• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary navigation
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Story Addict

Rebecca Bowyer on books and writing

  • Home
  • About
    • About
    • In the media
    • Privacy Policy
    • Disclosure|Copyright
  • Contact
  • Book reviews
    • Light reads
    • Speculative fiction
    • Literary fiction
    • Historical fiction
    • Contemporary fiction
    • Memoir
    • Kids’ books
  • Blog
    • Writing news
    • Author interviews
  • Store

Review: The Shining Wall, by Melissa Ferguson

September 9, 2019 by Rebecca Bowyer Leave a Comment

The Shining Wall by Melissa Ferguson (sq)
The Shining Wall, by Melissa Ferguson (Transit Lounge, 2019)

LeaderCorp didn’t care about people. Everything was a transaction to them. If the cost exceeded their benefit, there was no point.

The Shining Wall, by Melissa Ferguson, imagines a future dystopia that mashes together all the worst possible scenarios from a deeply humanised perspective – climate change, human destruction (increased radiation levels are mentioned), exploitation of the poor, genetic engineering and advanced tech.

The story opens with Alida carrying her mother’s dead body to the bio-recycler while trying to figure out how she and her young sister, Graycie, will survive in the Demi-Settlements without her mother’s income.

Inside the ‘shining wall’ full Citizens live genetically enhanced lives under the strict rules of LeaderCorp. Their servants are cloned Neandertals, bred and raised for compliance.

Outside the wall, Demi-Citizens barely survive in the sprawling slums. They rely on handouts from LeaderCorp for basics like clean water; and even that is recycled from their own bodily waste.

The Shining Wall is told from multiple points of view which are brilliantly written. From the very start of each chapter I knew who I was with as the language varied wonderfully between them.

Shuqba is a cloned Neo-Neandertal trained to be a security officer inside the city. She finds the reality of how the rules are implemented very different to what her training taught her. After trying to stop her Sapien colleague from beating a Demi-Citizen to death on her first shift, she’s exiled to the Demi-Settlements, where she meets Alida. Unlike most of the Sapiens, who view Shuqba as an unholy animal who stole their jobs inside the wall, Alida sees the human side of Shuqba.

Ferrassie is also a cloned Neo-Neandertal, but has been genetically coded to be a mere factory worker. It’s clear to the reader that she’s not very bright, but she’s convinced herself she was meant for better things and there has been a terrible mistake. Her convictions will lead her into serious danger.

Voices from the mega-wealthy – the Citizens – have been omitted from The Shining Wall. We only ever see glimpses of them, through the eyes of the less fortunate. It’s clear, however, that nobody in this system is happy. While the Citizens have great wealth which gives them a comfortable existence, they still must abide by the oppressive rules prescribed by LeaderCorp. To break the rules is to risk exile to the Demi-Settlements.

The Shining Wall is a great reminder that what people really want is safety, sustenance, human connection and relative autonomy. A life that’s lacking in any of these is bound to turn sour after enough time.

Grab a copy from your local library, favourite bookstore or online at:

Booktopia | Dymocks | Amazon (Kindle)

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links.

Filed Under: Books Tagged With: Australian Women Writers Challenge, book reviews, dystopia, speculative fiction

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Out now!

Email newsletter

Social Media

Visit Us On TwitterVisit Us On FacebookVisit Us On YoutubeVisit Us On Instagram

Recent Posts

  • Review: Skyward Inn, by Aliya Whiteley
  • Review: The Dictionary of Lost Words, by Pip Williams
  • Review: The Swimmers by Marian Womack
  • 10 books by Australian women writers I plan to read in 2021 – #AWW2021
  • Dark dystopian stories that feel like they might really happen (and soon)

Pick a topic

#AWW2021 audiobooks australian fiction Australian Women Writers Challenge australian writers author interviews AWW AWW17 blogging book lists book reviews books for kids climate fiction contemporary fiction crime fiction diversity domestic violence dystopia fantasy feminism feminist halloween historical fiction humour light reads literary fiction live shows magical realism maternal instinct memoir mental illness non fiction on writing parenting Parenting skills picture books racism science fiction short stories speculative fiction thriller toddlers translated World War II young adult

Search this website

Join the Australian Women Writers Challenge

Australian Women Writers Challenge 2021 logo

In the archives…

Footer

Email newsletter

Social Media

Visit Us On TwitterVisit Us On FacebookVisit Us On YoutubeVisit Us On Instagram

Out now!

Copyright © 2021 · Author Pro on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in