Book review – The First Friend
Set in the Soviet Union during the peak of Stalinism, The First Friend is an absurdist comedy on the legacy of despots and blood-thirsty dictators.Author:…
Book review: Safe Haven
Shankari Chandran’s gripping and persuasive novel of asylum seekers, reads like an open wound.There have been many Australian publications about refugees and asylum seekers. Many…
Book review: The Vulnerables
Sigrid Nunez signs a COVID novel that has the same kind of humour, observation and literary references her fans recognise.Author: Sigrid Nunez Publisher: Hachette Australia…
Book review: Others Were Emeralds
Author: Lang Leav Publisher: Harper PerennialAward-winning poet and author Lang Leav tells a coming-of-age tale set in late 1990s Australia that weaves childhood innocence, immigrant…
Book review: Past Lying
The plot of a dead author’s half-finished manuscript eerily mirrors the real-life disappearance of a young woman. In an Edinburgh lockdown, McDermid’s cold case cop…
Book review: Resurrection Walk
In the latest police-legal procedure combo from Michael Connelly, Lincoln Lawyer Mickey Haller and his half-brother Harry Bosch join forces to free a woman imprisoned…
Book review: Hello Beautiful
Ann Napolitano’s fourth novel is an emotional family saga that promises to stay with you long after you finish reading itAuthor: Ann Napolitano Publisher: Penguin…
Book review: The Broken Places
Russell Franklin’s book is a poetic and emotional fictional account of Ernest Hemingway’s trans daughter, Gloria.Author: Russell Franklin Publisher: HachetteThis story is a fictional account…
Book review: The Settlement
An enthralling retelling of the ill-fated Wybalenna settlement, Jock Serong confronts the harsh realities of Australia’s colonial history.Author: Jock Serong Publisher: Text PublishingWarning: Aboriginal and…
Book review: What about men?
Comedian and commentator Caitlin Moran follows her humorous feminist manifesto with a tongue-in-cheek look at the strange world of men.Caitlin Moran is a prolific British…
Book review: Night Side of the River
Author: Jeanette Winterson Publisher: Jonathan Cape (Penguin Random House) Night Side of the River is a collection of ghost stories by a prolific writer across…