Where You Left Us
By Rhiannon Wilde Reviewed by Jane Swinton It was a joy to read Sunshine Coast author Rhiannon Wilde’s Where You Left Us. The book has captured Australian quirky humour and the darkly grim affection, that is typical of adolescents everywhere. The story is
How to Repaint a Life – CBCA Honours Older Readers
By Steven Herrick Reviewed by Mia Macrossan Brisbane born Steven Herrick has been writing fiction, poetry and verse novels for young people for many years. His latest, How to Repaint a Life is an honour book in the 2022 CBCA Older Reader
The Comedienne’s Guide to Pride
By Hayli Thomson Reviewed by Rose Hill As a fan of YA I was excited to be asked to review Hayli Thomson’s debut novel. I was hoping to love this book more than I did, the romance, coming of age story line
The Snow Laundry, The Towers #1
By Mette Jakobsen Reviewed by Mia Macrossan Mette is a writer and playwright who teaches creative writing and has put her talents to good use in creating her first YA dystopian novel. In Ally she has created one of those indestructible and indomitable
Cop and Robber
by Tristan Bancks Reviewed by Mia Macrossan Tristan Bancks has written books for children and teens which include the thrillers Two Wolves, The Fall and Detention. He has won many awards and is the writer-ambassador for Room to Read. He has a
Underground
Marsupial Outlaws and Other Rebels of Australia’s War in Vietnam A graphic novel by Mirranda Burton Reviewed by Sue Wright War, civil conflict, racism and division are part of the long legacy of colonialism. When colonial France withdrew from Vietnam, division split the
Girl on Fire
By Alicia Keys and Andrew Weiner Illustrated by Brittany Williams Reviewed by Sarah Custance Alicia Keys has won 15 Grammy Awards for her singing and song writing. She is also an actresss, entrepreneur, philanthropist, and is celebrated worldwide for her humanitarian work. Girl
You’ll Be the Death of Me
By Karen M McManus Reviewed by Melissa Salisbury From the international bestselling author of One of Us Is Lying, Karen M. McManus delivers the teen-friendly murder mystery goods again with You’ll Be the Death of Me. When Cal O’Shea-Wallace, Ivy Sterling-Shepard, and Mateo Wojcik were
The Break
By Phillip Gwynne Reviewed by Margaret McKay-Lowndes The tropical setting of the island of Bali is aptly represented by the palm trees basking in the warm orange glow on the cover of this novel. Penned by Phillip Gwynne, renowned author of Deadly
Gilded
By Marissa Meyer Reviewed by Zewlan Moor Marissa Meyer is the bestselling author of The Lunar Chronicles series of science-fiction stories based on fairytales. Titles include Cinder, Scarlet and Cress. In Gilded, she retells the fairytale of Rumpelstiltskin, but this time it’s
Blackout
By Dhonielle Clayton, Tiffany D. Jackson, Nic Stone, Angie Thomas, Ashley Woodfolk and Nicola Yoon. Reviewed by Yvonne Mes In this romantic anthology, written by 6 bestselling and award-winning African American YA authors, New York is plunged into a sudden blackout. The
The Midnight Girls
By Alicia Jasinska Reviewed by Mia Macrossan Jasinska is an Australian fantasy writer whose debut novel The Dark Tide made quite an impression. The Midnight Girls is her second and again borrows a lot from East European folklore. This makes the novel
Endgame
By Malorie Blackman Reviewed by Margaret McKay-Lowndes Noughts and Crosses is Malorie Blackman’s epic six novel series which has been 20 years in the making. Endgame is the final instalment, the others being Noughts and Crosses, Knife Edge, Checkmate, Double Cross, Crossfire. Endgame and draws on
Felix Ever After
by Kacen Callender Reviewed by Zewlan Moor Kacen Callender’s middle grade novel, King and the Dragonflies, won the US National Book Award for Young People’s Literature in 2020. Felix Ever After is a young adult novel featuring 17-year-old Felix’s antics during a summer
Henry Hamlet’s Heart
By Rhiannon Wilde Reviewed by Zewlan Moor Start as you mean to continue. Rhiannon Wilde has followed that maxim to great effect in her remarkable debut novel, Henry Hamlet’s Heart which won the Queensland Literary Awards Glendower Award for an Emerging Queensland
Graphic Novels for Young Adults
Graphic Novels for Young Adults Here are some more graphic novels, most of them published quite recently. Graphic novels now cover many issues previously found in text only works. This trend is reflected in some of the titles selected here which cover
The End of the World is Bigger Than Love
By Davina Bell A BOOK HOOK from the Ipswich District Teacher-Librarian Network She said we didn’t know what the world out there had become. We had been alone there so long on that tiny island, in that tiny church. But in the night,
The Wolf’s Howl: A Maven & Reeve Mystery Book 2
By A. L. Tait Reviewed by Sandy Driessens The Wolf’s Howl is, what the Glawn Castle locals call, the biting, freezing gale that rages around the mountains, in the valleys and perhaps, metaphorically, inside the castle itself. This second Maven and Reeve Mystery,
Nowhere on Earth
Written and Illustrated by Nick Lake Reviewed by Junior Reviewer Leonard Cavallaro Leonard is 13 years old, an aspiring writer and loves fantasy novels. Three hearts out of five - I enjoyed this book Who is your favourite character? Describe them and tell us
Gone
By Michael Grant Reviewed by Junior Reviewer Aaron Ding Aaron Ding is 11 years old with a passion to write stories, and is always looking for ways to improve them! Go and read it!!! ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ First published over a decade
House of Hollow
By Krystal Sutherland Reviewed by Margaret McKay-Lowndes In House of Hollow, Krystal Sutherland has tapped into a rich store of fairy tales and folklore to mine the concept of the changeling, a tradition found in many nations from Ireland to Scandinavia to
Illuminae – Absolutely BRILLIANT! ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ (+♥)
By Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff Reviewed by Junior Reviewer Aaron Ding Aaron Ding is 11 years old with a passion to write stories, and is always looking for ways to improve them! What is your favourite character? (And why?) The Artificial Intelligence Defence
Sugar Town Queens
By Malla Nunn Reviewed by Mia Macrossan Malla Nunn, a South African now living and working in Australia, writes adult crime novels as well as YA fiction. This is her second YA title after the much praised When The Ground Is Hard.
Skulduggery Pleasant #14 Dead or Alive
By Derek Landy Reviewed by Leonard Cavallaro, aged 12. Leonard is an aspiring author with a love of fantasy. Who is your favourite character? Describe them and tell us why you like them. Arch-Cannon Damocles Creed is the perfect blend of intelligence and evil.
When Rain Turns to Snow
by Jane Godwin Reviewed by Sharon Bryan Jane Godwin is an Australian author who has written books for children of all ages. Her picture books, such as Today We Have No Plans (illustrated by Anna Walker) and Hattie Helps Out (with Davina
The True Colour of a Little White Lie
By Gabriel Bergmoser Reviewed by Zewlan Moor Gabriel Bergmoser is a Melbourne-based author and playwright. In 2016 his first young adult novel, Boone Shepard, was shortlisted for the Readings Young Adult Prize. This is his second book for this age group. Fourteen-year-old, horror-movie-buff
This One is Ours
By Kate O'Donnell Reviewed by Margaret McKay-Lowndes Kate O’Donnell is the award-winning author of Untidy Towns, and This One Is Ours is her second novel. In a coming-of age tale, sixteen-year-old Sofie is in Paris on an art school exchange. A talented
The Electric Kingdom
By David Arnold Reviewed by Margaret McKay-Lowndes So much of the literature we enjoy today has been inspired by the monumental events of the 20th century: two world wars, the Great Depression, the Cold War and the list goes on. It makes
What Beauty There Is
By Cory Anderson Reviewed by Sue Wright Things are dire for 17 year old Jack Dahl and his beloved younger brother Matty. Their mother—no longer able to cope—is dead: Jack buried her himself, and with their violent father still in jail for
The Gilded Ones
By Namina Forna Reviewed by Mia Macrossan Namina, born in Sierra Leone, is an American author of young adult fiction and a successful screenwriter. The Gilded Ones, a fantasy about a teenager with special powers, is her YA debut novel and the
