Two Sisters, Two Takes on the ‘Crazy Ex Girlfriend’ Trope

I am a fan of both Liane Moriarty and Nicola Moriarty; they both write the sort of books that I tend to devour, and I love both of their writings. I had never compared their work (as a woman with a sister, I know the particular pain of such comparison), until I finished reading Nicola’sContinue reading “Two Sisters, Two Takes on the ‘Crazy Ex Girlfriend’ Trope”

Review: ‘No One Will Know’ presents no shortage of twists and turns

Eve Sylvester is young and broke and needs a job fast. After years of foster homes, backpacking and a sailing trip across the Pacific Ocean, she has lost contact with friends and family. She is alone, desperate—and pregnant. Then she meets Julia and Christopher Hygate, a charming and glamorous couple, who seem to have theContinue reading “Review: ‘No One Will Know’ presents no shortage of twists and turns”

Review: ‘The Hitwoman’s Guide to Reducing Household Debt’ is a highly entertaining debut

I met my husband on the same day I committed my very last murder. There’s a joke in there somewhere, about ending two men’s lives. Olivia Hodges used to do horrible things – back when she worked for a Spanish crime syndicate – but she fled that life and moved home to Australia, building aContinue reading “Review: ‘The Hitwoman’s Guide to Reducing Household Debt’ is a highly entertaining debut”

Review: The quiet emotional force of The Burrow

Amy, Jin and Lucie are leading isolated lives in their partially renovated, inner city home. They are not happy, but they are also terrified of change. When they buy a pet rabbit for Lucie, and then Amy’s mother, Pauline, comes to stay, the family is forced to confront long-buried secrets. Will opening their hearts toContinue reading “Review: The quiet emotional force of The Burrow”

Review: The uplifting layers of The End and Everything Before It

Emma watched her mother’s kayak disappear among icebergs in the Arctic Sea. Six years later, her brother, who had not spoken since their mother was lost, warns Emma of the curse of death that she brought to anyone who looked on her face—before tragedy befalls him too. Emma consigns herself to a solitary life atContinue reading “Review: The uplifting layers of The End and Everything Before It”

Nina Kenwood on life stability, 30s anxieties, and wedding drama | Author interview

In this interview, we welcome author Nina Kenwood back to the show, where we discuss her new book – and her first book for adults – The Wedding Forecast. Topics include starting over after a long-term relationship, anxieties around parenthood and aging, and stability versus taking a leap. Content notes for the episode: anxiety and overthinking;Continue reading “Nina Kenwood on life stability, 30s anxieties, and wedding drama | Author interview”

Alice Robinson: Grief, Parenting and an Uncertain Future | Author Interview

Author Alice Robinson joins Elise and Priscilla for an insightful interview about her new release, If You Go. The novel follows protagonist Esther, who must piece together a timeline between her past and the highly confusing present. We chat about a non-linear experience of grief, the relationship between feminism and motherhood, and speculate about theContinue reading “Alice Robinson: Grief, Parenting and an Uncertain Future | Author Interview”

Review: a contemporary mystery brings up historical tensions in The Desert Knows Her Name

In Lia Hills’ new novel, a girl walks barefoot out of the Wimmera desert, near the small town of Gatyekarr, on a hot October afternoon. She finds sanctuary with Beth, a regenerative farmer and collector of seeds, devoted to bringing her family’s farm back to life. The arrival of the mysterious ‘desert girl’ unsettles theContinue reading “Review: a contemporary mystery brings up historical tensions in The Desert Knows Her Name”

Review: Red River Road – a tense solo female travel mystery

Anna Downes’ new thriller follows a woman desperate to discover what happened to her sister on a solo road trip through the Australian outback. Katy Sweeney is determined to find her sister. A year earlier, just three weeks into a solo vanlife trip, free-spirited Phoebe vanished without a trace on Western Australia’s remote and achinglyContinue reading “Review: Red River Road – a tense solo female travel mystery”

‘Ravenous Girls’: a tender story of love and hunger

Adelaide. Summertime. 1985. Fourteen-year-old Frankie is struggling to make sense of her older sister Justine’s admission to hospital with anorexia. But growing up is harder than it seems, and as the summer passes, Frankie has to try to make sense of her own life, too. Years later, looking back on her sister’s illness from theContinue reading “‘Ravenous Girls’: a tender story of love and hunger”