Goodreads Blurb:

Mara’s island is one of stories and magic. She knows she’ll eventually end her days atop the cliff, turned to stone and gazing out at the horizon like all the villagers that went before her, drawn by the otherworldly call of the sea. Her whole family will be there too, even her brother Bee and her sister Islay.

But the island and the sea do what they want, and when they claim a price from her family, Mara’s world changes forever. As years pass and Mara grows into herself and her scars, a chance meeting with the magnetic Pearl brings magic to life once more in ways that Mara never thought possible, in a story that she never would have dreamed for herself before. The enchanting spiritual prequel to The Gracekeepers, Kirsty Logan’s The Gloaming is a present-day fable that brims over with dazzling imagination and captivating language.

My Thoughts:

According to my Goodreads account, I have had this book on my to be read (TBR) list since early 2020. While I am so glad I’ve read it now, there is a small part of me that wishes I’d read this one sooner. I knew from early on that this would be one of my favourite reads of the year.

I think what I loved most about this novel was the language and the narrative voice. There was something rather fluid and poetic about it that kept me glued to the page. It worked beautifully too as so much of this novel is tied with the ocean. The short chapters also made it feel like I was reading a collection of pockets of time. This made the identity of the unknown narrator of the story even more fascinating to me.

I found all the characters of this story wonderful to read about, they were each so unique but oddly familiar at the same time. I think this is a testament to the writing style that there is so much embedded into these characters on the page. I found the family dynamic so interesting too, especially with the magic of the island drawing people back to it.

I really liked the romance between Mara and Pearl, I loved how gently it developed throughout the novel. There was an underlying tension with Mara feeling torn from her home versus how Pearl claimed she didn’t truely have a home really made their relationship an interesting one to read. Especially through the eyes of the narrator.

I will definitely be picking this one up again to read at some point. I feel there is so much more I can draw from the pages. Especially with the knowledge of who the narrator is. There is something so magical about this book and I highly recommend it.