The YA novel THE WAITING PLACE (Hachette 2026) by Megan Jacobson is a compelling and imaginative read for both young people and adults alike. With a unique premise, a fast-paced plot, superb characterisations, and themes of connection, belonging, grief, loyalty, sacrifice, belief systems, unlikely friendships and blossoming love, this novel hits all the right beats for a pacy, immersive, funny, thought-provoking read.
The afternoon before 16-year-old Emily Woodward dies, she is – hand on heart – trying to be good. After all, not only is she a member of the local religious cult, but she will be one of The Selected when she dies, heading off to heaven in a spaceship on Halley’s Comet. The community of Townies (who all consider Emily and her clan a little weird) are all destined for hell. That’s just how it is. Between now and death, her plans involve only being married off to another cult member at 18 and living the quiet, subdued life of her trad-wife mother.
But it’s complicated. With their conservative views and clothing and minimal learning (especially for girls and women), their avoidance of outside interference (like pesky science and medicine) and their strict adherence to a code of societal conduct, Emily and her family and friends seem like the perfect do-gooders. However, should one of their number transgress in any way (and there are oh so many ways to transgress!) they and their children and their children’s children will be condemned forever. Doesn’t seem fair or remotely right or just to Emily but it’s what she’s always known.
Not like Jackson, the boy she used to innocently meet at the creek years earlier and borrow his phone to increase her insatiable knowledge about insects and biology. And not like Xanthe, the posterchild for their community who never sets a foot wrong.
Two major incidents in the early pages of the novel set the scene: Emily’s disgraced (pregnant) older sister Sarah arrives home (Why? How?) causing much to-do and disruption, and then a bunch of people – including Emily, Sarah, her unborn baby, Jackson and Xanthe, all die from different causes on the same day.
To say too much more would be a spoiler, but Emily, Xanthe and Jackson each evade the ‘angels’ and escape from the sorting that appears to be going on (sending some people to The Good Line and some to The Bad Line), resulting in them spending an extended period in The Waiting Place. What is this place? Why does it manifest as different things to different people? Was Emily’s cult right all along? If so, where is the spaceship? Something has rent a tear in the fabric of the universe of space and time, with shimmering potholes / portholes / portals revealing their secrets.
The three adolescents are a motley crew: the perfect girl, the teen delinquent and the bland one. But circumstances force them to band together if they are to survive this otherworldly place and what must come afterwards. They forge unlikely bonds and circle forbidden romance. In the end, each must trust their own instincts as to what is right.
What follows is an incredible adventure full of danger and evil but also humour and revelation. Thinks Emily: ‘I realise that I’ve had more fun this past hour in death than I ever had while living. Isn’t that ridiculous?’
Jacobson’s ear for the teenage voice is unerring and authentic, full of spiky humour, droll wit and snarky comments.
But despite their temporary bonding, each is mistrustful of the others. Why is Xanthe, who definitely should be on The Good Line by now, still hanging around with Jackson and Emily? What on earth prompted Jackson to commit the crime that resulted in his death? And why does he care so much about who he has left behind? Is Emily willing to risk eternal damnation to save her rebellious older sister, who she feels abandoned her years earlier to the fate of the cult?
Full of memories and premonitions, and with a not-so-subtle touch of magical realism, THE WAITING PLACE explores what life should be, the importance of not judging others, the secrets hidden behind normal facades, what it means to live a good life, how to bend or break the rules, and what ‘heaven’ might look like, from the perspectives of all religions and even atheists. The three teenagers use their skills, experience and ingenuity to figure out the system in which they’ve found themselves, dead but not yet gone. Not alive but also not ready to let go of those they’ve left behind. Determined, in fact, to change things for those they love if at all possible.
And Jacobson’s book shows us that indeed, anything is possible, if you only want it badly enough and are prepared to make sacrifices, be vulnerable and honest, and defy authority.
Funny, quirky, page-turning, thought-provoking, generous, big-hearted, unruly, compassionate, moving, warm, imaginative and comforting, THE WAITING PLACE is a compelling read, full of all the feelings. A portal to another world.