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Friday Unlocked reviews >

The Other Child (Susi Fox, Penguin) 

Tuesday, 18 November 2025
Susi Fox’s The Other Child opens with obstetrician Lauren De Vale returning to work after the birth of her second child, Charlotte, and finding it harder than she expected. Lauren...

Dreamwives (Claire Novak, HarperCollins) 

Tuesday, 18 November 2025
Claire Novak’s Dreamwives is a hearty and entertaining contemporary “mum-com” novel that pays tribute to and shines a light on women's invisible labour. Katrina and Michelle are no strangers to...

Might Cry Later (Kay Kerr, Macmillan) 

Tuesday, 11 November 2025
In Kay Kerr’s adult fiction debut, Might Cry Later, Nora Byrne is burnt out and struggling to reclaim herself after blowing up her life in Melbourne. By Christmas, she’s back...

Dark Desert Road (Tim Ayliffe, Echo) 

Tuesday, 11 November 2025
Tim Ayliffe’s Dark Desert Road follows identical twins Kit and Billie, who grew up under their father’s violent rule – a man scarred by his trauma from serving in Afghanistan....

The Last Encore (Rebecca Heath, Head of Zeus) 

Tuesday, 4 November 2025
Secrets, lies, murder and even love await in Rebecca Heath’s latest psychological thriller, The Last Encore. The remaining members of The Cedrics Band reunite on the fictional Sparrow Hawk Island...

The Wardrobe Project (Emma Edwards, Wiley) 

Cover of "The Wardrobe Project" by Emma Edwards. The title text lays over the sketched outline of a person. Tuesday, 28 October 2025
In 2022, Emma Edwards (Good with Money) realised she had a serious wardrobe problem. Not only was she stuck in a pattern of overbuying clothing, but she was also unhappy...

Better than the Real Thing (Brooke Crawford, HQ Fiction) 

The cover of "Better Than the Real Thing" by Brooke Crawford. The title text appears over the colourful painting of a face. Tuesday, 28 October 2025
Brooke Crawford’s debut novel, Better than the Real Thing, is the kind of delightful escapism you’d expect from a Netflix Christmas movie – comforting, heartfelt and brimming with second chances....

Else (Rose Michael, Spineless Wonders) 

The book cover of "Else" by Rose Michael. A peson lies shirtless on a rocky ground. Tuesday, 21 October 2025
Landscape and climate are central in Else, the latest novel from Rose Michael (The Asking Game, The Art of Navigation). This genre-bending work of eco-fiction blends experimental prose, poetry and...

Power Moves (Leesa Ronald, A&U) 

Tuesday, 7 October 2025
In Power Moves, Leesa Ronald delivers a sharp and witty follow-up to her much-loved debut, Special Delivery. The novel follows Camilla “Millsy” Hatton, media director for the NSW Minister for Education....

Softly Calls the Devil (Chris Blake, Echo) 

Tuesday, 30 September 2025
Prologues in crime novels are often inscrutable until the climax, but Chris Blake’s Softly Calls the Devil wastes no time and immediately hooks readers with an unexpected shoot-out at a traffic...

Swallow (Alexandria Burnham, WestWords) 

Tuesday, 30 September 2025
In Swallow, Alexandria Burnham delivers a compelling work of historical fiction inspired by the documented prison escapes of sailor and petty thief William ‘Swallow’ Walker. Sentenced in 1820 to transportation to...

The Transformations (Andrew Pippos, Picador) 

Tuesday, 30 September 2025
Andrew Pippos’ The Transformations is a reflective and introspective novel for lovers of the written word, tracing the gentle and at times unforgiving arc of a life lived in the...