An Onslaught of Light

A luminous, beautifully observed novel about the people we once were, and the people we can become – if only we're brave enough to try.

1990: Indu and Vijay leave India for Australia, seeking a better life. But the move isn’t easy on anyone. Not gentle Indu, who becomes even further estranged from her family, nor the ambitious Vijay, who finds himself unmoored in a culture he doesn’t understand. At the centre is Archana, their quiet, sensitive daughter, who forms a shell to survive the bullying of children and the neglect of adults.

2022: Arch lives her ideal life, solitary and isolated. When her brother calls to say that Vijay is unwell and needs her help, Arch has no choice but to re-enter the world. To do so means confronting her relationship with her father, her queerness and the wounds of her upbringing. But it also might mean opening herself to the potential of a life filled with love.

Can Arch do what it takes to let in the light?