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3.98 AVERAGE
3.98 AVERAGE
dark
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
In the Clearing is a taut psychological thriller told from two perspectives. The first is that of Amy, a teenage girl who grows up in a cult, is totally loyal to the leader Adrienne who is known as mother, and has just participated in kidnapping a new member. The other perspective is that of Freya, a yoga teacher and single mother who lives with her young son on the edge of a national park. Freya lost custody of her older child, is extremely security conscious, almost paranoid and is not the most reliable narrator. Of course the two storylines eventually came together, and in a way I wasn’t initially expecting. Pomare excelled in his depictions of creepy cult vibes, the unquestioning almost robotic loyalty, the punishments to those who stepped out of line, and the control exerted by the leader. It was hard to listen to at times. The conditioning of the children and the way this lingered long after the demise of the cult was especially chilling. Learning that this fictional cult is based on an actual cult made it all the darker. Pomare is also a master of red herrings and plot twists of the believable rather than totally out of left field variety. The twist at the end was brilliant. Neither Freya nor Amy are warm or relatable, coming across as cold and detached. I know this bothered some readers, but to me in made sense in the context of their back stories and character arcs. I was first attracted to this books by the cult angle but it was Pomare’s storytelling, pacing and plot twists that kept me hooked.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Child death, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Kidnapping
Thank you to Mulholland Books for providing me with a copy of J.P. Pomare’s novel, In the Clearing, in exchange for an honest review.
Amy has spent her whole life in “The Clearing” home to a reclusive cult in rural Australia. A preteen and the oldest child on the compound, she has been indoctrinated to fear the outside world. Amy’s life is filled with restrictions, brutal punishments, and manual labor. The focus of the cult is to adore and follow the guidance of their leader, Adrienne, whom is referred to as their “mother.” Amy’s life changes when she takes part in the kidnapping of a new child to join their cult.
Freya distrusts society. She lives with her young son, Billy, in a heavily fortified home with a bunker located on the edge of a national park. Freya takes every possible precaution, yet Billy goes missing.
In the Clearing alternates between Amy and Freya’s perspectives. The story is intense and engaging from the first chapter, and I found it difficult to put down. Pomare expertly doles out clues regarding Freya’s past, allowing the reader to piece together the mystery of both Freya and Amy. Neither woman is a reliable narrator, yet both hold clues to the mystery of Billy’s disappearance and their stories collide in the most unexpected twist.
In the Clearing was the perfect novel to read on my winter vacation. Although the story is set in scorching hot, drought/fire prone Australia, the tone is ominous and dark. I cozied up on the couch of our rental home, sheltered from the gloomy weather outside, and dove into this psychological thriller.
It’s an intense read and I can imagine this being turned into an exciting film or television limited series. I’m not easily scared, but elements of the story lingered with me in a haunting way. Pomare has crafted an intriguing plot with fast pacing and memorable characters. If you like thrillers and are not turned-off by a bit of violence, I highly recommend adding In the Clearing to your TBR pile.
Like my review? Check out my blog!
Amy has spent her whole life in “The Clearing” home to a reclusive cult in rural Australia. A preteen and the oldest child on the compound, she has been indoctrinated to fear the outside world. Amy’s life is filled with restrictions, brutal punishments, and manual labor. The focus of the cult is to adore and follow the guidance of their leader, Adrienne, whom is referred to as their “mother.” Amy’s life changes when she takes part in the kidnapping of a new child to join their cult.
Freya distrusts society. She lives with her young son, Billy, in a heavily fortified home with a bunker located on the edge of a national park. Freya takes every possible precaution, yet Billy goes missing.
In the Clearing alternates between Amy and Freya’s perspectives. The story is intense and engaging from the first chapter, and I found it difficult to put down. Pomare expertly doles out clues regarding Freya’s past, allowing the reader to piece together the mystery of both Freya and Amy. Neither woman is a reliable narrator, yet both hold clues to the mystery of Billy’s disappearance and their stories collide in the most unexpected twist.
In the Clearing was the perfect novel to read on my winter vacation. Although the story is set in scorching hot, drought/fire prone Australia, the tone is ominous and dark. I cozied up on the couch of our rental home, sheltered from the gloomy weather outside, and dove into this psychological thriller.
It’s an intense read and I can imagine this being turned into an exciting film or television limited series. I’m not easily scared, but elements of the story lingered with me in a haunting way. Pomare has crafted an intriguing plot with fast pacing and memorable characters. If you like thrillers and are not turned-off by a bit of violence, I highly recommend adding In the Clearing to your TBR pile.
Like my review? Check out my blog!
“You are going out into the world. You will wear a mask for the rest of your life to hide who you really are. No one will love or accept you like me, because they hate us, they dont want us to succeed. You will look and act like them but, in truth, you will never walk away from us. Do you understand?”
I read this book because it was highly recommended by @thejerseyreader! This was a solid read. The plot was there and kept me turning the page. I find cults a fascinating topic and this book really dove into experiences of people who did live in or currently still are members of, a cult. Some things were shocking and very hard to read, but overall this book was enjoyable. My reason for not giving it a full 5 stars is that I was confused at times about who was who and where the story was going. It all came together in the end, but there definitely were parts when I had to go back and see whose POV the chapter was from.
“Right and wrong are not fixed points on a compass. Sometimes we do things just because they are necessary.”
I read this book because it was highly recommended by @thejerseyreader! This was a solid read. The plot was there and kept me turning the page. I find cults a fascinating topic and this book really dove into experiences of people who did live in or currently still are members of, a cult. Some things were shocking and very hard to read, but overall this book was enjoyable. My reason for not giving it a full 5 stars is that I was confused at times about who was who and where the story was going. It all came together in the end, but there definitely were parts when I had to go back and see whose POV the chapter was from.
“Right and wrong are not fixed points on a compass. Sometimes we do things just because they are necessary.”
book that is described as a thriller, or suspenseful, should provide those elements where you are sitting on the edge of your seat, or curled up in a foetal position, not wanting to now what happens next but draws you in to keep the pages turning. @jppomare succeeds with “In The Clearing”. The book moves between two narrators – Amy and Freya. They both have their own struggles and have a lot of personal conflict to conquer. They both had very clear voices and made it very easy to see their harrowing worlds from their perspectives. The writing evoked both quick and frantic atmospheres, and a depth to a scene just before something was about to unfold. The description of the bushland and noises in the night captured that very feeling when you can sense someone is there, watching you. And then there a glimpse of the Watcher.
The story moves very quickly so I recommend you read closely and carefully so you don’t miss the clues and the particular moments where things can almost slip past you. I also found that at times it was hard to warm to either Amy or Freya – they seemed cold and aloof, and at other times hold them close and tell them a brighter day was ahead. The author worked a lot of magic into these characters. And through this character development, you start to wonder how quickly a mind can be conditioned or manipulated. Will one always be susceptible to being swayed into believing a version of the truth? As the story unfolds, it becomes very raw and heartbreaking to see where connections have been made to Australia’s dark cult history, and with the characters in this book.
The story moves very quickly so I recommend you read closely and carefully so you don’t miss the clues and the particular moments where things can almost slip past you. I also found that at times it was hard to warm to either Amy or Freya – they seemed cold and aloof, and at other times hold them close and tell them a brighter day was ahead. The author worked a lot of magic into these characters. And through this character development, you start to wonder how quickly a mind can be conditioned or manipulated. Will one always be susceptible to being swayed into believing a version of the truth? As the story unfolds, it becomes very raw and heartbreaking to see where connections have been made to Australia’s dark cult history, and with the characters in this book.
Wow, this was a fantastic read. So many twists and keeps the reader engaged and revisiting what they have already read earlier.
Very artfully done! *claps in excitement* my first 5 star read this year
Very artfully done! *claps in excitement* my first 5 star read this year
JP Pomare follows up his well received and award winning debut Call me Evie with a novel that takes as its inspiration the true and very troubling story of The Family. The Family was an Australian cult led by a charismatic woman called Anne Hamilton-Byrne. The cult set up in the Australian bush and “acquired” children through their members to inculcate in their particular mix of religion. JP Pomare uses a barely fictionalised version of The Family as the basis of this twisty, disturbing thriller.
In The Clearing is narrated by two characters – Amy and Freya. Amy is living in the Clearing with her “brothers and sisters” who were “all saved from the world outside”, their guiding philosophy is to “protect the queen” Adrienne who is the leader of the group and (possibly) Amy’s mother. Freya is a damaged adult, she admits early on that she feels she is only acting as “normal” and is estranged from her former husband and first child. Freya lives on a secluded, bushland block with her young son who she both dotes on and constantly frets about.
As with many thrillers of this type the two narratives slowly converge to a point about half way through the book. Following that point, if anything, the book becomes more tense and twisted, forcing the reader the re-evaluate everything they have read or believed up to that point about Amy and Freya more than once.
In The Clearing is a compulsive thriller, exploring the power of cult and personality to drive criminal behaviour. By basing the background on a true story, Pomare also provides insights into one of Australia’s most notorious and in some ways baffling crimes. And even after reading In The Clearing it remains slightly unbelievable that seemingly intelligent people could fall under the influence of a charlatan spouting a combination of Eastern and Western religions with themselves as the spiritual leader. It also looks at the impact on that form of indoctrination on children and persistence of that trauma. The book opens with Amy participating in the kidnapping of a young girl to join their group, an act which she fundamentally does not question and this is not the last of the terrible acts that she is asked to commit in the name of her “mother”.
While missing and endangered children can always be relied on to drive tension in fiction, in In the Clearing these activities are underpinned by a clear and dangerous purpose. Which makes In the Clearing a thought provoking thriller and one that is likely to stay with readers well after the last, hastily turned page.
In The Clearing is narrated by two characters – Amy and Freya. Amy is living in the Clearing with her “brothers and sisters” who were “all saved from the world outside”, their guiding philosophy is to “protect the queen” Adrienne who is the leader of the group and (possibly) Amy’s mother. Freya is a damaged adult, she admits early on that she feels she is only acting as “normal” and is estranged from her former husband and first child. Freya lives on a secluded, bushland block with her young son who she both dotes on and constantly frets about.
As with many thrillers of this type the two narratives slowly converge to a point about half way through the book. Following that point, if anything, the book becomes more tense and twisted, forcing the reader the re-evaluate everything they have read or believed up to that point about Amy and Freya more than once.
In The Clearing is a compulsive thriller, exploring the power of cult and personality to drive criminal behaviour. By basing the background on a true story, Pomare also provides insights into one of Australia’s most notorious and in some ways baffling crimes. And even after reading In The Clearing it remains slightly unbelievable that seemingly intelligent people could fall under the influence of a charlatan spouting a combination of Eastern and Western religions with themselves as the spiritual leader. It also looks at the impact on that form of indoctrination on children and persistence of that trauma. The book opens with Amy participating in the kidnapping of a young girl to join their group, an act which she fundamentally does not question and this is not the last of the terrible acts that she is asked to commit in the name of her “mother”.
While missing and endangered children can always be relied on to drive tension in fiction, in In the Clearing these activities are underpinned by a clear and dangerous purpose. Which makes In the Clearing a thought provoking thriller and one that is likely to stay with readers well after the last, hastily turned page.
This is good, but the true story of THE FAMILY is even better.
dark
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes