Impossible Causes

Impossible Causes by Julie Mayhew is a dark, atmospheric psychological thriller set on the remote island of Lark, a small and deeply religious community that becomes isolated from the mainland for much of the year by thick fog. Three outsiders arrive just before the isolation begins: a charismatic male teacher, Ben Hailey, and a mother and teenage daughter, Viola, who are escaping a devastating tragedy. As Viola becomes involved with the island’s three eldest girls, she discovers their secret meetings, the island’s history of paganism, and the tensions beneath its strict religious traditions. When a man’s body is discovered in a sacred stone circle, rumors of witchcraft and murder spread, and the girls become the focus of suspicion. The novel explores isolation, power, religious fervor, secrecy, manipulation, female friendship, and the consequences of silence when young women are mistreated.