Allen & Unwin Archives - Page 2 of 23

Book review: A Beautiful Family by Jennifer Trevelyan

June 25, 20252 min read

A Beautiful Family by Jennifer Trevelyan is a coming of age story told from the viewpoint of 10 year old Alix, holidaying with her 15 year old sister Vanessa and parents at a beachside holiday house in New Zealand. This was a nostalgic read for me as it’s set in 1985/86 and references cassette tapes, Walkmans and Dolly magazine. It’s also quintessentially NZ/Australian in some ways as Alix describes the hot sticky weather, BBQs and her father spends much time watching the cricket.

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Book review: The Remarkable Truths of Alfie Bains by Sarah Clutton

May 5, 20253 min read

The upcoming release listing for The Remarkable Truths of Alfie Bains by Sarah Clutton compared it to Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine and so I BEGGED for a copy. Well, I politely requested one and my wish was granted. But, it offered even more than Eleanor because a significant part of the book is written from the point-of-view of almost ten-year old Alfie and I ADORE books written from a kid’s pov. This reverence kicked off with Room, then almost everything by Favel Parrett and Trent Dalton, not to mention Eye of the Sheep, Be Frank With Me, Allegra in Three Parts, The Family String, Lost & Found, and the list goes on. In fact I have a half-written post about books written from children’s povs and I should resurrect it.

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Book review: The Bluff by Joanna Jenkins

March 6, 20252 min read

The Bluff by Joanna Jenkins is the first book I’ve read by the Aussie author as I missed her 2023 book, How to Kill a Client. It looks like it’s similarly themed… featuring lawyers and some rather unlikeable (and misogynistic) characters. And I really enjoyed this, racing through it – forced to keep guessing until the very end. Jenkins throws a lot of threads in here, but does it brilliantly so it’s not overly complicated, but sufficiently complex to keep readers* on their toes. (*Cannot think of book-themed metaphor!)

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Book review: The Note by Alafair Burke

December 21, 20243 min read

Alafair Burke is one of my go-to authors. I’ve enjoyed her standalones, (both) series, and the books she co-authored with Mary Higgins Clark. Her latest novel, The Note, is yet another excellent read and I feel that Burke’s increasingly moving away from legal procedurals and crime fiction to thriller / suspense territory with her more recent work. Again she writes what she knows and our very likeable-though-quite-highly-strung lead character here (May) is a former assistant district attorney-turned law professor.

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Book review: Presumed Guilty by Scott Turow

December 19, 20244 min read

Presumed Guilty by Scott Turow is the third in the Presumed Innocent series which kicked off with its namesake waaaaay back in 1987, followed by Innocent in 2010. I suspect this third installation has something to do with the success of the series on offer this year via AppleTV+. I’ve always thought Turow led the way for other legal procedurals (by the likes of John Grisham, Lisa Scottoline, Steve Martini, Alafair Burke et al) with the original book (not to mention the 1990 movie starring Harrison Ford) positioning courtroom drama and legal thrillers front and centre in print and on the screen in a way we hadn’t seen since Erle Stanley Gardner’s Perry Mason series which kicked off in print in the 1930s.

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Book review: The Life Impossible by Matt Haig

November 10, 20243 min read

The Life Impossible by Matt Haig was always going to be a gamble for me. I loved The Midnight Library but generally dislike fantasy and avoid books featuring paranormal and mystical stuff. I adore Haig’s writing but unfollowed him on Twitter years ago because I couldn’t stand the preachy positivity*. Although I suspect that’s an indication that I’m Haig’s ideal target audience. I marked line after line. Paragraph after paragraph here. There was so much I could relate to. I hate the ‘woo woo’ stuff* but much of this is fucking profound. Haig is so frickin’ insightful in his writing I wonder if he’s found himself a ‘La Presencia’. Or perhaps just psychedelic-induced enlightenment that allows him to be so connected with his surroundings and himself?

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Book review: Leave The Girls Behind by Jacqueline Bublitz

November 2, 20243 min read

Leave The Girls Behind by Jacqueline Bublitz was a much-awaited read for me as the New Zealand and Aussie-dwelling author’s first book, Before You Knew My Name was an absolute favourite of mine when it came out. She gives us another twisty read here, though – for me – the biggest came partway through and was perhaps not leveraged as much as I would have liked cos it was HUGE. Akin to that (midway through the novel) I Let You Go by Clare Mackintosh. The revelations keep coming after that but my expectations were perhaps heightened waiting for something to match or top the earlier twist but instead it felt like I was in a sustained state of distrust, or perhaps (for me) there was also an element of uncertainty or confusion.

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Book review: Out in Nowhere by Fleur McDonald

October 26, 20242 min read

Out in Nowhere by Fleur McDonald is the latest in the loosely linked series featuring Detective Dave Burrows. We met Constable Mia Worth in the previous book in this contemporary series (McDonald has also penned a series featuring a younger Dave Burrows) and she’s front and centre here as well. And her doggedness and sense of unease pays off ensuring a killer doesn’t get away with murders written-off as accidents.

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