Review: The Swooping Magpie by Liza Perrat

Title: The Swooping Magpie
Author: Liza Perrat
Format: Ebook
Publisher: Self-published
Publish Date: October 23, 2018
Source: Author

What's the Story?:

From Goodreads.com: "The thunderclap of sexual revolution collides with the black cloud of illegitimacy. 

Sixteen-year-old Lindsay Townsend is pretty and popular at school. At home, it’s a different story. Dad belts her and Mum’s either busy or battling a migraine. So when sexy school-teacher Jon Halliwell finds her irresistible, Lindsay believes life is about to change. 

She’s not wrong. 

Lindsay and Jon pursue their affair in secret, because if the school finds out, Jon will lose his job. If Lindsay’s dad finds out, there will be hell to pay. But when a dramatic accident turns her life upside down, Lindsay is separated from the man she loves. 

Events spiral beyond her control, emotions conflicting with doubt, loneliness and fear, and Lindsay becomes enmeshed in a shocking true-life Australian scandal. The schoolyard beauty will discover the dangerous games of the adult world. Games that destroy lives. 

Lindsay is forced into the toughest choice of her young life. The resulting trauma will forever burden her heart."

My Two Cents:

"The Swooping Magpie" is the story of Lindsey, a teen who is lonely at home, who falls for her manipulative P.E. teacher, Jon. Lindsey is thrilled by their secret love and when she gets pregnant, she sees it as a way to run away from her home life. Her parents force her into a home for unwed mothers where Lindsey is surrounded by other girls that have gotten pregnant. Lindsey will have to break out of her self-centered shell in order to protect her heart. 

Lindsey is definitely a character that grew on me throughout the book. At first, she annoyed me with her self-centered-ness and her immaturity when it came to her relationship with Jon. She really undergoes a change throughout the book as she has to grow up very quickly. I liked seeing how her decision-making process changes and she determines what really matters to her. I love seeing characters go through transitions like this!

I haven't read a lot of books set in Australia or the 1970s so I really liked the descriptions of the time and the place. I thought the author did a good job of balancing the world of the characters with what was going on around them. I had no context for the feelings against the Vietnam War in Australia. I know there were massive protests and movements in the United States so it was interesting to see the feelings in Australia.

This book is a slow burn and really picks up around the midpoint. I don't want to give anything away but there is a decision that Lindsey has to make in order to move towards what she wants in life that really sped things up. Overall, this was an enjoyable read!