On the Edge

Nicola Garrard Press Reviews

'Tender and angry, salty and sweet… a heartfelt novel shaped by powerful undercurrents’ - Michael Morpurgo

'Such gorgeous, gorgeous writing!' – Patrice Lawrence

'On the Edge has all the gritty realism and truth we’ve come to expect from Garrard’s novels. We have a compelling central character, unidealised, but sympathetic, and a world underexplored in fiction - the hard-scrabble life of the working classes in an off-season tourist resort. Garrard’s writing has gained an extra depth, and the prose, rich with salty metaphor, often sings an alluring siren song. It’s a beautiful book, as well as an important one' – Anthony McGowan

'This book is magnificent' - Katriona O'Sullivan, author of Poor

‘An important and powerful story of family, community and love’ - Matt Goodfellow

'On the Edge is a beautiful, immersive read which crackles with tension, heartbreakingly provocative. I felt every emotion of Rhys as Garrard draws us into the coastal beauty of South Devon with such skill. Her remarkable writing weaves powerful themes of family and belonging, and within the despair and heartbreak there's still humour. A brilliant read.’ - J.P. Rose, author of Birdie

‘This book stole my heart, I loved the boys so much. But I also worried for them constantly and as the book progressed this worry intensified… I felt that I was truly there with them and I so much wanted to make things easier for them. Very happy to recommend to all teens and older.’ - Fiona Sharp, bookseller and reviewer at Independent Book Reviews

'This book had me fixed as soon as I read the first few pages, the story is powerful beyond measure. It fixes with a time in your life when dreams are to be made but yet life gets in the way! A story for YA/crossover and for anyone who has, or had dreams! … In a short time as I read this book, it just gripped me and held me in its grasp. I recommend it hugely and would say… “Just buy it!” - Sue Martin, Children’s Literature expert, The Book Monitor website

‘Atmospheric and thought-provoking, packs an emotional punch. Brilliantly captures that time before adulthood when pathways and possibilities feel expansive.’ - Jake Hope, literacy consultant

‘I was captivated from the very first page... a timely and nuanced exploration of financial hardship, masculinity and adolescence.’ - Stephen Dilley, UKLA and JustImagine 

‘Nicola Garrard evokes fiercely and with skill young male lives unfolding in coastal shadows, battling outside forces with scant regard for their existence.’ - John McCullough, Poet

‘Raw and lyrical, On the Edge dives into brotherhood, belonging, and a boy's fight to hold on.’ - Matthew Tobin, Lecturer in Children’s Literature, Oxford Brookes University

‘This stunning novel is a modern tragedy, a love story and a warning, both political and deeply personal. I found myself immersed in the seaworld of the Fisher boys and their dad, so very real and modern, yet also ancient and of the wild deep blue. This beautiful, important novel washed into my heart. I read, gripped with grief and rage, then moved by the gentleness, the love between the boys, and laughing at the fantastically accurate communications between the brothers.’ - Astra Bloom

‘This is a gorgeously written novel whose characters leap off the page in all their messy, loving complexity. Vividly depicting the consequences of seaside gentrification, neglect, and inequality, it's angry, poetic, funny, and empathetic, and it demands that we see, and that we care. I'll be thinking of these characters for a very long time.’ - Sarah Brooks

‘On the Edge is a novel of rare power, dazzlingly original and full of heart. This is a tale of extremes: poverty and riches, humour and heartbreak, despair and hope. It’s impossible not to fall in love with Rhys and his two younger brothers as they navigate the challenges of life in an out-of-season seaside town. The writing is wonderfully lyrical, yet maintains a raw energy that made me laugh and cry. Prepare to be swept away!’ - Juliet West, author of Before the Fall 

‘Immersive, haunting, atmospheric. Garrard's storytelling transported me to Devon.’ - Sarah Harman

‘Written with such great compassion for her young characters, Nicola Garrard has the reader surfing atop a wave of hope and familial love. Just beautiful!’ - Cauvery Madhavan

‘On the Edge is a raw, tender story about a boy trying to hold his family together in a seaside town that has been ‘left behind’. It showcases the many challenges - seasonal employment, a lack of affordable homes, hollowed-out communities, and a lack of opportunity - that young people living by the coast face. Nicola Garrard writes with heart, humour and defiance, artistically conveying the hidden truths of the English seaside.’ - Prof. Sheelah Argawal Co-Director of the Centre for Coastal Communities, University of Plymouth

‘Very moving, showing the effects of bereavement as well as poverty and parental neglect in the chase to provide an income. Also good at highlighting the plight of seaside towns and the impact on housing for the locals. The story very much has an own voice vibe. You can hear the dialect.’ - Sarah Smith, Brent Libraries