Let's Bust a Recap : The Light Between Oceans

The Light Between Oceans by Australian author M.L. Stedman was first published in 2012, and this will probably be a short post because I don't want to spoil anything. I finished this novel way back on August 16th, but I still feel heartsick over it. 

First of all, after my last 10 minutes of extensive Google research, I could only figure out that the "M" in M.L. Stedman stands for Margot. This was the author's debut novel, and she has managed to maintain a level of anonymity despite the overwhelming success of her novel which sparked a bidding war between publishers and was adapted into a movie in 2016 starring Alicia Vikander, Michael Fassbender, and Rachel Weisz. 

Set on the fictional island of Janus off the western coast of Australia in the 1920s, our main character Tom has just served in World War I and is living the isolated life of a lighthouse keeper on one of the most difficult posts of the time. He meets and marries the vibrant Isabel Graysmark and the novel details the moral conflict they face when a boat washes ashore with a baby after Tom and Isabel have struggled unsuccessfully to grow their family. 

I found the moral and ethical difficulties raised by this story compelling, and, as is often the case in real life, there was no clear or satisfying resolution to the heartbreaking circumstances faced by different characters in the book. If you're looking for a book with a sweet happy ending tied up in a pretty ribbon, this would be the one to avoid. 

The writing was beautiful. Her descriptions of rugged Australia were breathtaking, and her accounts of lighthouses and their keepers were well-researched and interesting. The historical implications of post-WWI life and human sentiment was also well-depicted. My biggest bone to pick with this book was the author's inconsistency between past and present tense. She would switch randomly and unexpectedly for no apparent reason. It was just enough to really annoy me, but not enough to make me stop reading. 

Based on internet reviews I've read of this novel, it seems to be a love it or hate it kind of a book. While I would hardly classify my feelings for this book as "love" (the content was personally and morally difficult), I found it compelling, well-written (excepting the whole past/present tense issue I mentioned above), and worth the read. 

And....that's it. I'm not sure how to wrap this up. Have you read this book or seen the movie?