This index includes reviews of fiction that is not alternatively classified under a different genre (eg fantasy books are fiction but are not included here). …
Fiction
The Phone Box at the Edge of the World by Laura Imai Messina
A review by Emma Streeton Set in Japan the story follows Yui and Takeshi, both of whom have lost people close to them. Yui’s mother …
Sex and Vanity by Kevin Kwan
A review by Nalini Haynes We all know people obsessed with status and wealth. Four years ago, my husband and I sat down to lunch …
Lost Soul Atlas by Zana Fraillon
A review by Nalini Haynes Forget John Dies At The End. Twig dies at the beginning. The Afterlife is a treacherous place where gods eat …
Peta Lyre’s Rating Normal by Anna Whateley
A review by Nalini Haynes Peta Lyre is 16 and has “alphabet soup” diagnoses including ADHD and is on the autism spectrum. Over a period …
The Switch by Beth O’Leary
A review by Emma Streeton When overachiever Leena Cotton is ordered to take a two-month sabbatical after blowing a big presentation at work, she escapes …
When Grace Went Away by Meredith Appleyard
A review by Emma Streeton ‘Everything had ended, and started, the day her youngest brother had died.’ But that was not when Grace went away. …
Sticks and Stones by Katherine Firkin
A review by Emma Streeton It’s winter in Melbourne and Detective Emmett Corban is starting to regret his promotion to head of the Missing Persons …
Schoolmaster’s Daughter by Jackie French
A review by Emma Streeton January 1901. Sharks circle a stranded ship as a young girl and her family stagger from the waves. Rescued by a …
Again Again by e lockhart
A review by Nalini Haynes Adelaide is a dog-loving dog-walking student at a private residential high school in the US. She’s living on campus with …
Coco: Big City Kitty by Laura Bunting, illustrated by Nicky Johnston
A review by Emma Streeton Once there was a small kitty called Coco. Coco lived on the top floor of the tallest building on Meowington …
The Year The Maps Changed by Danielle Binks
A review by Emma Streeton The Year the Maps Changed follows 11-year-old Winifred (Fred) and her life in Sorrento when 400 Kosovar-Albanian refugees arrive. We …
Nat Enough by Maria Scrivan
A review by Emma Streeton Natalie has never felt that she’s enough (Nat Enough) – athletic enough, stylish enough, or talented enough. And on the …
HRT: Husband Replacement Therapy by Kathy Lette
A review by Nalini Haynes HRT: Husband Replacement Therapy opens at Ruby Ryan’s 50th birthday when she drops truth-bombs until she bombs herself into social …
My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell
A Review by Emma Streeton I think I am still processing what this book has raised for me. As a result it has taken me …
What’s Left Of Me Is Yours by Stephanie Scott
A review by Nalini Haynes Sumi is a young woman, just barely qualified to practice law in Japan, when she receives a strange phone call. …