Young adult
Game Theory by Barry Jonsberg
I’m always up for a young-adult murder-mystery and, having enjoyed some of Barry Jonsberg’s past novels, I was keen to see how Jonsberg tackled the crime genre for teens. 
Jamie is a maths whiz and spends his time working…
One Would Think the Deep by Claire Zorn
Seventeen-year-old Sam’s mum has died. With no father in the picture and nowhere else to go, the Department of Child Services have directed him to call his estranged Aunty Lorraine, the only relative he has a contact number for. Aunty…
The Square Root of Summer by Harriet Reuter Hapgood
Ah, time travel. It confuses me so much! Worm holes, black holes, white holes – you name it, I won’t understand it. So it probably won’t come as a surprise to you when I saythat I didn’t completely understand what…
The Pain, My Mother, Sir Tiffy, Cyber Boy & Me by Michael Gerard Bauer
Any book that announces itself with, ‘It all started with The Pain’ has me from the very first paragraph, especially when it’s obvious The Pain is no mere physical discomfort but a deeper agony in the shape of a person…
Riverkeep by Martin Stewart
The Danék River has always been there, like a dark and silent third member of Wull’s little family. For years, Wull’s father has taught his son the arts of the Riverkeep – how to tend the lamps and keep the…
Frankie by Shivaun Plozza
I was drawn to the novel Frankie from the get go, especially as Melina Marchetta had endorsed the title character as ‘gutsy’ on the front cover. And if anyone knows about gutsy women, it’s Marchetta, author of the brilliant LookingFor…
The Special Ones by Em Bailey
It’s hard to explain The Special Ones without giving too much away. It’s a fantastically tense read that follows four ‘Special Ones’ who are being forced to live ‘pure’ lives under the watchful eye of Him, and their followers. They…
Dreaming the Enemy by David Metzenthen
Johnny stares at the screen as a celebrity, watched over by a nearby government official, pulls a number out of a barrel and reads it aloud. Just like that, Johnny’s future is decided. Three months of government-funded training, then off…
Special by Georgia Blain
I’ve been suffering from ‘dystopian fatigue’ lately, so the idea of yet another story set in a broken and not-too distant future is enough to send my eyes rolling into the back of my head. But unlike much of the…
Martians by Blythe Woolston
In a futuristic world not too different from our own, where consumption is the main objective, lives 16-year-old Zoë Zindleman. She has been forced to graduate from high school early and there are only two places to go after school…
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