When Eliza’s beloved father, the towns most successful pearler they have ever known, goes missing under more than just suspicious circumstances, the growing whispers and rumours start circulating and it’s not long before murder or mutiny echos off of everyone around Eliza. After all, they dive into the deep waters to bring shells, and the owners sell the pearls to make money.

The undimmed romance between 40-something Martha and her husband, Ephraim, adds a racy flair to the proceedings. It was slow, so very slow, dragging, not building on the protagonist, Eliza or her partner in crime Alex. I question whether the fact that I listened to the story, rather than read it, may have contributed to the adventure piece falling flat. Pook’s writing is reliably vivid, alternating between dense lyricism and free indirect speech with an old-timey diction. Eliza is an early feminist, who knows her own mind, not swayed by others, she has no intention of following the cultural rules and behaviour expected of women, although she has her own demons, she is helped in her quest by her friend, Min, who has to do whatever it takes to survive.

As far as a historical fiction work goes, it rates high for me in that I learned a lot about this piece of history and also the pearling industry. But “Moonlight” is a sensitive and compassionate book, admirable in its engaging synthesis of multiple strands of history.

She needs and wants no man but does accept the help of a young touring German because it takes a man to get into places that a woman isn't allowed. I don’t read a lot of historical fiction but this one appealed because it is set in a time and place that I don’t know a lot about. Her pen brought this world to life: you can feel the heat, the insects bites, the rain that soaks through your clothes. Compelling, fiercely feminist, and atmospheric, Lizzie Pook’s Moonlight and the Pearler’s Daughter is a truly mesmerising novel. It was 1886 when Eliza Brightwell and her family arrived in Bannin Bay, Western Australia from England.The sun-scorched streets of Bannin Bay, a place she once thought she knew so well, are teeming with corruption, prejudice, and blackmail. It's dangerous and deadly work, less so for her father and brother, but very dangerous and deadly for those that work under them.

An appealing heroine, it’s a little unlikely Eliza would be quite as capable as she seems to be in a couple of scenes for a young woman of her status during the time period, but her determination and daring is admirable. In her debut novel, Pook introduces us to Eliza Brightwell, a pearler’s daughter living in the fictional Bannin Bay of Western Australia. As the story begins, for a moment it switches between 1886 and 1896, but this is very brief and I actually hoped that it would continue throughout the whole story. Set in the harsh, unforgiving land that is outback Western Australia, the constant heat, flies and any number of other insects and things that bite, the reality was vivid. Palmer doesn’t listen but, in any case, the young man soon escapes from the jail and melts back into the unforgiving landscape.Eliza is devastated, and when the local constabulary immediately places blame upon one of her father’s most loyal divers, Eliza sets out to prove the man’s innocence, and learn the truth about her father’s fate. Eliza and her family have arrived from England so her father can go into the pearling business hoping to make his fortune. Eliza Brightwell is a capable young girl, forced to move to Australia to support her family's pearling business, 10 years later her father's ship comes back without him leaving Eliza alone to figure out what happened. Though I could clearly visualise Eliza’s environment, I would have liked to learn more about the daily operations of a pearling fleet.

In 1861, the largest known species of pearl oyster, Pinctada maxima, was found in bulk off the northern coast of Western Australia. In that city, Nico Krispis is an 11-year-old Jewish boy whose blue eyes and blond hair deceive, but whose words do not. The era, the location and the culture would indicate that she should "behave" in a rather more seemly fashion than she does!Men only interested in money, and not at all concerned with the treatment of his those in his employ. Beautifully written, unflinching and brimming with adventure' - Jennifer Saint, author of Ariadne and Elektra'Immersive storytelling, a rollicking mystery and a take-no-prisoners heroine' - Stylist1896, Bannin Bay, Australia. Here is an unforgiving land where fortune sits patiently at the bottom of the ocean, waiting to be claimed by those brave enough to venture into its depths. Her quest draws the reader into the tense social climate between colonizers and Aboriginals, the spectacular flora and fauna of Western Australia and Pacifica, as well as the perils of sea voyages at the time. This story focuses on Eliza Brightwell,, daughter of Charles, who fled England with his family to join his brother in the Pearling business.