MATTHEW BAKER Why Visit America. Reviewed by Robert Goodman
Matthew Baker casts a critical eye on his country in these timely short stories that present alternate versions of America. While there have always been books of short stories, at the moment there seems to be a resurgence of anthology TV series, particularly in genres...
SUSANNA CLARKE Piranesi. Reviewed by Louise Mentor
Fans of Susanna Clarke’s Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell will not be disappointed by her latest offering. Piranesi is a transcendental mystery set in a harsh yet wondrous fantasy world that raises challenging questions about the nature of reality, identity, and...
SAM COLEY State Highway One: extract
We’re delighted to bring you an extract from Sam Coley’s debut novel State Highway One, winner of the Richell Prize for Emerging Writers. Told with intimacy and pace, it’s a story of reconnecting with home and confronting the wounds of the past. Alex hasn’t seen his...
JESSIE TU A Lonely Girl is a Dangerous Thing: extract
This week we’re thrilled to bring you an extract from Jessie Tu’s novel A Lonely Girl is a Dangerous Thing – an exhilarating, disturbing, unputdownable debut about music, sex, and, yes, loneliness and connection. Jena Lin was a musical child prodigy, touring the great...
ANNA DOWNES The Safe Place. Reviewed by Ashley Kalagian Blunt
Anna Downes’s first novel is a thriller that poses uncomfortable questions about families. The Safe Place begins with a dreamlike escape. A young Londoner in a Ramones T-shirt and worn sneakers boards a private jet and arrives in France, where a chauffeur...
CURTIS SITTENFELD Rodham. Reviewed by Shelley McInnis
This new novel from the author of Prep and American Wife imagines what might have happened if Hillary Rodham hadn’t married Bill Clinton. Towards the end of Curtis Sittenfeld’s fictionalised treatment of the life of Hillary Rodham Clinton, she has the 2016...
LAURA SOUTHGATE The Boyfriend. Reviewed by Sally Nimon
Laura Southgate’s first novel highlights questions of agency and serves as a warning against allowing others to make choices for you. At seventeen, here’s what I know: a boyfriend falls desperately in love. It’s an affliction. He tells you he loves you, how much...
KIRSTY MANNING The Lost Jewels. Reviewed by Ann Skea
This new novel from the author of The Jade Lily traverses three continents and features the fabulous jewels of the famous Cheapside Hoard. The Lost Jewels was inspired by a true story. On 18 June 1912, a workman clearing rubble from a cellar in London’s...
BEM LE HUNTE Elephants with Headlights. Reviewed by Ann Skea
Bem Le Hunte’s third novel explores what happens when Australian mores meet Indian traditions, and old ways collide with new. Siddharth is a successful Delhi businessman. The sort of person who, as Guruji sees, is keen to make it clear that: … he didn’t lead a life of...
Autumn Giveaway #5
This is the last in this series of Autumn Giveaways, so don’t miss out! To go in the draw, simply email editors@newtownreviewofbooks.com.au with ‘Autumn 5′ in the subject line and your name and address in the body of the email by midnight tonight, Monday 6 April...
KIRSTEN KRAUTH Almost A Mirror: extract
Welcome to the first of our new series of Friday extracts – a little something for the end of the week. If you like the idea, please let us know! We’re delighted to launch with an extract from Kirsten Krauth’s new novel Almost A Mirror. This is a...
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