“A powerhouse of tension from this debut author. A summer holiday in the 80s on Wellington’s Kapiti Coast.”
Set over summer of 1985, Alix’s family book a bach on Wellington’s Kapiti Coast to take time out in more ways than one – a last chance for her parent’s marriage and an older sister intent on carving her own way.
A tense tale told through the lens of ten-year-old Alix and Kahu her new friend and fellow holidaymaker.
With Alix as narrator, the reader is positioned to ‘knowing more’ (through our adult lens) and our heart leaps at the oddities Alix notices and the risks she will take.
What lurks in the summery shadows and who is the neighbour perched high on his deck with his eyes set in their direction?
Keep in mind that these are the eighties and no cellphones, tech and surveillance nor a strong awareness of risk and stranger danger. The narrative will have your brain sparking as you notice all the sinister clues.
A Beautiful Family is breath-holding, rapid page-turning through to the end and danger is the lone thread through the normality of a simple holiday.
Sue Reid
Read By Reid NZ
Allen & Unwin Publishers New Zealand
ISBN 9781761472015