarack is genderfluid, using they / them pronouns and polyamorous. They see the beauty of the Arthurian legend and Camelot and although the Britannia kingdom appears to be conservative, the community are surprisingly accepting and receptive of gender identities and sexuality through their fondness of the treasured Lamarack. Although Lamarack has adapted wonderfully, Jordan is seething and incredibly uncomfortable in her lavish garments. Masquerading as the gallant knight Lancelot and to conceal her gender, Ari binds her breasts. 


The Once & Future duology demolishes gender stereotypes and celebrates sexual and gender diversity throughout the narration of own voices authors. Simply superb! 

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The Invisible Life of Addie Larue

contains sensitivities such as suicide, famine, wartime, neglect and emotional abuse. 

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue
V. E. Schwab
Historical Fiction, Paranormal, Romance, Adult
560 Pages
Published October 2020
Thank you to New South Books
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★★★★★

When Addie LaRue makes a pact with the devil, she trades her soul for immortality. But there's always a price, the devil takes away her place in the world, cursing her to be forgotten by everyone.


Addie flees her tiny hometown in 18th Century France, beginning a journey that takes her across the world, learning to live a life where no one remembers her and everything she owns is lost and broken. Existing only as a muse for artists throughout history, she learns to fall in love anew every single day.


Her only companion on this journey is her dark devil with hypnotic green eyes, who visits her each year on the anniversary of their deal. Alone in the world, Addie has no choice but to confront him, to understand him, maybe to beat him.


Until one day, in a second hand bookshop in Manhattan, Addie meets someone who remembers her. Suddenly thrust back into a real, normal life, Addie realises she can't escape her fate forever.

Adeline Larue leaves her legacy upon the world in glimpses, the twenty three year old woman defined by the constellations bestrewn across her nose. Her life begun at eventide of the seventeenth century in a small riverside community in France. Adeline dreams of the freedoms beyond the confines placed upon young women, choosing adventure, freedom and independence. 


Adeline is betrothed to a widower within the small town, losing his wife and now searching for a woman to care for his four children. Adeline's friends have long since married and created families of their own while Adeline discovered the beauty of her world. On the eve of her arranged marriage, Adeline prays to a higher being for escape, to abscond her small community and chase freedom into the wide unknown. Darkness responds to her distress, bargaining an agreement. Her freedom in exchange for her soul. Lucifer, the handsome stranger with piercing green eyes has granted Adeline with immortality, ensuring only he will remember her. 


The nonlinear narration fluctuates between Adeline's life as a young woman throughout Europe, enduring conflict, wartime, revolutions, lovers both male and female and famine and present New York City. Traversing three hundred years. Adeline is a remarkable young woman, the devastation and heartbreak she's endured throughout the centuries is entirely distressing. A lonely, isolated existence and although Adeline has influenced artists over various generations, no one will remember her beyond her immortalised constellation of freckles. 


The essence of The Invisible Life of Addie Larue is human interaction and the ability to leave our legacy upon the world. Throughout our lives, we imprint on one another and for the immortalised twenty three year old, her imprint remains in the creations of former lovers in galleries all over the world until she happens across Henry Strauss managing a small, independent bookstore in New York City. Henry lives on the fringe of society, preferring his own company although feeling thoroughly alone. 


Twenty eight year old Henry Strauss has endured addiction, loneliness, relationships and heartache, feeling directionless and unmotivated. Identifying as pansexual, both of Henry's long term relationships have ended in heartbreak and a series of unsatisfying sexual encounters followed. Henry's feelings of worthlessness is palpable. He experiences the world profoundly and throughout his narration, we discover the source of Henry's loneliness and distress, until he happens across Adeline. 


Adeline and Henry's relationship is one of companionship rather than a consuming romance, providing one another with a sense of solace and intimacy. They found one another through circumstance and become an aspect of their respective journeys. 


The writing is absolutely immaculate and breathtakingly envisioned. From the desperation of Adeline as a young woman burying her meagre possessions along the riverbank and praying to a higher power to rescue her from the small town monotony, the Seine during the revolution, wartime, Venice and London to present New York City. It's wonderfully atmospheric with a beauty and breadth rarely seen in literature, infatuating and categorically enchanting. 


The Invisible Life of Addie Larue is phenomenal, a masterpiece of modern literature. 

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A Dance With Fate

See my review for A Harp of Kings
A Dance with Fate
Warrior Bards Book Two
Written by Juliet Marillier
Fantasy, Folklore, Celtic
Published July 2020
420 Pages
Thank you to Pan Macmillan Australia
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★★★★☆

An accident. A forfeit of freedom. A descent into danger.

Liobhan, the young warrior and bard, has lost her brother to the Otherworld. Even more determined to gain a place as an elite fighter, she returns to Swan Island to continue her training. But Liobhan is devastated when her comrade Dau is injured and loses his sight in their final display bout. Blamed by Dau's family for the accident, she agrees to go to his home, Oakhill, as a bond servant for one year.

But Oakhill is a place of dark secrets. The menacing and enigmatic Crow Folk still threaten both worlds and while Brocc battles them in the Otherworld, Dau must battle his own demon, despair.

When Liobhan and Dau begin to expose the evil at the core of Oakhill, they place themselves in mortal danger. For their enemy wields great power and will stop at nothing to get his way. It will take all the skills of a Swan Island warrior and a touch of the uncanny to give them any hope of survival...

Returning from her maiden assignment in the Kingdom of Breifne, Liobhan is disheartened at the loss of her brother, choosing to remain with Eirne in the forest realm of the Fair Folk. Continuing their warrior apprenticeship, Liobhan and Swan Island comrade Dau enter the arena for their friendly, noncombative competition, Liobhan discarding her protective clothing as Dau falls heavily, concussed, scarcely unresponsive and visually impaired. Healers of the island cannot guarantee the return of his vision and as a warrior who relies on his senses, Dau is questioning his position within the company of elite soldiers. 


Dau is returning home to Oakhill Estate, his father and his advisors demanding compensation for the accident and to evade questioning about the mysterious Swan Island, Dau reluctantly agrees to return home. Liobhan is held accountable for the accident and volunteers to serve as a bond servant at the family estate, protecting Dau from the cruelty and maltreatment he endured as a boy. Seanan has assumed the position of Master of Oakhill while their father is ailing, a mysterious illness causing confusion and an inability to manage the family estate. Seanan is tyrannical and vindictive, a sociopath who derives pleasure from tormenting his younger brother Dau, using his humanity and gentleness as a weapon. Dau requires treatment but is isolated and his injuries festering, he experiences depression, anger and resentment.

Dau is a Swan Island warrior and without his vision, the feeling of hopelessness is palpable as he contemplates suicide as an alternative. A Dance with Fate explores the trauma of mental health and a diagnosed disability. Visually impaired, Dau is overwhelmed by his remaining heightened senses and begrudgingly accepts assistance. 


As the mysteries of the Oakhill Estate emerge, Brocc remains in the forest realm with Eirne and her fair folk community as he discovers the torture and slain Crow Folk mutilated within the surrounding forest. Brocc is a humanitarian, he cares deeply for his community of small folk and his wife, who is becoming apathetic and distant. Their relationship is entirely superficial. Brocc sacrificed his family, community and position on Swan Island to join the otherwordly community and although Eirne cares for her community, Brocc is their protector, using his voice to protect the Fair Folk from the ferocious Crow Folk attacks. In one particular instance, a messenger reveals that Liobhan may be endangered and rather than forewarn her husband, Eirne chooses to conceal the information, creating a further divide. One of my favourite characters of the otherworld is True, the unassuming and philosophical protector and along with True, the fair folk are beginning to welcome Brocc into their community as a valued family member.


As Brocc and Eirne's relationship begins to fracture, the tentative attraction between Liobhan and Dau is beginning to blossom into a beautiful and delicate intensity. We see Liobhan's compassion and vulnerability, encouraging Dau to remain positive despite the circumstances and guiding a young stable hand in caring for Dau's injuries. Corb is a wonderful character, gentle, patient and although Dau resents not being able to tend to his own injuries and his bruised ego, he and Liobhan come to care for the young man.


The striking aspect of the Warrior Bards series is the atmospheric, whimsical narration infused with Celtic folklore. A Dance with Fate is an engaging and delightfully whimsical installment that explores disability, mental wellness and traumatic disorders. Beautifully lyrical and a remarkable read by one of Australia and New Zealand's finest authors. Juliet Marillier is a national treasure. 

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The Mercies

The Mercies
Written by Kiran Millwood Hargrave
Young Adult, Historical Fiction, Romance
256 Pages
Published January 28th 2020
Thank you to Pan Macmillan Australia
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★★★★★
On Christmas Eve, 1617, the sea around the remote Norwegian island of Vardø is thrown into a reckless storm. As Maren Magnusdatter watches, forty fishermen, including her father and brother, are lost to the waves, the menfolk of Vardø wiped out in an instant.

Now the women must fend for themselves.

Eighteen months later, a sinister figure arrives. Summoned from Scotland to take control of a place at the edge of the civilised world, Absalom Cornet knows what he needs to do to bring the women of Vardø to heel. With him travels his young wife, Ursa. In Vardø, and in Maren, Ursa finds something she has never seen before: independent women. But Absalom sees only a place untouched by God and flooded with a mighty and terrible evil, one he must root out at all costs.

Inspired by the real events of the Vardø storm and the 1621 witch trials, Kiran Millwood Hargrave's The Mercies is a story about how suspicion can twist its way through a community, and a love that may prove as dangerous as it is powerful.
Throughout the island fishing village of Vardø, the women grieve for their husbands, their sons and their fathers as the weather churned the ocean, the fishermen losing their lives. The women of Vardø gathered their deceased loved ones, waiting until the season thawed the hardest terrain and farewelled those captured by the ocean as a man arrives on the Norwegian island. A man of the church to guide the female community spiritually and morally.

Maren Magnusdatter has lost her father, her betrothed and her brother, a newlywed young man expecting his first child. To survive, the women must become self reliant and although the newly appointed Christian Pastor believes it to be improper, food is scarce and the women, more than capable, embrace the role of hunters and gatherers.

The Mercies is based on an event that occurred during the early seventeenth century. A storm decimated Finnmark, forty men lost their lives in Vardø where it is said that the sky and sea merged to drown ten fishing vessels, resulting in the now infamous Vardøhus witch trials and genocide of Indigenous Sámi communities.

Maren is a formidable young woman, intelligent and resilient. Since the storm claimed the lives of the men of Vardø, including her father, brother and her betrothed, the atmosphere within the small coastal village is precarious, women who place their faith in Christianity and those who are tenaciously pursuing their independence. Neither mutually exclusive. The Christian women of Vardø are relying upon the Pastor and Lensmann Absolom Cornet, a Scotsman on behalf of the Monarchy instilled to ensure Christian values are being adhered and practised. The brutality and violence against women is confrontational, women are expected to marry and bear children, serve their community and attend church services. The Lensmann appointment has reverberated throughout the village, creating fissures within the community. On his journey to the small fishing village, Lensmann Cornet married Ursula, a dispirited young woman who reluctantly abandoned her family, her once privileged life and stately home for a small homestead on the island.

The tentative companionship of Maren and Ursula is tender and beautiful, Ursula enlisting the guidance of Maren to learn the customs of the Vardø community and tending to her home. As the Lensmann travelled under his appointment of the monarch, Ursula and Maren begun to depend on one another. Although Maren was betrothed to the young son of a village fishermen, she is attracted to women, preferring their company. Especially Ursula.

Maren's mother is becoming increasingly volatile, choosing the company of the Christian townswomen and isolating Diina and her grandson. Diina's shamanic faith victimising the young mother still grieving for her husband. The courage and fortitude of the women of  Vardø is inspirational, especially Kirsten Sorensdatter, trouser wearer and reindeer caretaker. Kirsten's independence reverberates in whispers throughout the village, those who disobey the Lensmann and refuse to follow the teachings of Christianity are branded as witches, held responsible for the storm. The women guided by Kirsten didn't survive, they thrived until the Lensmann arrived.

The Mercies is a narrative of quiet feminism and the fortitude of woman. The women of Vardø refusing to yield as they are sentenced to death by those shielding behind their faith. Women who refuse to adhere to Christianity and traditional female roles of caregivers, wives and homemakers are branded and sentenced. A remarkable story and beautifully told, The Mercies is unequivocally breathtaking.
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Butterfly Yellow

Butterfly Yellow
Written by Thanhhà Lai
Historical Fiction, Cultural, Diverse, Friendship
296 Pages
Published March 3rd 2020
Thank you to UQP
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★★★★★
Hằng doesn’t believe in adventures.

There are steps that must be done, and once done, another step awaits. The last step, after six years of minute planning by her grandmother, is a bus ride away. In Amarillo her baby brother has to be waiting. In her imaginings, he is always waiting.

National Book Award and Newbery Honor winning author Thanhhà Lại makes her young adult debut in this deeply moving story of courage, redemption, friendship, family and new beginnings.
The conflict in Việt Nam created impoverished conditions, families malnourished, communities decimated as the communist government occupied Southern Việt Nam. Hằng has escaped Việt Nam, her journey as an asylum seeker harrowing as she is resettled with her uncle Chú Quốc and her cousins in the American South. As the conflict in Việt Nam concluded, authorities begun evacuating orphans from Saigon. Hằng and her brother Linh prepared for evacuation among the children experiencing the devastation of losing their families. Their mother and grandmother sacrificing to provide the children with safe passage amidst the conflict.

A young girl only twelve years of age, Hằng was denied passage, Linh forcibly removed from his sister and taken onboard for evacuation. Hằng returning to their small Việt Nam village devastated and grieving for her brother. In his absence, his grandmother became inflicted with illness, his father passing, believing his son was abducted. Hằng has endured famine and conflict as a young woman evading the attention of soldiers settled within the community.

Tens of millions of communities around the world are displaced, seeking asylum from persecution, conflict, violence, or human rights violations within their native countries. In Australia, where many refugees from Việt Nam were brought, our human rights violations are deplorable, denying those seeking asylum refuge. Hằng and her mother boarded a small, crowded fishing vessel en voyage to find Linh. Their journey is fraught with uncertainty, dangerous conditions on a small ramshackle vessel unable to elude pirates on the open waters. Passengers slain, women and girls captured, Hằng disguised as a young boy, surviving as a nonthreatening figure and disregarded.

Arriving in Dallas, Hằng is homed with her uncle Chú Quốc and his family, Vietnamese Americans living affluent lives. The contrast between Hằng and her cousin, both of Vietnamese descent is immense. Hằng isn't consumed by material possessions, she's fixated with finding Linh and although her uncle suggests seeking legal advice, Hằng journeys alone to retrieve her brother.

Leeroy is an aspiring cowboy, modelling himself on a local legendary rodeo champion and travelling the infamous Panhandle in search of the American dream despite his parents insistence on attending college. Ambushed by an Christian couple on Southern hospitality, Leeroy is coerced to accompany a destitute Hằng to her brothers last known address. An unlikely and tentative companionship begins as the two young adults find employment as ranch hands on a sprawling homestead neighbouring Linh and his adoptive mother, his horse lodging at the ranch. It's a precarious situation, Linh or David as he's now known, is twelve years old and seemingly remembers little from Việt Nam, including Hằng. Hằng's intensity is balanced by Leeroy's humour and carefree attitude, David and Leeroy developing an easy rapport while Hằng observes from a distance.

Hằng's narrative is heartachingly tender. Her journey unravels to reveal her ordeal, the traumatic circumstances of leaving Việt Nam, losing her family, losing her brother, the traumatisation she endures in silence. Hằng's character is based on a photograph Thanhhà Lai encountered of a young girl at a Buddhist temple she visited, photographs of lives lost. Her journey is distressing and confronting, encouraging readers to examine our privileges. Although Butterfly Yellow is a fictional narrative of the refugee experience, it represents the precarious and volatile conditions in which those seeking asylum are escaping. Encouraging compassion and understanding throughout the western world. A remarkable and thought provoking read that will ignite discussion.

Achingly beautiful.
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Lizard's Tale

Lizard's Tale
Written by Weng Wai Chan
Historical, Adventure, Middle Grade
Published July 2nd 2019
320 Pages
Thank you to Text Publishing
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★★★★
A thief. A spy. A mysterious codebook. And a whole lot of trouble.

It’s 1940 and World War II is being fought in faraway Europe. Lizard doesn’t know much about that. He lives in Singapore’s Chinatown, surviving on odd jobs and petty theft.

When Boss Man Beng asks him to steal a teak box from a suite in the glamorous Raffles Hotel, Lizard knows the job is important. But can he know just how dangerous it is?

A sinister man appears in the shadows, and Lizard’s best friend, Lili, shows up with unexpected fighting skills and her eye on what’s in the box.

And Lizard finds himself on an exciting, action packed adventure in a world of coded secrets, Japanese invasion plans and undercover spies.
Sebastian Whitford Jones checked into the Raffles Hotel in Singapore, within his room a code book hidden from the Japanese military. The British Empire now occupy Singapore, the colonisation of a country affluent in tradition but for twelve year old Lizard, he's just looking to survive.

Since his Uncle Archie left for the city two years ago and never returned, Lizard has been living in a small cubicle above the local tailors store in little Chinatown, owned by the family of best friend Lili. With his English and Chinese ancestry and ability to speak and write in English, Lizard earns his meagre wages from letter writing, illegal should he be caught. Working for Boss Man is proving more lucrative when Lizard is promised a large payment to steal a secret teak box from the Raffles Hotel, what Lizard didn't count on was Georgina Whitford Jones being in the hotel suite and catching him red handed. Suddenly Lizard is stuck with the stolen box, a girl who threatens to expose his thievery and a best friend living a secret life as an operative in training for the British Empire.

Lizard's Tale is a delightfully entertaining, historical story set within Singapore shortly before WWII. The narrative follows twelve year old biracial Lizard, living alone without a guardian since his uncle disappeared two years ago. With his blue eyes and British accent, Lizard is seen as a lowly caste among the Chinese population and unable to associate with his best friend Lili, seen as being beneath her. Although his money is good enough for Lili's family, Lizard renting a small makeshift cubicle above the family's tailor store in Chinatown, along with several other renters sharing the partitioned space. What begun as a faceless crime to secure his short term future turns deadly, the teak box Lizard steals from the hotel is at the centre of the conflict between the British and Japanese and their fight to occupy Singapore, in the wrong hands could spell disaster.

The one constant in Lizard's life is best friend Lili, she cares for Lizard despite her family's prejudice towards those who are biracial but as close as Lili and Lizard are, Lili hides a secret that may endanger them both. In a Singapore where women are underestimated by society and simply blend into their surroundings, the British Empire train young women in espionage. I love narratives with young women thriving in what are considered make dominated positions and Lili is a wonderful character.

It was incredibly atmospheric, the oppressive humidity of Singapore, the heavenly scent of Chinese and Indian inspired cooking throughout the alleyways, the British accented dialogue drifting from the doorways of international hotels.

Adventurous and enchanting, exploring colonisation, wartime and the changing multiculturalism of Singapore during the forties, Lizard's Tale is spirited and utterly delightful.
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Catch A Falling Star

Catch a Falling Star
Written by Meg McKinlay
Middle Grade, Historical, Contemporary, #LoveOZMG
Published March 1st 2019
256 Pages
Thank you to Walker Books Australia
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★★★★☆
It’s 1979 and the sky is falling. Skylab, that is. Somewhere high above Frankie Avery, one of the world’s first space stations is tumbling to Earth. And rushing back with it are old memories. Things twelve year old Frankie thought she’d forgotten. Things her mum won’t talk about, and which her little brother Newt never knew. Only did he? Does he? Because as Skylab circles closer, Newt starts acting strangely. And while the world watches the sky, Frankie keeps her own eyes on Newt. Because if anyone’s going to keep him safe, it’s her. It always has been. But maybe this is something bigger than splinters and spiders and sleepwalking. Maybe a space station isn’t the only thing heading straight for calamity.
Frankie Avery is watching the skies high above her small town in Western Australia where six years prior, revolutionary space station Skylab was launched into orbit. NASA estimates that Skylab will fall to earth within the next few months, reigniting memories of six year old Frankie, two year old brother Newt and their father in their makeshift star observatory, teaching his children about the limitless depths of space before he disappeared from their lives.

The ramshackle observatory sits derelict, high on the hill holding secrets lost to time. Secrets of a father who is no longer of this world. Of a grieving family, an absent mother and a space station that is falling to Earth on the anniversary of her father's disappearance.

Frankie Avery is a wonderful young lady and narrator of Catch A Falling Star. She's mature beyond her years and currently cares for her brother, the namesake of scientific revolutionary Sir Issac Newton. Caring for Newt is a full time position and while Frankie juggles school, her homework and Newt's endless scientific experiments, she feels the frustration of friend Kat who adores Newt but would like to spend time with her best friend without her little brother tagging along. Frankie's mother works long hours, a nurse at the local hospital who is often late home and asks Frankie to prepare dinner and take responsibility for Newt.

Twelve year old Frankie just wants to please others, her mother, best friend Kat and keep Newt safe from harm, usually of his own doing but as the coverage of Skylab saturates the media, Newt begins tracking the falling space station, collecting information, articles and media reports to piece together when Skylab will fall to Earth. As an infant, Newt was always destined for the stars and although he can't remember, would sit upon his father's knee and watch the skies from their wooden observatory. With their mother working long into the night, Frankie and Newt only have one another and a dusty photo album that contains their father's life.

My heart ached for all Frankie endured, the loss of her father, the responsibility placed upon her young shoulders and the grief she suppresses to maintain the balance at home. I loved the nostalgic Australiana of the late seventies, the feeling of warm summer nights, freshly cut grass and walking to the local milk bar barefooted. Meg McKinlay has created a wonderfully gentle narrative, beautifully tender and an exploration of the many facets of grief and how is reshapes families. Absolutely loved it to the moon and back. 
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Swallow's Dance

Contains sacrificial animal and human death, death and slavery
Swallow's Dance
Written by Wendy Orr
Middle Grade, Survival, #LoveOZMG
288 Pages
Published July 2018
Thank you to Allen and Unwin Australia
Add to Goodreads
★★★★★
Leira's family flee to the island of Crete just before a huge volcanic eruption destroys their island and sends a tsunami to where they thought they had found safety. Another thrilling adventure by acclaimed author Wendy Orr.

I wonder if the first day of Learning is always like this, do the girls on the hill always feel the ground tremble under their feet? Leira is about to start her initiation as a priestess when her world is turned upside down. A violent earthquake leaves her home and her family in pieces. And the goddess hasn't finished with the island yet.

With her family, Leira flees across the sea to Crete, expecting sanctuary. But a volcanic eruption throws the entire world into darkness. After the resulting tsunami, society descends into chaos, the status and privilege of being noble born reduced to nothing. With her injured mother and elderly nurse, Leira has only the strength and resourcefulness within herself to find safety.
Each morning as the sun rises, the small island nation of the Swallow Clan sings the praises of their creator, The Goddess. Leira is preparing for her Learning ceremony, her transformation into womanhood after her first bleed where she will serve The Goddess guided by Our Lady, a woman and spiritual leader among the Swallow Clan community. As the chosen young women begin the pilgrimage upon Crocus Mountain to collect saffron for their ceremonial offering, the mountain begins to tremble. The Goddess has awoken.

The small, spiritual island is experiencing earth tremors as the volcanic activity increases. Residents return to their homes, their offerings and song to The Goddess remain unanswered as the sky clouds with ash, decimating the pastoral landscape. Awoken by the sound, the Swallow Clan community is in ruins. Homes have collapsed including Leira and her mother, her father and brother upon the waves as the island fractures, cursed. As Leira, her mother and elderly servant Nunu are rescued, the neighbouring families find solace within the vast landscape of farmland within the island nation, before sickness infects the community. The island is no longer a haven and reluctantly, families board vessels for the mainland.

Leira is a beautiful young woman, spiritual, whimsical with a quiet determination and wisdom. When her journey to become a woman is overshadowed by the trembling island, Leira believes The Goddess is awakening, the scent of sulphur from the active volcano lingers as a reminder of the sacrifices the community has blessed upon The Goddess. The island women are empowered as their daughters receive their first bleeding, signalling their journey to becoming women and serving The Goddess, a hereditary honour. The tremors become frequent, the crater sending ash across the landscape, smouldering until the island is suddenly decimated.

As her family finds refuge, it soon becomes apparent that her island is contending with starvation, illness and as her father departs for assistance abroad, Leira will be responsible for her mother and Nunu. Since Leira, Nunu and her mother escaped the devastation, her mother has recovered from her physical injuries but has regressed under the emotional anguish of seeking asylum. The narrative also centres upon Nunu and her capacity as a caregiver. Nunu is a servant and although now an elderly woman, was purchased as a child for the purpose of nursing children from the esteemed, privileged family. The displacement of families, vagrancy and slavery from the narrative of a young, privileged girl.

The island mythology is breathtaking and whimsical. Girls are considered women after their first bleeding and chosen for the Learning, serving the Goddess and creator as the community sings the sunrise, throughout ceremonies, illness and for the deceased. The narration cascades between prose and verse, reiterating the significance of Leira's internal monologue and how the young lady matures throughout her journey.

It was magnificent. I was so enamoured by Leira and her island community, the beautiful seaside landscape, the small and colourful dwellings and a community brimming with life and spirit. The research of the island civilisation is superb, recreating the stunning and atmospheric Mediterranean so wonderfully. A true storyteller. Swallow's Dance will be enjoyed for generations to come. Simply brilliant. 
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