Your Own Kind of Girl
By Clare Bowditch
2019 | Memoir
Published by Allen & Unwin
Singer and actor Clare Bowditch is a treasure. Not only does she have incredible talent, she has a vitality of spirit that makes you immediately want to befriend her.
You would never have known the pain that lay underneath her skin.
The untimely death of her sister when they were children ultimately steered Clare’s path in life. While adjusting to the grief and loss, she was also adjusting to herself and others’ perceptions of her — she was not small and quiet and diminutive like the other girls.
Clare’s account of her subsequent battles with anxiety, depression, eating disorders, self-doubt and self-loathing was at times so visceral it brought tears to my eyes. Her raw honesty and vulnerability are such a gift to anyone who has ever felt ‘less than’; I personally felt so seen, and so inspired by the way in which she ultimately took control of her mind and decided to be happy as ‘her own kind of girl’.
Plus, she sings on audio — it’s fabulous listening!
Ten Steps to Nanette
By Hannah Gadsby
2022 | Non-fiction
Published by Allen & Unwin
Hannah Gadsby is one of my favourite comedians. Her dry, self-deprecating wit is right up my alley. My love for her deepened after watching her incredible Netflix special Nanette. (If you haven’t watched it, please stop what you’re doing and go remedy that now! It is a powerful and important piece of work.)
Hannah’s childhood, hometown, family dynamic, sexuality, neurodiversity, body image and career intertwine with the political landscape of the past four decades to give one giant mixed bag of context behind Nanette.
The audiobook of this is perfection. Hearing Hannah’s story in her own voice provides an extra layer of intimacy — in one sentence she can make you laugh with just the inflection of her voice, then take your breath away with her unfiltered revelations. It is fascinating and jaw-dropping and sad and funny all at once.
The Storyteller
By Dave Grohl
2021 | Non-fiction
Published by Simon & Schuster Australia
I’m a big Foo Fighters fan. I’m an even bigger Nirvana fan. This memoir was a must-read for me.
I ripped through it on audio, and it was like listening to a bloke you just met at the pub coming out with yarn after yarn of a fascinating life you would never have guessed he possessed — and you never want him to stop talking.
With infectious candour, Dave weaves earnest tales of a boyhood spent obsessed with music with cracking rock’n’roll yarns and personal stories of heartbreaking loss. This book was written before his best mate, Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins, died suddenly in 2022, so the passages where he speaks of his love for Taylor and the antics they got up to are all the more devastating now.
Dave has so much wisdom to share around pursuing your passion, finding creative inspiration, and being yourself when it’s not the ‘easy’ path to choose. At the end of the day, he’s just a down-to-earth guy who really, really loves music, and the cool things he does and people he meets are a bonus.
My only criticism is I wish it was longer!
Love Marriage
By Monica Ali
2022 | Contemporary fiction
Published by Hachette Australia
Love Marriage is part domestic drama, part social commentary. Yasmin is engaged to Joe, and we follow them as their families intersect (hers, Indian immigrants; his, British celebrity) revealing secrets and truths along the way.
This simplistic summation doesn’t do it justice though — it’s layered with depth and nuance around race, relationships, career, sexuality, feminism.
It’s received some flack but I don’t understand why — I rate it highly. It’s full of lovably flawed characters and intelligent writing.
Wildflowers
By Peggy Frew
2022 | Literary fiction
Published by Allen & Unwin
Three estranged sisters are thrust back together for the one thing that unifies them — the youngest sister’s addiction. Our protagonist is Nina, the middle sister, and our bizarre introduction to her sets the scene for discomfort and dysfunction within the sisters individually and collectively.
When the unsettling fog lifts and we begin to understand the shared trauma that belies their current status quo, secrets and lies rise to the surface. The intervention is confronting to say the least, and strips back not just the addict but all the sisters, exposing their innermost vulnerabilities and stoicisms.
Peggy Frew is a master of structure — there comes a twist that sheds everything in a new light.
Raw, surprising, harrowing, hopeful.
The Good Sister
By Sally Hepworth
2020 | Contemporary fiction
Published by Pan Macmillan
Clever, compelling, bingeable fiction. Sally Hepworth does this to perfection; she is one of those authors you just know will deliver every time.
This is the tale of twin sisters that picks at the thread of long-buried truth and examines the complications and loyalty of their unique bond.
It is well-paced, sharply observed and utterly engrossing. You will gobble it up.
The Mistake
By Katie McMahon
2021 | Contemporary fiction
Published by Echo Publishing
Two sisters. One little mistake with enormous consequences. So what happened? And how did it change everything?
This was a thoroughly enjoyable and surprising read. It’s a sister dynamic I hadn’t seen before, and both women were layered and complex, drawn with strength and humour. The central mystery bubbles along at a nice pace, and there were many laugh-out-loud moments along the way. Can’t wait to read more from this debut author — her second book, The Accident, is out now too.
Marshmallow
By Victoria Hannan
2022 | Literary fiction
Published by Hachette Australia
Oh, this book. This beautiful, heart-crushing book. Set in Melbourne, we follow a group of friends in the lead-up to the anniversary of a tragic death. We learn of their lives pre- and post-event, we walk with them through their grief and grappling.
It’s not an easy read; Hannan does not tread lightly, nor is she exploitative or voyeuristic in her narrative treatment. There’s desolate desperation, but also absurdity and humour. It’s perfectly, delicately balanced. The focus is not the tragedy — though there is an element of human curiosity about it — it is on the people who are navigating it.
Marshmallow is ultimately about the irreversible impact of trauma; that one does not grow back from the hole it leaves but grows around it. That what seems unsurvivable actually is survivable. And that hope can disappear but is never lost.
And the title … 💔 #ifyouknowyouknow.
Elegant and profound.
My Heart is a Little Wild Thing
By Nigel Featherstone
2022 | Literary fiction
Published by Ultimo Press
Coming of age but make it middle age. Can we normalise not understanding ourselves until well into adulthood? It’s very refreshing, and this novel does it beautifully.
Protagonist Patrick is stuck. He’s the only sibling available to care for his overbearing, ageing mother, to whom he has a deep sense of loyalty but also, increasingly, frustration. He’s in a ‘meh’ job, and he has disregarded his sexuality his entire life, hindering any chance of meaningful intimacy and connection.
In other words, he has always been last in his own life. Until one day he snaps, and seeks the comfort of a place from childhood that becomes the catalyst for his personal evolution.
This quiet, introspective novel crackles with vulnerability and humanity. It examines the ties that bind us — to parents, to childhood, to places, to memories, to expectations — and how these ties shape us, how they anchor us, and also how they give us the tools to grow and fly. It is full of emotional complexity and hard-won wisdom.
Salt and Skin
By Eliza Henry-Jones
2022 | Literary fiction
Published by Ultimo Press
Atmospheric, lyrical, magical; this book is stunning.
All Our Shimmering Skies
By Trent Dalton
2021 | Literary historical fiction
Published by HarperCollins AU
This book is exquisite in every way. It’s 1942, and we are following gravedigger girl Molly Hook, who has been dealt an abused, poor, motherless existence with her father and uncles. Looking to the skies, as bombs rain down over Darwin, she flees towards the bush, towards freedom, and picks up some interesting travelling companions on the way: feisty actress Greta and fallen Japanese pilot Yukio.
From that cover to every page in between, Dalton is in a class all his own. Poetic and magical, despite its dark core. The most interesting characters, the most beautiful prose. Loved it so, so much.
A Solitary Walk on the Moon
By Hilde Hinton
2022 | Literary fiction
Published by Hachette Australia
Unique, surprising, warm — just like the Hilde Hinton herself. Evelyn runs a laundromat, and while she’s kind of a loner, her superpower is observing others and inserting herself into the lives of people who need help but just don’t know it.
This book is bittersweet in every sense. Endearing, witty and a little offbeat, it reminds us that everyone is fighting their own battles, family is the one you choose, and there is nothing so vital as being seen.
Lovely.
Cherry Beach
By Laura McPhee-Browne
2020 | Literary Fiction
Published by Text Publishing
I think this might be one of my favourite book covers. Such stunning artwork. It’s a beautiful book too.
Cherry Beach follows two young women as they travel to live and work in Canada. One is in love with the other, and things are about to get messy.
This book is about the pleasure and pain of life in your early twenties, of friendship and self-discovery and new experiences and unrequited love. Protagonist Ness is one of the most relatable leads I’ve read; I felt such affection for her.
Simultaneously sweet and sharp.
The Performance
By Claire Thomas
2021 | Literary fiction
Published by Hachette Australia
Here’s an existential question for you: Have you ever been in a large, silent group and wondered … what is everyone thinking about? (No, just me?)
The Performance answers this question for three women who attend a Beckett play while a bushfire rages not far from the theatre.
This is possibly the most unique book I’ve ever read. It is entirely character-driven, takes place over the duration of the play, and not much actually happens. And yet … a lot happens. The action on stage is woven into the three women’s thoughts and serves as a catalyst for their internal growth and change.
I found it smart, striking and thought-provoking. It highlights the way so much of the action in our lives occurs in our own head. How deeply women think and feel. And how we are affected, individually and as one, by the climate change crisis.
For lovers of lit fic and art outside the box.
The Paper Palace
By Miranda Cowley Heller
2021 | Contemporary fiction
Published by Penguin
I devoured this book in a single weekend. Because once I got going in this sweeping family drama, it was impossible to put down.
We follow Elle, who sleeps with a man who isn’t her husband at a family gathering. But she’s happily married. Why would she do that?
We look at the 24 hours after that night and the 50 years that led up to it. Enter secrets, lies, trauma, and an impossible decision.
It’s absorbing and affecting. Lush and evocative. You just know it’s going to be a TV series one day. But don’t wait for that — read it now.
Blue Hour
By Sarah Schmidt
2022 | Historical literary fiction
Published by Hachette Australia
This book is not for the faint-hearted. But it is oh so exceptional.
We follow two women, a mother and daughter, through their respective coming of age, marriage, and children. But far from the happiness we are taught these things bring us, instead these women find trauma, despair, disappointment, longing and failure.
It’s darkly beautiful. Disturbing and macabre, but heavy in poignancy and truth. For me, the impact was in the stunning prose — the simplest sentences were delivered with such precision and meaning that I audibly gasped. That, and a few of the major plot points … Sarah Schmidt’s talent is mind-blowing.
It’s the things women are not to meant to think, let alone say out loud, combined with the things women should never have to go through.
Intense, but worth it.
The Mother Wound
By Amani Haydar
2021 | Memoir
Published by Pan Macmillan Australia
Prepare yourself for this one. Lawyer Amani Haydar was pregnant with her first child when her father brutally murdered her mother.
This is a deep, searing exploration of domestic violence, generational trauma, cultural expectations and grief. Despite the deep wounds left by her father, Haydar’s story testifies to the strength and resilience of women, and the interwoven threads of her, her mother, her grandmother and now her own children’s lives.
An incredible, important book.
From Where I Fell
By Susan Johnson
2021 | Contemporary fiction
Published by Allen & Unwin
Two women become accidental pen pals when an email is sent to the wrong address. What follows is an unusual and unlikely friendship between these very different personalities, as the two reveal the details of their lives, their innermost thoughts, and learn about themselves and each other.
It’s such an interesting dynamic. It looks at relationships and friendships gone wrong. It looks at being a mother and having a mother, and the unique kind of pain that comes from loving a child or parent who is making your life hell.
The entire narrative is told via emails, so it is sharp and easily devoured — yet at the same time rich and poetic, full of beautiful observations and insights. Incredibly skilful writing.
And that ending ... woah. You’ll need to talk about it.
The Happiest Man on Earth
By Eddie Jaku
2020 | Memoir
Published by Pan Macmillan
Eddie Jaku is an incredible human being. A German Jew, he spent seven years in concentration camps during the Holocaust, lost family and friends, and experienced unspeakable acts of inhumanity.
Incredibly, he survived. And he vowed to honour the dead by living his best life — because to not do so would be a waste of the gift so many were not afforded.
How lucky we are that Jaku put pen to paper; this book is a masterclass on ‘How to Stop Sweating the Small Stuff’, a lesson we all need. Read it and become a better person.
The Trauma Cleaner
By Sarah Krasnostein
2019 | Non-fiction
Published by Text Publishing
This book details the life of Sandra Pankhurst, a woman who owns a business that cleans up after crime scenes, hoarders, etc. It’s a dark and delicate role that can only be undertaken by one who knows trauma intimately themselves. And Sandra certainly does.
Sandra is an incredible human being. Her story is nothing short of heartbreaking and will stay with you long after the book is finished.
Exquisitely written, deeply affecting.
Side note: The documentary The Cleaning Company is the perfect accompaniment to this book. It follows Sandra and some of her staff as they go about their work with dignity and respect. Sandra sadly passed away in 2021, and this doco is a tribute to her legacy. You can find it on SBS.
Fourteen
By Shannon Molloy
2020 | Memoir
Published by Simon & Schuster
Journalist Shannon Molloy takes us through the worst year of his life. He was 14, it was the ’90s, and he was coming to terms with his sexuality. In a small coastal town in Queensland, he experienced relentless, targeted bullying and assaults, which culminated in him attempting to take his own life.
It was then that Shannon took control of his life and never looked back.
While Shannon’s story is at times so brutal it will make you gasp, his genuine warmth and wit are a balm that somehow both intensifies and soothes the pain and indignity he suffered.
I laughed and cried; it will break your heart and put it back together.
of gold & dust
By Samantha Wills
2021 | Memoir
Published by Allen & Unwin
This one was very special. Samantha Wills is a creative powerhouse and a force for good in this world. She’s also a client and friend, and the humble, genuine and inspiring words she writes are a true reflection of the woman herself.
So how does one go about building a global brand? And at the height of its success, why on earth would you dismantle it and walk away?
Well, Samantha did just that. Her path from small-town schoolgirl to international jewellery designer and entrepreneur is fascinating in its detail and breathtaking in its honesty.
This book is much more than a business memoir. Vulnerability and candour fill every page as Samantha reveals the grit behind the glamour — crushing heartbreak, crippling debt, immense self-doubt, epic mistakes, and sheer bloody hard work. In doing so, she celebrates the things that make life truly worthwhile — human connection, honouring your intuition, following your passion, and being real in a world full of facades.
Engrossing from start to finish.
Love Objects
By Emily Maguire
2021 | Literary fiction
Published by Allen & Unwin
Firstly, the cover: possibly the most beautiful cover art ever. And then when the story lives up to it … well, that’s special.
A woman with hoarding disorder and her young adult niece and nephew are each facing a personal crisis while at the same time trying to help and understand each other.
Its beauty is in the real, flawed humans with good hearts and good intentions. These characters are superbly crafted. It’s a gritty study of love and attachment and shame and forgiveness and empathy. I kind of feel like a better person for having read it.
Again, Rachel
By Marian Keyes
2022 | Contemporary fiction
Published by Penguin
“What are you reading?” my husband asked.
I showed him the cover. “New Marian. Why?”
“Because you haven’t stopped smiling since you picked it up.”
That is the most honest and accurate review I can give of Marian Keyes’ new book, Again, Rachel. It is comfort, it is warmth, it is returning home to family I adore and haven’t seen in years.
Again, Rachel is the sequel to Rachel’s Holiday, and another addition to the Walsh family collection (others include Watermelon, Anybody Out There? and The Mystery of Mercy Close). But you don’t need to have read the others to enjoy it, it holds up beautifully on its own.
We follow Rachel years after her stint in rehab for alcoholism. Her life is not the way we left it, in good and not-so-good ways. We piece together her life in the intervening years, and are made to question whether a happily-ever-after is even possible for Rachel, and what that would look like anyway.
Keyes is a master of the anecdote; her nuanced characterisation and dry Irish wit are pure joy. She handles heavy, triggering themes with expert, feather-light precision, weaving heartbreak and humour so seamlessly you don’t realise you are laughing through tears.
Gosh, I love her. And I love this book.
Chai Time at Cinnamon Gardens
By Shankari Chandran
2022 | Literary fiction
Published by Ultimo Press
Chai Time at Cinnamon Gardens gives the impression it’s a sweet story about nursing home residents, but it is so much more than that.
A Tamil couple and their friend take over a rundown nursing home in Sydney and gradually restore it to be a place of safety, warmth and respect for its residents.
But outside the walls of the home, life has been traumatic. Fleeing war in Sri Lanka into the arms of rampant racism in Australia, the family is neither here nor there, and holds its stories and secrets close to its chest.
But stories and secrets have a way of being told, one way or another.
This book is incredible. Eye-opening, thought-provoking, heart-breaking. Beautiful storytelling amid some disturbing realities. Overarchingly, it is an ode to truth and belonging.
And just quietly, if anyone needs a blueprint for how aged care should be run in this country, this is it.
My Dark Vanessa
By Kate Elizabeth Russell
2020 | Contemporary fiction
Published by HarperCollins
I was blown away by this book. It feels deeply uncomfortable to say you enjoyed something when the subject matter is so harrowing, but it’s a mark of incredible writing (and in this case narration, as I listened to it on audio).
A fifteen-year-old girl is groomed into having a sexual relationship with her middle-aged teacher. We follow Vanessa through this period, and then into her adulthood and the lifelong ramifications of this man’s actions.
It’s dark. It’s eye-opening. It’s so very complicated and emotionally charged. The audio narration is exquisite; to actually hear the naivety in Vanessa’s voice is heartbreaking.
Highly recommend (but approach with caution).
Cloud Cuckoo Land
By Anthony Doerr
2021 | Historical fiction
Published by HarperCollins Australia
All the Light We Cannot See was one of my top reads of 2020, so I cannot tell you the level of anticipation that came with Anthony Doerr’s new work. And it’s epic, in every way.
There are many themes, POV characters, storylines and timelines, from 1400s Constantinople to modern day to the intergalactic future, but weaving it all together is one ancient text called Cloud Cuckoo Land. Sounds mad. But it works beautifully.
Doerr is a master of historical detail and has created worlds we can vividly see and almost touch. The characters are unique and richly drawn, and the narrative is superbly executed.
Coming in at more than 600 pages, it’s initially intimidating, but the text is broken into small, manageable sections so it’s surprisingly easy to get through. I found the ancient language in some sections laborious at times, but it’s necessary for the narrative and you get used to it.
This is a dense, dreamy, poignant tale of the power of storytelling across all of human existence. And how it will endure even if we burn this planet to the ground. Wonderful.
The Girls of Lake Evelyn
By Averil Kenny
2022 | Historical fiction
Published by Echo Publishing
The Girls of Lake Evelyn is everything I love about historical fiction: atmospheric, nostalgic, with a good dose of mystery, glamour and romance.
It’s set in post-World War II tropical Queensland, about a runaway bride who takes refuge in a small town with a lake where multiple girls have gone missing.
Lush writing and kick-ass female characters. This is Averil Kenny’s second novel, and when I finished I immediately went and sourced her first. Total enjoyment.
The Coast
By Eleanor Limprecht
2022 | Historical fiction
Published by Allen & Unwin
This book taught me things. I knew very little about leprosy and the lazarets that segregated sufferers from the rest of society, and this book was fascinating. (It also led me down a Google images path I don’t wish to revisit).
Set in Australia spanning the late 19th century into the post-World War I era, we follow the lives of a girl brought to a lazaret on the Sydney coast, where her mother has also been banished, and the young Aboriginal man she meets there.
There is so much horror in our past and this novel touches on a mere portion of it. Indigenous lives and families are torn apart; lepers are banished and treated as subhuman. It’s deeply upsetting.
There is compassion and hope though, in the form of a doctor who treats the patients with dignity and humanity, and the relationships they form within their confines.
The story goes deep into the heart of generational trauma, discrimination, survival and the value of human life.
While these themes are horrifying in a historical context, they are alarmingly familiar in modern times — one only needs to look at detention centres and the continual fight for indigenous equality to realise we haven’t come as far as we think. Plus, that whole Covid thing … *shudder*.
An affecting, eye-opening, exquisite read.
Where the Crawdads Sing
By Delia Owens
2018 | Historical fiction
Published by Little Brown
The hype around this one was phenomenal, but it took a few years for me to read. I’m glad I did get there eventually, it’s a lovely, unique story.
Set in 1950s–60s North Carolina, it’s about a girl abandoned by her family to live alone in the marsh, the death of a popular young man, and the link between the two.
It’s engaging and evocative. I tore through it in two days. I did trip over the execution in places and can’t exactly pinpoint why this book received more attention than others, but it’s worth a read. And the film is a beautiful adaptation.
The Silk House
By Kayte Nunn
2020 | Historical fiction
Published by Hachette Australia
I adore a book with a rich, evocative world to get lost in, and this tale of a house and its occupants across the centuries was just that.
Set across dual timelines, layers of intrigue and beauty drive this story, with strong female leads to genuinely invest in.
Teacher Thea arrives at an English boarding school, staying at Silk House, where long-held secrets of the 1700s silk trade still live within its walls.
The mystery is breadcrumbed to perfection, so it’s easily devoured over a few decadent days.
Bodies of Light
By Jennifer Down
2022 | Literary Fiction
Published by Text Publishing
My word, this book. THIS BOOK.
We follow Maggie, who enters the foster system as a little girl and winds up decades later with a new identity (not a spoiler). Why? How? Oh, the answers are heart-wrenching: at once completely unexpected and devastatingly inevitable.
The content is harrowing, but the writing is electric, visceral. Superb characterisation. Jennifer Down has perfectly captured the quintessential Australian 1980s/’90s childhood that so many of us remember, but viewing it through the lens of severe trauma and disadvantage is eye-opening to say the least. This book taught me things, and that’s the best kind of book IMO. Loved it fiercely.
Shuggie Bain
By Douglas Stuart
2020 | Historical fiction
Published by Picador
Oh, my heart.
It’s 1980s Glasgow, and young Shuggie is ‘not like the other boys’. We follow Shuggie through childhood — in his point of view, as well as others — as he grapples with an alcoholic mother, an absent father, poverty, abuse, bullying, and self-identity.
It’s grim and intense and desperately sad. But despite its apparent hopelessness, at its core is unconditional love in its purest form — the love Shuggie has for his mum. This love, and Shuggie himself, brings warmth and light to an otherwise dark, bleak reality. It’s what makes this story so special. Incredible writing too.
Worthy of all the accolades. A must-read.
Love and Virtue
By Diana Reid
2021 | Literary fiction
Published by Ultimo Press
WOW. Love and Virtue is about a young woman in her first year of uni who earns a scholarship to an elite residential college, where her roommates are rich Sydney private-school kids who all know each other. We follow her over a year, focused particularly on her friendship with the literal girl next door.
I ran the gamut between extreme nostalgia for my own college days, to having my halcyon view of that time disrupted and challenged. The institutionalised classism and sexism that runs rife in these places is a huge problem, and something my teenage self simply didn’t understand. I wish this book existed 20 years ago but gosh I’m glad it’s out there now.
There’s also some heavy themes around consent and power within sexual relationships, as well as a more broad examination of transient friendships — the people you befriend for a certain period of your life simply because they are there — and the lasting impact of those.
I’m in awe of Reid’s writing. She tells an engaging, thought-provoking story that holds a mirror up to the reader and asks you to examine your own values and ethics and standards — where is YOUR line?
Honeybee
By Craig Silvey
2020 | Literary fiction
Published by Allen & Unwin
I knew this one would be good — it’s Craig Silvey, after all — but oh my. It exceeded my expectations and then some.
An old man and teen boy meet on a bridge, both ready to end it all. Instead, they find what they’ve been missing in each other.
Honeybee showcases the best and worst of humanity. It breaks your heart and puts it back together, over and over. Sam and Vic will stay with me for a long time.
The Yield
By Tara June Winch
2020 | Literary fiction
Published by Penguin Australia
We follow August Gondiwindi as she returns home from overseas after the death of her grandfather. Home is not as she left it though — their family land is being repossessed by a mining company.
Interwoven throughout are notes written by August’s grandfather, Albert, in a bid to ensure their past, stories and language are not lost.
The Yield is a powerful, poignant story of Indigenous suffering and strength. It is beautiful and essential; an Australian work of art. Highly recommend.
The Dictionary of Lost Words
By Pip Williams
2020 | Historical fiction
Published by Affirm Press
I don’t often finish a book in 24 hours. But I was so quickly enamoured by this one, I barely looked up until it was done.
In 1901, as the Oxford English Dictionary is being compiled, a word is discovered missing. This is the story of Esme, the girl who stole it and subsequently discovered a raft of other words that didn’t make the upper-class-old-white-man version of language.
It’s fiction woven within a factual account of the dictionary’s compilation that stretches from the turn of the century through the women’s suffrage and war years. As a word lover, and a feminist, it was fascinating. Rich narrative, beautifully realised characters, elegant prose — a pure delight. I know I will read it again and again.
Boy Swallows Universe
By Trent Dalton
2018 | Literary fiction
Published by 4th Estate
It took me years to read this and I don’t know why. Intimidation, perhaps, or hype fatigue. But once I did, I kicked myself. It is just the most beautiful book. Worth every iota of praise.
We follow young Eli Bell in 1980s Brisbane, who is just trying to get on with boyhood despite the myriad hurdles in his way: a brother who doesn’t talk, a mum and stepdad deep in drug circles, an absent father and an ageing criminal for a best friend. Things are about to get a lot worse for Eli, and he finds himself in situations a boy should never be in.
Eli is a phenomenal narrator for this otherwise depressing story. His wide-eyed outlook in the face of such darkness lends a dreamy, endearing quality to the narrative; Dalton’s prose is utterly exquisite.
Loved, loved, LOVED it. Can’t wait for the Netflix adaptation.
Seeing Other People
By Diana Reid
2022 | Literary fiction
Published by Ultimo Press
It’s summertime in post-lockdown Sydney, and sisters Charlie and Eleanor are navigating the particulars of young adulthood: fledgling careers, share houses, relationships, sex, drugs, familial responsibilities, and simply surviving the heat. Eleanor just broke up with Mark, and Charlie is hoping to start something with Helen. It’s in this heady setting that the sisters grapple with who they want to be and who they truly are, and discover where they draw the line between selfishness and selflessness when it comes to the ones they love.
I love a book with a moral dilemma at its core, and Reid has nailed this in her first two novels. When a question seems black and white, the narrative wades through all shades of murky grey, and through the character arcs we are asked to examine our own beliefs.
I’m not going to rate Seeing Other People against Love and Virtue, because the themes and stakes are different and authors have enough pressure on them with ‘second book syndrome’, but I reckon if you enjoyed one, you will enjoy the other. I’ll read anything Reid writes.
Fresh, biting and real.
Burnt Out
By Victoria Brookman
2022 | Contemporary fiction
Published by HarperCollins Australia
There is so much to love about this clever, funny, heartwarming novel with a conscience.
Calida is a writer struggling to finish her second novel after her first achieved huge success. Her life turns to ruin when the Black Summer bushfires tear through the Blue Mountains and she loses everything. When her rant about rich people and climate change goes viral, she becomes an unexpected celebrity and life takes a huge turn. But what’s real and what isn’t? Who even is she now?
Brookman handles the serious subject matter with care and respect to deliver a surprising, tension-filled romantic dramedy.
Thoroughly enjoyable.
Malibu Rising
By Taylor Jenkins Reid
2021 | Historical fiction
Published by Penguin Random House
Unquestionably one of my most anticipated reads of 2021. So did it live up to expectations? Yes! I’m happy to say that it did.
Set in 1980s Malibu, it’s the story of the Riva children, who grew up in the shadow of their very famous father, and one infamous party that changes everything for them.
It’s got everything that TJR is known for — glamour, decadence, atmosphere and complex, mesmerising characters. Real, palpable emotion behind the fame and frivolity. And a plot that grabs your hand in the first pages and doesn’t let go.
Set in the same world as The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, I didn’t love it as much (Evelyn as a character was hard to beat), but it’s just as enjoyable. Plus the Evelyn Hugo Easter eggs throughout were a fun touch.
Returning to Adelaide
By Anne Freeman
2022 | Contemporary fiction
Published by Hawkeye Publishing
Meet the book that got me out of my reading slump. Turns out I just needed a vicarious holiday to the Greek Islands.
Returning to Adelaide goes down like an aperol spritz on a balmy spring evening. We follow Adelaide, a married working mum of twins, as her life turns to shit. Visiting an old friend in Greece opens her eyes to the person she once was, and could still be, if only she was honest with herself.
It’s fresh and flirty, reflective and real. Freeman writes with wisdom and humour — I was snorting with laughter from the opening line. A gem of a book.
Sorrow and Bliss
By Meg Mason
2020 | Contemporary fiction
Published by HarperCollins Australia
There is praise everywhere for this one, and it is SO warranted. It’s a simple premise — a woman’s life is falling apart and she doesn’t understand why. The resulting story, though, is stunningly complex.
We follow Martha’s journey before, during and after this crisis point as she uncovers deep truths about herself, her family, her husband and her mental health.
It’s smart and bitingly funny. An honest, unflinching and empathetic dive into the reality of life inside a challenged mind, and that of those who live with them. Incredible storytelling.
No Hard Feelings
By Genevieve Novak
2022 | Contemporary fiction
Published by HarperCollins Australia
Prepare to feel unreservedly seen, heard AND understood.
Are you in, or have you ever been in, your twenties? You need to read this book. It just gets it.
Protagonist Penny is all of us. You’ll laugh out loud, cringe out loud, cry out loud along with her as she deals with the pain and frustration and fun and freedom and absolute tumult that is that decade.
I walked away feeling a tenderness towards my younger self that I’d never felt before. I’m also now certain Genevieve Novak must have been spying on me for a good chunk of time circa 2006 … the parallels are just uncanny …
A cracking read — funny, poignant and wonderfully written.
Careering
By Daisy Buchanan
2022 | Contemporary fiction
Published by Sphere / Hachette Australia
This book is GREAT. Sharp, funny, acutely observed … I laughed out loud and tore through it at speed.
Imogen has always wanted to write for a magazine but settles for recounting outrageous sex stories on her own blog. When she finally lands her dream job, it is not at all how she imagined it would be — and she must face some serious decisions and self-reflection.
If you’re expecting The Devil Wears Prada from this premise, I get it, but you’d be wrong — there’s no high glamour or horror boss caricature here. It explores the grime and overwhelm and despair behind working your ass off and getting nowhere, and the danger in tying your self-worth to your job when so much of it is out of your control.
A stellar, entertaining read.
A Lonely Girl is a Dangerous Thing
By Jessie Tu
2020 | Contemporary fiction
Published by Allen & Unwin
I was wary going into this one as the reviews have been so mixed. And after reading it, I understand both sides.
But I’m on the for side.
We follow Jena, a violinist and former child prodigy. She has big goals for herself, but she’s struggling with the demands of them all, and uses sex to fill what little space she has left in her life.
From the first page, you know exactly what you’re in for — it’s a gritty, unapologetic and blunt exploration of female desire and ambition, the two very things society has long told women they shouldn’t have.
The intimacy is raw, unfiltered, and that is what makes it divisive. I found it compelling.
The Bay
By Allie Reynolds
2022 | Contemporary thriller
Published by Hachette Australia
Allie Reynolds does adrenalin-fuelled extreme sports thrillers so well. We follow a group of surfers who have discovered an insane break and will do anything to keep it to themselves.
Pacy and unpredictable, it kept me guessing until the end.
My Best Friend’s Murder
By Polly Phillips
2021 | Contemporary thriller
Published by Simon & Schuster
This is the perfect weekend read. After a few serious reads on the trot, this was a much-needed change of pace. Such a deliciously juicy book to binge on.
The premise is summed up in the title: a friendship between two women turns toxic, then one of them winds up dead.
It’s a fun, exhilarating ride full of secrets and lies to discover the who, what, where, when, why, and how. Ultimate page-turner.
The Survivors
By Jane Harper
2020 | Contemporary thriller
Published by Pan Macmillan
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An absolutely cracking read! Atmospheric, suspenseful and engaging. The ultimate page-turner by one of those clever authors who just gets it right every time.
We follow Keiran, who takes his young family back to the small coastal town he grew up in. A body is discovered on the beach, and so begins the unravelling of past secrets.
The Family Doctor
By Debra Oswald
2021 | Contemporary thriller
Published by Allen & Unwin
In Australia, an estimated one in six women experience physical or sexual violence from a current or former partner (ABS Personal Safety Survey, 2016). That enormous number is hard to fathom.
This novel presents an intriguing conundrum with that in mind: if you had the power to stop an abuser, albeit through illegal and morally questionable means, would you do it?
The Family Doctor follows Paula, a GP with significant experience of domestic violence in her personal life, and her actions when she is confronted with that very conundrum in her professional life.
It also explores the beauty of female friendships, grief, and blurring work/life boundaries.
It’s deep, thought-provoking and compelling; there is so much to discuss. I loved it.
The Trivia Night
By Ali Lowe
2022 | Contemporary fiction
Published by Hachette Australia
This one is quite the ride! A contemporary domestic drama with plenty of suspense that ends up going places you do not expect.
How exactly do four couples at a school trivia night end up so entwined? Have fun figuring it out.
The Trivia Night is juicy and salacious; one to dissect over wine with friends.
Ghosts
By Dolly Alderton
2020 | Contemporary fiction
Published by Penguin
Gosh, I loved this book. It was a pure delight. Possibly because I expected it to be all fluff but it turned out to be so much more. Tender, thoughtful and incredibly insightful.
It follows Nina, a successful food writer, as she meets Max, a man who steals her heart then, quite literally, disappears.
Ghosts is not just about dating. At its heart it’s about the ebbs and flows of human relationships, the way we grow and change but not necessarily in sync with each other. How we live with the ghosts of past experiences and manage our expectations of other people. Plus it’s witty, warm and whip-smart.
Daisy Jones and the Six
By Taylor Jenkins Reid
2019 | Historical fiction
Published by Penguin
Why did the world’s biggest band of the 1970s suddenly break up? Daisy Jones and the Six is dripping in the kind of intrigue that drives modern pop culture: the secret lives of celebrities.
It’s fun, juicy, and salacious, for sure, but with a gritty centre that dives deep into the grime behind the glamour. Expert-level storytelling too — written almost entirely in dialogue. I actually had to google them to see if they were a real band!
A fantastic read! Watch out for the TV adaptation in March 2023, because it looks superb.
I Give My Marriage a Year
By Holly Wainwright
2020 | Contemporary fiction
Published by Pan Macmillan
This one is not for hopeless romantics. It’s a warts-and-all, messy, frustrating, chaotic, affecting, yet still somehow beautiful love story.
Lou and Josh are at a crossroads in their marriage, so Lou decides to throw tests at it every month for a year to give it one last red-hot go.
It’s a really interesting and probing look at the joys and problems of a long-term relationship, from both sides. It’s a will-they-or-won’t-they that will keep you guessing until the end.
Love Stories
By Trent Dalton
2021 | Non-fiction
Published by HarperCollins Australia
I’d read a shopping list if Trent Dalton wrote it. He makes beautiful all the things that are dull or broken or dark.
Journalist Dalton took his old typewriter and sat on a busy street in Brisbane’s CBD, asking people to tell him a love story. This resulting collection of real-life, everyday love stories is incredibly moving. It’s not all romance and happy endings — though that’s there — it’s about all the weird and wonderful ways people love each other.
This book is essential reading for the soul.
Spring Clean for the Peach Queen
By Sasha Wasley
2021 | Contemporary fiction
Published by Pantera Press
This book brought me so much joy. One of those situations when the story is the perfect antidote to your mindset. It was like a giant hug; warm and comforting.
Lottie is an actor who finds herself embroiled in scandal. She returns to her hometown and commences a big declutter of her life, in the process discovering who she is and what’s really important.
Every character is vivid and three-dimensional, the peach-growing town of Bonnievale is brimming with quirks and closeness and that is the precise vibe we need right now.
This book is a celebration of community, growth and love in all its forms.
The Furies
By Mandy Beaumont
2022 | Literary fiction
Published by Hachette Australia
Craving some feminist uprising? Then this is the book for you. It is wild. Jarringly, viciously, unrelentingly wild.
We follow Cyn, as she navigates life in a drought-stricken town, working at an abattoir and suffering traumas that come at her from all sides. Gradually, as she learns her family’s dark secrets, she hears and feels the voices of female spirits, the Furies, that spur her into confronting the multigenerational violence against women. They are sick of this shit, and they are ready to riot.
I’ll admit, it wasn’t easy reading, or even particularly enjoyable at first. The harsh language, the offbeat writing style, was unsettling. I felt a bit grimy. But then … I understood. I was meant to feel that way. That was the point. And that’s why it was such an affecting read.
This book has a pulse. The narrative beats like a tribal drum that gets louder, stronger, wilder, as it progresses. Come the end, it is a full cacophony and you can feel yourself getting swept up in the reckoning. Quite incredible.
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo
By Taylor Jenkins Reid
2017 | Modern historical fiction
Published by Simon & Schuster
This book was love at first page. My favourite TJR, and one of my favourite literary heroines in Evelyn.
We follow young reporter Monique as she prepares to interview Hollywood icon Evelyn Hugo. She comes to learn the tumultuous private life of a very public woman.
Simultaneously frivolous and deep, glamorous and ugly, entertaining and shattering, The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo is expertly crafted, with characters you can sink your teeth into and never a dull moment. My favourite kind of book.
Eggshell Skull
By Bri Lee
2018 | Memoir
Published by Allen & Unwin
I can’t fully express the rage this book will inspire within you. Rage and intense sadness.
When Bri Lee spends a year as a judge’s associate, she is confronted by the horrifying injustice that women experience as victims of sexual assault, both the crime itself and the court.
Her rage and grief builds, compounded by the memory of her own assault, until she finds the courage to speak up and act against her abuser.
Absolutely fucking powerful.
Girlcrush
By Florence Given
2022 | Contemporary fiction
Published by Octopus UK / Hachette Australia
The tagline calls this book a ‘hot, dark story’ and there’s no better way to sum it up. It’s a warts-and-all look at modern dating, sexuality, exploration and self-identity.
After breaking up with her long-term boyfriend, Eartha realises she is bisexual and embarks on a journey of self-discovery, which she documents on a social media app called Wonderland.
When she goes viral, Eartha’s life changes irrevocably — for better and much, much worse.
This book is fabulously feminist. It has an epic breakup scene and the most original meet-cute I’ve ever read. Amazing representation and character arc; it gave me similar vibes to the Heartbreak High reboot on Netflix.
I will say, I feel it started out being about one thing and ended in a different direction, so those who love a full-circle moment may not vibe with it, but it didn’t affect my enjoyment. Worth a read.
The Seven Skins of Esther Wilding
By Holly Ringland
2022 | Literary fiction
Published by 4th Estate
After falling head over heels for Holly Ringland’s debut, The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart, I was bursting to read this one — and it was everything I wanted it to be and more.
Esther Wilding has been at a loose end since her sister, Aura, died mysteriously a year ago. Desperate to find out what happened, Esther uses Aura’s diary and the clues hidden within Aura’s seven tattoos to unravel the truth about her sister, and herself.
It is atmospheric, lyrical, magical. Esther’s grief is palpable, her decisions infuriating, her growth extraordinary. The central mystery bubbles along at a great pace, but despite my desire to find answers, I didn’t want to rush it. The characters are so vivid, the places so real, the prose so beautiful … this is a book to be savoured and appreciated. All the stars.
The Bookbinder of Jericho
By Pip Williams
2023 | Historical fiction
Published by Affirm Press
The Bookbinder of Jericho was one of my most anticipated books of the year, such was my adoration for its sister novel, The Dictionary of Lost Words.
Did it deliver? Of course it did!
It is stunning. A fascinating part of history from the female perspective, with such elegant prose and vibrant, vividly real characters that you could swear you are right there with them.
Set in the book bindery of Oxford University Press from the onset of World War I, we follow bindery
girl Peggy and her twin sister, Maude, as they adjust to the new world order. The men are gone,
refugees are arriving, and the work is up to them.
Peggy is hungry for knowledge and education; she doesn’t want to bind the books, she wants to read them. But her status and family responsibilities hold her back.
The book delves into themes of class, inequality, loss, grief and love vs obligation, and it is so
beautifully done.
The ties with The Dictionary of Lost Words are perfection — neither too much nor too little. The two stories exist in the same universe, and cross paths in the most satisfying way.
I felt it was a slower burn than Dictionary, it didn’t hook me as fast, but I think that was more my mindset than any fault of the book. It hooked me, regardless.
It is, above all, a love letter to books, knowledge, and the resilience of women. Adored it.
One Hundred Days
By Alice Pung
2021 | Literary fiction
Published by Black Inc. Books
Mothers and teenage girls: can’t live with each other, can’t live without each other. One Hundred Days explores this dynamic to perfection.
Our protagonist, Karuna, is endlessly infuriated by her strict, smothering mother and her largely absent father. When she discovers she is pregnant, Karuna and her mum’s relationship is pushed to breaking point. Believing she is keeping her safe, her mother orders her to confinement in their tiny apartment for one hundred days. When a battle for control ensues, who will come out on top, and will this family be irrevocably broken?
Breathtakingly honest, searing and tender. This book is something special, one that will touch a nerve and warm the heart of everyone who knows the pain and frustration of parent-child conflict.
Carrie Soto is Back
By Taylor Jenkins Reid
2022 | Historical fiction
Published by Penguin
This book is a lot of fun.
We’re back in the glamorous TJR universe, this time following tennis legend Carrie Soto (whom you might remember as a minor character in Malibu Rising).
It’s 1994, and six years into retirement Carrie’s Grand Slam record is beaten. What’s a strong-willed girl to do? Get back on the circuit, that’s what.
Reid taps into that particular edge-of-your-seat tension that can only come from a nail-biting sports match and serves it expertly on the page. Carrie is not particularly likeable, but you can’t help but root for her. She is fierce and indefatigable but must learn that victory comes in unexpected forms. You won’t guess how it ends until you’re there.
Engrossing, bingeable fiction.
The Only Child
By Kayte Nunn
2022 | Modern historical thriller
Published by Hachette Australia
Is modern historical a legitimate genre? Probably not, but it’s what I call dual-timeline stories with roots equally in the past and present. I adore this subgenre, and Kayte Nunn is one of the best.
This one is a slight departure from her usual rich, unravelling mysteries and instead centres on a crime and its links to the past.
A woman is found dead in suspicious circumstances at a retirement home. Frankie, the new cop in town, is spending the summer with her teenage daughter and mother, who is renovating a big old house that was once a confinement home for unwed pregnant girls. How are the home and the dead woman linked? Who killed her and why? And how will this affect the three generations of women who are struggling to connect with each other?
This beautifully executed novel sheds light on the shameful, hideous practice of forcing young mothers and their babies apart, and how past traumas have far-reaching consequences. A great read.
Dark Mode
By Ashley Kalagian Blunt
2023 | Psychological thriller
Published by Ultimo Press
It’s been a long time since I’ve a) smashed a book in 24 hours and b) felt viscerally unsettled by its content.
This. Book. Delivers.
Dark Mode follows Reagan, a young Sydney woman who finds herself mixed up in a horrific murder case — in which the method mirrors an infamous (real) historical case — and the victim looks exactly like her.
What follows is a tense, propulsive narrative that explores all the horrors that lurk online for women, no matter how careful we are.
Ashley Kalagian Blunt hits the nerve that tingles down the spine of every woman who has ever heard footsteps behind her while walking to her car at night. It’s sharp and chilling and just A+ storytelling.
Dinner with the Schnabels
By Toni Jordan
2022 | Contemporary fiction
Published by Hachette Australia
This is the perfect read for summer. Warm, light, and laugh-out-loud funny.
It follows Simon, husband, father, and hapless layabout. Since his business went bust during the pandemic, he’s struggled with motivation and self-worth. His in-laws, the Schnabels, are on his case, so he’s given the task of landscaping a friend’s backyard for a Schnabel family event — in one week. Of course, things don’t go to plan, as obstacles, secrets, and his own self-doubt threaten to ruin everything he holds dear.
It’s a cleverly observed tale of a midlife crisis, with nuance and wit. Simon is the everyman you will at turns adore, pity, and want to smack in the face with a Dagwood dog. It has Marian Keyes Walsh family vibes, with a distinctly Australian slant. Thoroughly enjoyable.
Fleishman is in Trouble
By Taffy Brodesser-Akner
2019 | Contemporary fiction
Published by Wildfire / Hachette
Did I bump Fleishman is in Trouble to the top of my TBR just so I could watch the show? Yes.
Regrets? None.
Both are superb, nuanced portrayals of marriage, divorce, success, ambition, friendship and self-discovery. Taffy Brodesser-Akner’s observations on midlife and expectation v reality are so spot-on, it kind of hurts.
The story follows Toby Fleishman, a 41-year-old NYC doctor and father of two as he is navigating a nasty divorce, when one day his estranged wife, Rachel, suddenly disappears.
Honestly, the uninspiring cover left it languishing on my shelf for so long. And while the book itself took a little while to hook me, once I was in, I was all in. The POV is unique, told not from the title character’s perspective but from that of his friend Libby, who herself is stuck in a big life rut.
The series is a near-perfect adaptation; obsessed with the casting, the writing, the performances.
So. Good.