The Rain Heron cover art

The Rain Heron

 Preview
Try Premium Plus free
1 credit a month to buy any audiobook in our entire collection.
Access to thousands of additional audiobooks and Originals from the Plus Catalogue.
Member-only deals & discounts.
Auto-renews at $16.45/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

The Rain Heron

By: Robbie Arnott
Narrated by: Jessica Douglas-Henry, Zoe Carides
Try Premium Plus free

Auto-renews at $16.45/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy Now for $21.99

Buy Now for $21.99

About this listen

Ren lives alone on the remote frontier of a country devastated by a coup. High on the forested slopes, she survives by hunting and trading - and forgetting. But when a young soldier comes to the mountains in search of a local myth, Ren is inexorably drawn into her impossible mission. As their lives entwine, unravel and erupt - as myths merge with reality - both Ren and the soldier are forced to confront what they regret, what they love and what they fear.

Robbie Arnott’s stunning second novel remakes our relationship with the natural world. The Rain Heron is equal parts horror and wonder and utterly gripping.

Shortlisted, Guardian’s Not the Booker Prize (for Flames), United Kingdom, 2019

Shortlisted, Victorian Premier's Literary Award for Fiction (for Flames), 2019

Longlisted, Indie Book Awards for Debut Fiction (for Flames), 2019

Shortlisted, UTS Glenda Adams Award for New Writing, NSW Premier's Literary Awards (for Flames), 2019

Shortlisted, Queensland Literary Awards: University of Queensland Fiction Book Award (for Flames), 2018

Shortlisted, Readings Prize for New Australian Fiction (for Flames), 2018

Shortlisted, Katheen Mitchell Award, 2019

Longlisted, ALS Gold Medal, 2019

Longlisted, Miles Franklin Literary Award, 2019

Shortlisted, Tasmania Book Prize, Premier's Literary Awards, 2019

Shortlisted, Margaret Scott Prize, Premier's Literary Awards, 2019

Longlisted, Voss Literary Prize, 2019

©2020 Robbie Arnott (P)2020 W. F. Howes Ltd Absurdist Fiction Genre Fiction Historical Fiction Literary Fiction World Literature

Critic Reviews

"Robbie Arnott is singlehandedly reinventing Australian literature. The Rain Heron is a soaring feat of the imagination." (Bram Presser)

"The Rain Heron is exquisite. It is both fantastical and deeply true." (Jane Rawson)

"The Rain Heron is genuinely and completely magnificent - a magical thing." (Robert Lukins)
All stars
Most relevant
I thoroughly enjoyed the book which was so different and intriguing. It joins the early related lives seamlessly.
I was a little disappointed with the conclusion but it does open itself up for analysis and discussion.

Interesting Concepts

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Narration was excellent. I really enjoyed the descriptive writing, I could smell the smells and feel the feels. Brilliant, uncomfortable, painful and sickening in parts. But also some uplifting, redemptive moments. Well paced, a bit sparing.
I wanted more of all of it, more of the rain heron, more of Ren and Daniel and Zoe. Overall it was thought provoking and melancholic. I really enjoyed it, highly recommend!

Beautiful writing, rich and lyrical.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Wow! 2nd novel I have read by Robbie Arnott-simply brilliant.
Lyrical , compelling , brutal , uplifting, fanciful but believable -what a voice this young man has.
I wanted more.
Cannot wait to see what he produces next.
Talent in bucket loads.

Storyteller of immense talent.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
loved this book. beautifully written superbly read. distressing as the reason for the story unfolds but so poetic in parts that I had to continue.

fantastic work

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
The authors play on words and descriptions took on the journey in the story. Narration was brilliant and is perfect for this story.

Beautiful

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
good to hear a story so different. part fantasy but with very real characters. plenty left to your imagination and never sure where the story is heading but worth reading/listening to. I enjoyed it and would recommend it.

a very original story

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Unsure what the author was trying to say with this story and how the threads connected .

great narration

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
First time I have read this author, Arnotts writing has left me wanting more. Sadly Flames, his first novel not available on Audible.

Brilliantly beautiful

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Beautiful, strange, scary, poetic! This story was outstanding & left me wanting more. The narrator was great!

A masterpiece!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
The structure gives this book and story interest, particularly enjoyed the section about the Northerner and squid ink farming, quite removed from the main narrative of the Rain Heron’s journey. In many ways this book left me with more questions about purpose, motive and this is not a bad thing, but propelled me forward. Unfortunately I did not enjoy the change in narrator, at the end of the story. Wonderful characters and sense of place, setting and time were sort of mystic, futuristic and a little apocalyptic, contrasting the stunning descriptions of the Heron’s physical appearance. I would have liked to know more about the origin of the bird!
Wonderful original story with great female protagonists, well considered and created with no stereotypes.

Four part tale weaves characters place and past

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews
In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.