Page 2 of our reviews
The Secret to Superhuman Strength by Alison Bechdel
Alison Bechdel must be the graphic novelist with the richest density of ideas-per-square- inch; no blurb could do justice to the wide-ranging subject matter of her new book, The Secret to Superhuman …
She is Haunted by Paige Clark
If you’ve felt stuck in a reading slump of late, stop what you’re doing and pick up a copy of She Is Haunted. The hype for this debut short-story collection from Chinese/American/Australian fiction w…
Trigger Warning by Maria Takolander
Maria Takolander is an established Australian poet, and Trigger Warning is her fourth collection. At times a deeply personal selection of poems, it left me in awe of a poet’s ability to trust and to …
The Five Wounds by Kirstin Valdez Quade
Thirty-three-year-old Amadeo Padilla is unemployed, alcoholic and still living with his mother, Yolanda. One day, while Yolanda is away holidaying in Las Vegas, Amadeo comes home to find his pregnant…
After Story by Larissa Behrendt
Burnt out after a disturbing homicide case, lawyer Jasmine takes a leap of faith and invites her mother Della to join her on a literary tour of England. Della has never travelled far beyond Frog Holl…
The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
‘It was a queer, sultry summer, the summer they electrocuted the Rosenbergs, and I didn’t know what I was doing in New York.’ A great opening line: nervous, brittle, crackling with heat, with sweat, …
Soil: The Incredible Story of What Keeps the Earth, and Us, Healthy by Matthew Evans
Read a book on soil, they said. You like gardening, eating, breathing – read a book on soil. Until now, I can honestly say that soil has not been a passion of mine, but now I am all about considering…
The Others by Mark Brandi
‘Sometimes, you have to do the most terrible things. Sometimes, you just have to.’ With this single line the tone is firmly established for The Others, Mark Brandi’s highly anticipated new novel. Nar…
Hell of a Book by Jason Mott
Jason Mott’s first novel, The Returned, was a bestseller back in 2013: top of the charts, TV adaptation, the whole nine yards. In writing this new book, his fourth, Mott has drawn on memories of that…
The Rabbits by Sophie Overett
Right from page one of this distinctive new novel by debut author Sophie Overett, I had the strangest feeling that I was in an Alice in Wonderland-type story. There’s a sense of oppression, the feeli…
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