A stunning and complex book, Better the blood will thrill lovers of crime stories with its background of Maori history and colonisation. Hana Westerman is a Maori detective who receives a mysterious video leading her to a body in a hidden room. Other deaths follow and Hana is forced to face the fact that it is her past and Maori heritage that may lead to the serial killer. When she discovers a photograph from 1863 of 6 soldiers posing with the hanging dead body of a Maori chief, she realises that the murders may be revenge for the past atrocity.
Hana is a tenacious and determined character, once married to a white detective, and now juggling being a single parent. She is faced with the dilemma of being a member of the police force which often clashes with Maori beliefs and is haunted by an incident in her past when she had to forcibly break up a peaceful land rights protest.
Bennett brings a depth of understanding of culture and language in his narrative. His use of Indigenous terms and names explained in footnotes adds to the novel's tone. It is an engrossing police procedural that begs to be read in a couple of sittings, but one that will leave a lasting memory of Maori beliefs and the effects of racism.
With its clever plotting, thrilling action and engaging characters, Better the blood is a memorable novel and I look forward to reading future books by Michael Bennett.
HarperCollins, 2022. ISBN: 9780008538262. (Age:Adult, young adult)
The age of the driverless car has arrived in Boston and while startling, the sight of a movie producer seducing an actress in a car with no one in the driver’s seat is not beyond the realms of possibility. When there is a fatal glitch in one of the car’s computer system it ruins the Gandalf Company involved and sets the whole concept back in people’s minds. To build confidence, a rival company, Arrivals, swaps all the cars on Garret Island for driverless cars and organises a big publicity promotion with large numbers of invited press. Islander Sandra Montrose is hired to coordinate the event, it is her big break and she is keen for it to be a success. Sandra’s husband was killed when he fell asleep at the wheel so she sees the benefit of the driverless cars. Brandon Kyle, whose company was ruined by the computer glitch, is convinced it was orchestrated by the Arrivals Company and sneaks across to the island in disguise with sabotage on his mind. There are hundreds of Arrivals cars, “like a Dustbuster minus the handle” p. 16, on the island but as the promotional video says, “When you are in an Arrival, you’re not just in one car. You are, effectively, in every other Arrival on the road, because they work as one to serve you.” p. 78, Kyle’s mission is clear! Predictable mayhem ensues as the cars go rogue.
To start with, I was on-board with the premise and I enjoyed the light touch and quips - "I was going to buy a Gandalf but decided not to take the plunge” p. 50, but it failed to maintain pace and there was a lot of repetition and explaining. By the time some of the horror was building the quips became distracting and highlighted the absurdity of some of the action. The characters, apart from Sandra Montrose’s 16 year old daughter Katie, who desperately wants to learn to drive, were either one dimensional or stereotypes and I didn’t care about what happened to them.
This is not my preferred genre but I expect fans of Linwood Barclay’s books will welcome the killer cars as light holiday reading.
Many of the war genre books published recently are often written about past events. You don’t know what war is: The diary of a young girlfrom Ukraine created by 12-year-old Yeva Skalietska, has been written this year: 2022. The thoughtful and poignant introduction by well-known writer Michael Morpurgo complements this book beautifully.
Yeva’s story begins with the joy of her 12th birthday on February 14, 2022, her family, friends, gifts and going bowling. She writes about her love of school and home life, and her happiness. This all ends in the early hours of February 24. Yeva and her beloved grandmother, Iryna, are thrown into a perilous situation which is described in great detail by Yeva through her detailed diary entries. Her recount of the dangerous days following the invasion by Russia are matter-of-factly recorded and interspersed with humour, photos, maps, world news headlines and group chat messages connecting us to her friends. The never-ending fear and depths of despair felt by Yeva touches the reader and will leave a lasting impression. Her maturity and understanding of her situation are shown over and over again by what she writes: “This really hurts. I spent my childhood there. Attacking my home is the same as attacking a piece of me. I feel like my heart is being squashed. There were such memories there…. I don’t care about the things themselves as much as I care about the memories they held.”
For students in Year 5 and above, this story told in a diary format, will give an understanding of the terror and hardship faced by innocent adults and children at the mercy of a cruel and greedy dictator. A thought-provoking and deeply moving read.
Themes War, Ukraine, Diary, Terror, Danger, Refugees, Kindness, Hope.
Kathryn Beilby
The Liar's Knot by M. A. Carrick
Little Brown, 2021. ISBN: 9780356515182. (Age:15+) Recommended.
Fans of The Mask of Mirrors, the first book in the Rook and Rose fantasy series, will be thrilled with the next installment. Ren must keep up all the personas that she has created, juggling from one personality to the next. As an official member of House Traementis, she must look after the family affairs, while desperately trying to uncover the source of the family curse, and as Renata, she reads patterns to discover pathways. Grey Serrado continues in his quest to look after his city and Vargo, now a member of the nobility, strives to fit in while searching for the murderer of his friend. The Rook looms large helping the impoverished people and determined to unmask the secret society that is using magic for evil.
The authors, Marie Brennan and Alyc Helms, writing as Carrick, deftly collaborate to bring another dimension to their wonderful world building. Nadezra is threatened by an ancient power that is controlled by a secret society and Ren, Grey and Vargo are forced to work together as they uncover what is happening. And what a web of deception it is!
The liar’s knot is driven by complex character development as Ren, Grey and Vargo’s motivations and backgrounds are gradually revealed. Minor characters like Sedge and Tess also play an important part in the story.
Lies unravel, masks are removed, and secrets revealed in this fascinating and complicated world and fans of the series will be eagerly waiting for the final in the trilogy.
In 1997, a young loggerhead sea turtle was rescued from the ocean after an injury to her shell. The fishermen who rescued her named her Yoshi and took her to the Two Oceans Aquarium in Cape Town, South Africa. She was rehabilitated there and grew stronger - and larger! - every day. She also became one of the most popular exhibits at the aquarium.
But Yoshi was changing - she was becoming restless and the call of the ocean and her faraway home became stronger and stronger. After twenty years in captivity, Yoshi was released back into the ocean, fitted with a tracking device. And so began a journey that was full of danger, beauty, adventure, mystery, discovery and surprise. Over 987 days and 24,862 miles (almost 40,000 km) , she navigated the Atlantic and Indian Oceans back to the Shark Bay region of Western Australia!
In 2019, Lindsay Moore told us of the journey of Sea Bear, the remarkable journey of a female polar bear, and now, amongst the gloom and doom messages of climate change and environmental disasters, comes another heart-warming, hope-giving story of the magic and mystery of Mother Nature. Yoshi's story is told in both lyrical text and exquisite watercolour paintings, with the lightest touches on topics such as conservation, oceanography, natural selection, the food chain, currents, and geography. But it becomes more than just the story of a remarkable journey with maps, information and even how the satellites tracked her included in the final pages. On October 28, 2020 Yoshi sent her last transmission and her amazing journey is summarised on this blog post, complete with photographs and links to other posts that not only tell Yoshi's story in greater detail, but also those of others released from the sanctuary.
Yoshi was "a fantastic ocean ambassador" while at the aquarium and her journey captivated so many more than just those able to see her "in person", and although her whereabouts are not known now, her carers and scientists believe she is at last at home. Another amazing story of animal migration.
If you have young, or not-so-young, readers with any sort of interest in turtles, or just the ocean and its incredible creatures, this is a must-have in any collection. Inspire them to learn more, do more, and start their own life-changing journey!
Sweeney has suffered a brutal bashing while in prison for stealing drugs, and now has an acquired brain injury. He is attending regular sessions with psychologist Asha Sen, and through EMDR might be getting closer to understanding how he has been impacted by the childhood trauma and guilt caused by his bullying father and alcoholic mother. However he still seeks the thrill and exhilaration of riding away on stolen hipster bikes, returning them once his ride is over, unless they are a particularly sleek model, which he adds to his clandestine collection.
In his most recent book, prizewinning poet and Miles Franklin-listed novelist Salom has conjured up a most unlikely cast of eccentric characters, some more likeable than others, all meekly seeking their place in a world that they have difficulties understanding.
In Melbourne, Sweeney moves between the comfortable house bequeathed to him by his beloved grandmother and the run-down boarding house where he cohabits with his quasi-family of misfits, including the enforcer The Sherriff, the enigmatic Froggie, and simple Jim Smith.
Coincidences abound, and after stealing her bike, Sweeney meets Rose, a traffic-flow analyst and client of Asha, and convinces her, with her super-human eyesight, to type his scrawled handwritten memoir. And so a peculiar friendship develops.
While Asha is helping her clients, her husband Bruce Leach is designing and justifying ever-more sophisticated facial recognition technology for the government. Sweeney is alert to the CCTV in the streets and low-flying drones, so creates a complicated camouflage, painting his face with letters and symbols when he goes out stealing. In their conversations and therapy, all the characters, at some point, raise questions of how, or whether, security and privacy can exist together.
Through the sweet relationships that the characters develop, in his characteristically poetic voice, Salom addresses contemporary issues concerning surveillance, data collection and analysis, self-identity and the position of those on the fringes of society; communes, prison, boarding houses.
The Champ 2: Rock 'n' Roll by Anh Do. Illus. by Dave Atze
Allen & Unwin, 2022. ISBN: 9781761065620. (Age:8+) Recommended.
Summer has discovered she has secret superpowers, but she is keeping them from her best friend Wilbur, although she knows eventually she will share them with him. In this latest story of The Champ: Rock ‘N’ Roll all the kids are obsessed with the band 4Step but tickets to their concert are very expensive. Summer and Wilbur decide to work together by busking so they can raise the money to go to the concert. Summer can juggle and Wilbur can sing. What a winning combination!
They raise enough money but also raise the ire of Marcia, the cruel and mean Book Witch impersonating a librarian. She sets out to punish the community and creates dangerous foes using her witchy powers. At the concert mayhem is unleashed and the band members are kidnapped. Will Summer, her brother Carl and Wilbur be able to rescue the band? How will they achieve this and what will Wilbur’s response to Summer’s superpowers be?
Once again the fast-paced action will engage and entertain young readers. The use of highlighted key words breaks up the text and the graphic images by South Australian illustrator, Dave Atze, add drama and interest to the story. For young fans Book 3 is on its way!
In the dark of night, as their owners sleep, the cats of the city are all headed to one place: Catsby's Great Circus! Step this way and see conjuring cats, felines that fly, Siamese that swing from above, and don't miss the mighty PURRCULES CLAW. But with so much activity, it only takes one little mouse in the wrong place to put the whole circus in chaos.
I have to confess to not being a "cat person" although I have always loved T. S. Eliot's Macavity's Not There that lingers in the back of my childhood memories as one of the few poems I truly loved from my schooldays. But this rhyming, tumbling jumble of cats would be up there too, now, as one to share with students just for the fun of the language, let alone the storyline. Bright, eye-catching pictures capture the chaos as the story hums along with humour and madness - all the qualities that are going to engage young readers who are going to wonder what their cats do at night. Are they cunning criminals in league with Macavity, the Hidden Paw, or are they secret circus artists with talents hidden from their owners?
Themes Cats, Humour.
Barbara Braxton
Virtually Christmas by David Baddiel
HarperCollins, 2022. ISBN: 9780008334321.
It used to be the most WONDERFUL time of the year, but for years Christmas has been taken over by Winterzone.
All the things that made Christmas special are gone: the human connection, the baubles passed down through generations, even the rubbish cracker jokes.
Instead, Christmas is run by robots, while 3D holograms of Santa Claus called Santavatars check if you've been naughty or nice - and on Christmas Eve, all of the presents are delivered by ZoneDrones instead of Santa's reindeer!
But when they stumble on a curious clue, eleven-year-old Etta and her friend Monty find themselves thrown into a fight to bring back Christmas. Racing against time and against the might of Winterzone, they must find the real Santa - before the true meaning of the festive season is lost forever . . .
In some ways, our children are used to Christmas being virtual with travel restrictions meaning a lot of family get-togethers are being done online, and as a consequence, a lot of the long-held traditions and rituals have been let go. So as well as being an engaging read for young independent readers with a unique-till-now theme, it is also an opportunity for them to reflect on the things that they would miss most about Christmas if they were taken away. What are the things that their family does that make it a personalised experience, the things they will continue to do with their own children in years to come? What have they taken for granted? What do they want to reinstate?
For many, Christmas is about family and making memories and there is a lot of effort put into making it a magical time but what do our children actually take on board? And perpetuate? This is an entertaining story in itself, but with the capacity to encourage some great what-if thinking...
Barbara Braxton
The choice by Nora Roberts
The Dragon Heart Legacy, book 3. Piatkus, 2022. ISBN: 9780349426457. (Age:Adult - 16+) Recommended for Nora Roberts’ fans.
The choice is the conclusion to The Dragon Heart Legacy trilogy following The Awakening and The Becoming. Breen Kelly finally comes into her own in this epic final in the fight against the evil of her grandfather, the dark god Odran who wants to rule over Talamh and control Breen. With the portal closed, Breen begins to learn how to manage all her powers from flying to healing. The peace and magic of Talamh as people set about celebrating Christmas, weddings and births is described in detail as Breen comes to love her new life and people. But she knows that there will be choices to make – light against dark and good against evil. Will she be able to control the demon that she senses in Odran and herself and save the land that means so much to her?
Readers who like lots of action in their high fantasy may be disappointed as the decisive battle between Odran and Breen comes late in the story. Breen’s belief in her powers grows and she knows that she will have to make the final sacrifice to save Talamh and all she loves. Much of the book centres around the concepts that Roberts obviously values very highly: that of love between family members, loyalty to family and friends, and the deep friendship between Marco and Breen. The romance between Keegan and Breen is low key as Keegan goes about his duties at the Capital and Breen continues her writing in her cottage, which is increasingly successful.
Roberts always delivers a story that fans will want to read, and The choice will be welcome because of its themes of love, family, heritage, and friendship.
Winner of the Nebula Award for best novel and Locus Award for Best First novel, P. Djeli Clark takes the reader to 1912 Cairo, where Egypt has tossed off British colonial rule with the help of the Djinn. Fatma el-Sha’arawi works for the Ministry of Alchemy, Enchantments and Supernatural Entities, and when all the members of a secret society dedicated to al-Jahiz are murdered she is chosen to work on the case. The murderer claims to be al-Jahiz himself back to right the wrongs in society and together with her girlfriend Siti, Fatma must trace what is happening before unrest erupts on the city streets.
The author’s world building is vivid and believable. It is easy to imagine this alternate historical/fantasy world as Fatma goes about the business of investigating the murders. The street scenes, the food and the people are brought to life while the steam-punk boiler eunuchs and clockwork machines add a fascinating touch.
Fatma is a great character, always dressed to the nines in fabulous suits. She is intelligent and curious, desperately trying to work out if al-Jahiz is an imposter – or the real thing. Siti and her skills are a good match for Fatma’s intelligence and Fatma’s sidekick brings some challenging ideas about the role of women in the Ministry.
It is easy to see why P. Djeli Clark has won awards with A master of djinn. The combination of unique world building, fabulous characters, action galore and a mystery to solve makes for riveting reading.
Themes Fanasy, Mystery, Cairo, Djinns.
Pat Pledger
A girl called Corpse by Reece Carter
Allen & Unwin, 2022. ISBN: 9781761066788. (Age:10+) Highly recommended.
Corpse is a teenage ghost who has fashioned herself to look human from wax and debris from the sea. She lives in the roof of a shack, on a place called the-rock-that-doesn’t-exist, in the middle of the bay. Below her live three evil male witches who she painstakingly avoids. Her only companion is a spider called Simon who communicates with her in clicks. Corpse yearns to know about her life before she was snatched and died. Who were her family? What was her name?
Corpse discovers that she can retrieve her memories by going to the town of Elston-Fright on the mainland and visiting the Ungeneral Store. She reunites with her ghost friend Girl, who she thought had Died Proper (when a ghost disappears forever). She also sees fleshies, living normal human family lives. Corpse realises the witches and The Merchant of the store are all fighting and in pursuit of something which is also valuable to her. But the Witches are malicious in pursuing it because their magic powers are waning and this item will vastly boost their power. Corpse, Girl, and Simon must work together to try and defeat The Witches.
This is a unique tale with fantastic characters and events. The name Corpse, Death Proper and Ungeneral Store are examples of the invented language which add to the creepiness and humor. The banter between the witches and The Merchant is funny and sarcastic. Appropriately Corpse uses limited, harmless magic. We develop empathy for Corpse as she is very alone. And although ghosts are not supposed to experience emotions Corpse does, e.g., crying from her abalone eyes and “something in my not-chest aches”. The story is compelling because we want to know if Corpse will retrieve her memories and will good triumph over evil? And can she recognize her shortcomings as a friend? Reece Carter has created a bleak seaside town, added gruesome touches but also glimmers of hope. All in all, an enjoyable read suitable for lovers of The Eerie on Sea series or Jaclyn Moriarty’s Kingdom and Empires series.
Lovers of Australian crime novels will welcome this thriller from Matthew Spencer, a former journalist for many years. And those who are familiar with the Parramatta River and Sydney suburbs will revel in the familiarity of the setting. The body of a young woman has been found in the grounds of an elite boarding school and Adam Bowman, once a student at Prince Albert College, is tasked by his editor to get exclusive pictures of the crime scene. He knows secret ways in and out of the grounds used by the boarders and can get close. Meanwhile Detective Sergeant Rose Riley, already on the trail of the Blue Moon Killer who has killed two young women near the river, is trying to find any links of this murder to the serial killer.
Part police procedural and part psychological thriller, Black River is a riveting read. Adam Bowman is forced to delve into his childhood growing up on the grounds of the school, as the police team uses him to deliver snippets of information to his newspaper. Gradually different motives are uncovered, and questions posed for the reader. What is the role of the headmaster, and is organised crime involved? Why is the old boy, now politician, involved and pulling strings behind the scenes? What really happened to Adam’s brother who died when he was a child? Is the groundskeeper involved? And who entered the murdered girl’s home?
This is a well-constructed and engrossing story. The setting is detailed and feels authentic, and the characters are all well rounded. It is easy to sympathise with Adam, unsuccessful and drinking too much, and to cheer Rose along hoping that she is successful in solving the crimes. There are plenty of twists and turns to tantalise the reader and leave some surprise outcomes.
I look forward to future books from this author, and readers who enjoy books by Chris Hammer, Garry Disher and Christian White are likely to enjoy Black River.
Allen & Unwin, 2022. ISBN: 9781761065651. (Age:8+) Highly recommended.
Wolf Girl Gwen and her pack are in terrible danger from crocodiles, a rapidly approaching waterfall and of course, the enemy. So begins Book Eight in the Wolf Girl series written by Anh Do. This time the heroes of the series end up on a beautiful island full of wild animals which cause them no end of grief. From the cheeky baby monkey who steals Gwen’s most treasured possession and has a devasting effect on her health, to the ferocious lion who stalks the pack and places them in more danger, to the gentle herd of elephants who help Gwen and the pack to safety, this story really does have it all. They also meet two humans who are in the employ of The Collector but are they friend or foe?
This is another exciting and action-packed read that will continue to engage fans of the Wolf Girl series. Illustrations by Lachlan Creagh add to the appeal of the text. The bonus sealed section at the end continues the story of Gwen and Amber. Book Nine will be published soon.
A strongly bound board book to acquaint younger readers with Australian animals and settings, while helping them form good habits of reading before going to sleep will stand multiple use by inexperienced hands eager to help turn the pages. Stars twinkle on the cover, as the sun sets in bright yellow and oranges, leading to the night sky and bedtime on the next eight double pages. Each double page mentions something to do with sleep in the lullaby: floating in clam water, sleep is the end of a gorgeous day, dreams will appear, and stars will come out in their billions.
So sleep comes along, the joey finally hopping into its mother’s pouch knowing she will be always there in the calmest of waters.
The song version can be viewed on Youtube here and here. And more information about the lullaby can be found here.
I loved the countdown to sleep from calm waters to the end of day, to the setting sun, to dreams, sleep, and stars, billions of them! Each set of words on each page leads the small child to the end of the journey - sleep. Images on each page reinforce the idea of the end of day and sleep, of sleep being the natural consequence of a good day, along with the setting sun and stars coming out. Each is a consequence of what has happened before, leading the child to sleep.
The original artwork by Lisa Kennedy reinforces the strength and comfort of family with the joey and its mother kangaroo appearing through the pages, a family of birds snuggling together in the nest and two platypus on the riverbank. All give comfort to the child going to sleep, the words and images reinforcing the community and its closeness.
Themes Aboriginal lullaby, Sleep, Stars, Australian animals, Board book, Family.
