Nesting

Ciara Fay, a young mother with two daughters, decides that she must leave her family home to escape from her abusive husband. Since her marriage she has been under her husband's control, has had no access to money except to purchase specific items, is not allowed contact with friends or family and has been prevented from returning to work. Her  husband does not help with the children's care or housework. Ryan has never hit Ciara or the children but he is verbally abusive, controlling and intimidates her psychologically and sexually. She also later discovers that he has placed an app on her phone so he always knows where she is.

Ciara has left home with the children before but was forced by Ryan to return. She is determined not to allow this to happen again. Finding suitable accommodation that she can afford is not easy and she spends nine months in housing accommodation where she needs to sign in each night to keep her room. However she does begin to make friends who help her and she finds temporary employment. However Ryan will not leave her alone and is determined to regain control.

In Nesting Irish author, Roisin O'Donnell has written a moving account of the difficulties faced by women if their marriage breaks down. She also writes about the difficulties of the homeless in finding accommodation and employment in Ireland.

Here one moment

It is an ordinary plane trip from Hobart to Sydney. The flight was delayed but once in the air all appears normal until a woman stands up and begins to walk slowly down the aisle giving each passenger a pronouncement as to how and when they will die. Most of the passengers are too surprised to take her predictions seriously and when the airline staff convince her to return to her seat she falls asleep. However, for many of the passengers the predictions cause anguish and fear, especially when three of the predictions appear to be true.

Here One Moment by Liane Moriarty provides chapters on how some of the passengers react to the predictions of their future. For some life continues as usual while for others it is an opportunity to change their lifestyle. The novel also provides background regarding the life of lady on the plane and how she came to be on that flight.

The novel examines the notion of free will and destiny as well as love and grief. Allusion is made to the concept that a small change such as a butterfly flapping its wings can cause catastrophe elsewhere - part of chaos theory. In this novel Liane Moriarty explores how some characters react to hearing of an unexpected event that may, or may not, affect their future.

No More Secrets

Carter Pierce runs the family property at Blue Moon. He reluctantly agrees to the visit of a journalist who wants to write a story about the property for a magazine as his mother feels that this is a great opportunity to promote the property. However he is not prepared for the changes that will occur in his life when Summer Lentz arrives to write her story. 

There is an instant attraction between Carter and Summer, however both Carter and Summer have secrets they are reluctant to reveal. As their relationship develops they realise they must be honest with each other if the relationship is to become permanent. They also discover that their attempts to keep their relationship secret are futile, especially when they are living in a community that thrives on gossip.

No More Secrets by Lucy Score is a cozy, romantic comedy with emphasis on romance. The reader is introduced to a range of sometimes eccentric characters (animals as well as people) living at Blue Moon who will feature in future books in the Blue Moon Series.

The God of the Woods

In 1961 a young boy goes missing on the family property and fourteen years later has still not been found. Then in 1975 his sister, Barbara, also disappears. As the search for Barbara continues some of the police become interested in reopening the case concerning the disappearance of her brother. There is a feeling held by many of the locals that the wrong man was charged with causing the boy's death. 

In The God of the Woods by Liz Moore the story is revealed over many time frames and through the eyes of a variety of characters. The land where the story takes place is owned by the Van Laar family and consists of the family property and Camp Emerson - a summer campsite for children. Characters who help reveal the plot are Louise (a camp leader), Tracy who is attending the camp, Alice Van Laar (the mother of the missing children), Carl Stoddard who worked on the property, Judyta who is an investigator searching for Barbara, Jacob (an escaped criminal) and Victor Hewitt who managed the property when the boy disappeared.

As a party is being held at the house each time one of the children disappears there are many suspects to investigate and the thread of the story changes frequently before the reader discovers what happened to both of the children. The plot of the novel is a little like meandering through the woods until the ending is revealed. This is the story of a complicated family and friends who are determined to protect the family name and business.

Orbital

Set in the near future, Orbital by Sarah Harvey is an account of one day in the life of four astronauts and two cosmonauts in a spacecraft, orbiting 250 miles above Earth. Each day the spacecraft completes 16 orbits of the earth - orbiting the planet once every 90 minutes. Each chapter covers one orbit. 

The book describes the daily lives of the occupants of the spacecraft - four men and two women; two Russians, one Japanese, one British, one Italian and one American - as they carry out their scientific experiments, exercise to keep fit, send regular reports back to base, eat, sleep and adjust to the different environment of living in space for a prolonged time. There is time to reflect on life and family back on earth and the damage being done to the environment. There is also concern about the quantity of space junk circling the earth. The first manned spacecraft for many years has just left Earth for the Moon which causes another avenue for reflection about the future of space travel.

Orbital to a large extent reads like a poem as it records the different views, thoughts and activities of the spacecraft occupants. It is a short novel, only 136 pages. Orbital by Sarah Harvey won the 2004 Booker prize for fiction.

No Trace

Gabe Ahern has a job working on the Goldmont Station in the Pilbara, the property of an old friend. After the events that occurred in Wild Dogs Gabe realises that he must attempt to vanish without a trace in order to hide from those wanting to kill him. He is relatively successful until a group of members of the public arrive at the station for a holiday. Once one person recognises him his identity becomes public knowledge. Gabe also receives a phone call from the police warning him that one of the men arrested for people smuggling and selling drugs is being released and will probably want to find him.

I know that this is a cliche but once again No Trace by Michael Trant is a fast paced, tension filled thriller that is difficult to put down. It is not long before things begin to go wrong on the station - the station helicopter crashes, the telephone and internet connection are broken and a guest is found dead. Gabe is also aware of other problems occurring on the station and has the feeling that he is being watched. Who is responsible? Is it one of the guests or are there other people hiding on the property who want to kill him?

No Trace is the second book in the Gabe Ahern Aussi Noir series by Michael Trant.

The Hotel Avocado

 The Hotel Avocado by Bob Mortimer is a continuation of the story of the lives of Gary and Emily who we originally met in The Satsuma Complex. Gary continues to work in a law firm in London while Emily has moved to Brighton where she is upgrading the hotel she has inherited from her father. Gary and Emily continue to meet in Brighton each weekend. In order to attract publicity for the hotel, Emily decides to purchase a model of a giant avocado to use as the hotel sign. However, before the avocado can be suspended from the balcony permission needs to be obtained from the local council and the chair of the planning department is known to be corrupt.

Meanwhile Gary has his own issues in London. He is working to help his elderly neighbour, Grace, have visiting rights to see her grand-daughter again. But then as the trial of the police who were arrested in the previous novel is looming, Gary is targeted by two men working for the criminals to persuade him not to attend the trial to give evidence that would convict them. His only solution is to disappear for awhile.

The story is told largely through the voices of Gary, Emily and Grace plus a fourth voice whose identity is only revealed at the end of the novel. The squirrel that Gary communicated with in the first book also makes an appearance.

The author's humour and quirky method of weaving a story is a feature of the book which will appeal to those who enjoy Bob Mortimer's quirky story-telling abilities. The result is a light, amusing enjoyable read.