Who has the power to decide guilty or innocent?

The Revenge of Rita Marsh

Nilesha Chauvet

Expected publication: July 2, 2024 by Faber & Faber

Rita Marsh runs an aged care centre during the day, that was left to her after the demise of her parents. Rita cares about her those she has a responsibility for and tries to make their lives better. However, everyone has a side hustle these days and for Rita well she tracks down, ensnares, and exposes pedophiles. Leading a double life can take its toll, especially when you are engaging with men who want to perform depraved acts. When a takedown goes wrong, Rita rethinks the personal toll, decides to back away and heal. Yet, the school reunion brings back bad memories and accusations of a former teacher, now famous novelist abusing girls at the school pushes Rita back into action. Especially when one of the victims is her best friend and romantic interest, Leila.

The difficulty with the book is that you always feel uncomfortable, never at ease as you read. Don’t be thinking this a cosy read for a rainy Sunday. From the opening pages you are hurled into a world of child sex grooming. We witness firsthand the lengths Rita and her friends will undertake to arrive at this moment where they are about to unmask and shame an alleged pedophile.

Being told from Rita’s point of view, means you are reliant on her telling of the story and suffice to say, she is not overly reliable. As Rita’s observations and interpretations of what is occurring is at times tainted due to her wanting facts to fit into her engineered scenarios. Don’t get me wrong Rita, is a good person, she wants to do the right thing, but you are left questioning is she really? At times you wonder if Rita is no better than those she tries to expose, who manipulate and cajole people into compromising situations. For there are times when Rita appears to be taking the same trajectory, whilst she can argue that it is in the pursuit of justice, it certainly is a very grey area. This is what makes Rita such a hard character to get to know, as she is so multi-faceted, so that as a reader you alternate between loathing and supporting.

The supporting characters, especially that of Javid and Leila are well crafted, each with their own extensive backgrounds and motivations. They also add further complexities to the moral and ethical situations that are posed. The police officer’s motives are also ambiguous in his pursuit of justice and how much harm he is willing to cause to achieve an outcome.

It took me a couple of days to come to page and craft my thoughts, as Chauvet has created a dense, heavily layered story that that explores the darkest recesses of human behaviour. Having a lead character who acts as a vigilante creates several ethical quandaries for the reader to mull over. Chauvet has handled the material well, treating the situations with respect, not casting any judgements and allowing us the reader to form their own views and opinions. It is a bold undertaking to tackle the topics in this book. The Revenge of Rita Marsh will create many a discussion on so many different levels about the administration of justice.

Take a risk, read the book and be prepared to be uncomfortable, confronted but come out the other side with a raft of questions.

For more on Nilesha Chauvet check out their website