{"id":257,"date":"2017-05-06T07:27:22","date_gmt":"2017-05-06T07:27:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/2017\/05\/06\/httptheblurb-com-aureviewsthe-patterson-girls-by-rachael-johns-book-review\/"},"modified":"2017-05-06T07:27:22","modified_gmt":"2017-05-06T07:27:22","slug":"httptheblurb-com-aureviewsthe-patterson-girls-by-rachael-johns-book-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/httptheblurb-com-aureviewsthe-patterson-girls-by-rachael-johns-book-review\/","title":{"rendered":"The Patterson Girls by Rachael Johns – book review"},"content":{"rendered":"

The seed of the book that became The Patterson Girls<\/em>, Rachael Johns\u2019 first foray into contemporary fiction, came from a weed. As Johns tells it, the paddocks around the town where she then lived were covered in what appeared to be a beautiful purple flower. She soon discovered that the flower was an invasive weed known as Paterson\u2019s curse or Salvation Jane \u2026 and the word curse stuck with her. The result was The Patterson Girls<\/em>, a warm and engaging tale about a four sisters and a family curse.<\/p>\n

\"Patterson-Girls\"Four sisters return to Meadow Brook in rural South Australia to share Christmas with their bereaved father. Their mother died six months earlier, and after the funeral they all went back to their separate lives: Madeleine in the USA, Lucinda in Perth, Charlie in Melbourne, and Abigail in London. Their reunion is marred with sadness over their mother\u2019s absence and worry about their father\u2019s state of mind, but privately, they each have worries, doubts and hardship they haven\u2019t made public. Lucinda and her husband are struggling to have a family, violinist Abigail has lost her job, obstetrician Madeleine is in love with another woman\u2019s man, and free-spirited Charlie feels like she\u2019s less than her high-achieving sisters.<\/p>\n

The discovery of a family curse flourishes like a weed in the sisters\u2019 minds and prompts them to reflect on their life directions and embark on a series of actions that will change their pathways forever \u2026 and prove the curse wrong. From throwing in jobs to artificial insemination, from renovating a motel to naked violin playing, The Patterson Girls<\/em> explores sisterhood, secrets, love, relationships, joy and pain in a way that will win over a new legion of fans and keep the romance ones more than happy.<\/p>\n

Johns does a great job creating romantic sub-plots that match the sisters\u2019 personalities, with love scenes ranging from\u00a0tender to lusty to all-in-the-mind, and lovers ranging from friends (with benefits), husbands and will-they-or-won\u2019t they. The novel is really the sisters\u2019 story, which is why it\u2019s not deemed a romance, so the men are secondary characters, with Mitch the most developed.\u00a0\u00a0Johns\u2019 rural romance roots are not cast aside, because even though the sisters all live in cities (which probably gives the story a wider audience), it\u2019s the rural family motel that draws them together.<\/p>\n

Heartwarming, entertaining and well-characterised,\u00a0The Patterson Girls <\/em>gives readers\u00a0another reason to love Rachael Johns\u2019 writing. As a storyteller, she just keeps getting better\u00a0and I\u2019m looking forward to what she comes up with next.<\/p>\n

Read an extract here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Available from good bookstores and here<\/a>. My copy was courtesy of Harlequin Australia via JAM PR.<\/p>\n

Monique Mulligan<\/b>
\nFor more of Monique Mulligan’s writing on books, check out Write Note Reviews<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The seed of the book that became The Patterson Girls, Rachael Johns\u2019 first foray into contemporary fiction, came from a weed. As Johns tells it, the paddocks around the town where she then lived were covered in what appeared to be a beautiful purple flower. She soon discovered that the flower was an invasive weed…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[117,11,27,2],"class_list":["post-257","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","tag-book-review","tag-category","tag-family","tag-post_tag"],"yoast_head":"\nThe Patterson Girls by Rachael Johns - book review -<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/httptheblurb-com-aureviewsthe-patterson-girls-by-rachael-johns-book-review\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Patterson Girls by Rachael Johns - book review -\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The seed of the book that became The Patterson Girls, Rachael Johns\u2019 first foray into contemporary fiction, came from a weed. As Johns tells it, the paddocks around the town where she then lived were covered in what appeared to be a beautiful purple flower. She soon discovered that the flower was an invasive weed...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/httptheblurb-com-aureviewsthe-patterson-girls-by-rachael-johns-book-review\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2017-05-06T07:27:22+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/Patterson-Girls.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"David Edwards\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"David Edwards\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theblurb.com.au\\\/wp\\\/httptheblurb-com-aureviewsthe-patterson-girls-by-rachael-johns-book-review\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theblurb.com.au\\\/wp\\\/httptheblurb-com-aureviewsthe-patterson-girls-by-rachael-johns-book-review\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"David Edwards\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theblurb.com.au\\\/wp\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/5b6e71c52b0c61f2ea361d202fc6c8da\"},\"headline\":\"The Patterson Girls by Rachael Johns – book review\",\"datePublished\":\"2017-05-06T07:27:22+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theblurb.com.au\\\/wp\\\/httptheblurb-com-aureviewsthe-patterson-girls-by-rachael-johns-book-review\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":474,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theblurb.com.au\\\/wp\\\/httptheblurb-com-aureviewsthe-patterson-girls-by-rachael-johns-book-review\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"http:\\\/\\\/theblurb.com.au\\\/reviews\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2015\\\/09\\\/Patterson-Girls.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"book review\",\"category\",\"family\",\"post_tag\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theblurb.com.au\\\/wp\\\/httptheblurb-com-aureviewsthe-patterson-girls-by-rachael-johns-book-review\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theblurb.com.au\\\/wp\\\/httptheblurb-com-aureviewsthe-patterson-girls-by-rachael-johns-book-review\\\/\",\"name\":\"The Patterson Girls by Rachael Johns - book review -\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theblurb.com.au\\\/wp\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theblurb.com.au\\\/wp\\\/httptheblurb-com-aureviewsthe-patterson-girls-by-rachael-johns-book-review\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theblurb.com.au\\\/wp\\\/httptheblurb-com-aureviewsthe-patterson-girls-by-rachael-johns-book-review\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"http:\\\/\\\/theblurb.com.au\\\/reviews\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2015\\\/09\\\/Patterson-Girls.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2017-05-06T07:27:22+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theblurb.com.au\\\/wp\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/5b6e71c52b0c61f2ea361d202fc6c8da\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theblurb.com.au\\\/wp\\\/httptheblurb-com-aureviewsthe-patterson-girls-by-rachael-johns-book-review\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/theblurb.com.au\\\/wp\\\/httptheblurb-com-aureviewsthe-patterson-girls-by-rachael-johns-book-review\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theblurb.com.au\\\/wp\\\/httptheblurb-com-aureviewsthe-patterson-girls-by-rachael-johns-book-review\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"http:\\\/\\\/theblurb.com.au\\\/reviews\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2015\\\/09\\\/Patterson-Girls.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"http:\\\/\\\/theblurb.com.au\\\/reviews\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2015\\\/09\\\/Patterson-Girls.jpg\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theblurb.com.au\\\/wp\\\/httptheblurb-com-aureviewsthe-patterson-girls-by-rachael-johns-book-review\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theblurb.com.au\\\/wp\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"The Patterson Girls by Rachael Johns – book review\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theblurb.com.au\\\/wp\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theblurb.com.au\\\/wp\\\/\",\"name\":\"\",\"description\":\"Australian arts & entertainment reviews\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theblurb.com.au\\\/wp\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theblurb.com.au\\\/wp\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/5b6e71c52b0c61f2ea361d202fc6c8da\",\"name\":\"David Edwards\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/8adc90e6c54ce0a5edb350e18ca07e33ec2bf596dc1219a8bed5d2d7d2e07894?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/8adc90e6c54ce0a5edb350e18ca07e33ec2bf596dc1219a8bed5d2d7d2e07894?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/8adc90e6c54ce0a5edb350e18ca07e33ec2bf596dc1219a8bed5d2d7d2e07894?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"David Edwards\"},\"description\":\"David Edwards is the former editor of The Blurb and a contributor on film and television\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.theblurb.com.au\\\/wp\\\/\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/theblurb.com.au\\\/wp\\\/author\\\/editor\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"The Patterson Girls by Rachael Johns - book review -","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/httptheblurb-com-aureviewsthe-patterson-girls-by-rachael-johns-book-review\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"The Patterson Girls by Rachael Johns - book review -","og_description":"The seed of the book that became The Patterson Girls, Rachael Johns\u2019 first foray into contemporary fiction, came from a weed. As Johns tells it, the paddocks around the town where she then lived were covered in what appeared to be a beautiful purple flower. She soon discovered that the flower was an invasive weed...","og_url":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/httptheblurb-com-aureviewsthe-patterson-girls-by-rachael-johns-book-review\/","article_published_time":"2017-05-06T07:27:22+00:00","og_image":[{"url":"http:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/Patterson-Girls.jpg","type":"","width":"","height":""}],"author":"David Edwards","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"David Edwards","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/httptheblurb-com-aureviewsthe-patterson-girls-by-rachael-johns-book-review\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/httptheblurb-com-aureviewsthe-patterson-girls-by-rachael-johns-book-review\/"},"author":{"name":"David Edwards","@id":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/#\/schema\/person\/5b6e71c52b0c61f2ea361d202fc6c8da"},"headline":"The Patterson Girls by Rachael Johns – book review","datePublished":"2017-05-06T07:27:22+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/httptheblurb-com-aureviewsthe-patterson-girls-by-rachael-johns-book-review\/"},"wordCount":474,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/httptheblurb-com-aureviewsthe-patterson-girls-by-rachael-johns-book-review\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"http:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/Patterson-Girls.jpg","keywords":["book review","category","family","post_tag"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/httptheblurb-com-aureviewsthe-patterson-girls-by-rachael-johns-book-review\/","url":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/httptheblurb-com-aureviewsthe-patterson-girls-by-rachael-johns-book-review\/","name":"The Patterson Girls by Rachael Johns - book review -","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/httptheblurb-com-aureviewsthe-patterson-girls-by-rachael-johns-book-review\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/httptheblurb-com-aureviewsthe-patterson-girls-by-rachael-johns-book-review\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"http:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/Patterson-Girls.jpg","datePublished":"2017-05-06T07:27:22+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/#\/schema\/person\/5b6e71c52b0c61f2ea361d202fc6c8da"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/httptheblurb-com-aureviewsthe-patterson-girls-by-rachael-johns-book-review\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/httptheblurb-com-aureviewsthe-patterson-girls-by-rachael-johns-book-review\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/httptheblurb-com-aureviewsthe-patterson-girls-by-rachael-johns-book-review\/#primaryimage","url":"http:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/Patterson-Girls.jpg","contentUrl":"http:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/09\/Patterson-Girls.jpg"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/httptheblurb-com-aureviewsthe-patterson-girls-by-rachael-johns-book-review\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"The Patterson Girls by Rachael Johns – book review"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/#website","url":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/","name":"","description":"Australian arts & entertainment reviews","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/#\/schema\/person\/5b6e71c52b0c61f2ea361d202fc6c8da","name":"David Edwards","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8adc90e6c54ce0a5edb350e18ca07e33ec2bf596dc1219a8bed5d2d7d2e07894?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8adc90e6c54ce0a5edb350e18ca07e33ec2bf596dc1219a8bed5d2d7d2e07894?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8adc90e6c54ce0a5edb350e18ca07e33ec2bf596dc1219a8bed5d2d7d2e07894?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"David Edwards"},"description":"David Edwards is the former editor of The Blurb and a contributor on film and television","sameAs":["https:\/\/www.theblurb.com.au\/wp\/"],"url":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/author\/editor\/"}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":164575,"url":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/three-sisters-theatre-works-theatre-review\/","url_meta":{"origin":257,"position":0},"title":"Three Sisters (Theatre Works) – theatre review","author":"Alex First","date":"March 12, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Misery abounds in Anton Chekov\u2019s Three Sisters. One hundred and 25 years after he wrote it, it continues to resonate. The three sisters referenced in the title moved from Moscow to a provincial Russian garrison town 11 years ago. It is now the first anniversary of their father\u2019s passing and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Theatre"","block_context":{"text":"Theatre","link":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/category\/theatre\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/rsz_1threesisters_prod_smw-334.jpg?fit=800%2C532&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/rsz_1threesisters_prod_smw-334.jpg?fit=800%2C532&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/rsz_1threesisters_prod_smw-334.jpg?fit=800%2C532&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/rsz_1threesisters_prod_smw-334.jpg?fit=800%2C532&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":507,"url":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/httptheblurb-com-aureviewstaxithi-an-australian-odyssey-theatre-review\/","url_meta":{"origin":257,"position":1},"title":"Taxithi – An Australian Odyssey – theatre review","author":"David Edwards","date":"May 6, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"An intelligent, insightful and emotion-charged work from Melbourne writer and performer Helen Yotis Patterson awaits those who venture to see this world premiere production. Inspired by untold true stories of love, sacrifice and courage, Taxithi opens the door to the Greek migrant experience to Australia in the 1950s and \u201860s.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In \"fortyfivedownstairs\"","block_context":{"text":"fortyfivedownstairs","link":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/tag\/fortyfivedownstairs\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Taxithi-02","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/Taxithi-02.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/Taxithi-02.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/reviews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/03\/Taxithi-02.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":156615,"url":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/the-curse-of-pietro-houdini-derek-b-miller-book-review\/","url_meta":{"origin":257,"position":2},"title":"The Curse of Pietro Houdini (Derek B Miller) – book review","author":"Robert Goodman","date":"May 15, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"American author Derek Miller has what can only be called an eclectic output. His The Girl in Green looked at the consequences of the invasion of Iraq while more recently, Radio Life was a post apocalyptic adventure tale. He has pivoted from this to a fascinating and moving piece of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Books"","block_context":{"text":"Books","link":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/category\/books\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/Curse-Pietro-Houdini.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":8630,"url":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/the-van-apfel-girls-are-gone-felicity-mclean-book-review\/","url_meta":{"origin":257,"position":3},"title":"The Van Apfel Girls are Gone (Felicity McLean) – book review","author":"Monqiue Mulligan","date":"March 26, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"The Van Apfel Girls are Gone by Felicity McLean hooked me in with its all-too-familiar north-west of Sydney 1990s setting and the missing girls premise reminiscent of Joan Lindsay\u2019s classic Picnic at Hanging Rock. Here's the blurb: Tikka Molloy was eleven and one-sixth years old during the long hot summer\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Books"","block_context":{"text":"Books","link":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/category\/books\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/Felicity-McLean.jpg?fit=951%2C600&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/Felicity-McLean.jpg?fit=951%2C600&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/Felicity-McLean.jpg?fit=951%2C600&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/03\/Felicity-McLean.jpg?fit=951%2C600&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":8913,"url":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/the-aftermath-movie-review\/","url_meta":{"origin":257,"position":4},"title":"The Aftermath – movie review","author":"David Edwards","date":"April 12, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Experienced director James Kent (Testament of Youth) brings Rhidian Brook's well-received novel to the big screen in The Aftermath. And while fans of the book will notice some glaring differences, the film nonetheless goes to some interesting places. Brook himself headed the scriptwriting team, collaborating with Joe Shrapnel and Anna\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Movies"","block_context":{"text":"Movies","link":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/category\/movies\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/Aftermath-02.jpg?fit=900%2C600&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/Aftermath-02.jpg?fit=900%2C600&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/Aftermath-02.jpg?fit=900%2C600&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/Aftermath-02.jpg?fit=900%2C600&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":157493,"url":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/when-among-crows-veronica-roth-book-review\/","url_meta":{"origin":257,"position":5},"title":"When Among Crows (Veronica Roth) – book review","author":"Robert Goodman","date":"June 12, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Veronica Roth has well and truly broken out of her YA phase with some recent releases that challenge genre tropes, like Poster Girl and Chosen Ones. Her latest novella When Among Crows is more down the line urban fantasy but is no less enjoyable. In it, Roth draws on the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Books"","block_context":{"text":"Books","link":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/category\/books\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/When-Among-Crows.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/257","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=257"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/257\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=257"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=257"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theblurb.com.au\/wp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=257"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}