Flyaway
by Kathleen Jennings
A review
The stories of Inglewell, like the tellers, are
hybrids of tales from distant woods and foresets. I cannot believe our silky
oaks, our ironbarks, the shimmerinig brigalow are less handsome than those
fabled groves, but the stories (even those, like us, half-made here) fit them
uneasily…
We tend to associate dark fiction with “literal”
darkness – with shadows, haunted houses, twilight apparitions and “things that
go bump in the night”. Similarly, the “North”,
with its long winter nights and its mythology of fairies, trolls and diverse monsters,
seems more attuned to conventional supernatural fiction than the Southern
Hemisphere.
But just as Ari Aster’s movie Midsommar showed
us that there can be dark horror in the unending daylight of a Nordic summer,
Kathleen Jennings’ beguiling debut Flyway successfully challenges tradition
by transplanting tropes of Gothic, fantasy and supernatural fiction to an
Australian context.
The novel(la) is set in a small rural
settlement in Western Queensland in the recent past – early to mid-nineties, judging
by the references to early internet and mobile phones. The main storyline is
narrated by nineteen-year-old Bettina Scott, although between each chapter
there are short interludes – fairytale-like stories-within-stories – narrated by
other characters. Bettina, we learn, was
a feisty teenager, but since the sudden disappearance of her father and two
brothers a few years back, she has lived a secluded life under the zealous
protection of her mother Nerida. One
day, she receives a mysterious message which suggests that her brothers might
still be alive. With the help of two old
friends, Gary and Trish, she sets out on a modern-day quest, to find her
brothers and, in the process, discover hidden truths about her family.
Admittedly, Flyaway takes some time
getting into. Jennings does not spell
out things for the reader and the first few chapters of the novel felt somewhat
disorienting. However, the narrative is well
worth the initial effort and as things start falling into place, it gets
increasingly gripping. A small hint… it helps
to keep some notes about the different characters and the families they belong to
– as in any self-respecting Gothic work, surnames are more than just identifiers…
A thrilling blend of Gothic mystery, modern fairytale
and uncanny folk horror, Kathleen Jennings’ Flyaway proves that a cattle town in
Australia can be as atmospheric a setting as the magical forests of
the North.
Kindle Edition, 176 pages
Expected publication: July 28th 2020 by Tor.com
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