The Night Ship

Jess Kidd Canongate €21.50

Kidd’s latest historical novel is a cleverly constructed splittimeline saga drawn on the disturbing events that followed the wreck of a Dutch merchant vessel off the coast of Australia during the 17th Century. Chapters alternate between two children: Mayken, a girl caught up in the unfolding horror on board ship, and Gil, an island boy haunted by her story nearly 400 years later. A slow-build tale with a supernatural tint, it’s uplifting despite the grim source material.