An Afterlife for Rosemary Lamb (Louise Wolhuter, Ultimo)

‘Twisty mystery’ is the delightfully accurate descriptor on the AI sheet for this character-based drama. Yet before its mysterious elements begin unspooling, the characters and setting are firmly established, endearing a cast of vulnerable yet strong misfit women to the reader. Set on the rural north Queensland coast, Louise Wolhunter’s debut encapsulates the alienating nature of small towns. We meet the subdued Meg, who withdrew from society after her husband’s death and exists humbly among nature in a rustic caravan; the more outgoing and much younger newlywed Rosemary, who cleans a local factory and has never belonged; and English-born stranger Lily, who lives in a cottage deep in the bush caring for her ailing husband. Through Rosemary’s charisma and brave reaching out, they begin to bond over weekly trips to the cinema—references to 1980s and 1990s films are peppered throughout—and their shared loneliness, outsider status and suppression of their pasts. After a local child disappears, the safe idyll the women have created comes crashing apart and no-one ends up where they began. Thereafter the plot twists keep coming. The author’s care with her craft—this book is 25 years in the making—results in a magic alchemy of words that provides fresh and enchanting imagery. This novel is engrossing, mostly for the depth with which the characters are drawn and linger in our sentiments. It will be compared with books by writers such as Liane Moriarty—female friendships, small-town drama-mysteries, secret-filled pasts—and should not disappoint.

Joanne Shiells is a high school English teacher and former editor of B+P. Read her interview with Louise Wolhunter here.

Books+Publishing pre-publication reviews are supported by the Copyright Agency Cultural Fund.

Category: Reviews