The Oasis is the second in the ‘Menzies Mental Health’ series co-authored by Anne Buist and Graeme Simsion. It follows The Glass House published in 2024. A third novel is also in the works.
To fully engage with the book, it’s necessary to have read the first one, as many cases, settings and characters flow on from it.
The setting is again the fictitious Menzies Mental Health hospital, where Hannah Wright, psychiatrist in training, is now a registrar in the outpatient clinic known as ‘The Stables’ but renamed by the staff to the more agreeable sounding ‘The Oasis’. While Hannah and her colleagues’ mission is to help unravel the mental health issues afflicting their patients, their own past traumas and ongoing inner conflicts complicate matters. Internal political intrigues and score settling add to the volatile mix. As Hannah puts it, ‘people in power thinking they know what’s best for others’.
Anne Buist’s background as Chair of Women’s Mental Health at the University of Melbourne adds the kind of authenticity to the portrayal of mental health cases and treatments that a novel of this kind must have. Not to detract from the gravity of the patients’ illnesses, there’s enough humour and satire to keep the story engaging and relatable. Again, in this book the story is narrated by Hannah, who is more fully realised as a character.
It’s sometimes hard to keep up with the very large cast of characters and for readers who haven’t read The Glass House, references to previous patients and relationship dramas may be confusing. Otherwise, it’s an engrossing read.
Reviewed by Anne Green
Read a book review of The Glass House
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
ABOUT THE AUTHORSAnne Buist is chair of Women’s Mental Health at the University of Melbourne and author of the psychological thrillers, Medea’s Curse, Dangerous to Know and This I Would Kill For.
Graeme Simsion is the internationally bestselling author of The Rosie Project, The Rosie Effect and The Best of Adam Sharp.
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