Tag: book reviews

#AussieAuthors2026, #LoveOZMG, Book bingo, Book Industry, Books, challenges, Dymocks Reading Challenge, Fables, Fairytales, Fantasy, historical fiction, history, literary fiction, middle grade, Publishers, Reading, Reviews, series, The Nerd Daily

Elsewhere by Shelby Matheson

Ashleigh

Title: Elsewhere Author: Shelby Matheson Genre: Fantasy/Historical Fiction Publisher: Wombat Rhiza Published: 4th June 2025 Format: Paperback Pages: 400 Price: $19.99 Synopsis: At the outbreak of World War I, eleven-year-old Elsie Clarke is sent to a mysterious school in the woods for only the most talented children. But fewer still, the Gifted, are invited to… Continue reading Elsewhere by Shelby Matheson

#AussieAuthors2026, #LoveOZMG, Alice-Miranda, Aussie authors, Australian literature, Australian women writers, Book Industry, Books, challenges, Children's Literature, Crime/Mystery, Jacqueline Harvey, literary fiction, middle grade, Publishers, Reading, Reviews, series, The Nerd Daily

Alice-Miranda at the Palace by Jacqueline Harvey

Ashleigh

Title: Alice-Miranda at the Palace Author: Jacqueline Harvey Genre: Mystery/Fiction Publisher: Puffin Australia Published: 17th September 2019/2nd February 2015 Format: Paperback Pages: 384 Price: $16.99 Synopsis: Alice-Miranda is off on a royal adventure! It’s Queen Georgiana’s silver jubilee, and Alice-Miranda and her friends are invited. While Evesbury Palace is every bit as magnificent as they’d… Continue reading Alice-Miranda at the Palace by Jacqueline Harvey

#AussieAuthors2026, Aussie authors, Australian literature, Australian women writers, biography, Book bingo, Book Industry, Books, challenges, history, non-fiction, Publishers, Reading, Reviews, The Nerd Daily

Double Act: Eirene Mort & Nora Kate Weston by Dr Sylvia Martin

Ashleigh

Title: Double Act: Eirene Mort & Nora Kate Weston Author: Dr Sylvia Martin Genre: Biography Publisher: NLA Publishing Published: 1st March 2026 Format: Paperback Pages: 256 Price: $36.99 Synopsis: The incredible 60-year creative partnership between Eirene Mort and Nora Kate Weston is explored in intricate detail in a moving new biography from NLA Publishing. Eirene… Continue reading Double Act: Eirene Mort & Nora Kate Weston by Dr Sylvia Martin

#AussieAuthors2026, #AussieYAChallenge, #LoveOzYA, Aussie authors, Australian literature, Australian women writers, Book Industry, Books, check in post, Crime/Mystery, literary fiction, Publishers, Reading, Reviews, Young Adult

Good Luck and Other Lies by Catriona McKeown

Ashleigh

Title: Good Luck and Other Lies Author: Catriona McKeown Genre: Fiction Publisher: Wombat Rhiza Published: 7th June 2025 Format: Paperback Pages: 296 Price: $21.99 Synopsis: Imagine being one of six high school students who win a 50-million-dollar lotto prize. What would you buy first? The latest phone? A new wardrobe? A fancy car to learn… Continue reading Good Luck and Other Lies by Catriona McKeown

#AussieAuthors2026, #AussieYAChallenge, #LoveOZMG, #LoveOzYA, adventure, animals, Aussie authors, Australian literature, Australian women writers, biography, Book bingo, Book Industry, Books, CBCA, challenges, check in post, Children's Literature, Crime/Mystery, Disney Reading Challenge, Dymocks Reading Challenge, Fables, Fairytales, Fantasy, historical fiction, history, humour, Indigenous authors, Jacqueline Harvey, Junior Fiction, literary fiction, memoir, middle grade, mythology, non-fiction, Picture Books, poetry, Publishers, R.A. Spratt, Reading, Reviews, satire, Scholastic, Sci-Fi, series, Speculative fiction, The Nerd Daily, Young Adult

February 2026 Reading Round Up

Ashleigh

This February I read 27 books. Most were review books, and most were by women. I reviewed 23 of the books I read, and there are some other reviews coming in the next few months. I’m also getting through my reading challenges for the year, and ticking off thing as I go or as I… Continue reading February 2026 Reading Round Up

#AussieAuthors2026, #AussieYAChallenge, #LoveOzYA, Aussie authors, Australian literature, Australian women writers, Book Industry, Books, Dymocks Reading Challenge, historical fiction, history, literary fiction, Publishers, Reading, Reviews

Anna’s War by D.J. Taylor

Ashleigh

Title: Anna’s War Author: D.J. Taylor Genre: Historical Fiction Publisher: Riveted Press Published: 2nd July Format: Paperback Pages: 192 Price: $17.99 Synopsis: Holland, 1943: In the last eighteen months of World War II, 14-year-old Anna’s life is thrown into a perilous world of secrets and danger. Her once-ordinary town in German-occupied southern Holland is transformed… Continue reading Anna’s War by D.J. Taylor

#AussieAuthors2026, #AussieYAChallenge, #LoveOzYA, Aussie authors, Australian literature, Australian women writers, Book Industry, Books, literary fiction, Publishers, Reading, Reviews, Young Adult

Forever and Ever by Allanah Hunt

Ashleigh

Title: Forever and Ever Author: Allanah Hunt Genre: Contemporary Publisher: Text Publishing Published: 3rd March 2026 Format: Paperback Pages: 320 Price: $22.99 Synopsis: Talia is sixteen, pregnant and angry. Her family is broken. She’s looking after her unwell mother. Her dad’s gone. At school she is shunned. And Johnny—the one person she thought she could count on—just walked… Continue reading Forever and Ever by Allanah Hunt

#AussieAuthors2026, #LoveOZMG, adventure, Alice-Miranda, Aussie authors, Australian literature, Australian women writers, Book Industry, Books, check in post, Children's Literature, Crime/Mystery, humour, Jacqueline Harvey, literary fiction, middle grade, Publishers, Reading, Reviews, series

Alice-Miranda in Japan by Jacqueline Harvey

Ashleigh

Title: Alice-Miranda in Japan Author: Jacqueline Harvey Genre: Fiction/Mystery Publisher: Puffin Australia Published: 17th September 2019/3rd February 2014 Format: Paperback Pages: 352 Price: $16.99 Synopsis: Travel, treasure and trickery in bustling Tokyo. When Alice-Miranda, Millie and Jacinta travel to Japan during the school holidays, they are in for a fascinating treat. Dolly Oliver, the family… Continue reading Alice-Miranda in Japan by Jacqueline Harvey

#AussieAuthors2025, Aussie authors, Australian literature, Australian women writers, Book Industry, Books, Crime/Mystery, literary fiction, Publishers, Reading, Reviews

The Search Party by Hannah Richell

Ashleigh

Title: The Search Party Author: Hannah Richell Genre: Mystery Publisher: Simon and Schuster Published: 4th December 2024 Format: Paperback Pages: 416 Price: $22.99 Synopsis: Shortlisted for the 2024 Ned Kelly Awards, Best International Crime FictionYou are invited to:The Search PartyJoin six old friends for one wild weekend at Cornwall’s newest glamping spot.The guests:The anxious hosts… Continue reading The Search Party by Hannah Richell

#AussieAuthors2026, #LoveOZMG, adventure, Alice-Miranda, Aussie authors, Australian literature, Australian women writers, Book Industry, Books, challenges, check in post, Children's Literature, Crime/Mystery, humour, Jacqueline Harvey, literary fiction, middle grade, Publishers, Reading, Reviews, series

Alice-Miranda Shines Bright by Jacqueline Harvey

Ashleigh

Title: Alice-Miranda Shines Bright Author: Jacqueline Harvey Genre: Mystery/Fiction Publisher: Puffin Published: 16th July 2019/1st September 2013 Format: Paperback Pages: 336 Price: $16.99 Synopsis: Mysteries abound and Alice-Miranda is on the case. Alice-Miranda and Millie have made a dazzling discovery in the woodlands near their school. They vow to keep the secret to themselves, but… Continue reading Alice-Miranda Shines Bright by Jacqueline Harvey