A metaphysical mystery set in a lost Austrian town.

When her parents are killed in a car crash, physicist Ruth Schwartz attempts to find their hometown, Greater Einland, to lay them to rest. The task is not as straightforward as first appears: the town appears on no maps, nor on the government register. When she does finally stumble across it, she finds the town of her forebears exists out of time and place, and governed by an enigmatic Countess. At its heart is a mystery.

The Liquid Land is steeped in Austrian folklore and culture. At first sight, Greater Einland is reminiscent of Brigadoon, but there the whimsy ends. Characters live in a perpetual state of befuddlement from alcohol or prescription drugs, their memories are selective, even the land on which they walk is uncertain.

The novel can be read in different ways, and it constantly challenges the reader’s expectations.

Unusual and thought-provoking.

My thanks to NetGalley and Scribe UK for the ARC.

The Liquid Land was a fun and fascinating read. On the surface, it's a tale of a woman at a turning point in her life who must make the journey to her parents' hard-to-find hometown in order to arrange their funerals following a car accident. However, it soon becomes a gripping narrative of a town about to be consumed by the earth, a town with secrets, a town where time itself seems to unravel. It's a book with a plot open to many interpretations, and the final decision on what to believe is left up to the individual reader. This is a quirky tale that is sure to please readers of contemporary fiction looking for something a little different, since it combines family drama with mystery/investigation and a touch of magical realism. It gets a solid 4-star rating from me.