#BlogTour: Ash Mountain by Helen Fitzgerald @FitzHelen @OrendaBooks @annecater #AshMountain #HelenFitzgerald #TeamOrenda #RandomThingsTours

Book Synopsis:

Single-mother Fran returns to her sleepy hometown to care for her dying father when a devastating bush fire breaks out. A heartbreaking disaster-noir thriller from the bestselling author of The Cry.

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Fran hates her hometown, and she thought she’d escaped. But her father is ill, and needs care. Her relationship is over, and she hates her dead-end job in the city, anyway.

She returns home to nurse her dying father, her distant teenage daughter in tow for the weekends. There, in the sleepy town of Ash Mountain, childhood memories prick at her fragile self-esteem, she falls in love for the first time, and her demanding dad tests her patience, all in the unbearable heat of an Australian summer. As past friendships and rivalries are renewed, and new ones forged, Fran’s tumultuous home life is the least of her worries, when old crimes rear their heads and a devastating bushfire ravages the town and all of its inhabitants…

Simultaneously a warm, darkly funny portrait of small-town life – and a woman and a land in crisis – and a shocking and truly distressing account of a catastrophic event that changes things forever, Ash Mountain is a heart-breaking slice of domestic noir, and a disturbing disaster thriller that you will never forget…

Ash Mountain is available in ebook and paperback now. You can purchase your copy using the link below.

My Review:

This was another unique, gripping read from this talented author. I felt this book had quite a modern feel to it as it’s based around the bush fires in Australian which made headlines around the world last year. With this in mind it’s perhaps worth mentioning that the front cover is also a real picture taken by a father watching his daughter looking out at the bush fires which combined helps give the book a very realistic feel to it.

Firstly I absolutely loved all the wonderful characters in this book who were a diverse group bringing lots of different things to the story. Fran was my favourite however and I loved how real she seemed as she was very relatable but also frustrating in equal measures. Her attitude towards things was quite amusing and often made me laugh out loud. She definitely someone I’d like to be friends with in real life.

The author does a great job of setting the scene so that the reader really gets a feeling of the small town that the story is set in. Community is obviously very important to the locals and I loved reading about how busy and together it was although that had its downsides too.

The end of this book was brilliant and I found myself reading faster as I desperately wanted to find out how everything worked out. If you haven’t read anything by this author yet and like books with a great mix of drama, tragedy and dark humour then you’ll love this book.

Huge thanks to Anne Cater for inviting me onto the blog tour and to Orenda for my copy of this book.

About The Author:

Helen FitzGerald is the second youngest of thirteen children. She grew up in the small town of Kilmore, Victoria, Australia, and studied English and History at the University of Melbourne. Via India and London, Helen came to Glasgow University where she completed a Diploma and Masters in Social Work. She has worked as a probation and parole officer for ten years, most of it in Barlinnie, where she helps to prepare serious offenders for release. She’s married to screenwriter Sergio Casci, and they have two children.