Royals

At 5.17pm on a Thursday, time stops for six teenagers who are inside a shopping centre. They can’t get out, they can’t call anyone. How did they get trapped inside the centre? Why hasn’t anyone noticed their disappearance? And why can’t anyone see them?

Royals is Tegan Bennett Daylight’s first young adult novel. It follows 16-year-old protagonist Shannon, five other teens (and a baby) through the ordeal of being left to fend for themselves inside the once bustling mall in Sydney, this story follows the highs and lows of the characters and their everyday life inside the centre. In the absence of phones, the internet and adults, the story delves deeper into the individual lives and stories of the characters. Returning to the beauty of friendships before Messenger, Snapchat and Instagram, the novel shows how an unlikely group of individuals can transform into a group of tight-knit friends. Think of this as a modern Australian take on Lord of the Flies and The Breakfast Club.