Things Bright and Beautiful

In the 1950s a missionary and his wife hope to bring God to a remote South Pacific island, but instead fear losing their souls . . .Advent Island in the South Pacific, with its coconut palms and thick green jungle, should be Eden for missionary Max and his young wife Bea. But plagues of insects and rats, sweltering heat and local 'devil chasers' soon turn paradise into hell on earth. Just as Bea begins to adapt to island life, an unexpected guest arrives and Advent Island turns against its would-be saviors. Trapped in the jungle with her increasingly unhinged husband, Bea must fight tooth-and-nail for her freedom, and for her life.

“Atmospheric”

Dark, mysterious, beguiling, and beautifully written. It transported me to a different world Dolly Alderton
This book is so rich in detail, the rainforest so immersive, and the characters so wonderfully odd, that I was sucked into its dark beating heart and wasn't spat out until I'd turned the final page Claire Fuller
Darkly comic and thrilling Elle Magazine
What a hot and sticky, feverishly Lord Of The Flies-style debut! The whole novel excels in rich detail - I wouldn't be surprised if English teachers use it as a masterclass in descriptive prose The Pool
A claustrophobic compelling read that'll suck you into its heart of darkness Independent
The book abounds with lurid descriptive passages revelling in tropical ickiness ... competent and assured Irish Times
Phenomenally disturbing . . . With consummate imagination and technical flair, Salam contrives a crescendo of queasiness that reaches a 'tumult of madness' and manages to make Somerset Maugham's 'Rain' seem like a picnic The Spectator
An excellent, blackly funny debut ... a novel whose growing environmental and psychological horrors you can feel crawling across your skin Daily Mail
A vivid account . . . The island setting and the rainforest are compellingly evoked, along with the claustrophobic backdrop of religious mania and a dysfunctional marriage - an impressive debut Penelope Lively
Thrilling . . . oozing with vivid descriptions and a deeply claustrophobic atmosphere, this debut is quite unlike anything else you'll read this year Heat World
Delves in directions you won't see coming, swallowing you like the darkness of the jungle, with a captivating narrative brimming with wonder, trepidation and wit Foyles Newsletter
Examining the true nature of religious missions and a marriage in crisis, this is a vividly drawn and powerful novel Stylist
A richly textured novel. Darkly humorous and , this debut about fanaticism and marital crisis is one to watch out for Book Riot
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Anbara Salam is half-Palestinian and half-Scottish, and grew up in London. She has a PhD in Theology and is now living and working in Oxford. She spent six months living on a small South Pacific island, and her experiences there served as the inspiration for her first novel, Things Bright and Beautiful.

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