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Foreign Country
A lyrical work that explores the fallibility of memory and asks if we can ever really know the ones we love or ourselves ...
Estranged sisters—Eva and Elisabeta Novak—have not spoken since Eva’s young daughter, Gracie, was killed in a road accident. More than a decade later, and long after Eva has moved overseas, Elizabeta calls, insisting that Eva return home. But when Eva arrives at her sister’s house, she discovers that Elizabeta is dead. Eva finds that she has been appointed the executor of Elizabeta’s estate, and as she undertakes the monumental task of clearing out the house, she comes to know her sister again through the objects and documents that she encounters. Through this process, Eva is forced to reckon with their shared history and the possibility that her mind cannot be trusted. Foreign Country engages with themes of grief and loss, and the instability of memory. The novel explores the difficulty of coming to terms with conflicting accounts of the past and asks how well we ever really know the ones that we love, or our own past selves.
PRAISE FOR FOREIGN COUNTRY
‘Deft, haunting and finely paced, Foreign Country is a devastating, engrossing story told with an assured voice. A novel that lingers.’ – Katherine Brabon, author of Cure
‘Vivid and alive with narrative richness and catharsis’ – Books+Publishing
‘a poetic story of emptiness and renewal, trauma and catharsis, loss and love’ – Readings Monthly
Estranged sisters—Eva and Elisabeta Novak—have not spoken since Eva’s young daughter, Gracie, was killed in a road accident. More than a decade later, and long after Eva has moved overseas, Elizabeta calls, insisting that Eva return home. But when Eva arrives at her sister’s house, she discovers that Elizabeta is dead. Eva finds that she has been appointed the executor of Elizabeta’s estate, and as she undertakes the monumental task of clearing out the house, she comes to know her sister again through the objects and documents that she encounters. Through this process, Eva is forced to reckon with their shared history and the possibility that her mind cannot be trusted. Foreign Country engages with themes of grief and loss, and the instability of memory. The novel explores the difficulty of coming to terms with conflicting accounts of the past and asks how well we ever really know the ones that we love, or our own past selves.
PRAISE FOR FOREIGN COUNTRY
‘Deft, haunting and finely paced, Foreign Country is a devastating, engrossing story told with an assured voice. A novel that lingers.’ – Katherine Brabon, author of Cure
‘Vivid and alive with narrative richness and catharsis’ – Books+Publishing
‘a poetic story of emptiness and renewal, trauma and catharsis, loss and love’ – Readings Monthly
249 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 3, 2025
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
July 6, 2025
I loved the writing style, but I feel like something was missing for me to connect fully with the characters. Maybe if the book was slightly longer it could have gone into some of the elements more. Besides that it was a really quick and easy read which I enjoyed!
May 31, 2025
The Foreign Country's stunning cover first caught my attention. It hints at what is to come. This powerful sibling story by Marija Peričić deals with the effects of emotional pain. Missed opportunities of reconciliation and how sad it is when anger from sorrow puts a wedge between you and your loved one. But as we learn, ‘Grief has its own logic. Its own reality.’ And this story clearly demonstrates that but in a unique poetic prose format with added pictures, letters, reports and other formal documents that help tell the story. A story that captivates the imagination and inspires introspective thoughts.
Sisters Eva and Elizabeth were inseparable growing up. They depended on each other for everything. Moving from the other side of the world to Australia, was traumatic enough but after their father passed and their mother fell to pieces, they were divided up and put in different homes. A jealousy developed in Eva as it seemed her sister had a better home than her. This made El feel guilty for having a better life.
But this wasn’t the real stumbling block. This came when a terrible accident happened that caused these two to become estranged for many years. El tried to reconnect with Eva more than once but Eva’s bitterness would not let her forgive her sister. She felt her loss was too great and unforgivable. For Elizabeth’s young daughter, Gracie, died in a car crash. She was in a vehicle driven by her sister. Eva felt El was to blame, that she had been neglectful and did not put the car seat in the back for the child. Her grief and anger dictated her every move and bound up the possibility of a future relationship with her sister. This novel is an elegy to that fact of one who saw only what she wanted to see. It led to massive misunderstandings and missed opportunities of reunion. As Eva’s and Elizabeth’s story, begin to unfold once Eva goes back to Melbourne from Germany (where she has lived with her boyfriend), we get the full backstory of their lives. But before that, her arrival is met with an unexpected event. Her sister is dead in her home and Eva has found her and assumed the worst. Did she commit suicide? When El’s boyfriend turns up after being away on a business trip, he cannot believe she is dead and even more that she took her life. The truth will come out in the coroner’s report and it will not be what Eva expected. She will begin to soften her opinions toward her sister. Including after she reads the accident report from her daughter’s death.
Relationships are at the heart of this novel. Eva must sort through many emotions to work through her unprocessed grief and misconstrued ideas. Once El is cremated, she joins with Eva’s neighbour and boyfriend Marko to give her sister a send-off and together they scatter her ashes. She begins to make amends, including with her boyfriend, who has become quite frustrated with her for shutting him out and not sharing her past. This lack of communication created lots of friction and mistrust.
I could not put this novel down once I started and I read it in a day. The writing is exceptional, poetic and polished. It is laced with sadness but there are gentle victories and growth in Eva that makes her turnaround most impressive—especially when she cannot make direct amends with El who has passed. Regardless, healing is on the table for her as she begins to open up and receive other viewpoints. She no longer acts like a ‘secret agent’ but more as a good friend and loving girlfriend. 5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Thanks to Ultimo Press for the paperback review copy.
Sisters Eva and Elizabeth were inseparable growing up. They depended on each other for everything. Moving from the other side of the world to Australia, was traumatic enough but after their father passed and their mother fell to pieces, they were divided up and put in different homes. A jealousy developed in Eva as it seemed her sister had a better home than her. This made El feel guilty for having a better life.
But this wasn’t the real stumbling block. This came when a terrible accident happened that caused these two to become estranged for many years. El tried to reconnect with Eva more than once but Eva’s bitterness would not let her forgive her sister. She felt her loss was too great and unforgivable. For Elizabeth’s young daughter, Gracie, died in a car crash. She was in a vehicle driven by her sister. Eva felt El was to blame, that she had been neglectful and did not put the car seat in the back for the child. Her grief and anger dictated her every move and bound up the possibility of a future relationship with her sister. This novel is an elegy to that fact of one who saw only what she wanted to see. It led to massive misunderstandings and missed opportunities of reunion. As Eva’s and Elizabeth’s story, begin to unfold once Eva goes back to Melbourne from Germany (where she has lived with her boyfriend), we get the full backstory of their lives. But before that, her arrival is met with an unexpected event. Her sister is dead in her home and Eva has found her and assumed the worst. Did she commit suicide? When El’s boyfriend turns up after being away on a business trip, he cannot believe she is dead and even more that she took her life. The truth will come out in the coroner’s report and it will not be what Eva expected. She will begin to soften her opinions toward her sister. Including after she reads the accident report from her daughter’s death.
Relationships are at the heart of this novel. Eva must sort through many emotions to work through her unprocessed grief and misconstrued ideas. Once El is cremated, she joins with Eva’s neighbour and boyfriend Marko to give her sister a send-off and together they scatter her ashes. She begins to make amends, including with her boyfriend, who has become quite frustrated with her for shutting him out and not sharing her past. This lack of communication created lots of friction and mistrust.
I could not put this novel down once I started and I read it in a day. The writing is exceptional, poetic and polished. It is laced with sadness but there are gentle victories and growth in Eva that makes her turnaround most impressive—especially when she cannot make direct amends with El who has passed. Regardless, healing is on the table for her as she begins to open up and receive other viewpoints. She no longer acts like a ‘secret agent’ but more as a good friend and loving girlfriend. 5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Thanks to Ultimo Press for the paperback review copy.
December 31, 2025
I'm a sucker for sister stories in the first place, but I found this a lot more compelling than I was expecting! A really interesting mixed-media story about memory and stories, playing into that on many levels with glimpses of what feels like autofiction and a book within a book.
The use of the photographs and other images made you feel like you were with Eva digging through the house, and it really helped pull me into the story of two sisters who felt very real. It was cool to piece things together with Eva, and having an unreliable narrator who doesn't realise she is one.
Would recommend to anyone looking for a quick read with a beautiful setting, and a really unique mix of mystery and contemporary.
The use of the photographs and other images made you feel like you were with Eva digging through the house, and it really helped pull me into the story of two sisters who felt very real. It was cool to piece things together with Eva, and having an unreliable narrator who doesn't realise she is one.
Would recommend to anyone looking for a quick read with a beautiful setting, and a really unique mix of mystery and contemporary.
September 17, 2025
I was unsure at first, but the poetry built and built and won me over by the end.
June 23, 2025
This was a book about two sisters, Eva and Elizabeta, who have been estranged for the past decade after the tragic death of Eva's daughter. Eva now lives in Germany with a boyfriend who has no idea about her past while El has forged her own life back in Australia.
Out of the blue, El summons Eva home but when Eva arrives El is dead and Eva finds herself the executor of her estate. As she deals with her sister's home and possessions she is forced to reckon with what actually happened to her daughter. Her grief and the memories of the incident begin to unravel and she starts to see her past with fresh eyes.
I thought this was a quietly written but compelling novel. The way the story is structured with chapters from El's point of view interspersed with the present brought life to both sisters' thoughts. The inclusion of photos and newspaper clippings gave it the feel of a biography though these were all fictional elements. Eva's reluctance to let her boyfriend into her past and to tell him what was happening was quite jarring but I liked how the storyline unfolded as Eva stayed on in El's home.
This was a novel that was sad yet hopeful. The sisters missed a chance at reconciliation and yet the trip home helps Eva to see past her warped memories of the past. This was an unusual story but I found it very readable.
Thank you to @ultimopress for my #gifted copy.
Out of the blue, El summons Eva home but when Eva arrives El is dead and Eva finds herself the executor of her estate. As she deals with her sister's home and possessions she is forced to reckon with what actually happened to her daughter. Her grief and the memories of the incident begin to unravel and she starts to see her past with fresh eyes.
I thought this was a quietly written but compelling novel. The way the story is structured with chapters from El's point of view interspersed with the present brought life to both sisters' thoughts. The inclusion of photos and newspaper clippings gave it the feel of a biography though these were all fictional elements. Eva's reluctance to let her boyfriend into her past and to tell him what was happening was quite jarring but I liked how the storyline unfolded as Eva stayed on in El's home.
This was a novel that was sad yet hopeful. The sisters missed a chance at reconciliation and yet the trip home helps Eva to see past her warped memories of the past. This was an unusual story but I found it very readable.
Thank you to @ultimopress for my #gifted copy.
August 11, 2025
I am not sure what I make of this book.
Things I liked:
- The cover is beautiful
- The premise and themes are interesting to me
- Marija Pericic writes compellingly
- The Australian setting and references to Berlin
- The photos, newspaper clippings etc, that make it feel real, like a memoir
Things I didn’t like:
- There seems to be very little plot - I got to page 76 before anything happened that wasn’t in the synopsis on the back.
- When developments happen in the plot, they are mundane, everyday things that don’t really advance the themes promised in the synopsis.
- Some chapters are from El’s perspective, but it’s hard to tell the difference between her and Eva.
- Glorification of smoking/product placement of cigarettes
I think overall it wasn’t for me, the pacing was too slow and I didn’t relate enough to the characters. I wouldn’t rule out trying another one by Marija Pericic, but I DNF’ed this one at page 112.
Things I liked:
- The cover is beautiful
- The premise and themes are interesting to me
- Marija Pericic writes compellingly
- The Australian setting and references to Berlin
- The photos, newspaper clippings etc, that make it feel real, like a memoir
Things I didn’t like:
- There seems to be very little plot - I got to page 76 before anything happened that wasn’t in the synopsis on the back.
- When developments happen in the plot, they are mundane, everyday things that don’t really advance the themes promised in the synopsis.
- Some chapters are from El’s perspective, but it’s hard to tell the difference between her and Eva.
- Glorification of smoking/product placement of cigarettes
I think overall it wasn’t for me, the pacing was too slow and I didn’t relate enough to the characters. I wouldn’t rule out trying another one by Marija Pericic, but I DNF’ed this one at page 112.
August 8, 2025
Foreign Country is the third novel of Melbourne author Marija Peričić who won the 2017 Vogel Prize for her debut novel The Lost Pages. (See my review). Her second novel Exquisite Corpse (2023) was shortlisted for the Davitt awards so I thought it was a crime novel and didn't seek it out, but *smacks forehead* I was wrong about that. Goodreads tells me that like The Lost Pages, it's a novel about obsession.
Novels about obsession are IMO inherently interesting, and I've read (and reviewed) a fair few of them. Some obsessions are destructive, as in Maurice Guest (1908) by Henry Handel Richardson and in Auto da Fé (1935) by Elias Canetti. Some are constructive as in Grand Obsessions: The Life and Work of Walter Burley Griffin and Marion Mahony Griffin (2011), by Alasdair McGregor, and in Love’s Obsession (2013), by Judy Powell. Some are even instructive, as in The Tin Drum (1959) by Günter Grass.
And some, like being obsessed with books and reading, *wink* are perfectly natural, healthy, wise ways to spend one's time and money and there is no need for therapy or unwanted advice about how to cure it.
Anyway, in a different way, Foreign Country is also about obsession.
To read the rest of my review please visit https://anzlitlovers.com/2025/08/08/f...
Novels about obsession are IMO inherently interesting, and I've read (and reviewed) a fair few of them. Some obsessions are destructive, as in Maurice Guest (1908) by Henry Handel Richardson and in Auto da Fé (1935) by Elias Canetti. Some are constructive as in Grand Obsessions: The Life and Work of Walter Burley Griffin and Marion Mahony Griffin (2011), by Alasdair McGregor, and in Love’s Obsession (2013), by Judy Powell. Some are even instructive, as in The Tin Drum (1959) by Günter Grass.
And some, like being obsessed with books and reading, *wink* are perfectly natural, healthy, wise ways to spend one's time and money and there is no need for therapy or unwanted advice about how to cure it.
Anyway, in a different way, Foreign Country is also about obsession.
To read the rest of my review please visit https://anzlitlovers.com/2025/08/08/f...
July 6, 2025
“If you lie still for a long, long time, you can disappear”.
I absolutely love reading prose where you feel you are inside a character’s mind, residing deep within their emotions. It is in these moments that you truly understand the mindset of someone going through loss, the craving to belong, and the feeling of being detached from the places and people that should have once provided comfort. Marija Peričić created an intimate, complex and wistful atmosphere. The setting is in a secluded bush house, reflecting on the vastness of nature, and the passage of time as a metaphor for memories, for loss, and the ebb and flow of emotions in trying to reconcile with the past.
Eva had not spoken to her sister, Elizabeta, since Eva’s young daughter, Gracie, was killed in a road accident, with Elizabeta at the wheel. Eva returned home to Australia after a call from Elizabeta. Eva arrived at her bushland home to discover Elizabeta had died and was charged as the executor of Elizabeta’s estate. It is through the cleaning out of Elizabeta’s house that Eva began to know her sister again, and question her own memories of their childhood, their lives and hat happened to Gracie.
The writing is poetic, covering such sadness and loss: “Grief has its own logic. Its own reality.” Eva can never make amends with Elizabeta, but she can make amends with herself and the memories that may have betrayed her away from forgiveness, all those years ago. Eva bunkered down in Elizabeta’s house. Alone, away from her husband and her best friend, struggling to communicate with both. She's in a house unknown to her full of memories of someone else; and the person whose memories they belong to are as much a stranger to her as anyone. And it is the memories of her sister that are sparking her own to reignite in her mind, challenging what she once knew and remembered. It is these memories that she was so sure about, that no-one could argue with; these memories potentially full of emotional bias, false or distorted what she wanted to remember. Until she worked through them as she cleaned out Elizabeta’s house, they would keep her hostage to her inaccurate recollections.
I absolutely love reading prose where you feel you are inside a character’s mind, residing deep within their emotions. It is in these moments that you truly understand the mindset of someone going through loss, the craving to belong, and the feeling of being detached from the places and people that should have once provided comfort. Marija Peričić created an intimate, complex and wistful atmosphere. The setting is in a secluded bush house, reflecting on the vastness of nature, and the passage of time as a metaphor for memories, for loss, and the ebb and flow of emotions in trying to reconcile with the past.
Eva had not spoken to her sister, Elizabeta, since Eva’s young daughter, Gracie, was killed in a road accident, with Elizabeta at the wheel. Eva returned home to Australia after a call from Elizabeta. Eva arrived at her bushland home to discover Elizabeta had died and was charged as the executor of Elizabeta’s estate. It is through the cleaning out of Elizabeta’s house that Eva began to know her sister again, and question her own memories of their childhood, their lives and hat happened to Gracie.
The writing is poetic, covering such sadness and loss: “Grief has its own logic. Its own reality.” Eva can never make amends with Elizabeta, but she can make amends with herself and the memories that may have betrayed her away from forgiveness, all those years ago. Eva bunkered down in Elizabeta’s house. Alone, away from her husband and her best friend, struggling to communicate with both. She's in a house unknown to her full of memories of someone else; and the person whose memories they belong to are as much a stranger to her as anyone. And it is the memories of her sister that are sparking her own to reignite in her mind, challenging what she once knew and remembered. It is these memories that she was so sure about, that no-one could argue with; these memories potentially full of emotional bias, false or distorted what she wanted to remember. Until she worked through them as she cleaned out Elizabeta’s house, they would keep her hostage to her inaccurate recollections.
June 18, 2025
.....📚 𝑩𝒐𝒐𝒌 𝑹𝒆𝒗𝒊𝒆𝒘 📚.....
Foreign Country by Marija Peričić is a haunting yet beautifully delivered story of trauma, grief, regret, and the fallibility of memory.
Sisters Eva and Elisabeta Novak have not spoken since Eva’s young daughter, Gracie, was killed in a road accident. More than a decade later, and long after Eva has moved overseas, Elizabeta calls, insisting that Eva return home. But Eva's return home is not driven by a need for reconciliation. Eva does not feel she owes Elizabeta anything, yet when she arrives at her sister’s house, she discovers that Elizabeta is dead.
Eva finds that she has been appointed the executor of Elizabeta’s estate, and as she undertakes the monumental task of clearing out the house, she comes to know her sister again through the objects and documents that she encounters. Through this process, Eva is forced to reckon with their shared history and the possibility that her mind can not be trusted.
This beautiful book uses lyrical prose, photos, and letters, to slowly and delicately unpack the past of these sisters, the unreliability of memory, and the missed opportunity for reconciliation. A truly unique and thought-provoking read.
.
.
.
.
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Thank you to @ultimopress for this copy in exchange for my honest review
Foreign Country by Marija Peričić is a haunting yet beautifully delivered story of trauma, grief, regret, and the fallibility of memory.
Sisters Eva and Elisabeta Novak have not spoken since Eva’s young daughter, Gracie, was killed in a road accident. More than a decade later, and long after Eva has moved overseas, Elizabeta calls, insisting that Eva return home. But Eva's return home is not driven by a need for reconciliation. Eva does not feel she owes Elizabeta anything, yet when she arrives at her sister’s house, she discovers that Elizabeta is dead.
Eva finds that she has been appointed the executor of Elizabeta’s estate, and as she undertakes the monumental task of clearing out the house, she comes to know her sister again through the objects and documents that she encounters. Through this process, Eva is forced to reckon with their shared history and the possibility that her mind can not be trusted.
This beautiful book uses lyrical prose, photos, and letters, to slowly and delicately unpack the past of these sisters, the unreliability of memory, and the missed opportunity for reconciliation. A truly unique and thought-provoking read.
.
.
.
.
.
Thank you to @ultimopress for this copy in exchange for my honest review
July 12, 2025
Two estranged sisters, living on other sides of the world. Big grief and pain separates them, until one calls one day - then sends tickets for flights for the other to come.
Eva is setting up a new apartment with her love in Germany, when El leaves messages on her machine. She hastily deletes them, unable to explain to Peter. But then the tickets arrive in the mail. The sisters have not spoken since Eva daughter died.
When Eva gets to El's home in rural Victoria, Australia, she finds that El has died. Needing to go through El's papers in the days after, she starts to learn about her sister's life since they have been distant. She discovers many things that have her questioning those painful events all those years ago, and what really happened.
The voice of El is cleverly woven in, to allow the reader to piece together the truth - but also the incredible family story and struggles these sisters experienced as migrants to Australia, and their challenges with their parents.
An examination of memories, the muddle of grief on details and blame, and the enduring perception of family that are hard to shift. The roles, the old versions of each other, and the blindness that comes with profound grief.
Eva is setting up a new apartment with her love in Germany, when El leaves messages on her machine. She hastily deletes them, unable to explain to Peter. But then the tickets arrive in the mail. The sisters have not spoken since Eva daughter died.
When Eva gets to El's home in rural Victoria, Australia, she finds that El has died. Needing to go through El's papers in the days after, she starts to learn about her sister's life since they have been distant. She discovers many things that have her questioning those painful events all those years ago, and what really happened.
The voice of El is cleverly woven in, to allow the reader to piece together the truth - but also the incredible family story and struggles these sisters experienced as migrants to Australia, and their challenges with their parents.
An examination of memories, the muddle of grief on details and blame, and the enduring perception of family that are hard to shift. The roles, the old versions of each other, and the blindness that comes with profound grief.
July 21, 2025
It was a short, enjoyable novel that explored the complexities of human emotions and memories. It's true that you can only be hurt the most by people who you are the closest to, while others come in and out of your life with no consequences.
It made me sad for how much our recounting of events dictate our lives. How much hate and suffering and regret can stew within us and warp our relationships with people who maybe were just as hurt as we were.
I love books because they help me gain empathy for people, they help me understand where others are coming from. And I thank this book for showing me yet another example of this.
The story flowed smoothly and it was easy to read, although some parts were so painful (to me personally) so I had to speed read through them. The description of the accident was so, so powerful and well done.
It made me sad for how much our recounting of events dictate our lives. How much hate and suffering and regret can stew within us and warp our relationships with people who maybe were just as hurt as we were.
I love books because they help me gain empathy for people, they help me understand where others are coming from. And I thank this book for showing me yet another example of this.
The story flowed smoothly and it was easy to read, although some parts were so painful (to me personally) so I had to speed read through them. The description of the accident was so, so powerful and well done.
October 15, 2025
with a 1/2
I enjoyed this well written book.
Notwithsatnding the subject matter being sombre the book contained humour which actually did make me LOL: the description of the dinner at the Dobsons …veg boiled to buggery lamb and mint sauce..antithesis from paprika ! [my ex mother in law did the same to her vegetables...boil the colour out of them !!!}.
I have two sisters who over the years have had their moments but happy to say they get on ...in fact last year all three of us went to Japan !
I enjoyed this well written book.
Notwithsatnding the subject matter being sombre the book contained humour which actually did make me LOL: the description of the dinner at the Dobsons …veg boiled to buggery lamb and mint sauce..antithesis from paprika ! [my ex mother in law did the same to her vegetables...boil the colour out of them !!!}.
I have two sisters who over the years have had their moments but happy to say they get on ...in fact last year all three of us went to Japan !
August 24, 2025
inhaled this, the sharp, clear prose and Australian imagery, the way it left space for things to land both in the way it was written and physically set out. it explores themes of memory and relationship conflict without being overdone.
October 21, 2025
This book is simply exquisite; the richness of the writing is simply astounding. The story may be simple, but the way it unfolds is is like fragments of poetic memories, snapshots half-remembered situations, vignettes of malleable emotions. Very highly recommended
July 6, 2025
Beautiful
Heartbreaking
Heartbreaking
July 20, 2025
One of the best new Australian novels I've read in a while, totally gripping from the first page.
August 4, 2025
3.75 stars
August 13, 2025
A compelling narrative about live, loss and shifting perspective.
September 12, 2025
A beautifully written story about memory, particularly its fallibilty, but I didn't feel a connection with the characters
October 1, 2025
A sad book exploring grief and loss and estrangement - and revelations that come too late. I found the structure to be a little confusing, especially when the voice switched between the sisters.
January 19, 2026
I loved this book. Giving any details would be spoiling, the details are revealed gradually. It's about grief, it's relatable, beautiful.
February 5, 2026
This book moves at a fast pace, is deftly written, and engrossing.
But it’s a sad story, beautifully cast.
Read with caution, and a strong heart.
But it’s a sad story, beautifully cast.
Read with caution, and a strong heart.
December 15, 2025
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4/5) - Can we trust our own memories?
Marija Peričić donated a signed copy of her book Foreign Country to be auctioned off through a fundraiser supporting the Indigenous Literacy Foundation. I'm lucky enough to have bid and won it. If you have the means to donate to the Indigenous Literacy Foundation directly, please do.
I am in love with the cover of this book. Remove the text and I’d put it on my wall.
As an Australian based, infrequent reader, it's a novelty to find a book that references Australia generally, let alone suburbs and streets that you know, or have driven on yourself (if you know the Denmark St, Barkers Rd intersection, you can probably already guess why it features in this book).
I wish this book was a little longer so there was more space to dive into the characters. They felt somewhat surface level through to the end, which unfortunately stopped me from feeling much emotion for the conclusion of the story. I would have loved to care more about Eva and Peter’s relationship and the next door neighbour Joe. With a little more character development, the ending of this book would be so beautiful yet so heart breaking - I enjoyed the way this book was tied in a bow, but I wish I was involved enough to shed a tear or two.
This was an incredibly easy read which is what I adore in adult fiction. I don’t remember the last time I breezed through a book so fast (yes, 8 days is crazy quick for me to read a whole book when normally I read one every month and a half). The breakdown of the chapters was so interesting and I am a complete and utter fan of the images throughout the book. The use of lightly grey pages and different font to denote El’s book? So intriguing. I haven’t read a book with these additions in a long, long time. It really kept me engaged!
Quotes I loved:
- For me, time and the world totally stopped. I was no longer swept along by the flow [of] it. - Page 188
I love supporting an Aussie author. I might have to look into Marija Peričić’s backlist!
🪩📚See more from me at 1800cosa on Instagram and TikTok.
Marija Peričić donated a signed copy of her book Foreign Country to be auctioned off through a fundraiser supporting the Indigenous Literacy Foundation. I'm lucky enough to have bid and won it. If you have the means to donate to the Indigenous Literacy Foundation directly, please do.
I am in love with the cover of this book. Remove the text and I’d put it on my wall.
As an Australian based, infrequent reader, it's a novelty to find a book that references Australia generally, let alone suburbs and streets that you know, or have driven on yourself (if you know the Denmark St, Barkers Rd intersection, you can probably already guess why it features in this book).
I wish this book was a little longer so there was more space to dive into the characters. They felt somewhat surface level through to the end, which unfortunately stopped me from feeling much emotion for the conclusion of the story. I would have loved to care more about Eva and Peter’s relationship and the next door neighbour Joe. With a little more character development, the ending of this book would be so beautiful yet so heart breaking - I enjoyed the way this book was tied in a bow, but I wish I was involved enough to shed a tear or two.
This was an incredibly easy read which is what I adore in adult fiction. I don’t remember the last time I breezed through a book so fast (yes, 8 days is crazy quick for me to read a whole book when normally I read one every month and a half). The breakdown of the chapters was so interesting and I am a complete and utter fan of the images throughout the book. The use of lightly grey pages and different font to denote El’s book? So intriguing. I haven’t read a book with these additions in a long, long time. It really kept me engaged!
Quotes I loved:
- For me, time and the world totally stopped. I was no longer swept along by the flow [of] it. - Page 188
I love supporting an Aussie author. I might have to look into Marija Peričić’s backlist!
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