The Sun Bookshop

Staff Reviews

For our reviews of Children's and Young Adult books browse the Younger Sun Pages

	Comeback, Peter Corris : Allen & Unwin $29.99
	Reviewed by: Deb Genre: Australian Crime Fiction What it's about: Cliff Hardy has his Private Investigator licence back and his first case throws him straight back into the underbelly of Sydney town. Why you should read it: It's simply great entertainment. This book is perfect for: Anyone who loves a good crime novel.

	**The Cartographer, Peter Twohig : 4th Estate $29.99**
	Reviewed by: Deb Genre: Australian Fiction What it’s about: 1950’s Melbourne, Richmond. a young fella exploring his seedy neighbouhood witnesses a murder, and we join him as he maps out everything that follows. Why you should read it: This is a humorous, warm-hearted page-turner with excellent characters. It manages to perfectly resurrect an almost lost Australian vernacular. It’s a beaut! This book is perfect for: Anyone with a penchant for nostalgia, or that particular type of novel that uncovers the corruption of the adult world by showing it through innocent eyes, such as Jasper Jones or To Kill a Mockingbird.

	*The Last Thread,* Michal Sala : Affirm : $24.95
	Reviewed by: Deb Genre: Australian Fiction What it's about: A young boy's experiences within his dysfunctional immigrant family. Why you should read it: This is a really well told, moving tale.

	*Cocktail Hour Under the Tree of Forgetfulness,* Alexandra Fuller
	Reviewed by: Felicity Genre: Biography What it's about: Set in Africa, it traces the history of a British family who immigrated to Africa during colonisation. It mainly covers the author’s mother (“Nicola Fuller of Central Africa”, as she proudly proclaims) and the hardships of farming drought-stricken land, uprisings and political conflicts, raising children, and above all – grief. Why you should read it: As a follow-up to Fuller’s top-selling autobiography Don’t Let’s Go To The Dogs Tonight, this memoir is an amazing story of courage and hardship, and the accompanying history of various African countries from the Boer War to present day is insightful, albeit harrowing. This book is perfect for: Anyone with an interest in African politics and history, and equally for anyone who wants a great biographical read, which covers many of life’s slings and arrows.

	*Infrared,* Nancy Huston
	Sun rating: ** Reviewed by: Felicity Genre: Fiction What it's about: Nancy Huston has returned to the literary scene with another fantastic work of fiction. A riveting read about a famous photographer, Rena, who is on a week’s holiday in Italy with her elderly father and stepmother. Rena is renowned for taking explicit photographs of naked bodies using infrared light. Sex, love and torment are pivotal to Rena’s current stance on life, and also represent scars from her younger years. Why you should read it: While this is definitely erotic fiction (but don’t let that put you off), Rena is such an interesting character, as is her confidante Suba (an imaginary friend who protects her emotionally from the horrors of the past), that you just want to know more. Also, there is a great narrative about Renaissance art and Italian lifestyle that makes you just want go to Florence. This book is perfect for:** This book is definitely erotic fiction, and does not shy away from sexual abuse, so it may not be the best option for Granny; however, it is a very interesting novel.

	*Hipstermattic,* Matt Granfield
	Sun rating: *.5 Reviewed by: Hannah Genre: Humour/biography What it's about: A Brisbane-based guy working in a creative industry is dumped by his girlfriend and thrown into a self-doubting identity crisis. So he decides to become The Ultimate Hipster. This involves acquiring a series of hilariously contrived identity markers, such as getting a tattoo, starting a band, learning how to knit, making a photo blog, buying a fixed-gear bicycle, and so on. There are even photos to prove it. It’s kind of a light-hearted, gonzo-ish romp in stupidity. Why you should read it: There are so many laugh-out-loud moments in this book. Granfield’s humour is endearing and clever, and exposes the ridiculousness of the concept of the ‘hipster’, while being a rollicking good read. This book is perfect for:** Anyone who’s ever been called a hipster, or called anyone else a hipster. The tell-tale character traits in this book are spot-on and parodied with a wicked sense of humour. A great book for anyone in danger of taking themselves too seriously.

	*The Swerve: How the Renaissance Began,* Stephen Greenblatt
	Reviewed by: Michael Genre: Popular History What it's about: Stephen Greenblatt is best known for his study of Shakespeare, but here he turns to the origins of the Renaissance – also known as the early modern age. With the collapse of the Roman Empire, a millennium would pass in the West before anything resembling that golden age of wealth and civilisation might occur again. But sometime in the fourteenth century, in an independent city state in Tuscany made wealthy from its mercantile class and intensely proud citizenry, Florence became the epicentre of a new art, architecture, the book and learning. None of this is new history, but the book focuses on the intrepid, Indiana Jones-like Renaissance book hunter, Poggio Bracciolini, a man who scoured monastic repositories (better known to us from Umbert Eco’s The Name of the Rose), and who, by hook or by crook, rediscovered, recovered – and stole – copies of ancient Greek and Latin texts. One of these ancient texts – lost, forgotten and disappeared for a thousand years – was the single existing copy of a curious and intellectually dangerous collection of ideas, written in exquisite Latin poetry, that among other things, refuted the existence of god, said the earth revolved around the sun and that all matter was made up of atoms. This was the ancient Roman text On the Nature of Things by Lucretius. Ironically, it would take several hundred years for many of these ideas to be proved by science and modern scientists, but it was the extraordinary character of Poggio Bracciolini, his discovery, his perspicacity and doggedness, that secured this text from complete erasure. Why you should read it: Great popular history. This book is perfect for: Anyone with an interest in history (but especially the Renaissance), western civilisation, books and/or the world of ideas.

	*Breakdown,* Sara Paretsky
	Reviewed by: Michelle Genre: Crime Fiction What it's about: Private Investigator V.I. Warshawski is back and she is as sharp and gutsy as ever. This time a group of girls sneak out at night to perform a ritual in an abandoned cemetery in honour of their fictional heroine Carmilla Queen of the night. One girl thinks she sees a vampire, but it is a real man and a real vampire-style murder is happening alongside them in the cemetery. So starts a page-turning adventure involving a powerful billionaire, a US Senate candidate, a controversial TV reporter, and a mental institution with some secrets to hide. Warshawski runs from crisis to crisis trying to unravel the secrets of this strange case. Why you should read it: Breakdown is non-stop action and a ripping good read. Paretsky cleverly weaves social commentary into her story and we see a very ugly Tea Party-style political network backed by corrupt media players with no regard for truth. This book is perfect for: Crime fiction enthusiasts who like a strong female character and a good dose of politics thrown in.

	*Shelter,* Frances Greenslade
	Reviewed by: Molly Genre: Fiction What it's about: Set in the early 1970s in the beautiful British Columbian wilderness, two young sisters are abandoned by their widowed mother. Through impossible circumstances they must find a way back to her and uncover the mystery of her disappearance. Why you should read it: Vivid descriptions of the landscape, flora, fauna and even a touch of native Canadian history and folklore were fascinating. The mystery held momentum all the way while being a tender, coming-of-age story at the same time. This book is perfect for: Lovers of The Memory Keeper’s Daughter and stories which explore the bond between mothers and daughters, growing up and lost loves.

	The Happiness Project: Or, Why I Spent a Year Trying to Sing in the Morning, Clean My Closets, Fight Right, Read Aristotle, and Generally Have More Fun, Gretchen Rubin
	Reviewed by: Sarina Genre: Memoir/Self-Help What it's about: Gretchen Rubin, married mother of two girls and freelance writer living in New York City decides to embark on a twelve month happiness odyssey. She doesn’t have the luxury of uprooting her life, doing a sea change or year in Provence but instead focuses on improving her life exactly as it is. With a healthy dose of self deprecation and wit, Gretchen spends twelve months road testing the wisdom of the ages from Epicurus to Oprah and lessons from popular culture, and finds sometimes the smallest of changes makes the biggest difference. Why you should read it: Compulsively readable, lots of fun and all too human. I liked the author’s questioning about happiness, what it means, how important it is and fundamentally what it means to each of us. This book is perfect for: For all those readers who devoured Eat, Pray, Love, or Julie and Julia this is the book for you. Perfect for mothers, friends, sisters, aunties. It’s a word-of-mouth book you’ll want to share.

	The Leopard, Jo Nesbo
	Reviewed by: Sarina Genre: Crime Fiction What it's about: With the global phenomenon of Stieg Larsson, Swedish crime is the hot new genre. With every new Scandinavian thriller touted as the next big thing and every author the next Stieg Larsson, it’s easy to become somewhat jaded. But Jo Nesbo is the real deal. In terms of plot and style, he is entirely original. The Leopard is the seventh book in the Harry Hole detective series. The main character, Harry, is a lone-wolf detective of both alcoholic and melancholic tendencies. He is a loner, a maverick detective who is uncompromising yet brilliant at solving impossible cases. A series of seemingly unrelated murders in Norway occur with only one thing in common – all the victims spent one night in a log cabin and not all of them even knew each other. So what is the connection, who is killing them and why? A terrific, cracking pace, excellent plot and a truly global book that takes the reader from Scandinavia to Australia and Africa, readers get ready to suspend disbelief and go on a wild ride. The stuff of nightmares. Why you should read it: Staying up for 3 nights to know WHAT WILL HAPPEN and not wanting it to finish generally means you’re onto a good thing. And there’s now eight in the Harry Hole detective series, with the new one coming in mid February. Also, this is not the kind of series that has to be read in order. They all stand alone equally well, The Leopard being the seventh book and the first one I read. This book is perfect for: Everyone who read The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo trilogy (and that’s most of us), for crime fiction fans both young and old.

The Legacy of Hartlepool Hall, Paul Torday : W&N Fiction $32.99

While Paul Torday’s book Salmon Fishing in the Yemen is his most popular, I prefer his darker tales - like The Incredible Inheritance of Wilberforce. Hooray! For this is one of them. Ed Hartlepool, a spoilt aristocratic expat who does not like to open letters, returns to his family home and his inheritance to deal with his affairs, which have been in an unmanaged tailspin for years. On his return he discovers a mountain of debt, the very real possibility of having to sell his stately home, a strange ‘Lady Alice’ living in his home and Annabel, an old flame - now a spinster on her own dark journey. I loved this tale of riches-to-rags.

The Cat’s Table, Michael Ondaatje : Jonathan Cape $29.95

This book has had loads of fabulous reviews and I found it riveting. I had never read Michael Ondaatje before and this was such a treat. A funny, clever, beautifully written book it was a pleasure to fall into his world and very hard to tear myself away from it. This tale of three boys without much adult supervision and a taste for adventure on a 21-day journey aboard a ship is highly recommended.

The Street Sweeper, Eliot Perlmann : Local Vintage $32.95

What a run of great reading I have indulged in. Although I was slow to start this book, once I was in the rhythm I could not put it down. Australian Eliot Perlmann has woven together stories of the American Civil rights movement, the Holocaust, history and self-discovery in this terribly entertaining and moving novel. Just read it, I say.

Ruby Blues, Jessica Rudd : Text Publishing $29.95

Our ex-prime ministers daughter is a great chick lit writer. I totally enjoyed Campaign Ruby, in which the English Ruby accidently came to Australia joined an election campaign and got a great handsome boyfriend, great fun. Ruby is back, this time overworked and desperately trying to help keep a very unpopular Government in power. If she had any time, she would try to save her relationship with Luke, answer personal calls and maybe not start a new flirtation just after her neglected boyfriend walks out. To top it off Ruby has an incredibly annoying, organised indefatigable perky thing working with her as an intern. Something has got to give. Jessica has again written a very enjoyable tale.

The Language of Flowers, Vanessa Diffenbaugh : Picador $32.99

A sad book with a happy ending, a very well written page turner. This is the story of the damaged Victoria given up for adoption at birth and finally landed in a safe home at the age of 8 with the amazing Elizabeth, the woman who taught her the language of flowers . A safe house that all fell apart too quickly and reaffirmed to Victoria the vital fact trust no one, never let anyone get close. This is Victoria’s story and the way the language of flowers brings her closer to a happy life. Grab some tissues curl up and read.

Rules of Civility, Amor Towles : Sceptre $29.99

I have read so many great books this year - and here is another of them. 1939: Katey Kontent and her roommate Eve Ross are wild girls having a hilarious time together in a pre-war, post-depression New York when they meet Tinker Grey - a handsome banker with funds but not much fun in his life. Tinker joins forces with Katy and Eve and they paint the town red together until a drunken car accident leaves Eve with injuries, Tinker with a load of guilt and Katy on the outer. This engaging book follows Katy’s adventures in New York, her rise from legal secretary to editorial assistant at Conde Nast and the rise and fall of her passion for Tinker. I loved this book - a little bit F Scott Fitzgerald and a lot entertaining. Full of great dialogue and a brilliant story, Rules of Civility is Amor Towles' first outing.

Pepsi Bears, Anson Cameron : Random House $29.95

This collection of short stories from Melbourne novelist Anson Cameron is really good, imaginative and well written. From the rise and fall of the young man who thinks of the advertising opportunities of Polar Bears (all that white space) to the people of the Gippsland town who discovered Christians will pay for a look at Jesus, the Virgin Mary or any other saint that decides to appear on livestock or vegetables. Zebras shaming armies, dogs causing race riots, Anson Cameron explores our flaws in a very entertaining collection.

State of Wonder, Ann Patchett : Bloomsbury $29.99

State of Wonder opens to Dr Marina Singh, research scientist for a drug company, discovering her lab partner Anders has died. Anders had been sent to the Amazon to check up on Dr Lakashi, an ex-teacher of Marinas and an increasingly rogue researcher. The drug company then asks Marina to go to Manus and discover what happened to Anders, and to bring back details of Dr Lakashis studies. Marina sets off on a big journey, not only distance-wise, but personally as well. Like Ann Patchett’s Bel Canto this is a fabulous read and just as much of a page-turner, as we follow Marina into the strange Amazonian happenings, Dr Lakashi’s studies, and the tribe her old teacher is working with.

Agent 6, Tom Rob Smith : Simon & Schuster $29.99

Epic finale to Tom Robb Smith saga of (now) former Russian Secret Service agent Leo Demidov (Child 44) spans 1950s Moscow, 60s New York and 80s Afghanistan as Leo's family is entangled in labyrinthine intrigue between Russia and the USA during the Cold War. Leo seems paranoid, but when his worst fears are realised and a tragic murder destroys everything he loves, he demands to be allowed to investigate and find the killer who has struck at the heart of his family. Crippled by grief, his request denied, Leo relentlessly hunts the one person who knows the truth: Agent 6. The amazing first half - reminiscent of Gorki Park - takes on a grander perspective but loses focus during the satisfying but less riveting denouement.

There Should Be More Dancing, Rosalie Ham : Local Vintage $32.95

Rosemary Ham’s story of life in Brunswick for the elderly, and at times narky, is a delight. At turns hilarious and sad. Margery tells the story of the goings-on that have led her to the 43rd floor of the Tropic Hotel. Margery’s daughter is pushing her towards a home but all she wants to do is stay in the place she has lived for 60 years. And although she does have an ally in her new home helper, maybe she is not quite as self-sacrificing as it seems. Bittersweet. I adored this gorgeous book.

To Be Sung Underwater, Tom McNeal : Little, Brown $29.99

I am in love. I have enjoyed reading Tom McNeal's characters so much that I am pretty heartbroken that I read the last page and they were gone. This is a great read set in Nebraska and LA. Judith is a very married, mildly successful, woman when her thoughts turn to her first love: the beautiful, devoted and dangerous Willy Blunt. As Judith’s discontent with her life, now increases, we learn the love story of the younger Judith and Willy. This novel is such a well-written look at first love and how life and circumstances take you in directions never dreamt of.

The Life: A Novel, Malcolm Knox : Allen & Unwin $32.99

Dennis Keith, ex-champion surfer and amazing board maker, has been out of the action for a long time. He is an overweight recluse with a mental illness who lives with his mother in a retirement village in Queensland. His biggest pleasure is a pine-lime Splice. When a young girl from a surf mag comes knocking saying she wants to be his biographer his mum lets her in and the past can not like it will not be ignored anymore. This was an incredible book, complex and page turning. Malcolm Knox is brilliant.

Robopocalypse, Daniel H Wilson : Simon & Schuster $29.99

Very taut, inventive thriller, Spielberg's choice as his next directing project. Cleverly plotted unfolding of a program to subjugate the human race by an artifical intelligence gone wild, using man's information networks against him and robots as the foot soldiers in a full-blown war of global attrition. Pushed to the brink of extermination, nothing online able to be be trusted, most machines in the hands of the enemy, the book is about the heroic few (humans) able to outmanouevre the almost omniscient enemy. Reminiscent of Michael Crichton: great ideas, terrific plotting.

Austen Tayshus Merchant of Menace, Ross Fitzgerald : Hale & Iremonger $29.95

Dangerous and subversive, or reduced to confrontation when humourous inspiration fails? Austen Tayshus is the schizophrenic doppelganger of shy dentist-manqué Sandy Gutman. Or is that "doppelganger of shy, schizophrenic..."? You choose. The book is a narrative rather than a critique, a little over-deferential, but Sandy is an interesting character and the stories about him and his search for magic nights with the right audience are entertaining.

The End of Wasp Season, Denise Mina : Orion Fiction $24.99

Alex Morrow, hard, unappreciated yet great Detective returns to solve another crime. A woman is found, brutally murdered, alone in her recently deceased mother’s home. Alex soon finds she was a very private person with no friends or family rushing to mourn her. However was she really the demure spinster her neighbours think she was? Alex’s dodgy past returns in the form of her old friend who is a down at heel single mother, with some wild looking kids, who happens to be the housekeeper in the murdered woman’s home. Could her children be involved? A fast paced page turner and another excellent novel from the Scottish Denise Mina.

Vanishing Act, Mette Jakobsen : Text Publishing $23.95

In Vanishing Act, Minou and her father live on an unnamed island with only a magician a dog and priest. The Mother a larger than life character, who lived there as well, has disappeared leaving a great big hole in her daughters heart and life. When a dead boy washes up on the island Minou writes the stories of life on the island to give to her mother on her hoped for return. This is fabulous writing from this Danish born Australian and first time novelist sweet, funny and sad.

The Psychopath Test, Jon Ronson : Picador $32.99

Jon Ronson author of The Men who Stare at Goats has such a good eye for a story and an accessible and funny way to share it with us. I loved his most recent book The Psycopath Test which starts with a strange book being delivered to a handful of scientists and becomes an investigation into what is a psychopath, is it possible to ‘test’ for mental illness and what is normal anyway? Can one person’s psychopathic tendencies lead to becoming a high achiever, another’s to murder? Fascinating!

Townie: A Memoir, Andre Dubus III : Norton $27.99

Andre Dubus III, author of the modern American tragedy The House of Sand and Fog, offers up his first (intensely-gritty) memoir of his seventies’ boyhood. When Andre’s writer-father separated from his wife, the five Dubus childrens’ financially precarious but happy life, saw them move into the increasingly violent tenements of a Massachusetts’ mill town. There are humiliations, but it is after sister, Suzanne’s gang rape, that Andre’s anger hardens and he turns to fighting. Psychologically scarred, Suzanne’s rapists are never punished and in the absence of a male protector, Andre sees his role as their family’s sole defender. Many of Andre’s peers are disfigured, maimed, jailed or murdered, and it dawns on Andre that though he’s aiding the helpless and victimised – he’s getting off on not only vanquishing his enemies but the violence and power. There have been other books about delinquent childhoods, of sons who felt themselves abandoned by their fathers and who also became writers (Tobias Wolff’s This Boy’s Life) but there is nothing I have read since Anthony Lloyd’s My War Gone By I Miss It So, that examines this adolescent death drive with such unflinching sincerity. The boy, Andre Dubus III, is saved from his inner demons by his disciplined dedication to his writing, the establishing of a mature relationship with his father and his own marriage and fatherhood: But what a journey.

The Roving Party, Rohan Wilson : Allen & Unwin $27.99

This haunting novel has well deservedly won the Australian Vogel Award – which is given to an unpublished manuscript by an author under 35. It is set in the early 1800s in Tasmania and follows a group of bounty hunters led by John Batman and Black Bill as they travel across the landscape with murderous intent. It is brilliantly written and successfully transports the reader to the time and place of frontier territory and the early interactions between indigenous tribes and white settlers. The brutality is hard-hitting. Wilson pulls no punches and was quoted as saying - ''There are historians who think genocide is too strong a word and there are others who think it's appropriate. From my reading, and reading both sides [of the argument], I think it's completely appropriate.'' The Roving Party describes that genocide; it is an uncomfortable but amazing read and an important addition to the body of Australian fiction dealing with this topic.

The Ottoman Motel, Christopher Currie : Text Publishing $32.95

Christopher Currie's debut novel is a fabulous page turner. I read it in one sitting and was totally engrossed. Simon, a young boy, stops with his parents in Reception the town where his grandmother lives. Whilst Simon stays at the hotel, his parents go for a drive and never return. A distressed Simon is taken in by the townsfolk but feels that nobody is searching for his parents in any meaningful way and that’s when he and another parentless boy take matters into their own hands. This book is a great way to while away a rainy weekend (and there seems to be plenty of those).

Mercy, Jussi Adler-Olsen : Michael Joseph $29.95

The Danish are great at crime...I mean really great. After watching the SBS series The Killing I was pretty excited to be handed this Danish crime novel Mercy - and it is everything I hoped for. Homicide Detective Carl Morck is dispirited after an incident where one of his colleagues died and another was injured. His own body survived intact, but not his psyche. He is “promoted” to a new department: looking into old cases. Carl and his new non-police assistant soon uncover the truth in the badly investigated crime of a missing politician. It’s a beauty. Sure, a little farfetched, just go with it.

Love in the years of Lunacy, Mandy Sayer : Allen & Unwin $32.99

Pearl was a Jazz Musician in an all-girl band in 1942 when US Soldiers, some black and some musicians themselves, arrived in Sydney. Pearl soon found herself drawn to one of these men, a legendary saxophone player: tall, handsome and totally unacceptable in ‘nice’ society. Many years later Pearls’ nephew discovers tapes of her love story. Starting at the Trocadero Jazz Club in Sydney, travelling to WW2 New Guinea, this is a moving tale.

A Visit from the Goon squad, Jennifer Egan : Constable & Robinson $24.99

This is a book that has been causing quite a stir in the U. S. and here at the Sun Bookshop as well. Spanning the 1970s to the 2000s, this slim novel is a look at intertwined, interconnected, occasionally colliding lives in the US. From San Francisco punks to the New York music industry, the successful and the not so successful, the messed up and the not so messed up. So well written, great characters, I love the way Jennifer Egan leads you through the seemingly unconnected and makes sense of it, but does not tie everything up neatly. It’s great. Winner of the Pulitzer Prize for fiction.

Next of Kin, Elsbeth Egholm : Text Publishing $32.95

Scandinavians, like that fabulous Steig Larsson, seem to be able to meld political comment into a page turning crime novel so easily. Next of Kin is the first, of Danish bestseller, Elsbeth Egholm’s novels translated into English. Journalist Dicte Svendsen receives an anonymous DVD of a killing. Her newspaper, with the hysterical excitement we are so familiar with in the media, draws conclusions about terrorism - a bandwagon many are happy to jump onto. As Dicte begins her own investigation into the DVD she begins to see that, apart from her job, there may have been another reason she was the journalist singled out. This is a great depiction of a growing monocultural movement across the world and the assumptions that can easily be made. And if that wasn’t enough, it’s a jolly good story too.

Cuckoo, Julia Crouch : Headline Fiction $29.99

When Polly’s husband dies unexpectedly, Rose welcomes her best friend and her two young boys with open arms, inviting them to stay with her family in their house in the countryside for as long as they need. But Rose will soon come to regret this invitation, as perhaps she doesn’t know Polly as well as she thought. What unfolds is a sinister, ultra disturbing look at the hidden lives of those you think you know. This was thoroughly gripping but creepy-recommended for those that want a thriller, with some characters to get really, really angry at.

When Horse Became Saw: A Family’s Journey Through Autism, Anthony Macris : Viking $32.95

When Marc and Kathy’s beautiful 18 month old boy suddenly began to regress they thought it was just a little odd, but it soon became clear as he lost his language skills that something was terribly amiss. As their ideas of parenthood undertook a dramatic change they soon discovered the services available in Australia are completely out of step with the needs of families in their position. This well-written memoir of one family’s journey through autism is riveting.

Before I Go To Sleep, S. J. Watson : Text Publishing $29.95

Christine wakes up every morning not remembering anything of her life, not the strange man she wakes up next to, not the house she lives in, or the face that is many years older than what she is expecting when she looks in the mirror. So everyday her husband tells her the story of her life and how she came to lose her memory. But all is not as it seems and with the help of Dr Nash and a journal she begins to piece together her own story and it is very different from the one her husband is telling her. This is an engrossing thriller that grabbed me right in. Highly recommended.

Mr Peanut, Adam Ross : Viking $24.95

What a curious read this is, fantastically curious. Mr Peanut explores several dysfunctional marriages, and the intersection of love and violence. The opening sentence sets the scene of just how dysfunctional Alice and David’s marriage had become: “When David Pepin first dreamed of killing his wife, he didn’t kill her himself. He dreamed convenient acts of God.” So begins the journey through the past and present of the Pepin’s marriage and as a backdrop the marriages of the officers investigating Alice’s death. Early on Ross refers to MC Escher’s ‘Encounter’ and like that image this book is a complex, circular journey full of dark and light, he also throws in some Hitchcock and a real unsolved murder case. This is a brilliant read and more than a little mind-bending.

The Secret Lives of Dresses, Erin McKean : H&S Fiction $29.99

A wonderful novel about vintage dresses, small towns, romance and being a little lost in life. Author Erin Mckean created the famous US website Dress-A-Day; and her knowledge, respect and love of stitching, hemlines, and floral patterns poetically transcends into her first novel. You’ll be absorbed by the 20-something year old Dora as she faces the challenges of losing a loved one, dealing with family secrets and the heartache of making tough decisions. A great read for lovers of vintage fashion, shift dresses and Jackie Kennedy gloves: “chic-lit” at its finest.

The Windup Girl, Paolo Bacigalupi : Orbit $21.99

This gripping debut by Bacigalupi has picked up the Hugo and Nebula awards and he is being hailed as the next big thing in the science fiction world. Set in a future Thailand where oil is a thing of the past, the ocean must be held back with dikes, major corporations control the world’s food crops, outbreaks of disease and food blight are a constant threat. Thailand unlike the rest of the world has maintained some self determination and importantly its seed bank which enables genehackers to restore foodstuffs thought to be extinct. Anderson Lake a ‘calorie man’ wants access to the seed bank for new food stocks for his company to control. Alongside Lake we have Jaidee the ‘Tiger of Bangkok’ the incorruptible Environment Ministry soldier who tries to resist foreign control by the likes of Lake, Hock Seng a Malaysian-Chinese refugee trying to survive and restore his former wealth in this incredibly harsh world, and Emiko the ‘Windup Girl’ herself. Windup’s were created by the Japanese, engineered as slaves, soldiers and toys; they are despised in Thailand. Emiko, abandoned by her Japanese master, ends up in a Bangkok brothel where she is cruelly treated. The Windup Girl is a thrilling read full of action and suspense and very well written, it is also a frightening picture of an almost believable future.

Prime Cut, Alan Carter : Fremantle Press $32.95

I am beside myself with excitement a new and very, very good Australian crime writer is published. He is actually from the UK but lives here and by crikey we are claiming him as one of us. Cato Kwong is a disgraced detective sitting out his time in the middle of nowhereville, Western Australia. When a body (a bit of a body) is washed up on the beach Kato and his slacker boss are sent the few hundred kilometres away to investigate. The mining boom, migrant labour, greed and dark secrets from the past all come together in a fantastic and satisfying page turner. Prime Cut was short listed for the prestigious UK CWA Debut Dagger award.

The Cypress House, Michael Koryta : Arena $32.99

I am a fan of Michael Koryta, he really deserves a bigger following here than he has. His last book So Cold the River moved away from straight crime towards the supernatural and The Cypress House continues down that path. A southern gothic crime novel with a supernatural bent. This one is so well written and very absorbing. Set in depression era Florida Arlen Wagner and his young friend Paul Brickhill end up stranded in a very small town run by some rather heavy fellows who have taken a big dislike to them. A page turner with a great sense of menace, loved it.

The Sentry: A Joe Pike Novel, Robert Crais : Hachette $32.99

A new Robert Crais book is always something to look forward to. This one focuses on Joe Pike, Elvis Coles offsider, the enigmatic ex- policeman, ex- mercenary who is extremely tough and has a strong guiding morality that he always expects others to adhere too. When Joe comes across a man being beaten in his shop by a street gang, he takes action, meets the niece of beaten man, a beautiful woman, decides to get involved and protect them in an ongoing way. This leads him onto a road of deceit and really, very scary people. As always Elvis Cole has Joes back and Robert Crais pays off.

Oh Mexico: Love and adventure in Mexico City, Lucy Neville : Allen & Unwin $24.99

Lucy Neville, the daughter of Richard Neville, finished university and decided to go live in a place where she could really learn how to speak Spanish. She chose Mexico and Mexico City chose her. Teaching English and working three jobs to try try to survive in one of the dirtiest, most populated cities in the world. Lucy has written an engaging book about Mexico and the Mexican people, looking at all sides of Mexican life. She eventually learns to speak Spanish fluently and falls in love with a couple of very gorgeous Mexican men.

Amexica: War along the Borderline, Ed Vulliamy : Random House $35.00

Journalist Ed Vulliamy describes the horrific war that has grown around the trafiking of narcotics along the US and Mexican borders. The details are harrowing - over 25,000 lives have been taken in the past 5 years, trafiking in arms is equalluy problematic and corruption infilitrates every part of the process; from the gangs that move the drugs to the US and Mexican governments and police departments that support it. Violence and torture have reached shocking levels and Vulliamy never shys away from the details. While It's hard to see a solution, Amexica gives much needed insight into the consequences of drug consumption in the US and Australia alike. A shocking yet captivating read.

Hand me down world, Lloyd Jones : Text Publishing $32.95

Lloyd Jones, author of the wonderful and highly acclaimed novel Mr Pip, has produced another gem. An African woman washes up on the shores of Sicily, after fleeing Tunisia to search for her kidnapped son, her destination is Berlin and we travel the journey with her as the world literally hands her down. Ines, is almost unknowable for the first half of the book, we see her journey through the eyes of those she encounters along the way. Her story is a chimera, a jigsaw of different perspectives gathered by the investigator on her tail and the truth is never clear, even her real name is unknown. The only thing that is always apparent is the powerful love for her son, and the determination to be with him that drives her forward against tremendous odds. When the investigator catches up to her, we finally hear her story told in her own voice pulling apart all that has come before it. The unique structure, the masterful writing, and the heartbreaking picture that it illustrates of the life of a refugee all make this a brilliant and timely novel.

War Dances, Sherman Alexie : Scribe $26.95

What an unusual book this is. When I reached the end of War Dances it was as if all the stories and poems, each a jewel, had strung themselves into an intricate and dazzling necklace. Funny, heartbreaking and deeply humane. A gorgeous read.

Bereft, Chris Womersley : Scribe $32.95

Chris Wormesley’s first book The Low Road was a ride on the Dark Side as we joined two criminals on the run, an unputdownable, impending doom ride. His newest novel is also a dark and moving story of outsiders. A young man returns from the WW1 during the time of the great influenza outbreak. He joined up when his sister, who he adored, was brutally murdered. On his return home as an injured veteran, he finds he is very unwelcome in this small farming community in Queensland, he joins forces with a wild child, hiding out from the towns policeman. Part mystery, all fabulous Australian classic in the making.

Freedom, Jonathan Franzen : Fourth Estate $32.95

I cannot rave enough about ‘Freedom’, it is absolutely brilliant. Franzen has produced another insightful family drama with characters and relationships that continue to resonate long after I turned the last page. Walter Berglund is a bike riding environmental lawyer, and Patty rebels against her high profile Democrat family and chooses to devote herself to her children rather than pursue a career. Both try to create a perfect world for their children but of course mistakes are made. Richard the enigmatic musician and Walter’s best friend is a constant presence (and source of friction) in their lives. At times funny, at times tragic but always totally engaging. ‘Freedom’ is a testament to Franzen’s literary genius and is destined to become a modern classic.

Campaign Ruby, Jessica Rudd : Text Publishing $32.95

Ruby loses her job as an investment banker, decides in a drunken moment to head to Australia for a holiday. A chance meeting with the Leader of the Opposition and his chief adviser somehow leads to her being a member of the campaign team when a snap election is called. ‘Campaign Ruby’ is a comic take on the campaign trail and despite a few implausible plot aspects it is a great read. Jessica Rudd is of course Kevin’s daughter and her insight into the inner workings of political campaigns is very apparent. The timing for this book is perfect, arriving just in time for the coming federal election but the coincidences do not stop there. In Rudd’s novel the male PM is deposed by a female colleague who becomes Australia’s first female PM, and the ex PM who had hoped for the foreign affairs portfolio is instead relegated to the backbench. Did she have a crystal ball?

Rocks in the Belly, Jon Bauer : Scribe $32.95

This incredible first novel from English ex-pat, now Oz citizen, Jon Bauer, is well worth your time. Robert, 28, returns to his family home where his mother is in the midst of a slow decline into dementia. He has not lived in the same country as his family for many years, keeping a distance from his past. Told in two voices, we learn the young Robert’s story while the older Robert tries to deal with the responsibility of caring for a woman towards who, because of her own mothering of him, he feels great anger. Rocks in the Belly is complex and moving and Bauer is a great talent.

The Old School, P.M. Newton : Penguin $32.95

Crime fiction in Oz is truly in a golden age. This debut novel by ex-policewoman P.M. Newton is excellent. Set in Sydney when Keating was P.M. and Clinton was President. Nhu , a Vietnamese/Irish female detective becomes deeply and personally involved when the bones of two women are unearthed on a demolition site. A young child when she witnessed the murders of both her parents, this case dredges up a dark and complex past for our driven and troubled heroine. Against the background of a public inquiry into police corruption, Nhu struggles to investigate, treading a minefield littered with ancient secrets, furtive love and racial enmity. Great writing; characters that are instantly recognisable and themes that are as timely today as in the unreconstructed past.

Bonobo Handshake: A Memoir of Love and Adventure in the Congo, Vanessa Woods : Black Inc $27.95

After a rushed marriage, Vanessa Woods (mad chimp lover) found herself at a sanctuary for a species she'd never heard of- the bonobo. The bonobo is the forgotten cousin of the human race. An evolutionary biologist's nightmare, this species breaks all expectations of ‘appropriate animal behavior’; they’re matriarchal, enjoy sex for fun, fellatio and the missionary position - behavior unheard of in the animal kingdom. This book tells of Vanessa’s experiences in the Congo, where she comes to love the 'make love not war’ hippie ape while trying to make sense of her own history and that of the people of the Congo. Vanessa's account is entertaining and often shocking. Once I had warmed to her voice, I also found her very funny. Her disturbingly voyeuristic approach to horrific war atrocities grated a little, but she made up for it with a scathing view of the West’s role in perpetuating violence and poverty in Africa and she presents the suffering of the bonobo with compassion to the wider suffering of the Congolese. An informative read and engaging adventure, you’ll be fascinated by this obscure species by the end of the book. But don’t just read it for the fabulous bonobos; travel-lit readers and fans of romantic memoirs will also enjoy.

The Extinction Club, Jeffrey Moore : Quercus $32.95

When dysfunctional recovering alcoholic, substance abuser, Nile Nightingale decides to buy a church and live in a tiny town in Canada his world is shaken. First by the discovery of a half-dead girl thrown from an SUV, then with his growing knowledge of the illegal business of hunting and trapping bears for medicines and eating in China. He quickly discovers the trappers are not enemies one needs. This is a great dark read, a story of love, environmentalism, greed and redemption.

Indelible Ink, Fiona McGregor : Scribe Publication $32.95

Indelible Ink peels back the layers and allows us to peer into the lives of its suburban Sydney characters, Marie King and her friends and family, what we see is not pretty but fascinating and sometimes uncomfortably honest. Being billed as Sydney’s ‘Slap’ it has similarities, its honesty and unflinching take on contemporary Australian family life but the characters on the whole are more likeable, flawed but likeable. The main character Marie at 59 has lived a conventional life but when she begins to get tattoos her friends and family are horrified. Her life changes dramatically through the course of the novel and her relationships are put under the microscope and found wanting. I loved Indelible Ink, I think it’s a brilliant novel.

The Grand Hotel, Gregory Day : Random $32.95

This fabulously imaginative book is set in the fictional town of Mangowak on the Great Ocean Road. This is the third of Day's books to be set there and as with the others very funny, magical and totally enjoyable. The town's pub is being destroyed by the city-dwelling developers to build a housing estate called Warathung Heights. The locals - devastated by this turn of events - elect local artist Noel Lea, whose house, is still zoned a public house, to convert his ramshackle home into the new watering hole. Noel, at first dismayed, takes to the idea with Dadaist sensibilities and an array of fabulous characters, Joan Sutherland, the Blonde Maria, the talking urinal. Heady days abound but once the Lazy Tenor arrives the winds change at the Grand, blowing us to an inevitable ending. Touching, funny, wild - I loved The Grand Hotel.

The Radleys, Matt Haig : Text Publishing $32.95

The Radleys are an ordinary family quietly going about their business in a small and ordinary village in country England. But wait! They are not ordinary. They are… Vampires! It’s really not as lame as it sounds. Cracks are starting to appear in the elaborately created façade, and while the Radley teens Clara and Rowan don’t know that they are vampires, it would appear that Clara’s decision to go vegan has disagreed with her severely, and when she dismembers a schoolmate parents Helen and Peter are forced to bring into the open a part of themselves they have been denying for nearly twenty years. This was intelligently written with well fleshed out characters, and there was nothing insipid about the abstaining vampires, rather it was an absorbing look into the life of a likeably dysfunctional family with a dark (and bloody) secret.

The Privileges, Jonathon Dee : Constable and Robinson $29.99

This great novel opens with the wedding of Cynthia and Nick a golden couple who are completely into each other. It follows their lives as they rise and rise up the social ladder. With few morals and no guilt they are strangely likable, as are their children - whose lives take quite different paths. I do not really know why I love this book, but I do.

So Cold the River, Michael Koryta : Arena $32.99

Michael Koryta is a young American writer with loads of talent. He has already written 5 crime novels - 5 really good crime novels. With this novel he takes a fabulous change of direction. There is still a crime to be solved, yet this book incorporates a believable and scary ghost story. Eric Shaw is a camera man, with a difficult personality, who has lost his wife and his career and is now filming weddings and putting together presentations of people's lives, to try to get by. He is approached by a glamorous and wealthy woman to make a documentary about her father-in-law's life. When Eric heads to the man’s hometown he is beset by visions and stumbles across a mystery that can still affect the present. Koryta, like James Lee Burke or Stephen King, has produced a great spooky page turner.

Gunshot Road, Adrian Hyland : Text Publishing $32.95

The fabulous Adrian Hyland has produced another fantastic Australian crime novel set in the middle of Australia, where the people can be harsh and the landscape harsher. The no-nonsense heroine of his first great book, Diamond Dove Emily Tempest, has taken a job as liason officer with the local police station. This is surprising, even to her. Before she can even start, Tom - her boss - is attacked and hospitalised and a new young and 'by the book' bloke arrives. When a local miner is murdered, Emily and her new boss disagree on the incident and before she knows it she is on the fringes again trying to solve a crime no one will even admit happened. A cracking good yarn.

Thrill City, Leigh Redhead : Allen & Unwin $22.99

For those of us who like our crime fiction local and our P.I.s female, sexy, savvy and definitely non P.C. This racy story veers between literary festivals, stripper’s haunts and cop shops. Simone Kirsch runs a dangerous course as she investigates the savage murder of a charismatic writer, whose husband is suspect no.1. Colourful and funny, this book fair rockets along.

Mr Rosenblum's List, Natasha Solomons : Sceptre $29.99

Mr Rosenblum’s list is a sweet, heartwarming and at times very funny book of triumph over adversity. Jewish refugee Mr Rosenblum and his wife Sadie arrive in England and he decides to become English. His list comprises all the things that one must achieve to become an English gent. Quite quickly Mr Rosenblum ticks off his achievements only to be stuck on the, tricky, join a golf club item…that is until he thinks of a marvelous solution. I loved this book and really did laugh and cry – it’s a winner.

The Long Song, Andrea Levy : Headline $32.99

This is a fabulous and engrossing read. July is an old woman whose son can never really be bothered to listen to her stories of slave life on a Jamaican Plantation. Instead he tells her to write them down. He is enthralled and so are we as we read of the hard, hard life she has endured. I really could not put down this great new book from orange prize winner Andrea Levy, highly recommended.

One Day, David Nicholls : Hachette $32.99

This is a love story with a difference. Emma and Dexter meet at University and they spend a night together after their Graduation party but then go their separate ways. Friendship evolves over the coming years and while there is always something deeper between them that romantic moment is not easily recaptured, particularly because Dexter so often behaves like a cad. We follow the ups and downs of their lives and their relationships over two decades with annual updates on the 15th July (the anniversary of that first night). One Day is a very, very funny novel but also well written, moving and quietly profound.