Belly-Heart

It was the last day of things as they were…

Stars has lived on the isolotto for as long as she can remember. It isn’t an easy life; there is hunger sometimes, and cold. But flock-leader Alpha always knows what to do, and the land provides. As long as Stars listens to her belly-heart and stays in harmony—with the land, with the rest of her flock—she knows things will be all right.

But now for the first time there are strangers coming to the isolotto. People from the terra who have read Alpha’s teachings, and crave escape from all the noise and wrongness.

‘You have to know when it’s time to go in a different direction,’ Mother says.

But Stars listens to her belly-heart, and she isn’t so sure. The terra-people are bringing change to her world. And when your world is small, it doesn’t take long to turn it upside down.

In this extraordinary novel, Melanie Skyers creates a whole society seen through the eyes of one woman. Beautifully written, enthralling, important: Belly-Heart is a debut to remember.