Ellie Marney’s new novel takes the grass-roots feeling of a tight-knit country town, and throws in an explosive mixture of cult ideologies, peer pressure and moral dilemmas. Set in a small town in rural Victoria, White Night tells the story of a status quo shaken by one secretive community, and a boy and a girl who challenge the beliefs of both worlds.
The novel is quintessentially Australian: from the familiar tone of the dialogue to the vividly described settings, Marney expertly crafts a rich world for her characters so that their story takes on a life outside of the book. The way that the natural oasis of Eden is described transports the reader into the scene, delighting all of the senses.
While the story’s main thread revolves around the clashing of mainstream society and an environmental cult, minor plotlines are abundant. When not learning about the obscure community of Eden, the protagonist Bo is dealing with family secrets, doubt about his future, drama with his friends, and the organising of a fateful fundraiser. It can be easy to get lost in these subplots and forget that there’s a focal point to this story.
What begins as a feel-good rural story takes a turn darker than one would expect. No one chooses to write about polarising subject matter like cults and off-the-grid societies without having some kind of strong opinion, but while White Night attempts to show both sides of Eden in the beginning, Marney’s views come across too strongly and suddenly.
Whether communities like Eden are “good” or “bad” is kept purposefully vague for a long time, so long that it seems like Marney is letting the readers make up their own minds. But then the tone of the story takes a sharp twist, as if Marney is afraid her stance isn’t coming across. White Night wouldn’t be a story without Marney pushing Eden one way or the other, but it just needed more time to make the twist believable.
Full of ethical dilemmas and the power of community, White Night is a treasure trove of secrets and much more than it appears.
The absolutely electrifying Australian crime novel ‘The Tell’ by Martin Chatterton weaves a wickedly satisfying tale of Raze Tanic, an upper-class Sydney student whose family-run an illustrious crime ring in the heart of the Australian city. Raze has everything he could ever want, except the relationship with his father, who has been jailed in a …
Highway Bodies is the second novel from Australian author Alison Evans after their debut novel Ida, which received a mixed opinion from readers, reviewers and critics. Set to be released in the February of 2019, Highway Bodies tells the tale of three distinct groups of Melbourne teenagers as the world around them falls victim to …
The Graveyard Book, published in 2008, is a work of Neil Gaiman’s that instantly appeals to readers of the macabre and strange. The novel follows Nobody ‘Bod’ Owens through his experiences of living with a cohort of ghouls and ghosts within a cemetery. The Graveyard Book chronicles his life throughout the graveyard and the places …
Small Spaces by Sarah Epstein is a fast-paced psychological thriller with a distinct Australian flavour. One for those with a morbid curiosity, this novel is rife with dark themes and mind games, leaving you itching to uncover all of its secrets. Tash Carmody is confronted with her past when the ghosts of her childhood reappear …
Melina Marchetta’s coming-of-age novel is a refreshingly mature young adult adventure that captures the feeling on the crux of growing up and watching all that was familiar with the world shift into something new. On the Jellicoe Road transports the reader to a world caught between the dreams of childhood and the horrors of reality, …
Marcus Zusak’s captivating debut novel follows the story of Liesel, who witnesses the death of her younger brother while on a train through Germany. When she discovers a novel hidden in the snow while standing by her brother’s grave, Liesel pockets it, despite the fact that she has not acquired the ability to read. When …
Book Review – White Night by Ellie Marney
Ellie Marney’s new novel takes the grass-roots feeling of a tight-knit country town, and throws in an explosive mixture of cult ideologies, peer pressure and moral dilemmas. Set in a small town in rural Victoria, White Night tells the story of a status quo shaken by one secretive community, and a boy and a girl who challenge the beliefs of both worlds.
The novel is quintessentially Australian: from the familiar tone of the dialogue to the vividly described settings, Marney expertly crafts a rich world for her characters so that their story takes on a life outside of the book. The way that the natural oasis of Eden is described transports the reader into the scene, delighting all of the senses.
While the story’s main thread revolves around the clashing of mainstream society and an environmental cult, minor plotlines are abundant. When not learning about the obscure community of Eden, the protagonist Bo is dealing with family secrets, doubt about his future, drama with his friends, and the organising of a fateful fundraiser. It can be easy to get lost in these subplots and forget that there’s a focal point to this story.
What begins as a feel-good rural story takes a turn darker than one would expect. No one chooses to write about polarising subject matter like cults and off-the-grid societies without having some kind of strong opinion, but while White Night attempts to show both sides of Eden in the beginning, Marney’s views come across too strongly and suddenly.
Whether communities like Eden are “good” or “bad” is kept purposefully vague for a long time, so long that it seems like Marney is letting the readers make up their own minds. But then the tone of the story takes a sharp twist, as if Marney is afraid her stance isn’t coming across. White Night wouldn’t be a story without Marney pushing Eden one way or the other, but it just needed more time to make the twist believable.
Full of ethical dilemmas and the power of community, White Night is a treasure trove of secrets and much more than it appears.
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The absolutely electrifying Australian crime novel ‘The Tell’ by Martin Chatterton weaves a wickedly satisfying tale of Raze Tanic, an upper-class Sydney student whose family-run an illustrious crime ring in the heart of the Australian city. Raze has everything he could ever want, except the relationship with his father, who has been jailed in a …
Book Review – Highway Bodies by Alison Evans
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The Graveyard Book, published in 2008, is a work of Neil Gaiman’s that instantly appeals to readers of the macabre and strange. The novel follows Nobody ‘Bod’ Owens through his experiences of living with a cohort of ghouls and ghosts within a cemetery. The Graveyard Book chronicles his life throughout the graveyard and the places …
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