Catching the Light

‘Powerful and mesmerising, Catching the Light is a brilliant portrait of the ways we are consumed by motherhood, art and the yearning for self.’—Shankari Chandran, Miles Franklin award–winning author of Chai Time at Cinnamon Gardens and Safe Haven

‘Immediately gripping and thrillingly nuanced, this is a novel you’ll devour in a rush and then savour for a long, long time.’—Diana Reid, bestselling author of Love & Virtue and Signs of Damage
 

When Sylvie, a single mother yearning for a creative spark, meets Michael, a renowned painter, she feels something she hasn’t felt in years. Impulsively she decides to uproot her life and move to Isaiah, an artists’ colony, with her teenage daughter, Alice.

To Sylvie, Isaiah seems to offer a second chance at the things she’s sacrificed—freedom, love and art—but her relationship with Michael begins to affect the closeness she once had with her daughter. Without her mother’s knowledge, Alice engages in an act of teenage defiance that will shape both their lives.

Years later, Alice, a PhD student, is sought out by Caroline, an art historian researching Michael for a retrospective of his work. As their conversations tease out long-buried memories, Alice grapples with her past and Caroline’s hidden agenda.

Sometimes it’s all a matter of perspective.
 

PRAISE FOR CATCHING THE LIGHT:

‘For fans of The Strays by Emily Bitto and The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt.’—Australian Women's Weekly

‘Horton sets up a dramatic contrast between Sylvie and Alice's perspectives, underscoring the flaws in their relationship, layering love with the guilt and betrayal they each harbour.’—Sydney Morning Herald

‘Catching The Light is a stunning work of fiction, at once bold and intricately woven. An enthralling read.’—Eliza Henry-Jones, author of Salt and Skin

‘Catching the Light is a beautiful, adventurous novel about complicated and enduring love. A smart, stunning portrait of parenthood and mother-daughter bonds. Horton's writing is captivating, lush, and incredibly moving.’—Laura Elvery, author of Trick of the Light and Ordinary Matter

‘A nuanced dissection of art, morality and motherhood. Joanna Horton holds these principles to the light and shakes loose their unspeakable truths’—Adriane Howell, author of Hydra

‘This is a beautiful novel. It is at once subtle and expansive, shifting across place and time without simplifying or overstating complications of memory and perspective. It is evocative and moving, gently weaving many threads together.’—Anna Kate Blair, author of The Modern

PRAISE FOR BETWEEN YOU AND ME:

‘It’s the language of this nuanced novel that did it … Between You and Me lingers in my mind’—Canberra Times

‘Joanna Horton's debut is strong on female friendship, and she creates a crisp, effortlessly authentic narrative voice’—Sydney Morning Herald

'A novel that deftly explores the uncomfortable grey areas of power, privilege and control. Between You and Me is a compulsive read about how the choices we make (and those made for us) ripple into the future. At once unsettling and totally captivating.’—Natasha Sholl, author of Found, Wanting

‘I absolutely loved it. The characters felt both deeply familiar and also intriguingly complex and unknowable. An engaging and evocative read that I can't stop thinking about.’—Eliza Henry-Jones, author of Salt and Skin