This third novel from acclaimed Queensland author Sally Piper focuses on the repercussions, within one family, of a terrible crime. Even though sixteen years have passed, Billie will never recover from the murder of her daughter, Jess, and clings to her memory - and the site of her death - like a life raft. Daniel, who was a toddler when his mother was killed, can recall little of what happened but knows if he's to have any chance of a better future he needs to move on from that defining event – if only his grandmother would let him. Meanwhile Daniel's stepmother, Carla, also feels trapped by Jess's legacy but has a plan that she believes will help everyone to escape from the long shadow of the past. Deeply human, evocative and beautifully written, Bone Memories explores themes of human connection and the memorialisation of place.
"'Bone Memories is a tender, wise and forensic look at what the earth holds - the roots of the living, the secrets of the dead, the memories of all who came before. It is a celebration of the power of witness, as well as the power of nature - and an elegy to its loss.'"
Kristina Olsson
"'Sally Piper's writing goes straight to the heart of things; how we grieve, love, survive, and remember. Her fiction asks fundamental questions about nature, earth, and our bodies: where does trauma and memory live and linger? How do we memorialise what we cannot bear to forget? Bone Memories is a powerful exploration of conflicts, common ground, and what it means to own our stories.'"
Holly Ringland
"'Bone Memories got right under my skin … Tense and compelling, Piper has written a page-turner that is also an elegant meditation on memory and grief and the ground we tread.'"
