Book Review – Sheerwater by Leah Swann

Dear Readers,

I did a very stupid thing recently. I forgot to download NetGalley book for review and now it is in archives… But you do not mess with Russian. I found the book and…

It’s been a while since I read a book in one go. I forgot about everything else. I could not leave the book. I could not take my eyes of the page… I guess I do not have to write another word as a review, don’t I?

Synopsis

Ava and her two young sons, Max and Teddy, are driving to their new home in Sheerwater, hopeful of making a fresh start in a new town, although Ava can’t help but keep looking over her shoulder. They’re almost at their destination when they witness a shocking accident – a light plane crashing in the field next to the road. Ava stops to help, but when she gets back to the car, she realises that somehow, among the smoke, fire and confusion, her sons have gone missing …

From a substantial new Australian writing talent, Sheerwater is tense, emotional, unforgettable. Perfect for readers of Mark Brandi’s Wimmera and Stephanie Bishop’s The Other Side of the World, this is a beautifully written, propulsive, gut-wrenching and unputdownable novel – an aching, powerful story of the heroic acts we are capable of in the name of love.

Review

I can not but start with ‘I saw myself in every word’. I saw my ex-husband in every word. I was so thankful that my ex-husband turned out to be a very lazy and incapable… Because if you are a monster and have excessive energy and craft… you get to be in Sheerwater.

The book is unputtable. The narration is unstoppable. It takes you, spins you and spits you out at very unexpected points.

The plot is twisted to keep you aching for more. It is never crystal clear who is in the wrong and who is in the right. Reader is left guessing which side to take, which parent to identify with.

Leah created such a monster, one can get scarry guessing where could she have found such an image, such a complex and crafty character. Lawrence (dad) in Sheerwater is epitome of evil, sociopathy and psychopathy. He is amazing. He is the Apollo he sees himself to be.

Mum in this story is the Mum epitomised. She lives in her kids, for her kids and by her kids. They give her the strength, the power and the drive.

I hope Leah did not live through anything like the story she shares with her readers. Otherwise… this story is so painful to watch, so hurtful to unfold and so incredibly real and raw, one had to go through this hell to be able to write it all out.

I gave this book 5 Stars.

This book put me in a stupor… But one sentence made me laugh out loud.

‘She no longer wore that ring. She’d sold it for almost nothing – it turned out the diamond wasn’t real’.

Leah, I believe you eavesdropped on me when I wanted to get rid of my engagement ring after divorce… This one sentence says it all: about the marriage and about the person one is married to…

Thank you to But Books are Better for this amazing image.