Shadow Thief

by Campbell, Marion M. (2006), 350pp., ISBN 1 74076 189 8.

AUD$27.23 (Including GST: AUD$29.95) (softcover)

Alison's childhood is a stage on which the fickle behaviour of adults is played out and where the catalysts for her development are the opposing forces of passion and indifference. As a young woman she encounters Diane, a gifted rebel from a suburban home whose chafing against conformity has resulted in a prison sentence. Meeting as student and teacher, Alison and Diane experience the developing relationship under the shadow of ownership and desire.

Taking the act of vanishing — by choice or circumstance — as its theme, this skilful and vibrant novel centres on characters who rise strikingly from the page.