Girl Falling
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3.3 • 70 Ratings
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
SHORTLISTED FOR THE DANGER AWARDS FOR BEST CRIME FICTION 2025
'An enthralling excavation of truth, with a vivid, human heart.' Benjamin Stevenson
Why would my best friend want to destroy my life?
Finn and her best friend, Daphne, have grown up together in the Blue Mountains. Bonded by both having lost a younger sister to suicide, they've always had a close - sometimes too close - friendship. Now in their twenties, their lives have finally started to diverge: Daphne is at university and Finn is working in the Mountains, as well as falling in love with a beautiful newcomer called Magdu.
Unused to sharing Finn, Daphne starts to act up in ways that will allow her to maintain the control over her best friend she's always relished. Then, one fateful day, Finn, Daphne and Magdu all go rock-climbing - and Magdu falls to her death. Is it suicide, or a terrible accident - or something more sinister?
Bold, dramatic and utterly compelling, Girl Falling forces us to confront the stories we tell ourselves about the people we love. Displaying all of Hayley Scrivenor's razor-sharp skills for character, landscape and narrative, this is a breathtaking read.
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
In her second novel Girl Falling, Hayley Scrivenor delivers an intimate crime narrative about the aftermath of tragedy and the human need for answers. Set in Australia’s Blue Mountains, the novel centres on Finn, whose life is shattered when her girlfriend Magdu dies in a rock climbing accident. As Finn grapples with doubt and grief, the narrative delivers flashbacks and present-day police investigations that reveal the intricate dynamics between Finn, Magdu, and Finn’s childhood best friend Daphne. Scrivenor’s use of first-person narrative immerses us fully in Finn’s world, her pain and her relentless search for the truth. It’s this sensitive portrayal of Finn’s internal turmoil, coupled with the more structured, suspenseful plotting, that makes this novel utterly engaging. With Girl Falling, Scrivenor cements her place as one to watch in contemporary crime fiction.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In this twisty if far-fetched psychological thriller from Lambda Award winner Scrivenor (Dirt Creek), three young women set out to rappel down a cliff in an Australian national park—but only two survive. When Daphne Bennett, who has long harbored unrequited feelings for park guide Finn Young, suggests the excursion to Finn and her grad-student girlfriend, Magdu Fernandes, Finn and Magdu brush aside their misgivings. Then, disaster strikes: Finn, who ventures out first, watches Magdu, the woman she hoped to marry, plummet past her in a blaze of orange. Was it a tragic accident, or something more sinister? As police explore the possibility of foul play and grill a grieving, guilt-wracked Finn—whom Magdu's conservative family blames for their daughter's death—she is forced to face hard truths about her relationships with both her deceased girlfriend and the increasingly frightening Daphne. Those reflections gradually lead to the unearthing of a lurid web of secrets and lies, culminating in a bombshell reveal that's likely to leave some readers feeling played. Still, Scrivenor's evocative sense of place and unerring aim for the emotional jugular keep the pages turning. It's not perfect, but Scrivenor delivers some gratifying jolts.
Customer Reviews
There are plenty of better reads out there… don’t waste your time with this one
This book could have been good with a little more guidance and editing. I finished the last chapter and the ‘twist’ left me infuriated. Would be interested to know what others thought.