The Six Sacred Stones by Matthew Reilly22 November, 2007Six Sacred Stones, the sequel to
Seven Ancient Wonders, takes us on the next whirlwind adventure of Jack ‘Huntsman’ West Jr and his motley crew of incredibly intelligent scientists, mathematicians, army-trained combat fighters and genius children, one of whom is his adopted daughter.
A History of the Great War by Peter McConnell22 November, 2007A History of the Great War is told through the eyes of Ida Hallam, a dowdy woman with slim prospects who, for all intents and purposes, is ‘left on the shelf’—until she catches the eye of the man she marries, Ralph Mitton.
The Big Score by Peter Corris22 November, 2007A good short story is hard to beat. It needs to engage the reader, have enough substance and detail to tell the story and end in a satisfactory and conclusive way, all within a few pages.
Floodtide by Judy Nunn22 November, 2007I must admit I started reading this book with a certain degree of scepticism. Although a convert to the underrated talents of Di Morrissey in terms of penning the contemporary Australian epic, I was unsure if Judy Nunn was similarly maligned by those who do literature with a capital ‘L.’
The Memory Room by Christopher Koch22 November, 2007In Hobart in the late 1960s, Derek Bradley meets fellow university student Vincent Austin. Austin is slightly older, charismatic and unusually conservative in those radical times. The pair become firm friends. Then one wet winter night, Derek sees Vincent talking to a young woman, and is introduced to Erika Lange.
Remember Me by Derek Hansen22 November, 2007When you are young, it’s easy to think that you are at the centre of everything—especially when you are a young writer.
Remember Me is a confessional novel sparked by the rediscovery of the ‘essays’ the narrator wrote at school in 1950s Auckland, on topics such as ‘my home’, ‘the burden of responsibility’ and ‘the importance of washing your hands.’
The Riven Kingdom: Godspeaker Book Two by Karen Miller22 November, 2007The first thing that struck me is how different the setting is from the first book in the series,
Empress of Mijak. Unlike Mijak, which is a bleak land dominated by a strict and bloodthirsty God, Ethrea is a nation instantly recognised by fantasy readers.
Skin and Bone by Kathryn Fox22 November, 2007Kathryn Fox’s third crime novel following
Malicious Intent and
Without Consent does not feature Dr Anya Crichton, the main character in the first two books, but instead centres on detective sergeant Kate Farrar, whom we last met in
Malicious Intent.
The Trout Opera by Matthew Condon22 November, 2007Wilfred Lampe has experienced a whole century in the Snowy River town of Dalgety. He’s a part of the landscape, its consistencies and its alterations. The Olympic Commitee have him in mind as a representative of the values of Australia. But how can one life, so full of contradictions and challenges, be summed up in one brightly lit ceremony?
Vinyl Inside by Rachel Matthews22 November, 2007Vinyl Inside, Rachel Matthews’ debut novel, is the honest and quietly assertive story of Elsie, a middle-aged woman living a simple life with her long-time partner Sterling (a stud in Speedos), in Splashes, a typically Australian caravan park.
The Quiet Girl by Peter Hoeg5 November, 2007Peter Hoeg's second novel,
Miss Smilla's Feeling for Snow, was a huge success and I, for one, thoroughly enjoyed it .
The Quiet Girl, however, is very different. It is a strange and confusing story.
The Lost Dog by Michelle de Krester1 November, 2007Michelle de Kretser showed us in
The Hamilton Case what a gifted writer she is, offering a multilayered and mixed-voice narrative which was at once a rich family history and a cracking good murder mystery.
Landscape of Farewell by Alex Miller30 October, 2007Readers familiar with
Journey to the Stone Country will feel a comforting sense of deja vu right from the start of Alex Miller’s superb new novella.
The CEO by Peter Ralph30 October, 2007The CEO is a pacy business thriller reminiscent of Douglas Kennedy’s
The Job and some of John Grisham’s books, but with a couple of major differences: it is set in Melbourne, and in those novels, you are always rooting for the hero.
The Devil's Footprints (Novel) and Gift Songs (Poems) by John Burnside4 September, 2007The Devil's Footprints is a strange and haunting book written by a poet who seems always to have a sense of some shadowy presence which exists just on the limits of consciousness.
Stride's Summer by Jenni Overend *1 July, 2007Stride’s life is thrown into disarray when his father dies.
Scatterheart by Lili Wilkinson **1 July, 2007Hannah Cheshire is London ‘Quality’. Her father absconds, leaving her to survive alone.
I am by Kate Forsyth & Rosie Street *1 July, 2007I Am was written by Kate Forsyth in response to the dearth of children’s books written in the first person.
Getting Air by Debra Oswald **1 July, 2007Debra Oswald’s latest is a fast-paced novel, told from the first-person perspective of Zac, who is 15 and growing up in a small, rural town.
The Dog Who Loved a Queen by Jackie French **1 July, 2007Jackie French, pillar of Australian juvenile fiction, brings us the second in her series of historical tales told from the point of view of animals.
Blood Brothers by Peter Corris **1 July, 2007Peter Corris’ novel for young adults grabs you from the very first page.
Safari by Tony Park **1 July, 2007All of Tony Park’s (now four) novels are set in Africa and this is another big book, about big issues, set in a big continent.
Ron McCoy's Sea of Diamonds by Gregory Day *1 July, 2007Ron McCoy’s Sea of Diamonds is Gregory Day’s second book published by Picador and, following the success of his previous book The Patron Saint of Eels, should receive some attention.
Patriot Act by James Phelan **1 July, 2007The collapse of the Soviet Empire and the changing map of Europe have created a new species of political thriller.
Other Country by Stephen Scourfield *1 July, 2007Stephen Scourfield’s novel is set in outback northern Australia, ‘a million square miles in the old money’, an area separated from the rest of Australia by climate, size and attitude.