"Flyaway" by Kathleen Jennings is a World Fantasy Award Finalist work that masterfully intertwines the themes of transformation, enchantment, and family history into a mesmerizing narrative. Set in the stark backdrop of Western Queensland, this debut novel introduces readers to Bettina Scott, a reserved young woman who embarks on a journey of discovery following a mysterious note from one of her vanished brothers.

This novella is beautiful and lyrical and magical and a must-read for anyone and everyone who has lived in small-town America and felt trapped in small-town American but also felt the beauty and magic hidden in small-town America. I can't express enough how much this novella means to me. 5/5 stars.

"Flyaway" by Kathleen Jennings is a hauntingly beautiful tale set in the Australian outback. With lyrical prose and intricate illustrations, Jennings crafts a story that intertwines family secrets, folklore, and the mesmerizing pull of the land. The novella invites readers to get lost in its atmospheric narrative, full of twists and turns, as it explores the unsettling and the familiar. A mesmerizing blend of gothic horror and fairy tale elements, "Flyaway" is a testament to the power of storytelling. Highly evocative and memorable.

This book is so unique, interesting. Almost portrayed as a dream. I haven't gotten the chance to read much Australian literature as of late, but this one was so enjoyable! The setting and whimsy mixed with magical elements was fascinating to read about. Her prose and voice had me hooked from the start, Jennings is such a compelling story-teller and I'm so excited to read more of her future works!

I really wanted to love this book but it just wasn’t the right fit for me. I struggled to connect with the characters; they were just names on a page. The writing style was very clunky, making it difficult for me to read with ease. The plot also had many holes that I just couldn’t wrap my head around. All in all, this didn’t work for me. Sorry.

Wow. Flawless.

My sincere apologies to the publisher for not getting to my digital arc in time—I’m here a year later with a physical copy. This was so amazing. I am doubly upset at missing out on promoting this book‘s release last year. Best believe I’ll be shouting from the rooftops about it now—what a fantastic book.

Writing: ★★★★★
Plot/Pacing: ★★★★★
Sense of magic/myth: ★★★★★
Enjoyment: ★★★★★

Sometimes you read a book and it's like a switch is flipped. All of the sudden, you realize this is your favorite thing, you've wanted something like this for a long time and just didn't know it.

Flyaway did that for me--I am now completely obsessed.

This is a short novella, so again I'll keep it brief because everyone deserves to go into this mini mythic fairytale on the Outback with as little prepping as possible.

There are three tiny towns in the rough bush of the Outback. One disappeared back into the rough bush. One is barely hanging on. And one holds onto its remaining population with an iron fist. But which town is which? I'll tell you this - they're not the ones you first expect.

Then there's Bettina Scott. She lives with her mother in a prim, proper house in her prim, proper cardigan with their lemon tree in the backyard and a fence keeping the neighbors out. Occasionally, Bettina thinks she remembers things. I don't think you want to get flustered, dear, I think you just need to lie down, her mother says instead. Don't go thinking about things that didn't happen.

Bettina is often doing what her mother says. It's easy to keep forgetting once you start, after all.

But what, exactly, is Bettina forgetting? What does it have to do with the interjected chapters of local myths from different characters? And what is going to happen to their tiny Australian Bermuda triangle once Bettina does remember?

Do you get chills from that? Because I do. And did. And will continue to.

This was *chefs kiss* perfection. For fans of The Border Keeper, Middlegame, Jane Harper's atmospheric Australian mysteries like The Lost Man, and other strange little pieces of novellas.

I have nothing negative to say. A piece of savored heaven with dark, sharp edges.

Although I have purchased a final copy of this, I'm not sure the writing style is something I enjoy. It just isn't grabbing my attention whenever I try to start; although, I've been having that issue across all my reading while the pandemic rages and political opinions spew forth. I will continue to try reading it once we are closer to normal. Maybe it will resonate better and I'll be able to finish it.

I normally like dense, poetic prose but this sort of choked out the plot a little bit - I wasn’t entirely sure until a large way through the book what exactly the atmosphere was supposed to be. Half magical-realist, half gothic, I guess. If this hadn’t been reviewed so well I might have put it down after the first chapter or two. In the end some of the details were intensely striking and this is one of those books I feel like you need to read over twice in order to appreciate, but I’m not sure I loved it enough to jump back into another read.

I’m judging a 2020 fiction contest. It’d be generous to call what I’m doing upon my first cursory glance—reading. I also don’t take this task lightly. As a fellow writer and lover of words and books, I took this position—in hopes of being a good literary citizen. My heart aches for all the writers who have a debut at this time. What I can share now is the thing that held my attention and got this book from the perspective pile into the read further pile.

Flyaway is a magical dazzling novel. I love it.

What a whimsical and enchanting book this is! I expected a fantasy novel filled with folklore but this is so much more. Don't get me wrong; this book is filled with fantasy and folklore but there are elements of horror as well. The tale is told in the style of a story teller sitting by a campfire where the words weave into a wondrous world where all is not what it seems.
A young woman living in a small town in Western Queensland, Australia receives a cryptic note from one of her brothers. Brothers who mysteriously disappeared around the time that her father left. The note compels Bettina on a search for the truth. A heartrending quest where Bettina faces ethereal animals, disappearing schools, and strange monsters to learn the unsettling truth.
The writing reminds me of Shirley Jackson's works and is beautifully poetic. This is one novel I do plan to read again because there is so much to absorb and I think it is one of those novels where you learn something new each time you read it again.

This was a short story, but it was packed with wonderful story telling! I think this is the first time I'm ever going to use this word to describe a book, but the writing was lyrical. It was sad and dark, haunting, and beautiful. I loved that this was set in Australia. I like reading about the landscape and the people!

I was provided a gifted copy of this book for free. I am leaving my review voluntarily.

First of all, the creepy cover design is awesome! Beautiful yet uncanny just like the story in this novella.

The novella follows Bettina (Tina) Scott, a nineteen year old woman who lives with her conservative, prim and manipulative mother. Three years after the inexplicable disappearance of her father and brothers, when she receives a note with 'YOU COWARD, TINK' sprawled on it, she sets on finding her long-lost-thought-to-be-dead brothers and to fill the gaping holes in her memory with the help of her two childhood friends, Gary and Patricia.

I don't actually have enough words to describe the writing 'cause it completely blew me away! The novel is set in fictional district called Inglewell and the atmosphere is just alluringly eerie, frightening beautiful and perfect (I am falling in short of words again). I loved the way in which urban legends where interwoven with the pasts of almost each and every character. I gradually got immersed into the novella and was completely astounded by the revelation at the end. The start was a bit confusing but I guess it was deliberately done to give the reader mystery chills.

I feel that 'Flyaway' is a kind of novella that the reader would completely love or completely hate. I, fortunately, just loved the book. But I do totally recommend this novella because it's completely worth taking the risk and Kathleen Jennings is definitely an author to look out for.

I thank NetGalley and Macmillan/Tor-Forge for giving me this wonderful opportunity to review this book by providing e-arc. All opinion are my own.

I tried reading this but unfortunately it wasn't to my taste at all. I think my biggest issue with this novel was the writing style, which was so ornate and wordy that it was hard to actually look beyond it and understand the narrative. I felt like the writing was prioritized over the story, and I think that's why I didn't end up getting along with this novel.

A tense and harrowing novella suffocating in the superstition of rural Australia. Folk tales as dry whispers circle around the story of a young woman attempting to reconcile the forced estrangement of her family. In this remote corner of the world, slurred tongues speak of beasts as men, men as beasts, schoolhouses suddenly covered in thick foliage, fabled potions enticing children toward a yawning abyss, and the myriad curses of the blood. Both magical and severe, Kathleen Jennings' "Flyaway" deserves recognition by any fan of modern fairy tale literature.

Flyaway is the debut by Kathleen Jennings, a writer & illustrator from Australia. I was unaware of this novella until I started seeing fellow bloggers in the community rave about it. The cover certainly caught my eye, which I later learned was done by Jennings herself.

I tend to be quite hit or miss with fairy-tale fantasies. Unfortunately, Flyaway is more of the latter.

The protagonist, Bettina Scott, is 19 when we meet her. Her father & two brothers, Mitch & Chris, disappeared three years prior one night. Living with her controlling mother in the peaceful town of Runagate, Bettina is quiet & reserved. She wasn’t always, however. In fact, she was quite rebellious. After her brothers vanished, many changes have been observed in Bettina by her childhood friends, Gary & Trish. They’ve stopped speaking, until she receives a mysterious letter indicating that one, or both, of her brothers may still be alive. Recruiting the two friends to help her, Bettina goes on a strange journey to uncover the truth.

Alternating between fairy tales that are nestled throughout present-day chapters, Flyaway is reminiscent of A Little Princess with more than a few Alice in Wonderland vibes. One story I loved as a kid, the other I loathed. Much like my feelings towards this slim novella.

This is one of those stories where the atmosphere is more memorable than the characters. The imagery is lush & gorgeous, vivid & immersive. However, I am a character reader first. As much as I love a moody atmosphere, there needs to be characters that populate the book with some substance to keep me interested. Not one character in Flyaway felt fleshed out, not even Bettina.

Jennings is a talented artist. I’m a sucker for artwork, especially within the books. Along with the eye-catching cover, Flyaway has some absolutely lovely chapter header images! They suit the Gothic-Mythology-Fairytale magic, for sure. Although the style didn’t do it for me, I’m certain that this will find the right audience. Those who adore contemporary folklore & extravagant prose may be just that.

This book definitely was not for me. I couldn't get into the flow or disjointedness of the writing style. I really think this author has a lot of potential and very talented, but this one was a miss for me.

The way Jennings weaves the different experiences of the characters and presents them as good old fairytales known to the older generations was equally exciteing and eerie. It's the perfect amount of dark and chilly for this season and reading it in candle light made it even more cozy.

Fantastic novel, can't believe it's a debut!

"In a small Western Queensland town, a reserved young woman receives a note from one of her vanished brothers—a note that makes her question memories of their disappearance and her father’s departure."

The mix of fairy-tale menace contrasted and modern outback Australia life works far better than I would have predicted. There are echoes of The Owl Service, The Bloody Chamber and Russian fairy tales in its pages, and throughout Jennings manages the switch between 'real' and 'fantastical' with ease.

I really enjoyed Flyaway and will definitely be first in line for her next novel!

3/5 stars
This wasn't terrible. I loved the writing style and the tone. I just had a really hard time connecting to it. I don't know if it was overly convoluted or my state of mind. What I would say is if it sounds intriguing, give it a shot. It may work better for you. I couldn't even figure out if these were short stories or an over arching narrative. It seems to be structured like short stories, but they all felt like they tied to the over arching narrative.

Tweeted July 28:

🥳 Happy #BookBirthday to @tanaudel’s debut novella FLYAWAY, out today from @TorDotComPub 🎉

🇦🇺 Australian gothic
❓ Uncertain narrator
🏚 Uncanny local events
👥 Surreal family history

[Image of book cover attached]