Our staff share the books they loved in 2015, but wouldn’t have read without a recommendation.

Maggie Nelson’s The Argonauts! I can’t remember who first recommended this to me but I glad I got round to seeking it out. I loved the speed of Nelson’s thoughts and her writing on queer culture, gender fluidity and family. Groundbreaking stuff. – Jess Au, bookseller at St Kilda

I just finished reading the wonderful short novel The Diver’s Clothes Lie Empty by Vendela Vida, a book I would not have bought without dual recommendations from my colleagues Bronte and Chris. Both assured me it was a book I would love, and both of them know my taste very well by now, so when they give me a recommendation, I’ll generally immediately buy the book. Without their encouragement, I would have overlooked this little gem of a novel – it’s title and cover did not jump out at me, it’s written in second person (something that sounds slightly horrifying, but works perfectly in the book), I’ve never read the author before (but will now be tracking down her previous novels), and I hadn’t heard much buzz about. It’s exactly the sort of smart but not showy book that can slip right by you at this time of year, especially if you’re like me, and obsessively scour best books of the year lists and get caught up in the hype of the big, attention-grabbing releases.

So, let me now pass this recommendation along – if you are looking for a tense, witty, extremely enjoyable and interesting literary novel unlike anything else on offer this year, try The Diver’s Clothes Lie Empty. – Nina Kenwood, marketing manager

While she didn’t publish anything in 2015, my stand out discovery of this year was American author Megan Abbott. My colleague Amy described it as: ‘Gillian Flynn’s Sharp Objects, meets Jeffrey Eugenides’ The Virgin Suicides, meets Alice Sebold’s The Lovely Bones, meets Abigail Ulman’s Hot Little Hands’. Abbott’s novels are literary thrillers and I don’t usually read crime or anything similar, but I was in a reading slump and struggling to finish anything I picked up. Amy’s words convinced me to pick up The End of Everything and I soon found myself completely infatuated with the novel’s intensity and complex characters, physically unable to put the book down. I’ve written more about my love for Abbott here, and am now keen to read through her entire backlist, plus anything she’s ever endorsed.

As such, next up on my reading list – Daniel Woodrell’s Tomato Red, which includes a forward by Abbott! – Stella Charls, marketing and events coordinator

Eon by Alison Goodman. This one would have slipped under my radar completely but I’m glad my colleague Holly recommended it to me. I hadn’t been this excited while reading a book in ages! My heart was racing and my hands were shaking as I nearly tore the pages to find out how an early climactic scene ended. And then when I did find our what happened, I shouted WHAT!?… at my confused cat. – Dani Solomon, children’s specialist at Carlton

I had the opportunity to host an event with Sarai Walker earlier this year, and so I read a novel that I may not otherwise have made the time to read. Walker’s debut, Dietland, has a candy-coloured whipped-cream cupcake on the cover (look closer and it’s actually a cupcake-shaped hand grenade! but more on that in a moment),and a bold, florid title font. This book basically looks like standard chic-lit about baking. Boring, right? Wrong!

This novel is a lot of fun but my advice is to not let its seemingly sweet and soft first impression fool you – it also packs one hell of punch. This is feminist Fight Club, but so much darker. It’s edgy and lasting, and it crosses a line in the most satisfying and awesomely disturbing way. It explores misogyny and sexism in relation to objectification and the media, advertising, the beauty and diet industries, the pornography industry, sexual violence, and the control of women’s bodies, and it does so boldly and unflinchingly. – Amy Vuleta, shop manager at St Kilda

I definitely wouldn’t have picked up Elizabeth Gilbert’s book on ‘creative living’, Big Magic, if not for a convincing argument that I should by my colleague Nina. I’ve never been interested to read a book about writing before – I’ve usually decided that my time would be better spent reading some really great writing instead – so I was surprised to find Big Magic helpful, and even very funny at times. Gilbert’s wryly self-deprecating, mystically-philosophical advice was entirely charming.

Another book that may have passed me by, if not for the amazing raves it’s been getting all over the place, is Illuminae. Everything about this YA novel – from the story’s unusual structure (which was earning it comparisons with House of Leaves, snooze), to the heft of the object itself (yes, I am a lazy reader) – seemed to suggest it wasn’t the right book for me. Of course then I read it and loved it so completely. Illuminae is a brilliant page-turner with clever, intricate storytelling that left me gobsmacked. Highly, highly recommended. – Bronte Coates, digital content coordinator