Stone Yard Devotional

Burned out and seeking refuge, a middle-aged woman retreats from her life in Sydney to the remote rural town where she grew up. There, on the stark plains of Australia, she slips almost unintentionally into a reclusive religious community—despite having no faith in God and no understanding of prayer. 

But this contemplative solitude is soon disrupted by three unexpected visitations. First comes a relentless mouse plague, a daily siege of survival and dread. Then, the long-lost remains of a sister who vanished decades earlier are unearthed, reviving a trauma thought buried. Finally, a disturbing visitor forces the narrator to confront the deepest wounds of her past.

At once spare and emotionally resonant, Stone Yard Devotional is a masterful meditation on retreat, grief, and the elusive nature of forgiveness. With luminous prose and unflinching insight, this novel explores the quiet devastations that shape a life—and the fragile grace that sometimes follows.

Shortlisted for the 2024 Booker Prize.