reviews

"A captivating tale set in and around an English seaside hotel in 1919. A full, colourful vast array of characters give structure and strength to this loved tale..." Delving into the pages of a new Helen Simonson novel is a treat - she gifted us Major Pettigrew's Last...

"If you love well-researched, credible historical drama, then you can't go past Auckland-based author Olivia Spooner. Meet Addy and Margot, in World War Two service in the Women's Auxiliary Army Corps AKA - The Tuis." A circle of Kiwi friends emerges from the New...

"An extraordinary life and her rise through politics in both Britain and USA...all within the shadows. Her life's work cannot be simply put in a box but author Sonia Purnell comes the closest of all biographies to give us a thorough, deserving record of the 'woman in...

"If someone predicted your precise time of departure from this Earth and the circumstances, would you embrace it and alter your life's ways, patterns and experiences?" This is the foundation block for Liane Moriarty's new novel Here One Moment. One woman's hypnotic,...

"It is only now that we can read of Pippa Latour's exceptional dedicated service as part of the Special Operations Executive and Women's Auxiliary Air Force in World War Two. She lived her life with profound resilience and fortitude..." We should know Pippa Latour's...

"It was poignant to read of 'older' love - an aged love with all its imperfections and oddities. It is refreshing to embrace a narrative of real life, conflicts, irritations and quirks that just work in all the messiness of life..." This is Nicky's 15th novel and I...

"Meet Frankie...you just want her to speak out and step from the shadows that her Irish lack-of-luck life deals. From the moment I turned the first page I wanted to cheer Frankie on and sod those adults around her that played her like a pawn in the game of life. It...

"A powerful, confronting narrative that causes your blood to pulse with rage...A strong and timely novel from Charity Norman - non-apologetic." Raw and brutal in delivery from dire times we have recently emerged from - the covid years. You cannot merely generalize...

"An epic literary feast across centuries capturing the essence of the Muranese glass makers. A twist exists throughout the exquisite narrative - a stone that skips from 1486 to modern day. It can be a risky, clunky tool when you use 'time travel' in fiction, but...

"A refreshing, nostalgic whodunit writing style set in Hawke's Bay, New Zealand." Fictional book-store owners, Garth and Eloise Sherlock provide a barrel of laughs as they reference familiar tasks and happenings in book store life until a mysterious package is...

Set on the fictional South Atlantic Island, Tuga de Oro, a vibrant array of characters deliver colourful plots to provide pure escapism amongst the weighty tomes on my to-be-read stacks. Veterinarian researcher and devout introvert Charlotte Walker heads to 'the ends...

"If you could take a snapshot of current real-life New Zealand the The Call captures in in all its shades..." Not since I read Fiona Sussman's debut novel The Last Time We spoke (2017) have I been able to read a book that is so honest and provides all the context of...