What should you be reading this week? Here are eight new books

The Advertiser

2 days ago

Lee Atkinson. Hardie Grant. $45.00.
Australians love a road trip, right? This book has 35 drives for those who want to leave Highway 1 and hit the back roads, with notes about towns and highlights, camping and caravanning spots and handy drive ratings that range in difficulty from easy to challenging. Admittedly, these are not trips to tackle in your Pop's Hillman Minx, but they don't necessarily require a heavy-duty four-wheel-drive either. Whether you hanker after the rainforests of Tasmania, croc country in the tropics or the corrugations and bulldust of the red centre, this book has plenty to whet your appetite for exploration.
Riley Knight. Allen & Unwin. $29.99.
We really shouldn't laugh at the misfortunes of others, but it's hard not to see the funny side in the story of a bloke who carked it after tripping on his beard in 1567. The author, host of the Half-Arsed History podcast, lists 50 weird examples of people popping their clogs, including Duke Godfrey IV of Lower Lorraine, who was killed in 1076 by a man hidden inside his medieval thunderbox. "Despite his evil intentions, you'll agree that this was an assassin who was truly dedicated to his craft." This book is a bit gruesome, a little crude, and unapologetically hilarious.
Adam Courtenay. Hachette. $34.99.
Bryce Courtenay was an Australian literary sensation, an adman-turned-author known for novels such as The Power of One and the deeply personal tribute April Fool's Day. But to his son Adam, he could be complex and often elusive, a man who was better and more comfortable "working with make-believe worlds than he was at explaining real ones". Adam Courtenay's memoir reveals the man behind the very public persona: the Bryce of false humility, the before-fame Bryce and the after-fame Bryce, the Bryce who craved love and adulation from everyone "and would say and do whatever it took to get it".
Vicki Hastrich. Allen & Unwin. $34.99.
Zane Grey was one of the first superstar authors and the king of the Western. His dominance of the genre in books and films during the years between the two world wars raked in millions, allowing him to indulge his passion for big game fishing. That expensive pastime brought him to Australia twice in the 1930s. Grey chased world records off the NSW South Coast, where he helped to put Bermagui on the map, made a shark movie, White Death, at Hayman Island and later battled a great white off Port Lincoln. This is the story of his antipodean exploits.
Gabriel Bergmoser. HarperCollins. $32.99.
It's Die Hard meets The Raid, with an Australian accent on the humour, as rogue ex-cop Jack Carlin - a supporting character introduced in Gabriel Bergmoser's thrillers The Inheritance (2021) and The Caretaker (2023) - finds his year-long search for estranged daughter Morgan propelling him to the top floor of a derelict Melbourne high-rise. Morgan doesn't want to be saved - particularly not by her father - and half the city's criminal underworld is on his tail, but Jack kicks into John Wick/Jack Reacher mode through 15 storeys of fast, furious and ferocious action, the violence made more brutal and relentless in this nowhere-to-escape setting.
Sam Guthrie. HarperCollins. $34.99.
Zipping between the vibrant streets of Hong Kong, the shadowy corridors of power in Beijing and the backstabbing power plays of Parliament House in Canberra, this espionage thriller draws on former diplomat and trade official Sam Guthrie's extensive experience of China and insider knowledge of the workings of government. Focusing on the relationship between political fixer Charlie and government minister Sebastian, best friends since their brutal private school days, The Peak weaves a story of brotherly bonds betrayed and a suspenseful doomsday scenario into the real-life drama of Australia's diplomatic dance between geopolitical titans China and the US.
Magdalena McGuire. Ultimo Press. $34.99.
When passionate environmentalist Sapphie rescues a baby from the sea, she forms an intense friendship with the infant's struggling mother, Candace. But Alexia, Candace's friend, is dubious about this unconventional new woman in their lives. The internet suggests Sapphie doesn't exist, so what is she hiding? As each woman navigates her fears and desires to discover who they really are when it seems so much is against them - the environment, parenting, economic security, gender disparity - the novel's pacing allows the reader time to reflect deeply and meaningfully on the characters, draw connections and empathise with their struggles from different perspectives.
Michelle Johnston. 4th Estate. $34.99.
"Time rumbles. It's a low growl between the shoulder blades, in the bones, deep in the chest." This evocative epigraph sets the tone beautifully for a novel exploring the idea that you can never really hide from your past. Christine Campbell is a former journalist writing a memoir based on her acclaimed coverage of the 1999 unrest in the North Caucasus. When an estranged friend comes back into her life, uncomfortable truths surface from that fateful time and place. Johnston's storytelling is magnificent as she thoughtfully captures the essence of place while artfully entwining the two distinct time periods.
Lee Atkinson. Hardie Grant. $45.00.
Australians love a road trip, right? This book has 35 drives for those who want to leave Highway 1 and hit the back roads, with notes about towns and highlights, camping and caravanning spots and handy drive ratings that range in difficulty from easy to challenging. Admittedly, these are not trips to tackle in your Pop's Hillman Minx, but they don't necessarily require a heavy-duty four-wheel-drive either. Whether you hanker after the rainforests of Tasmania, croc country in the tropics or the corrugations and bulldust of the red centre, this book has plenty to whet your appetite for exploration.
Riley Knight. Allen & Unwin. $29.99.
We really shouldn't laugh at the misfortunes of others, but it's hard not to see the funny side in the story of a bloke who carked it after tripping on his beard in 1567. The author, host of the Half-Arsed History podcast, lists 50 weird examples of people popping their clogs, including Duke Godfrey IV of Lower Lorraine, who was killed in 1076 by a man hidden inside his medieval thunderbox. "Despite his evil intentions, you'll agree that this was an assassin who was truly dedicated to his craft." This book is a bit gruesome, a little crude, and unapologetically hilarious.
Adam Courtenay. Hachette. $34.99.
Bryce Courtenay was an Australian literary sensation, an adman-turned-author known for novels such as The Power of One and the deeply personal tribute April Fool's Day. But to his son Adam, he could be complex and often elusive, a man who was better and more comfortable "working with make-believe worlds than he was at explaining real ones". Adam Courtenay's memoir reveals the man behind the very public persona: the Bryce of false humility, the before-fame Bryce and the after-fame Bryce, the Bryce who craved love and adulation from everyone "and would say and do whatever it took to get it".
Vicki Hastrich. Allen & Unwin. $34.99.
Zane Grey was one of the first superstar authors and the king of the Western. His dominance of the genre in books and films during the years between the two world wars raked in millions, allowing him to indulge his passion for big game fishing. That expensive pastime brought him to Australia twice in the 1930s. Grey chased world records off the NSW South Coast, where he helped to put Bermagui on the map, made a shark movie, White Death, at Hayman Island and later battled a great white off Port Lincoln. This is the story of his antipodean exploits.
Gabriel Bergmoser. HarperCollins. $32.99.
It's Die Hard meets The Raid, with an Australian accent on the humour, as rogue ex-cop Jack Carlin - a supporting character introduced in Gabriel Bergmoser's thrillers The Inheritance (2021) and The Caretaker (2023) - finds his year-long search for estranged daughter Morgan propelling him to the top floor of a derelict Melbourne high-rise. Morgan doesn't want to be saved - particularly not by her father - and half the city's criminal underworld is on his tail, but Jack kicks into John Wick/Jack Reacher mode through 15 storeys of fast, furious and ferocious action, the violence made more brutal and relentless in this nowhere-to-escape setting.
Sam Guthrie. HarperCollins. $34.99.
Zipping between the vibrant streets of Hong Kong, the shadowy corridors of power in Beijing and the backstabbing power plays of Parliament House in Canberra, this espionage thriller draws on former diplomat and trade official Sam Guthrie's extensive experience of China and insider knowledge of the workings of government. Focusing on the relationship between political fixer Charlie and government minister Sebastian, best friends since their brutal private school days, The Peak weaves a story of brotherly bonds betrayed and a suspenseful doomsday scenario into the real-life drama of Australia's diplomatic dance between geopolitical titans China and the US.
Magdalena McGuire. Ultimo Press. $34.99.
When passionate environmentalist Sapphie rescues a baby from the sea, she forms an intense friendship with the infant's struggling mother, Candace. But Alexia, Candace's friend, is dubious about this unconventional new woman in their lives. The internet suggests Sapphie doesn't exist, so what is she hiding? As each woman navigates her fears and desires to discover who they really are when it seems so much is against them - the environment, parenting, economic security, gender disparity - the novel's pacing allows the reader time to reflect deeply and meaningfully on the characters, draw connections and empathise with their struggles from different perspectives.
Michelle Johnston. 4th Estate. $34.99.
"Time rumbles. It's a low growl between the shoulder blades, in the bones, deep in the chest." This evocative epigraph sets the tone beautifully for a novel exploring the idea that you can never really hide from your past. Christine Campbell is a former journalist writing a memoir based on her acclaimed coverage of the 1999 unrest in the North Caucasus. When an estranged friend comes back into her life, uncomfortable truths surface from that fateful time and place. Johnston's storytelling is magnificent as she thoughtfully captures the essence of place while artfully entwining the two distinct time periods.
Lee Atkinson. Hardie Grant. $45.00.
Australians love a road trip, right? This book has 35 drives for those who want to leave Highway 1 and hit the back roads, with notes about towns and highlights, camping and caravanning spots and handy drive ratings that range in difficulty from easy to challenging. Admittedly, these are not trips to tackle in your Pop's Hillman Minx, but they don't necessarily require a heavy-duty four-wheel-drive either. Whether you hanker after the rainforests of Tasmania, croc country in the tropics or the corrugations and bulldust of the red centre, this book has plenty to whet your appetite for exploration.
Riley Knight. Allen & Unwin. $29.99.
We really shouldn't laugh at the misfortunes of others, but it's hard not to see the funny side in the story of a bloke who carked it after tripping on his beard in 1567. The author, host of the Half-Arsed History podcast, lists 50 weird examples of people popping their clogs, including Duke Godfrey IV of Lower Lorraine, who was killed in 1076 by a man hidden inside his medieval thunderbox. "Despite his evil intentions, you'll agree that this was an assassin who was truly dedicated to his craft." This book is a bit gruesome, a little crude, and unapologetically hilarious.
Adam Courtenay. Hachette. $34.99.
Bryce Courtenay was an Australian literary sensation, an adman-turned-author known for novels such as The Power of One and the deeply personal tribute April Fool's Day. But to his son Adam, he could be complex and often elusive, a man who was better and more comfortable "working with make-believe worlds than he was at explaining real ones". Adam Courtenay's memoir reveals the man behind the very public persona: the Bryce of false humility, the before-fame Bryce and the after-fame Bryce, the Bryce who craved love and adulation from everyone "and would say and do whatever it took to get it".
Vicki Hastrich. Allen & Unwin. $34.99.
Zane Grey was one of the first superstar authors and the king of the Western. His dominance of the genre in books and films during the years between the two world wars raked in millions, allowing him to indulge his passion for big game fishing. That expensive pastime brought him to Australia twice in the 1930s. Grey chased world records off the NSW South Coast, where he helped to put Bermagui on the map, made a shark movie, White Death, at Hayman Island and later battled a great white off Port Lincoln. This is the story of his antipodean exploits.
Gabriel Bergmoser. HarperCollins. $32.99.
It's Die Hard meets The Raid, with an Australian accent on the humour, as rogue ex-cop Jack Carlin - a supporting character introduced in Gabriel Bergmoser's thrillers The Inheritance (2021) and The Caretaker (2023) - finds his year-long search for estranged daughter Morgan propelling him to the top floor of a derelict Melbourne high-rise. Morgan doesn't want to be saved - particularly not by her father - and half the city's criminal underworld is on his tail, but Jack kicks into John Wick/Jack Reacher mode through 15 storeys of fast, furious and ferocious action, the violence made more brutal and relentless in this nowhere-to-escape setting.
Sam Guthrie. HarperCollins. $34.99.
Zipping between the vibrant streets of Hong Kong, the shadowy corridors of power in Beijing and the backstabbing power plays of Parliament House in Canberra, this espionage thriller draws on former diplomat and trade official Sam Guthrie's extensive experience of China and insider knowledge of the workings of government. Focusing on the relationship between political fixer Charlie and government minister Sebastian, best friends since their brutal private school days, The Peak weaves a story of brotherly bonds betrayed and a suspenseful doomsday scenario into the real-life drama of Australia's diplomatic dance between geopolitical titans China and the US.
Magdalena McGuire. Ultimo Press. $34.99.
When passionate environmentalist Sapphie rescues a baby from the sea, she forms an intense friendship with the infant's struggling mother, Candace. But Alexia, Candace's friend, is dubious about this unconventional new woman in their lives. The internet suggests Sapphie doesn't exist, so what is she hiding? As each woman navigates her fears and desires to discover who they really are when it seems so much is against them - the environment, parenting, economic security, gender disparity - the novel's pacing allows the reader time to reflect deeply and meaningfully on the characters, draw connections and empathise with their struggles from different perspectives.
Michelle Johnston. 4th Estate. $34.99.
"Time rumbles. It's a low growl between the shoulder blades, in the bones, deep in the chest." This evocative epigraph sets the tone beautifully for a novel exploring the idea that you can never really hide from your past. Christine Campbell is a former journalist writing a memoir based on her acclaimed coverage of the 1999 unrest in the North Caucasus. When an estranged friend comes back into her life, uncomfortable truths surface from that fateful time and place. Johnston's storytelling is magnificent as she thoughtfully captures the essence of place while artfully entwining the two distinct time periods.
Lee Atkinson. Hardie Grant. $45.00.
Australians love a road trip, right? This book has 35 drives for those who want to leave Highway 1 and hit the back roads, with notes about towns and highlights, camping and caravanning spots and handy drive ratings that range in difficulty from easy to challenging. Admittedly, these are not trips to tackle in your Pop's Hillman Minx, but they don't necessarily require a heavy-duty four-wheel-drive either. Whether you hanker after the rainforests of Tasmania, croc country in the tropics or the corrugations and bulldust of the red centre, this book has plenty to whet your appetite for exploration.
Riley Knight. Allen & Unwin. $29.99.
We really shouldn't laugh at the misfortunes of others, but it's hard not to see the funny side in the story of a bloke who carked it after tripping on his beard in 1567. The author, host of the Half-Arsed History podcast, lists 50 weird examples of people popping their clogs, including Duke Godfrey IV of Lower Lorraine, who was killed in 1076 by a man hidden inside his medieval thunderbox. "Despite his evil intentions, you'll agree that this was an assassin who was truly dedicated to his craft." This book is a bit gruesome, a little crude, and unapologetically hilarious.
Adam Courtenay. Hachette. $34.99.
Bryce Courtenay was an Australian literary sensation, an adman-turned-author known for novels such as The Power of One and the deeply personal tribute April Fool's Day. But to his son Adam, he could be complex and often elusive, a man who was better and more comfortable "working with make-believe worlds than he was at explaining real ones". Adam Courtenay's memoir reveals the man behind the very public persona: the Bryce of false humility, the before-fame Bryce and the after-fame Bryce, the Bryce who craved love and adulation from everyone "and would say and do whatever it took to get it".
Vicki Hastrich. Allen & Unwin. $34.99.
Zane Grey was one of the first superstar authors and the king of the Western. His dominance of the genre in books and films during the years between the two world wars raked in millions, allowing him to indulge his passion for big game fishing. That expensive pastime brought him to Australia twice in the 1930s. Grey chased world records off the NSW South Coast, where he helped to put Bermagui on the map, made a shark movie, White Death, at Hayman Island and later battled a great white off Port Lincoln. This is the story of his antipodean exploits.
Gabriel Bergmoser. HarperCollins. $32.99.
It's Die Hard meets The Raid, with an Australian accent on the humour, as rogue ex-cop Jack Carlin - a supporting character introduced in Gabriel Bergmoser's thrillers The Inheritance (2021) and The Caretaker (2023) - finds his year-long search for estranged daughter Morgan propelling him to the top floor of a derelict Melbourne high-rise. Morgan doesn't want to be saved - particularly not by her father - and half the city's criminal underworld is on his tail, but Jack kicks into John Wick/Jack Reacher mode through 15 storeys of fast, furious and ferocious action, the violence made more brutal and relentless in this nowhere-to-escape setting.
Sam Guthrie. HarperCollins. $34.99.
Zipping between the vibrant streets of Hong Kong, the shadowy corridors of power in Beijing and the backstabbing power plays of Parliament House in Canberra, this espionage thriller draws on former diplomat and trade official Sam Guthrie's extensive experience of China and insider knowledge of the workings of government. Focusing on the relationship between political fixer Charlie and government minister Sebastian, best friends since their brutal private school days, The Peak weaves a story of brotherly bonds betrayed and a suspenseful doomsday scenario into the real-life drama of Australia's diplomatic dance between geopolitical titans China and the US.
Magdalena McGuire. Ultimo Press. $34.99.
When passionate environmentalist Sapphie rescues a baby from the sea, she forms an intense friendship with the infant's struggling mother, Candace. But Alexia, Candace's friend, is dubious about this unconventional new woman in their lives. The internet suggests Sapphie doesn't exist, so what is she hiding? As each woman navigates her fears and desires to discover who they really are when it seems so much is against them - the environment, parenting, economic security, gender disparity - the novel's pacing allows the reader time to reflect deeply and meaningfully on the characters, draw connections and empathise with their struggles from different perspectives.
Michelle Johnston. 4th Estate. $34.99.
"Time rumbles. It's a low growl between the shoulder blades, in the bones, deep in the chest." This evocative epigraph sets the tone beautifully for a novel exploring the idea that you can never really hide from your past. Christine Campbell is a former journalist writing a memoir based on her acclaimed coverage of the 1999 unrest in the North Caucasus. When an estranged friend comes back into her life, uncomfortable truths surface from that fateful time and place. Johnston's storytelling is magnificent as she thoughtfully captures the essence of place while artfully entwining the two distinct time periods.