A debut novel that combines psychological suspense with gothic traditions, placing them in a distinctly Australian setting.

After suffering a miscarriage, Sydneysider Leila has fallen into depression and grown dependent on prescription medications. Her partner, James, a psychologist, proposes a year's break on his family farm to help her to recover.

But life on the farm is not what Leila imagined.

The location is remote, the house old and decrepit, the phone reception patchy, and with no vehicle of her own, Leila finds herself extremely isolated. The author evokes a great sense of eeriness.

The eeriness increases when Leila begins experiencing strange and unexplained phenomena - noises, smells, and even visions that no-one else can detect, and which James puts down to her overuse of medication.

James, while obviously a country bloke who's a bit rough around the edges, also proves himself to be a caring, patient, and supportive partner.

Author Jessica Mansour-Nahra

Then Leila hears a rumour that the house is haunted, and embarks on an investigation into its history, uncovering evidence of unsettling events that occurred there in the past, upping the eeriness factor again!

Leila realises too late just how oppressive and controlling James' behaviour really is, the forces of the past that drive him, and the lengths he is willing to go to in order to continue the family line.

The slow build of suspense and the constant question of the narrator's mental stability will keep you turning the pages.

In sum:

TITLE: The Farm

AUTHOR: Jessica Mansour-Nahra

PUBLISHER: Hachette Australia

PUBLICATION DATE: 26 August, 2025

GENRE: Gothic thriller

RECOMMENDED FOR: Anyone who enjoys the classic unreliable narrator

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