Book review | Into the Fire by Sonia Orchard

In more recent years, I’ve become more interested in reading thrillers for it’s gripping plot and characters. I also had been making a more conscious effort to read more Australian fiction to support homegrown writers. So, when the blurb of "Into the Fire" by Sonia Orchard caught my attention – a mysterious fire, themes of guilt and womanhood, and a contemporary Australian novel – it sounded like that very book I wanted to read. 

‘A year after her best friend died in a house fire, Lara can’t come to terms with the loss. Logic says there was no more she could have done to save the mercurial and unhappy Alice, but Lara can’t escape the feeling that she is somehow to blame for the tragedy.

She spends a weekend at the rebuilt house with Alice’s charismatic widower, Crow, and his three young children. Rummaging through the remains of their shared past, Lara reveals a friendship with Alice that was troubled as it was intense. But beneath the surface is a darker, more unsettling secret waiting to be exposed.

Through exquisite prose and searing insight, Into the Fire explores the many ways, small and large, we betray one another and our ideals. It’s a compelling story about power, guild and womanhood from an outstanding voice in Australian fiction.’

- Blurb excerpt from Goodreads. 

“Into the Fire” by Sonia Orchard is an Australian contemporary story focusing on the friendships of Alice, Crow (short for his surname ‘Crowley’), and Lara, the story’s narrator. One year before the book begins, we know that Alice has died in a sudden and mysterious house fire, leaving her husband, Crow, and three children behind. Lara visits Crow and the children for the weekend, but begins to retrace the memories of her friendship with Alice to understand her unfortunate passing. We learn of their growing friendship at the University of Melbourne in the early chapters, which capture Melbourne in the 90s and the rise of feminism and Women’s Studies classes. Lara and Alice are seemingly opposites of each other, but nonetheless form a strong bond and challenge each other politically and personally. Then they meet Crow, who is well-liked by many for his carefree albeit brooding attitude and rock-star attraction. It’s when Alice eventually enters a relationship with Crow that we start seeing the cracks in Lara’s and Alice’s friendship.

One aspect of the book I enjoyed were Orchard’s explorations of Lara’s and Alice’s differentiating views as they balance work, study, travel, relationships and motherhood while questioning all these ideas with feminism and their independence. From shattered expectations to acceptance, we see how Lara and Alice deal with the personal cost when priorities shift, friendships drift and the eventual result of foolish choices over the course of 15 years.

Orchard was able to highlight the book’s ideas and themes of womanhood, feminism, and relationships quite well, but the plot suffered from slow pacing as a result. I wasn’t a big fan of this as it stalled at certain points in the book (which is relatively short), and made me realise that “Into the Fire” was perhaps not the thriller book I thought it was. The narrative went between flashbacks and present time but, thankfully, Orchard successfully wove these two points in time so smoothly that it wasn’t too disrupting when we switch timelines. The flashbacks provided a lot of character history so that when we jump back to the present time, we see Lara’s views and friendship with Crow start shifting from a cordial visit to suspicion.

The book definitely doesn’t fall into the YA camp, being more of adult fiction that presents challenging themes such as friendships, motherhood/ feminism, and abusive relationships to the reader. There is also an overarching theme of disappointment in life when expectations are not met, particularly with Lara. So, I don’t recommend “Into the Fire” to young readers as these themes are uncomfortable truths to acknowledge about adulthood.

The last few chapters of the book picked up the pace as we see Lara starting to piece together her last interactions with an emotional and hysterical Alice and a calm, collected Crow before the house fire. However, the book ends on a cliff-hanger of a revelation that I was not a fan of: Who is telling the truth? Who should Lara trust – Alice or Crow? I questioned Lara’s actions post-fire and why she didn’t come to this revelation much sooner. It was an unsatisfying ending that left me annoyed before going to bed.

Overall, the book definitely left me thinking about my own personal views and how feminism evolved since the 90s. On that note, Orchard’s venture into feminist philosophy and women’s studies throughout the book, while somewhat interesting, contributed to the slow-burn pace of the plot. So, if you were after a gripping mystery then you’d have to brave through these parts in the book until you reach the end. Or find an action-packed mystery to satisfy your itch.

Have you read this book? Let me know what you think! Until next time, stay golden ya nerds.

- Del 

Book cover from [x]

Rating: 3 stars

Publisher: Affirm Press

Publishing Year: 2019

Where to purchase it online: Booktopia | Book Depository

Goodreads