When, in 1859, George Hills is pulled from the wreck of the steamship Admella, he carries with him the uneasy memory of a fellow survivor. Someone else – or something else – kept him warm as he lay dying, half-submerged in the freezing Southern Ocean, kept him bound to life.
As George adapts to his life back on land, he can’t quite escape the feeling that he wasn’t alone when he emerged from the ocean that day, that a familiar presence has been watching him ever since. What the creature might want from him – his life? His first-born? Simply to return to its home? – will pursue him, and call him back to the water, where it all began.
From the Wreck is one of those novels that came out under the radar – I can’t remember when or where I first heard about it, but it’s been on my wish list for quite some time, and I finally picked up a copy earlier this year.
It starts aboard the Admella which hits a reef off the coast of Australia, leaving the crew and passengers stranded. George Hills sees those around him slowly succumb to thirst, hunger, hypothermia, and the sharks circling those waters, but after eight days, he and a few other survivors are rescued. While many would consider themselves lucky to have survived such an ordeal, George believes that his survival is down to more than luck. He believes that Bridget Ledwith – one of the ship’s passengers and who clung to him until they were rescued – somehow kept him alive, and he believes her to be more than she seems.
Back on land, George’s life continues. We see him get married, have children, and gradually grow older as time passes. The novel is mostly told from George’s perspective, and I found him to be a largely unpleasant character. What quickly becomes apparent is his obsession with Bridget and why they survived when so many perished, and he becomes angry and frustrated over the questions that he has. Unfortunately, it’s his oldest son, Harry, who bears the brunt of his father’s anger. George isn’t a physically violent man, but he does lash out verbally at those around him, and Harry is a much more sympathetic character as a result. There’s a strong message throughout the novel of making the most of the life that we’re given, and it’s clear that George’s fixation on the past becomes something of a barrier to this as he is unable to let go of his questions and to enjoy the time he has when his life was so nearly cut short.
As for Bridget, the reader does know the truth about her I think that where many authors would use the is she / isn’t she to add an element of mystery to the novel, Rawson is instead very upfront about her nature. I liked this – it’s an unusual choice (although that might just be the books I read!) but I think that leaving the question open to interpretation can sometimes detract from the message and key themes, and Rawson successfully avoids this pitfall. Bridget’s circumstances also add a note of poignancy to the narrative as we come to understand her true nature and raison d’etre. I’m being deliberately vague here to avoid spoilers, but there is indeed more to her than meets the eye.
From the Wreck was inspired by Rawson’s own family. George Hills was her great-great-grandfather, and he did indeed survive the shipwreck of the Admella. While his survival was more prosaic that the events of this novel, I found it fascinating that she chose to tell the story in this way. I wonder if there was some element to the original story that George felt that he’d been saved that became exaggerated over time as the story has passed down through the generations. It’s a fascinating novel that won’t suit everyone due to some of the more fantastical elements in the narrative, but it’s a novel that I enjoyed for its successful blending of genres and character-driven narrative.
Jo's Book Blog 
Great review, Jo!
Thank you, Nikola! Hope you’re well x