Lois Murphy's debut novel Soon won the Tasmanian Premier's Prize for an Unpublished Manuscript
Soon Synopsis
An almost deserted Town in the middle of nowhere, Nebulah’s days of mining and farming prosperity – if they ever truly existed – are long gone. These days even the name on the road sign into town has been removed. Yet for Pete, an ex-policeman, Milly, Li and a small band of others, it’s the only place they have ever felt at home.
One winter solstice the birds disappear. A strange, residual and mysterious mist arrives. It is a real and potent force, yet also emblematic of the complacency and unease that afflicts so many of our small towns, and the country that Murphy knows so well.
Partly inspired by the true story of Wittenoom, the ill-fated West Australian asbestos town, Soon is the story of the death of a haunted town, and the plight of the people who either won’t or simply can’t abandon all they have ever had. With finely wrought characters and brilliant storytelling, it is a taut and original novel, where the people we come to know and those who are drawn to the town’s intrigue must ultimately fight for survival.
A powerful literary thriller where the dark, yet poetically beautiful detailing of events will draw you into a nightmarish world that will have you questioning your understanding of love and loss, and the very nature of your reality. Atmospheric, intense and thought provoking.’ - Dominique Wilson, author of That Devil’s Madness and The Yellow Papers
(Transit Lounge, October 2017)
BOOK REVIEW
Utterly gripping. Just like the work of Transit Lounge stable mates Jane Rawson and A S Patric, Lois Murphy's debut novel Soon defies genre categorisation.
continue reading
