Anya and the Light Above the Ocean

Amelia Giudici’s debut novel marks the arrival of an ambitious and confident new voice in children’s fiction. Anya and the Light Above the Ocean combines science fiction, mystery and emotional drama in a fast-paced story that continually shifts expectations and keeps readers questioning what is real.

Anya’s nightly routine is reassuringly predictable. Each evening she waits for her scientist mother to return from conducting experiments aboard her research boat, always back safely by nine o’clock. When her mother fails to come home one night, Anya’s concern quickly turns to fear. Determined to find her, she ventures out alone onto the sea, only to discover an unexplained, brilliant light hovering above the water. Drawn towards it, Anya reaches out to touch the glow and suddenly finds herself back on the boat, alone on a calm and silent ocean.

Her mother is still missing. Stranger still, familiar adults begin behaving oddly. Her mother’s friend is distant and unwelcoming, and Anya is sent away from her home to live with an unfamiliar couple. Nothing feels quite right. As the narrative unfolds through a series of unexpected twists, Anya realises that her encounter with the mysterious light has changed her in ways she does not yet understand. In searching for answers about her mother’s disappearance, she is also forced to confront unsettling truths about herself and the nature of reality itself.

Giudici handles an intricate and high-concept premise with impressive control. The story moves at pace, balancing tension and discovery while gradually revealing its scientific and emotional stakes. The unfolding mystery has the momentum of a thriller, yet beneath the action lie thoughtful philosophical questions about identity, memory and consciousness. What makes someone who they are, and how can we trust our understanding of ourselves or others?

Despite the complexity of its ideas, the novel remains accessible and engaging for middle-grade readers, grounding its speculative elements in Anya’s emotional experience of fear, loss and determination. The result is an original and absorbing science fiction adventure that rewards careful reading while maintaining strong narrative drive.

Bold, imaginative and unsettling in the best way, Anya and the Light Above the Ocean is an impressive debut that suggests Giudici will be a writer to watch on children’s bookshelves for years to come.