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Novel set in rural QUEENSLAND

15th November 2021

Those Hamilton Sisters by Averil Kenny, novel set in rural Queensland.

Novel set in rural Queensland

It is 1955 and in Noah Vale, rural Queensland, memories are long and minds are narrow.   The Hamilton sisters, twenty-year-old Sonnet, twelve-year-old Fable and three-year-old Plum have been recently orphaned and have come to live in the small cottage formerly owned by their mother, Esther.  It is twenty years since their mother was driven out of the place in shame, but it quickly becomes evident that the townsfolk remember her story all too well and also are more than content to make Esther’s daughters suffer for it.  The Hamilton sisters have the support of their Aunt Olive and Uncle Gav although Sonnet, strong, capable and independent, has taken on the role of mother to her siblings and strenuously resists their offers of help.  To make matters worse, none of the girls know the true story of what happened to their mother all those years ago and, part of the fascination of this novel, is the way in which we discover the back story bit by bit just as Sonnet does.

Averil Kenny’s debut novel is set, in part, in the fictional small town, Noah Vale and also in the sugar cane plantations and rainforest that surround it.  The author’s prose style is full of imagery and quite lyrical particularly when she is describing the haunting and magical rainforest.  She manages to convey a real sense of the seclusion of the place and a feeling of wonder at the beauty of landscape, flora and fauna, so much so that you find yourself believing this this must surely be one of the last, unspoilt places on earth.  Page after page is filled with fabulous creatures: exotic butterflies and birds but also gigantic spiders, poisonous snakes and the utterly terrifying cassowary.  It is very evident that the rainforest is a place the author knows and loves, but it is certainly not a romanticised picture – she leaves us in little doubt about the drawbacks too – the cyclones, floods and punishing heat and humidity.

This is truly masterful writing – so much so that it’s hard to believe it is a debut novel.  The characterisation is superb.  These are fully rounded characters, particularly Sonnet and Fable.  Kenny clearly understands human psychology, particularly the effects of loss and inadequate parenting. Sonnet is a creature of great depth, admirable in her strength, infuriating in her inflexibility and the novel’s ten-year span allows the reader to see her grow and change.

The writer’s understanding of children and their potential to be the cruellest of bullies is evident in some of the extremely powerful scenes in this novel and the stultifying atmosphere of a small town and 1950’s attitudes are brilliantly conveyed.

This is an outstanding debut novel.  It’s got the lot – all of the above and a stonking plot too.  I certainly didn’t predict some of the revelations towards the end.  As for setting, as soon as the world opens up again, I’m saving up and heading for Queensland to see that rainforest before it’s gone!

Ellen for the TripFiction Team

WE CURRENTLY HAVE 3 COPIES IN OUR GIVEAWAY. ENTER HERE. CLOSES 27 NOVEMBER 2021

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