lucyblack's review against another edition
5.0
Surprisingly great. Beautiful twists and turns in a short and well paced novel. The heat, the grass, the dog and the misery thrum off the page.
A story of a working class country kid being pulled into middle class Masterton in 1999 and into one family’s pain and drama. Gothic, intriguing, mystical, funny, relatable. This is going to be on my recommendations for people who want to read a New Zealand novel.
A story of a working class country kid being pulled into middle class Masterton in 1999 and into one family’s pain and drama. Gothic, intriguing, mystical, funny, relatable. This is going to be on my recommendations for people who want to read a New Zealand novel.
ariereads's review against another edition
5.0
Another step in my attempt to stop giving in to the "cultural cringe" and actually read books by Aotearoa New Zealand authors.
Each and every book I have read for this reason has utterly proven why these authors should be read for reasons in their own right - this in particular is a stunningly crafted little tale and highly recommended. Will review further.
Each and every book I have read for this reason has utterly proven why these authors should be read for reasons in their own right - this in particular is a stunningly crafted little tale and highly recommended. Will review further.
cmoo053's review against another edition
5.0
This novel was unexpectedly magnificent. Tess is a true New Zealand Gothic love story. It is a novel about people who don't quite fit. Each of the characters is caught in an intensely conflicted; trapped by circumstance and wounded by each other. The relationships are complicated and the world McDougall constructs is a dark and hopeless one. Nevertheless, I thought this novel was expertly crafted. The writing is stark and measured, and the internal lives of the characters are vivid and deep. I loved it.
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