EXCERPT: Kathryn looked at Ellie. 'Cynthia showed me the story in your paper about our mayor. Remarkable woman. Her honesty embarrassed me. Not because of what she said, but that she was brave enough to tell the truth.' Kathryn was still looking at Ellie. 'Secrets steal your soul. Even those you keep from yourself. I've kept a secret for most of my life and now I've finally come to understand how it eats away at your heart, even if you don't admit it.'

'What are you talking about, Kathryn?' asked Heather quietly.

'I want you to know what I have ignored for decades, Heather. And what I should have told you, Ellie, when I did the interview here with you when Heather was still working on the portrait.'

'I don't understand,' started Ellie. There was something in Kathryn's eyes, in the tone of her voice, that was slicing through Ellie's tightly wrapped inner self. The part of her that hurt.

'Keeping things to yourself is not brave. It eats you up,' Kathryn said. 'I see that now. Let me share this now with you, young woman. And Heather, I've kept this from you, from everyone, for decades, and suddenly I see there was no reason to do so.'

Ellie sat clutching her tea cup. This elderly woman couldn't know how she felt and what she suffered in her dark hours. Or could she? Did she want to hear what Kathryn had to say? Ellie didn't move, she simply stared at Kathryn, who had turned her head and was looking at the sheet covering the painting. Then go ahead, Kathryn. Get it off your chest.'

ABOUT 'BEFORE THE STORM': Face her demons? Or run?

After being double-crossed by a devious colleague, career woman Ellie Conlan quits her job on principle. With no idea what to do next, she retreats to Storm Harbour, an idyllic Victorian beach town.

Ellie's grandfather runs The Storm Harbour Chronicle, the trusted local newspaper. As Ellie is drawn into a story about a development which could split the coastal community - and involves her with the influential O'Neill family - an event she has long suppressed threatens to overwhelm her.

Dark clouds gather as rumours fly and tensions mount. And when a violent storm breaks and rages, Ellie will finally have to confront her past.

MY THOUGHTS: I needed this visit to Australia, although I have never visited the region in which Di Morrissey has set Before the Storm.

Ellie has gone to visit her Poppy in order to regroup after being shafted in her career. A normal thing to do, we all head for 'home' when we're hurting. What Ellie doesn't bargain on is finding the corruption and trolling she thought she'd left behind in the city, rearing another equally ugly head in Storm Harbour.

Di Morrissey conveys a great sense of place, I could see this wonderful little town quite clearly in my mind, just as I could it's characters. And there are some wonderful characters! It would be hard not to like Ellie. She's a little stirred and shaken by the events in her life, and coming back to Storm Harbour has reignited a few memories she would rather forget, but she moves on with her life helped, inadvertently, by the new friends she makes.

There are a couple of minor 'mysteries' regarding the backgrounds of Storm Harbour's Mayor, and also that of the local matriarch and doyenne Kathryn O'Neill. There's nothing shocking revealed, just things that people thought they had to hide, either through embarrassment or fear.

Before the Storm is essentially a story of friendships, both old and new. I loved the friendship between Heather and Kathryn which has lasted over fifty years. It's also the story of the good people can do when they band together to give their support, or to fight something they know is wrong or damaging to the community.

I don't think that Before the Storm is the best book Di Morrissey has written, but I enjoyed my time in Storm Harbour, and I need to catch up on the books this author has written that I haven't yet read.

⭐⭐⭐.8

#BeforetheStorm #NetGalley

I: @dimorrisseyauthor @macmillanaus

T: @di_morrissey @MacmillanAus

#australianfiction #contemporaryfiction #smalltownfiction

THE AUTHOR: Readers always ask me how I started writing and where did my ideas come from? Although I have always enjoyed telling and writing stories, it was a long journey to become a published and successful author.

I was born in Wingham in the Manning Valley NSW and at five moved to Pittwater, a remote and magical part of Sydney, which in those days was populated by rather bohemian characters.

After living in many exotic locations, I realised I was not happy. I missed Australia and I still wanted to write. I had to come home.

Eventually I settled in Byron Bay, and wrote my first book, 'Heart of the Dreaming.' Twenty years and twenty best sellers later, (plus a children’s book – “Buster and the Queen Bee” )it’s still hard work, but I couldn’t imagine doing anything differently.

Initially my books were all about Australians living in Australia, but I realised that Australians had made their mark in other parts of the world, and so I began to set my stories in more exotic overseas locations where Australians live and work. I still always visit the places where I set my books, talk to the locals, and absorb the history and culture as well as the ambiance of every location.

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Pan Macmillan Australia via Netgalley for providing a digital ARC of Before the Storm by Di Morrissey for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.

For an explanation of my rating system please refer to my Goodreads.com profile page or the about page on sandysbookaday.wordpress.com

This review is also published on Twitter, Amazon,Instagram and my webpage

2.5★
“‘Warranghi National Park, a kid is lost. A little boy, four years old.’ Ellie stared at Patrick. ‘Oh no, that’s a pretty wild place. I remember we went for a picnic there once. And there’s a big lake up there.’
. . .
‘I recognise so many people here. Seems the whole town has come to help,’ he said. ‘Says a lot about Storm Harbour, doesn’t it?’ said Patrick. ‘We pull together when needed.’”

If there’s a cause or a theme that has been overlooked in this book, I can’t think what it is. I don’t remember the last time I felt this preached at, and I can’t believe I read the whole thing, skimming a fair bit of the time.

Development is bad, community is good, except when it’s appropriate development, of course. And some members of the community are landed gentry in cahoots with flash investors from the city, set to change this picturesque village.

“’So-called progress is sometimes viewed with suspicion and, as I see it, the paper’s job is to let people know what’s actually going on.’”

Ellie has gone to Storm Harbour on the Victorian coast after storming out of the high-stakes IT job in Melbourne. She’ll stay with granddad Patrick, the crusty newspaper proprietor, and by the way, get him a website, a Facebook page and bring him into the internet age, spunky go-getter that she is. Not only that, she can suss out the dodgy developers and lead the charge on environmental campaigns.

When invited to lunch and offered a big steak she begins one of her spiels.

“‘Thanks, Roly. It’s really kind of you, though I have to admit I don’t eat much red meat these days.’

‘Vegetarian, are you? Or one of those save the planet crusaders?’ Roly peered at Ellie.

‘Not really,’ Ellie replied. ‘It’s not so much about not eating any meat at all. I just don’t want to support those cruel, industrial-sized feedlots where animals are housed in massive indoor sheds and pumped full of hormones and antibiotics. For me it’s about encouraging small-scale, healthy and natural farming.’

‘Trendy indeed. But you can munch away guilt-free in this case as the beast is a new lowline breed, grass-fed, hormone-free, produces limited methane, and is environmentally friendly as it treads lightly on the land due to its size and appetite.’”

Yes, she really is one of those save the planet crusaders, and boy do we keep hearing about it. I have enjoyed a few Di Morrissey novels in the dim, dark past, but I remember them being plot and character-driven with some historical settings. This reads like a catalogue of tropes that I can’t bring myself to list.

If you want to read about everything that’s wrong in Australia (and the world) and how one young woman and her grandfather are going to fight the good fight (and expect you to cheer them along), this might be your cup of tea.

“Ellie reached for his hand and held it tightly, overcome by his words and the dawning realisation that she knew she would fight, tooth and nail, for all that Patrick and his country newspaper stood for – the right to call out cheats and liars, praise and promote the modest and those who did not ask for recognition for living life by simple rules: loving family, respecting others, helping in their community.”

As for me, I will continue to fight the good fight without, I hope, lecturing everyone within earshot. This is an old NetGalley book I kept postponing, and now I know why. The quotes are the same as in the published version.
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Fantastic story that I highly recommend to fans of the genre. Di Morrissey never fails to impress! Loved everything about this.

This is a book about living in a small town. I love the fact Di Morrisey books are set in Australia because you can relate to the characters and the landscape.

‘I bet everyone in this town has a story of one kind or another.’

A Di Morrissey book is always a guaranteed engaging read. On offer this time around is a well rounded tale about a rural community with all the family and friendships in small community living. A key and interesting theme Di gives to this tale is one of the importance of the media, particularly when it comes to shining the light on both freedom of speech and keeping those in power accountable.

‘Enough!’ bellowed Patrick. ‘I run this paper. Council runs the town. Let’s stick to what we do, whether or not we agree on the ways in which we do it. I don’t try to run the council, so don’t you try to tell me how to run my newspaper’

Before the Storm also tells the tale of Ellie who is searching for the life that fits her best - whether it be in the corporate city world or living with her grandfather in the rural community of Storm Bay assisting him with the publication of the local paper. So it is clear that there is much on offer here to entice the reader with a variety of themes and stories - personal development, lifestyle, family secrets, small community living and of course, the importance of the media.

‘... you’re not happy here, in your apartment, in the city. A minute ago you sounded so flat and worried. Now you’ve come alive with energy and passion. Ellie, you don’t want to be here, that’s all it is.’

I did enjoy this book, not so much as Di’s previous tale on ‘The Last Paradise’ but still a solid and engaging read. It goes a little slow in places and some of the characters and dialogue was stereotypical at times. Overall, however, this is another engaging and thoughtful story to lose yourself in for a few hours.

‘I believe one sees a place, no matter how well you think you know it, through the prism of past and present sensibilities, don’t you think?’ ... ‘Memories so often dictate emotions.’






This review is based on a complimentary copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. The quoted material may have changed in the final release.

I absolutely enjoyed my time in the Victorian beachside town of Storm Harbour as Di Morrissey’s writing had me instantly drawn into the surrounds.

The story centres around Ellie who had spent time in Storm Harbour as a teen during which time she attend the local high school, then years later, following a blindside at work she quits her job and takes some time out, leaving Melbourne to stay with her Grandfather in Storm Harbour. Her grandfather runs the local newspaper, The Storm Harbour Chronicle, and he ropes Ellie in to help out with the paper, she quickly fits in within the small community.

Ellie is drawn into a story about a development which could split the coastal community, it involves the influential O'Neill family, but you get the sense that there is something else to the story, not only regarding the development but also involving Ellie and a member of the O’Neill Family.

I just adored the characters, some you are meant to dislike 😆 but for the most part the community is full of amazing people all with interesting backgrounds as you will discover throughout the story.

Thank you to NetGalley and Pan MacMillan for kindly gifting me a copy to read and review.

Ellie Conlan headed for Storm Harbour along the Victorian coastline from Melbourne, to the safety and sanctuary of her grandfather’s home. Ellie had been betrayed in the job she loved and once she’d left, her thoughts were in turmoil. When Ellie’s grandfather, Patrick, invited Ellie to write a piece for his local paper, The Storm Harbour Chronicle, which he’d owned and run for many years, she was uncertain but excited. Ellie found new friends and a couple of old friends from when she was at school in Storm Harbour, but when rumours hit about a new development in the area, Patrick and Ellie were determined to find the truth about something that would potentially affect the locals badly.

With trolls doing their best to derail Ellie’s work, and the Mayor receiving threatening messages, it was time to still the voices. While Ellie worked her hardest on her feature article, the time was fast approaching when it would be too late. Could Ellie face her demons? And could they halt those who were only in it for the money, before it was too late? On the night of the party, and before the storm hit, they only had three days…

Before the Storm by Aussie author Di Morrissey is an absolute stunner of a novel. I loved it, didn’t want to put it down, and the author’s beautiful descriptions of the country, the seaside, Storm Harbour itself, had me there with Ellie and Sam, the aging Labrador; with Patrick and the team at the Chronicle; with Roly, Ben, Cassie and Steve at the caravan park – an absolutely delightful, engrossing story which left me a little sad to be finished. Highly recommended.

With thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for my digital ARC to read in exchange for an honest review.

Ellie Conlan lives in Melbourne, she’s a career woman and very good at her job. Suddenly out of the blue her boss decides to give Sophia a fellow work college her job as project manager, Ellie gathers her things from her desk and quits. After she leaves work she releases how stressed she is, to the point of having panic attacks and she decides to visit her grandfather in Storm Harbour a quiet little beach town and have a much needed break from living in the city. Ellie’s grandfather Patrick is thrilled to see her and he’s 80 and still works as the editor of the local newspaper called The Storm Harbour Chronicle. Ellie decides to take an extended holiday, she has no reason to return to Melbourne, do some volunteer work at the newspaper office and they certainly need some up to date IT help.

Storm Harbour is a beautiful little coastal town, everyone loves the amazing botanic gardens and the caravan park is situated close by. Ellie meets some interesting people, a real mixture of personalities and they all have one common wish and that’s for Storm Harbour to stay the same. Ellie is drawn into a new story and someone is trying to develop a large area of land in Storm Harbour and it’s all very secretive. The area in question is owned by the rich O’Neill family, their matriarch Kathryn is in her 90’s, she’s very attached to the gardens, she created them, why would she want them destroyed and it makes no sense?

Before the Storm looks at life in a small town, the people who live in it, they have all moved there for a reason and some have secret pasts. The atmosphere in town soon gets very tense; this makes Ellie feel very uncomfortable, she had a bad experience as a teenager in Storm Harbour, she never told anyone, and years later it still affects her. Ellie finally understands dealing with what happened to her will set her free, she needs to tackle her past front on, it wasn’t her fault; the same applies to finding out who’s behind the development, initiating the very low and nasty behavior and it needs to be stopped!
I enjoyed reading Before the Storm, I received a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review and I gave it four stars.

Having read all of Di Morrissey’s books, I obviously enjoy her writing. Her latest novel, Before The Storm, did not disappoint me!

I loved the location - a coastal town four hours drive from Melbourne, Victoria in Australia with a fictitious name of Storm Harbour. The small tourist town with fresh seafood, local community issues and dramatic seaside landscapes.

A captivating story about Ellie who leaves her IT job in Melbourne having been undermined by a female colleague and decides to visit her grandfather Patrick in Storm Harbour while she thinks and feels through her options for the future. As Ellie’s grandfather runs The Storm Harbour Chronicle she becomes heavily involved in the newspaper, local events, people and issues.
The town is a safe haven but an undercurrent of tensions and rumours creates drama in the usually sleepy town!

A very enjoyable read!

Thank you to Netgalley and publisher Pan MacMillan Australia for a copy to read and review.

I know when I’m not enjoying a book, because I start looking at little things to pick apart. This only happens if I’m already not enjoying this book: I don’t care about the characters, the plot is not interesting to me and the writing is random and choppy.
This book lost me in the first chapter when Ellie, the main character is moved off the project she is managing because someone has leaked to the press that there is “a flaw in the product” she is developing. An industry magazine reports the product is not fit for purpose, which apparently “got the clients running scared”. This makes no sense. Then she rage quits and sits around her apartment for a couple of months. Her mother asks her to “go south” to see her grandfather. From Melbourne there is no south (I mean, there is Frankston and Mornington, but no one says “go south”). So she drives for four hours down a made up highway and ends up in a made up town that sounds a bit like Warnambool. That’s West, but anyway. Why set your book in a real state and then make up all the details? What made me realise that I just couldn’t get into this book was this sentence. “The lifeline of the town, the Derrin river” flowed in from the dark and unpredictable Southern Ocean”. Why is it the lifeline of the town? And rivers flow into oceans, not the other way around.
I won’t be reviewing this anywhere else, because I stopped reading at 10 percent, and it seems wrong to share a review of a book I didn’t finish and never got into. Normally I would finish it and then leave an honest review of the whole book, but I just couldn’t spend the next week reading this.

Another beautiful book from Di Morrissey.

This is the first book Ive physically read by Di, I have brought a bunch from audible and was worried I would not get as sucked in to the story (the narrators do such an amazing job with her books) but surprisingly I did.
I was really invested with Ellie's character and will definitely be rereading/listening to this when it's released in the auido format