This is a 'historical' novel with so little historical context in it. I am very disappointed in how much of the extensive research (debut) author Lizzie Pook did and then didn't include in her novel Moonlight and the Pearler's Daughter.

According to the Author's Note at the end she did a lot of research and had many people, locations, and scenarios to base her book off of. Instead she decided to make the locale completely fictional, the islands nearby fictional, and only skirt the edge of the discussion about aboriginal rights, colonization affects, etc. to the local people of the area. When I read historical fiction I expect to find nuggets of truth throughout. Like the works of Lisa See and Natasha Lester; I want to experience the timeframe, living conditions, day to day struggles, and genuine reality of the chosen place and time. Instead of really doing this to the fullness possible I think Pook grabbed a couple nuggets to throw into her seaside story so she could set it at a historical point in history. However, by leaving so much of her research findings out what Pook really gave us is a mystery story inside of (very) loose time and location. The islands and even main town we learn about are all fictional. The crisis and plight of the aboriginal groups is there; but not looked at in-depth. It's just missing the real meaty substance I want from a historical book.

That said, it does mean this is an easier read; and it's relatively short. Some might find it has just enough to spur good book club conversation. Although I'd argue that the ending is so unbelievably ridiculous in it's outcomes that it's as though we never knew any of our characters to start. Unfortunately for me, Moonlight and the Pearler's Daughter just lacks the authenticity I want in my historical fiction. It's an okay story; but if you want a genuine look at the pearling industry of the day in Australia or the colonization take-over of Australia you are going to have to look elsewhere (or just read the author's note, it has better historical tidbits in it than the book!).

Please note: I received an eARC of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. This is an honest and unbiased review.

This book sounded super interesting set in a period and place I didn't know much about. Unfortunately despite giving it a try multiple times I just couldn't get into it and gave up about 25% of the way in. Maybe it was just me not jiving with the writing style or the story being a little too slow moving for my tastes. Either way, still a great subject that I may try again at a later time. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review!

A book with a sad tale but an interesting one. I enjoyed the book, the story and the writing. A must for one's reading list.

In the late 1800s, Eliza Brightwell's father decides to move the family from England to Australia to make their fortune from the pearl diving industry. It's not a happy transition, as the climate and the people they meet are not what they expected.

Ten years later, Eliza's father doesn't return from sea. She's shocked, her brother and uncle will only say her father went overboard, and neither seems interested in pursuing this further. Eliza is insistent he is still alive, and deeply concerned that a friend is suspected of killing her father. Not believing what she hears, Eliza enlists the help of a stranger, and heads out looking for her father.


Lizzie's Pook was terrific at evoking the time period , its attitudes (racism), and how the pearl industry depends on the exploitation of the indigenous population. Eliza is courageous, intelligent and a little too ready to throw herself into danger to find out what really happened to her father. The story held my interest, and gave me some insight into a part of Australia in the late 1800s.

Thank you to Netgalley and to Simon & Shuster Canada for this ARC in exchange for my review.

I really want to love this book, Historical, Australia, Pearl, Ocean all of this are intriguing.
Unfortunately, I just can't get in. I don't feel the characters, i don't interest about the mystery part. It is not a good story to describe 18th century of Australia.

Sorry, one star only

Moonlight and the Pearler’s Daughter

If you’re looking for a historical fiction that isn’t world war related AND you like a strong feminist character, then this one just might be right up your alley.

In the late 1800’s, Eliza Brightwell’s father moves the family to Western Australia to stake the family’s future on the pearl diving industry. Full of hope, they work towards making a new life. There is both hope and tragedy to be found there.

Ten years later, Eliza’s father’s boat returns but he’s not on it. He’s gone overboard. There is rumour of murder and a dear friend is named as the prime suspect but Eliza can’t believe it. She sets off, on her own, against the odds, to find the truth. What she discovers on the way is a web of deceit, greed, corruption, prejudice and family secrets.

I really liked Eliza’s character. She was a strong woman that went against the norms for what she believed in, for her family. She was courageous, bold and a little headstrong…sometimes too much, putting herself in danger unnesesarily.

Pook’s writing is very descriptive. I felt the grit of the streets, the danger of certain areas of town, the splash of the waves in the storm. I would say there were a few places where plot and pacing could have been a little tighter but, overall, it was a beautifully written story with an interesting mystery woven throughout.

This book was good, not great. I liked the history but the characters fell a little flat for me. I didn't put the book down, it was a quick read.

Thank you, NetGalley for the eARC. This review is voluntary and contains my honest opinion about the book.

I liked it!
Given the timeframe (1800s) the wording was hard for me to understand at times, but it felt very in-keeping. The family dynamic was interesting, and frustrating.
I may be in the minority, but other than how quick the ending seem to come about and become all "neatly wrapped", I actually really liked it and some of the unexpected elements.

I appreciated the notes and acknowledgements at the end. It was nice to hear from the author in all the ways they tried to be truthful and respectful of the history, even while creating a fictional story.

Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of this book.

Thank you Netgalley, Simon & Schuster and Simon & Schuster Canada, Lizzie Pook for free e-ARC in return of my honest review.

A young woman is searching for the truth about disappearance of her father, the successful pearler in Western Australia. An Aboriginal man is jailed on the account of his murder, but Eliza, the daughter, does mot believe it and start her own quest.

The novel has beautiful strong components to be great. There is a brave female character with strong will and undeniable charisma. There are adventures on the soil and on sea. There are wrongdoings and wrong people who were set straight. There is a female strong friendship and appealing love story. There is a beautiful background of early Australia. However, all together it failed to fascinate me. Narration style is quite boring and the story seems to drug on and on with little development. Characters get little development along the way as well. Some parts are left unexplained, some side plots are left hanging (what happened with Thomas?!).

The novel has a lot of potential and many good components, however I feel like the execution could have been better.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an electronic copy to read in exchange for an honest review.

Oh this was a fun one! A feisty and determined woman who shucks off the weights of expected behaviour. Taking place in late 1800s Australia this story follows Eliza as she investigates her father's disappearance from his pearling vessel. A story of family, Australia, and ultimately of being true to oneself.

Lizzie Pook’s fabulous debut transports readers to a pearl diving community in Western Australia at the end of the 19th-century. Bannin Bay is a melting pot of Malays, Manilamen and Japanese, where Europeans are vastly outnumbered in 1886, when young Eliza Brightwell arrives from England with her family. After ten years as a respected Captain and Master Pearler, her father’s ship returns from an expedition without him. Convinced he is still alive Eliza embarks on a dangerous mission to bring him home.
Moonlight and the Pearler’s Daughter is a richly inspired novel with fascinating insight into the flora and fauna of Western Australia. Descriptions juxtapose the legitimate pearling industry against a visceral depiction of the harsh cruelty meted out by Pearl Slavers who traded in the dark side. The ocean manifests as a character unto itself. Eliza’s father’s diary is interspersed throughout the narrative, humanising an otherwise mythical figure and lending credence to Eliza’s desperate need to prove he’s alive. Such a dauntless adventurer cannot have simply vanished! Meticulous research and stunning attention to detail draw the reader into a scorching, sun-baked, cut-throat world where things are not as they should be. Equal parts adventure and mystery, this is a story of hope, unwavering loyalty, and faith in the face of impossible odds. Recommended.

I enjoyed this, but I didn't find I learned too much and it didn't suck me in like other books have. It was still interesting and unique, just wasn't gripping.

Moonlight and the Pearler’s Daughter – Lizzie Pook

Don’t be fooled by the beautiful cover, this isn’t a historical romance!

This is an engrossing and riveting historical fiction set during the height of colonial British occupation of Australia, with all the associated horrors of its exploitative pearl harvesting/diving/trade, including racism, misogyny, judicial & industry corruption, and ecological impacts.

At the centre of this storm is Eliza Brightwell, a young woman who wants to figure out the truth of what happened to her father, who refuses to sit home and wait for the men in her life (including her abusive and alcoholic brother) to deign to properly investigate, and who won’t allow an innocent man to be accused and abused by the officials of the “judicial” system.

What I liked:
- Author’s acknowledgement of the Indigenous First Peoples of Australia and of the Torres Strait Islands
- Eliza is a seeker of knowledge, a scholar, a leader, a naturalist, and an adventurer
- Non-romanticization of the pearl trade and this period of history
- I learned so much that I didn’t know I wanted to know about pearls and pearl diving, seabird guano, whales, sharks, dust storms, charting and sailing, etc.
- The author’s rich descriptions of the flora and fauna of the ocean and land, as well as the sights and smells associated (though these weren’t always positive – think rotting fish, shark attacks, and violent death). The book was an immersive sensory experience, at times traumatic, at times wondrous.
- Diverse and interesting cast of characters

What I didn’t like:
- I have a strong aversion to seeing and reading descriptions of insects, especially roaches. The repeated references to roaches made me cringe.

Overall, I enjoyed this book (apart from the roaches) and would recommend it to those who like their historical fiction presented in a solid, well-researched, and non-romanticized way.

I have had a lot of trouble getting into this book. I found the first 4 chapters very slow and not meeting my mood, so I'm not sure if I can finish it. I will amend my review and put a review on Amazon if I find it possible to finish the book and find the rest of the book interesting.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc of “Moonlight and the Pearler’s Daughter” by Lizzie Pook.

Eliza Brightwell has travelled from England to Bannin Bay in Australia and has lived there for the last ten years of her life. Today was supposed to be a day like any other where her father and brother come back from a trip out on their lugger gathering pearls but instead of both of them coming back to port Eliza’s father is no longer on the ship when it docks that day. Eliza has to start her own investigation to overcome the corruption and racism that abounds in Bannin Bay and what she finds is startling for all those around her.

This book had great descriptive language. You could really picture the muck and danger of Bannin Bay as well as the oppressive heat that surrounded the place. Eliza, Axel, Min, and Thomas were well developed characters who you slowly learned more about as the book moved forward.

For such a short book I felt like this book dragged along for the majority of it. It wasn’t until the last act of the book where the mystery starts to unfold faster that I felt like I was getting anywhere with the book. The beginning of the book felt almost overly descriptive for me and the different lengths that Eliza had to go to to discover anything about her father, while later relevant, felt like too many steps to keep the book moving at a good pace.

I give this book 3 and a half stars out of 5.

I think this would be a good book for those who enjoy very descriptive language with a slow story line.

What an interesting read, I learned something new once again through historical Fiction books. This one dives into the history of Pearl diving in western Australia and a fictional story and mystery set in the 19 century. The story is beautifully written and very descriptive making you feel like you are right on the shore taking in the sights and smells. When Eliza’s father does not return with his crew she will not believe he lost his life at sea but rather that he was a victim and is out there somewhere waiting to be rescued .. The story follows her journey to find the truth about what happened to him and while doing this she finds herself. I was surprised with a few of the relationships and what the outcome was…..

I received a free advanced copy from NetGalley and all opinions are my own. I would recommend this book to friends and family and I think it would be a great read for a book club

I really enjoyed this author debut historical fiction! The story takes place towards the end of the 1800s in Australia, in a town where the main industry is pearling. The focus of the book follows Eliza after her Master Pearler father goes missing at sea. Eliza believes he is still alive, and sets out with the help of some friends to find him.

There were some really interesting concepts within this book. The author did a good job of bringing to light how poorly the indigenous people were treated by the settlers in Western Australia during this time period. There was clearly racism going on, and this was shown through various events that occurred in the story.

My favourite part of this book was Eliza’s character. She was such a strong female lead, and was never afraid to do or say what she wanted. This was big for the time period, and was fascinating to watch her character development.

I would recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a good historical fiction, especially one with a bit of a mystery as well!

This book about the pearling industry in Australia in the late 1800s intrigued me. It checked the box for learning something new, historical fiction, and escaping into a story with adventure and mystery.

With each page, I could visualize Lizzie Pook’s novel as a movie. The imagery of ramshackle buildings, hot hazy weather, sticky skin, exotic birds, bugs that can kill you, stunning sunsets, and sandy beaches transported me to another world.

Eliza is thrust into an adventure to uncover the secrets around the disappearance of her father, the most successful pearler in Bannin Bay. She is feisty and tenacious in a time when women were not encouraged to be either. But her love for her father makes her unstoppable in her pursuit and consequently, makes this an engaging story.

If you enjoy being immersed in another time and place and being captivated along the way, this debut novel by Lizzie Pook is for you.

I’d like to thank Simon and Schuster Canada and NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Moonlight and the Pearler's Daughter is a powerful story of isolation, identity and finding your own truth set in the pearl-diving communities of 19th century Australia.

When Eliza's father mysteriously disappears while captaining a pearl diving expedition, and her brother cannot provide the answers she is looking for, she is forced to find the answers herself. Nothing is as it appears as the narrative moves back and forth between Eliza's family's history, the local corrupt constable's search for the man accused of killing Eliza's father, and Eliza's own search for the truth.

The novel starts slowly, but is worth the wait as Eliza's story opens up. Lizzie Pook does an incredibly job taking the reader to the space and time that is colonial Australia at this time. Her descriptions of the space are so detailed I felt like I could smell the salt, see the colours and feel the oppressive heat. Eliza is also beautifully drawn, and the author does an amazing job of letting the reader see through her eyes, and think the way she thinks.

All the supporting characters are well-drawn, including Eliza's best (only?) friend Min, and the mysterious stranger who helps Eliza get to places she can't. The book has a terrific number of twists, and the last one, in particular, delighted me.

Moonlight and the Pearler's Daughter would make an excellent independent novel choice for high school readers (or for book clubs!) . It would be particularly interesting to pair with stories set in this time period written by Indigenous authors. Pook does not shy away from the racism that was present in the pearl diving industry and in colonial Australia, and that helps make this an even more relevant read. Eliza's unwillingness to participate in the pre-determined roles for women in her community would make for great discussion material.

A beautiful cover is always a bonus, and this one has one. Thanks to Net Galley and Simon and Shuster for the e-arc

Eliza is determined to find her father after he goes missing on his most recent pearling expedition, even though everyone else believes he is dead she is convinced he's still out there somewhere.
The author really did focus on the atmosphere for this story and the writing is good, but I felt the characters suffered do to this focus, I honestly couldn't tell you much about Eliza other than the fact that she's stubborn and usually a bit stupid about it, never taking consequences into account until she's already in the middle of them.
The other characters are focused on so little that they just seemed really flat and a few were unnecessary, the whole pearling industry was pretty interesting though.