What readers think of The White Mary, plus links to write your own review.

The author, Kira Salak, appears to use the main character, Marika Vecera, to incorporate her personal experiences in the Papua New Guinea jungle, and tries to weave in a spiritual journey along the way. I found myself captivated by Marika’s struggles in the Papua New Guinea jungle, and her descriptions of the various cultures; however, the story line and the other characters did not seem credible to me. I found the book a page turner despite of the story line and other characters instead of because of them.

This was a hard book to keep reading. The leading character seemed too self involved to hold my interest. Her motivations were all negative in nature. Finally, new characters and a shift in locale provided the catalyst to see growth and courage emerge in her. Finally, the reader is rewarded with a moral epiphany on her part that makes the whole book worth the patience of reading it.

This book would appeal to people who enjoy travel, adventure and spiritual growth. For a novel the writing was not engaging and the organization lacked the power to sustain my attention.

I was so excited to read this book--a journalist who draws from personal experience in some of the most war-torn and unstable places on the planet as well as a personal journey in a place we rarely hear of in the news. I was disappointed to find a novel with few interesting scenarios that ultimately fell flat and rang hollow.


I know writing is challenging--non-fiction or otherwise, but the writing here is poor. And the omniscient narrator doesn't work. I really wanted to feel the experience of going deep into Papua New Guinea, but the descriptions were cursory and didn't bring it alive to me at all. Then the novel seems to want to be an allegory for emotional redemption and instead sounds like some ridiculous self-help advice. Even if you suspend disbelief this novel doesn't work. For a real journey into the jungle I would recommend skipping it and reading Fieldwork by Mischa Berlinski.