The Lady of the Rivers follows the life of Jacquetta Woodville—a descendant of the water goddess Melusina—who is drawn into what would later become known as the Wars of the Roses through her two Lancastrian husbands. Throughout the turbulent 15th century, Jacquetta serves both King Henry VI and his queen, Margaret of Anjou, faithfully, sometimes at great personal risk to herself and her family. As a modern reader, it is sometimes hard to understand this sense of duty to the sovereign—the Queen habitually breaks her word and the King is mentally unfit to rule. By the end of the book, however, readers get a glimpse of the way in which Jacquetta’s eldest daughter, Elizabeth, allies the family to the victorious York family. Philippa Gregory continues to bring history to life quite spectacularly in this third book in the ‘Cousins’ War’ series, and she captures the shifting alliances and betrayals in the fractured English court much more than in the previous books. The Lady of the Rivers is set immediately before The White Queen, which stars Jacquetta’s Elizabeth as the proud queen of Edward IV, and readers interested in the history of the period may want to read them chronologically. For further reading, The Women of the Cousins’ War: The Duchess, the Queen and the King’s Mother (Philippa Gregory, David Baldwin & Michael Jones, S&S) compares Gregory’s fiction with historical fact, and will be released along with The Lady of the Rivers.
Emily Smith is a Melbourne-based freelance reviewer. The Lady of the Rivers was featured on the cover of the August issue of Bookseller+Publisher.
John Fingleton is the brother of Australian swimming champion Tony Fingleton, whose autobiographical novel was adapted into the 2003 film Swimming Upstream starring Geoffrey Rush as the boys’ overbearing, alcoholic father. In this story, John offers his own perspective on his father’s character, looking back at Harold Fingleton’s harrowing childhood. The story begins in the 1920s. We’re introduced to Harold as an ordinary seven-year-old boy whose life is turned upside down by the death of his father. His mother, Maggie, is unable to hold herself together financially or emotionally, and turns to alcohol and prostitution. She beats Harold and abandons him for days without food. Eventually, Harold becomes a ward of the state and is sent to St Vincent’s Orphanage, where he is subjected to the harsh treatment of the sisters of the orphanage. Physical punishment soon becomes a way or life as Harold is singled out as a troublemaker. For the next few years Harold bounces back and forth between his mother and the orphanage, until he turns 14 and is released as a ward. With intimidation and fighting all that he knows, it is clear that Harold’s tumultuous childhood will have severe repercussions on his journey into marriage and fatherhood. This tale is reminiscent of stories such as I Can Jump Puddles and Angela’s Ashes; it’s shocking yet heart-warming—a real page-turner. Fans of such biographies and those who have seen the movie, Swimming Upstream, will enjoy this book.
Those who read Diane Armstrong’s memoir Mosaic and her follow-up story of migration, The Voyage of their Life, will recognise a part of the author in each of her subsequent novels dealing with the Holocaust, displacement, survival and new beginnings. Her history is also evident in Empire Day, the engrossing story of the residents of Wattle Street, Bondi Junction, in 1948 Sydney. Half of the street is made up of ‘reffos’ who have escaped post-War Europe—Jewish survivors of the unimaginable camps and Eastern Europeans who have fled communist rule. The others are ‘regular Aussies’ struggling to understand their neighbourhood newcomers and to make ends meet in an era of rationing, before the days of social services and government assistance. Like Maeve Binchy, but with tremendous gravitas, Armstrong demonstrates a talent in making each member of this disparate suburban community a friend as we learn of their differing life challenges. Whether facing social acceptance, polio, poverty or crises of personal identity, love or ambition, their relationships represent a microcosm of a new Australia emerging from the war—a community of migrants that resonates in 2011. Though not literary in style, Armstrong’s book explores her many themes with a roundness and aplomb, while simultaneously providing a thoroughly entertaining multi-strand novel.
Bite Your Tongue by Australian author and academic Francesca Rendle-Short intermingles novel and memoir, looking back to the 1970s at the time of Premier Joh Bjelke-Petersen’s reign over Queensland. It is the story of a teenage girl growing up in Brisbane, and her relationship with her mother, a morals crusader who bans books such as To Kill a Mockingbird and Breakfast at Tiffany’s. The narration is split into two threads, alternating between Rendle-Short and the character of Glory, who is effectively another means for Rendle-Short to tell her story; both narrators are in the process of questioning and investigating their past and their defining relationships. Rendle-Short effectively embraces the hybrid nature of this work, and the transitions between the two narratives are seamless. It is a fascinating and horrifying time in Australian history, brought to life with a deft use of language. You can almost feel the sweat on the kitchen lino and smell the mustiness of the nursing home. Bite Your Tongue will appeal to fans of Australian history and feminist theory, in particular Queenslanders, given the book’s subject matter. Rendle-Short’s previous novel, Imago, won the 1997 ACT Book of the Year Award.
Kathy Reichs’ 
When new girl Miranda arrives at school, Olive and her friend Ami try to ignore the crazy rumours circulating about her past, particularly the one about Miranda killing her parents. Olive has enough to deal with in the wake of her father’s departure, but she can’t help but notice there is something a bit off about Miranda. The way she latches on to the most popular girl in school, slowly driving her other friends away. The way she becomes more and more vibrant as her new friend fades into the shadows. Olive is sure there is something sinister going on, but she hasn’t been too stable over the past year, and her mind could be playing tricks on her again. This well-written, tightly plotted thriller kept me reading long into the night. There were a number of twists and turns that I didn’t see coming, making this a book that really stands out in the genre. As with Justine Larbalestier’s Liar, the reader is never sure if what they are getting from the narrator is the full story. This is an enjoyable, exciting read that will suit readers aged 13 and up who are looking for something a little out of the ordinary.