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Published by Central Avenue
Distributed by Simon & Schuster
Table of Contents
About The Book
Dive into the heart of Australia with this blockbuster debut as one woman confronts her past, family secrets, and her own identity amid the chaos of midlife, offering a poignant exploration of love, loss, and self-discovery.
Layla Byrnes is exhausted. She's juggling a demanding job as an anesthesiologist, a disintegrating marriage, her young kids, and a needy lover. And most particularly she's managing her histrionically unstable mother, who repeatedly threatens to kill herself.
But this year, it's different. When her mother calls just before Christmas, she doesn't follow the usual script. Instead, she tells Layla that there's something she needs to tell her about her much-loved father. In response, Layla drops everything to rush to her childhood home on the wild west coast of Tasmania. She's determined to finally confront her mother - and find out what really happened to her father - and lay some demons to rest.
The Heart is a Star is an engrossing, lyrical and powerfully absorbing novel about the complicated and beautiful messiness of midlife; about the ways in which we navigate an intricate, complicated world; and about how we can uncover our true selves when we are forced to face the myths that make us.
Layla Byrnes is exhausted. She's juggling a demanding job as an anesthesiologist, a disintegrating marriage, her young kids, and a needy lover. And most particularly she's managing her histrionically unstable mother, who repeatedly threatens to kill herself.
But this year, it's different. When her mother calls just before Christmas, she doesn't follow the usual script. Instead, she tells Layla that there's something she needs to tell her about her much-loved father. In response, Layla drops everything to rush to her childhood home on the wild west coast of Tasmania. She's determined to finally confront her mother - and find out what really happened to her father - and lay some demons to rest.
The Heart is a Star is an engrossing, lyrical and powerfully absorbing novel about the complicated and beautiful messiness of midlife; about the ways in which we navigate an intricate, complicated world; and about how we can uncover our true selves when we are forced to face the myths that make us.
About The Author
Megan Rogers began her career as an editorial assistant in publishing houses before moving into marketing libraries. She has taught creative writing in universities for over ten years and holds a PhD in Creative Writing. Her debut novel The Heart is a Star was Australia’s bestselling debut in 2023 and has been optioned by the award-winning Aquarius Films for screen adaptation. She lives in Melbourne, Australia with her husband and two daughters.
Product Details
- Publisher: Central Avenue (February 27, 2025)
- Length: 272 pages
- ISBN13: 9781771683906
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Raves and Reviews
"Weighing familial guilt against an intense need for independence, childhood wounds against adult scar tissue, and stability against freedom, Rogers' debut is a journey of self-exploration and healing. Readers who tore through Gillian Flynn's Sharp Objects or Nicole Baart's Little Broken Things will find resonance in The Heart Is a Star." — Booklist
"A riveting read; deeply, compellingly human, a brilliant exploration of how closely-held secrets and misunderstood moments in childhood undermine one woman’s lifelong ability to connect. With searing honesty and unflinching insight the painful truth slowly surfaces, upending her view of herself, her life, and the people she loves. It’s heart-wrenching, and in the end, completely, beautifully, liberating. I couldn’t put it down." — Lisa Cron, author of Wired for Story
"Megan Rogers' engrossing novel dissects life, love, and truth . . . with an engaging, if sorrowful heroine. A novel with much to ponder, The Heart Is a Star follows a woman as she faces old wounds in order to heal." — Foreword Reviews
"The main draw of The Heart is a Star is the emotional complexity of the intimate relationships it portrays, the maturity of its protagonist, and the psychological intricacy of navigating revelations that change not only the present, but one’s own past." — Sydney Morning Herald
"Absorbing, engrossing and brilliant." —The Australian
"Every word contains multitudes of meaning. Steeped in thematic intensity, The Heart is a Star is a deeply engaging story about becoming un-numbed, letting go of illusion, and learning to become more human through the balance of emotion and logic.’"— Artshub
"Captivating … The Heart is a Star is a powerful novel with evocative and enticing language that will appeal to readers of Richard Flanagan and Holly Ringland. Rooted in feminine empowerment, Rogers’ debut is necessary and enthralling reading, and will stay with the reader long after the last page." — Books+Publishing
"Impressive in its structure, tension and sensitivity." — Newtown Review of Books
"This book blew my socks off. The Heart is a Star is a combination of gorgeous, thoughtful prose, a deep family mystery and a meditation on what happens when we realize we’ve been steering ourselves (or have been steered by others) in the wrong direction." — Hannah Richell, author of The Search Party
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High Resolution Images
- Book Cover Image (jpg): Heart is a Star Hardcover 9781771683906
- Author Photo (jpg): Megan Rogers (0.1 MB)
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