"SPINNING OUT is a big, spirited, character-driven novel: chick-lit of a superior kind. When Ginny loses her job in the high-powered world of corporate advertising, she is also determined to lose her on-again, off-again relationship with Simon, a charismatic, untrustworthy colleague. On a whim, she leaves New York to visit her best friend Eloise in Australia, but the three-month vacation turns into a more lasting detour in her life. She meets an attractive vet, Lachlan, and they have a child together. When tragedy strikes, Ginny sinks into a despair she can't admit to, until her mother -- the good-hearted and cunning Barb -- arrives on the scene. Ginny finds her feet again, in the world of dance, a subject for which the author has considerable passion. Darcas's novel is a satisfying read with a swift and assured narrative, splashes of melodrama and convincingly drawn characters."
THE AGE - Pick of the Week
"The reason I liked this book so much was the realistic characterisations and scenarios. At no point do we need to suspend disbelief, which allows more space for the reader to relate to the characters. Darcas does a great job of portraying Ginny's complex and fraught relationships with her mother and her best friend, and I found these aspects very moving."
4/5 stars
Rachel Wilson, Australian Bookseller & Publisher
'From the first page I was hooked and by the third chapter I had laughed and cried and knew that I had found a truly great story.'
"With its Strictly Ballroom embellishments, this is a story for any girl who felt like she couldn't pull herself up by her own socks."
Cosmopolitan Magazine
"A fun, thoughtful look at a complicated modern life."
NW Magazine
'The novel is ... warm, with a diverse cast of mostly decent human beings. Darcas is not afraid of the darkness, and her romance is not always happy ever after. An engaging read.'
Sunday AGE, M Magazine
'This is a wonderful read about love and loss, career moves versus motherhood, and the absorbing world of dance.'
Daily Mercury
'Spinning Out is a novel that reaffirms our right to steer the direction of our own lives, and to realise what we can achieve when we take advantage of the possibilities presented to us.'
Swan Hill Guardian
'Darcas' portrayal of this relationship [between mother and daughter] has an authentic feel, capturing those angst-filled moments between a parent and a child, where finding common ground seems near impossible, which many readers will be able to relate to.'
