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”
Tag Archives: adult fiction
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”
‘The Glass House’ and the pointy end of mental healthcare
Psychiatry registrar Doctor Hannah Wright, a country girl with a chaotic history, thought she had seen it all in the emergency room. But that was nothing compared to the psychiatric ward at Menzies Hospital. Hannah must learn on the job in a strained medical system, as she and her fellow trainees deal with the common andContinue reading “‘The Glass House’ and the pointy end of mental healthcare”
Review: loneliness, mental health, and something else in Beatrix & Fred
Emily Spurr’s Beatrix & Fred follows two lonely individuals as their lives entwined in unexpected ways. If this sounds really vague to you, that’s because this book’s premise is best discovered on your own. Topics include perimenopause, mental health, loneliness and belonging. Review Weird premise, touching execution Beatrix is a loner with a genuine attachmentContinue reading “Review: loneliness, mental health, and something else in Beatrix & Fred”
Review: Exploring humanity in Jacinta Halloran’s Resistance
As a family therapist, Nina is the ultimate listener. Yet this is of little use with her latest clients, the Agostinos, who have been mandated to see her after stealing a car and disappearing into the outback. For support with the case, Nina meets with a supervising therapist, Erin. What they unearth in their sessionsContinue reading “Review: Exploring humanity in Jacinta Halloran’s Resistance”
S3E5. My Year of Rest and Relaxation Review
Is it possible to hibernate your problems away? Our main character – privileged, vain, and traumatised – chooses to sleep for a year to take a break from her life. In our spiciest review yet, we discuss self-medication, unlikable characters, and one of the worst mental heath professionals we’ve ever encountered in fiction. Mental healthContinue reading “S3E5. My Year of Rest and Relaxation Review”
Interview: Margo Candela on The Neapolitan Sisters
Three sisters. Three sisters. Three vastly different lives. A maelstrom of family secrets. The Neapolitan Sisters is riotous, provocative tale of family and sisterhood. Maritza is a princess bridezilla, Claudia is the family “fixer,” and Dulcina “Dooley” is finally sober. As the three are reunited for a wedding, their secrets are unravelled. We speak in-depthContinue reading “Interview: Margo Candela on The Neapolitan Sisters”
S3E3. Queenie review
There are plenty of dates in this story, but Queenie is not about romance. Queen Jenkins navigates life after a long-term relationship break-up. The premise sounds like a rom-com, but the story visits some dark places along the way. Listen to find out why we think Queenie is well worth a read. Mental health topicsContinue reading “S3E3. Queenie review”
Nine Perfect Strangers
In this blog-exclusive review, we talk about the psychology behind Liane Moriarty’s Nine Perfect Strangers. Now a major TV series! Please note that this blog post contains spoilers! Mental health issues covered: grief after a family member’s suicide, body image and disordered eating, drug use/psychedelics Additional content warnings for the book itself: diet talk andContinue reading “Nine Perfect Strangers”