BOOK REVIEW: Rachel’s War by Mark Wilson Lothian May 2021 Hardcover, $26.99 Reviewed by Steph O’Connell Non-Fiction / Children’s Picture Books / Historical 85% Rocking Growing up on a farm in country Victoria, all Rachel wants is to help people. When war comes, she travels to distant Europe and the Middle East, working tirelessly […]
BOOK REVIEW: The Storm is Upon Us by Mike Rothschild Monoray | Hachette Australia June 2021 Paperback $32.99 Reviewed by Steph O’Connell Non-Fiction / Politics / Internet Culture 95% Rocking In 2017, President Trump made a cryptic remark at a gathering of military officials, describing it as ‘the calm before the storm’-then refused to […]
BOOK REVIEW: Nelson 2 – Broccoli and Spies by Andrew Levins, illustrated by Katie Kear Puffin BooksJanuary 2021Paperback, $12.99Reviewed by Steph O’Connell Middle Grade / Humour 68% Rocking The second book in the totally outrageous adventures of Nelson Hunter – the boy who hates vegetables. Featuring a serious spy mystery and an epic broccoli-fuelled battle! […]
BOOK REVIEW: Backyard Birdies by Andy Geppert Lothian Children’s Books August 2021 Hardcover $19.99 Reviewed by Steph O’Connell Children’s Picture Books / Humour 90% Rocking An extraordinarily good looking and somewhat factual illustrated introduction to the birds of Australia from the award-winning author of MEEP. This is a common pigeon. Common because it’s almost […]
BOOK REVIEW: Fully Human by Steve Biddulph Pan Macmillan Australia May 2021 Paperback $34.99 Reviewed by Steph O’Connell Non-Fiction / Motivation / Self-Help 90% Rocking A mother of small children trusts her ‘gut feeling’ and it saves her life. A young dad is able to grieve for his lost baby – using a song. What […]
BOOK REVIEW: A Weekend With Oscar by Robyn Bavati Walker Books July 2021 Paperback $19.99 Reviewed by Steph O’Connell Young Adult / Fiction 75% Rocking A moving #LoveOzYA novel about loss, first love and being there for your family, no matter what. “It’s only a weekend. Don’t you want quality time with Selena?” We both […]
BOOK REVIEW: Billie Eilish by Billie Eilish Wren & Rook May 2021 Hardcover $45.00 Reviewed by Steph O’Connell Non-Fiction / Photography / Celebrities / Music & Entertainment 25% Rocking Legendary recording artist Billie Eilish shares an intimate inside look at her life and career—both on and off the stage—in this stunning, photo-filled book. Billie Eilish […]
BOOK REVIEW: Annie Stanley, All At Sea by Sue Teddern Mantle | Pan Macmillan July 2021 Paperback $32.99 Reviewed by Steph O’Connell Fiction / General Fiction 70% Rocking Before we leave, I go to the loo. Before I go to the loo, I go to the dresser, take the urn of Dad’s ashes and cram […]
BOOK REVIEW: Ghost Species by James Bradley Penguin | Hamish Hamilton April 2020 Paperback $29.99 Reviewed by Steph O’Connell Fiction / Speculative Fiction / Climate Fiction 80% Rocking An exquisitely beautiful and deeply affecting exploration of connection and loss in an age of planetary trauma. In the night, she wakes. Something has woken her but […]
BOOK REVIEW: The Warlow Experiment by Alix Nathan Serpents Tail August 2019 Hardcover, $29.99 Reviewed by Steph O’Connell Fiction / Historical Fiction 30% What kind of person keeps a man underground for seven years? And who would agree to be part of such an experiment? The year is 1792 and Herbert Powyss is set on […]
BOOK REVIEW: The Mercies by Kiran Millwood Hargrave Picador January 2020 Paperback, $29.99 Reviewed by Steph O’Connell Fiction / Historical Fiction 100% After a storm has killed off all the island’s men, two women in a 1600s Norwegian coastal village struggle to survive against both natural forces and the men who have been sent to […]
BOOK REVIEW: Nelson – Pumpkins and Aliens by Andrew Levins, illustrated by Katie Kear Puffin Books March 2020 Paperback, $12.99 Reviewed by Steph O’Connell Middle Grade / Humour 65% Rocking Meet Nelson . . . he’s an ordinary kid, just like you. Everyone thinks he’s shy but, really, he’s just bored. Nelson hates vegetables. […]
BOOK REVIEW: The Familiar Dark by Amy Engel Hodder & Stoughton March 2020 Paperback, $32.99 Reviewed by Steph O’Connell Crime / Mystery / Fiction 95% Rocking From the bestselling author of The Roanoke Girls comes a new novel with the same incredible atmosphere, strong sense of place and dark heart. The Familiar Dark will blow […]
BOOK REVIEW: Providence by Max Barry Hachette Australia March 2020 Paperback, $32.99 Reviewed by Steph O’Connell Science-Fiction / Thriller 75% Rocking An inventive, speculative adventure and the intimate tale of four people facing their most desperate hour – alone, together, at the edge of the universe. The video changed everything. Before that, we could believe […]
BOOK REVIEW: Escape from Earth: A Secret History of the Space Rocket by Fraser MacDonald Profile Books August 2019 Hardcover, $39.99 Reviewed by Steph O’Connell Non-Fiction / Space / Science / History 60% ESCAPE FROM EARTH is the untold story of the engineers, dreamers and rebels who started the American space programme. In particular, it […]
BOOK REVIEW: Aurora Rising by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff Allen & Unwin May 2019 Paperback, $19.99 Reviewed by Steph O’Connell Young Adult / Science Fiction 60% From the internationally bestselling authors of THE ILLUMINAE FILES comes an epic new science fiction adventure. The year is 2380, and the graduating cadets of Aurora Academy are […]
BOOK REVIEW: The Last by Hanna Jameson Penguin | Viking February 2019 Paperback, $32.99 Reviewed by Steph O’Connell Fiction / Mystery / Dystopia 65% Rocking For fans of high-concept thrillers such as Annihilation and The Girl with All the Gifts, this breathtaking dystopian psychological thriller follows an American academic stranded at a Swiss hotel as the world descends […]
BOOK REVIEW: Emily Eternal by M.G. Wheaton Hodder & Stoughton April 2019 Paperback, $32.99 Reviewed by Steph O’Connell Science Fiction / Artificial Intelligence / Oncoming Apocalypse 80% Rocking Meet Emily – she can solve advanced mathematical problems, unlock the mind’s deepest secrets and even fix your truck’s air con, but unfortunately, she can’t restart the […]
BOOK REVIEW: The Need by Helen Phillips Penguin | Viking July 2019 Paperback, $29.99 AUD Reviewed by Steph O’Connell Fiction / Thriller / Speculative 80% Rocking Molly is exhausted, anxious, losing her grip on reality. Her husband is away and she is running between her children and her job, where things are unravelling. She’s a […]
BOOK REVIEW: The Haunted Heart of America by Logan Corelli Llewellyn Publications April 2018 Paperback, $16.99 USD Reviewed by Steph O’Connell Non-Fiction / Hauntings / Ghosts / Paranormal Investigations 60% Rocking IN-DEPTH INVESTIGATIONS OF THE VILLISCA AX MURDER HOUSE, MYRTLES PLANTATION & OTHER FRIGHTFUL SITES Experience the Heartland’s Most Memorable and Thrilling Paranormal Cases You […]
