Inside the Australian and New Zealand book industry

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Friday Unlocked reviews >

The Missing Mother (Mali Cornish, A&U) 

Tuesday, 3 March 2026
In The Missing Mother, Mali Cornish (Judgement Day) crafts a gripping domestic thriller centred on Elspeth, who returns to Geelong from New York when her mother Simone vanishes. The story...

Phantom Days (Angela O’Keeffe, UQP) 

Tuesday, 3 March 2026
“A book comes into the world knowing it is a saviour, of sorts.” So begins Phantom Days, the 3rd novel by award-winning author Angela O’Keeffe (The Sitter, Night Blue), a...

Running in Circles (Shivaun Plozza, UQP) 

Tuesday, 3 March 2026
In Running in Circles, Shivaun Plozza (The Worst Perfect Moment, The Boy, The Wolf and the Stars) brings climate science and extraterrestrial speculation together in a coming-of-age suspense novel set...

Cast Away (Francesca de Tores, Bloomsbury) 

Tuesday, 3 March 2026
Award-winning author Francesca de Tores’s Cast Away is a fascinating and exquisitely detailed fictionalisation of sailor and navigator Alexander Selkirk’s 4 years marooned on a deserted island in the 1700s....

Dove (Georgia Harper, Penguin) 

Tuesday, 24 February 2026
Georgia Harper’s Dove is a quiet, restrained novel with a philosophical tone and a steady undercurrent of tension. Set in a small Queensland town in 1993, the story centres on...

My Ball Is Broken (Rob Graves-Morris, Walker) 

Tuesday, 24 February 2026
My Ball Is Broken, written and illustrated by Rob Graves-Morris, is a playful picture book with hidden depth for readers aged 4 and over, told from the perspective of a...

Griefdogg (Michael Winkler, Text) 

Tuesday, 24 February 2026
Miles Franklin–shortlisted author Michael Winkler (Grimmish) returns with his anticipated new novel, Griefdogg. Jeffrey is a hydrologist in Mildura who, after inheriting a small fortune, decides to abandon his adult...

The Nocturnals (Frances Whiting, HarperCollins) 

Tuesday, 24 February 2026
Frances Whiting’s third novel, The Nocturnals, follows 5 teenagers in 1997 who promise “to love each other wholly” as they become inseparable in their final year of school. The group...

The Last Word (Two Hearts) (A L Tait, Scholastic) 

Tuesday, 24 February 2026
Scholastic’s multi-authored Two Hearts series is capturing the Australian middle-grade romance market. It is notable for its appealing, tween-appropriate relationships, where friendships can evolve into gentle romance and culminate in...

The Chateau on Sunset (Natasha Lester, Hachette) 

Tuesday, 24 February 2026
The Chateau on Sunset is the latest historical fiction novel from bestselling author Natasha Lester, set against both the glamour and the darkness of 1950s Hollywood. Told through split perspectives...

Kill Your Boomers (Fiona Wright, Ultimo) 

The cover of "Kill Your Boomers" by Fiona Wright. Tuesday, 17 February 2026
In her first work of fiction, Fiona Wright turns her sharp eye on Australia’s housing crisis. Kill Your Boomers centres on Keira, a 30-something writer who also nannies for the...

The Angry Wives Club (Gabbie Stroud, A&U) 

The cover of "The Angry Wives Club" by Gabbie Stroud. Tuesday, 17 February 2026
In The Angry Wives Club, Gabbie Stroud (Teacher, The Things That Matter Most) introduces 3 women who become friends at the gym in the small town of Shellwater Bay. It’s...

Touching the Sky (Deborah Lawrie, ABC Books) 

Tuesday, 17 February 2026
In Touching the Sky, aviation pioneer Deborah Lawrie recounts her remarkable life and career, from her landmark fight to become Australia’s first female commercial pilot to decades spent in the...

Fearless (Kelly Canby, Fremantle) 

Tuesday, 17 February 2026
Kelly Canby’s Fearless will delight and reassure children, parents and teachers with its hopeful message that fear need not be overwhelming or permanent. Bea Ware is frightened of everything, moving...

Redbelly Crossing (Candice Fox, Penguin) 

Tuesday, 17 February 2026
Candice Fox (Crimson Lake) opens Redbelly Crossing with immediate authority: a rural pub, a blood-smeared doorknob and the uneasy sense that something deeply wrong has slipped quietly into an ordinary...

The Ruin of Magic (Kate Holden, Black Inc.) 

The cover of "The Ruin of Magic" by Kate Holden. Tuesday, 17 February 2026
In The Ruin of Magic, Kate Holden (In My Skin, The Romantic) examines enchantment, displacement and homesickness for places both real and imagined through a series of intimate essays. Blending...

De’Ath Takes a Holiday (Shaun Micallef, Ultimo) 

The cover of "De’Ath Takes a Holiday" by Shaun Micallef. Tuesday, 10 February 2026
Best known for his steady stream of diverse television series, comedian Shaun Micallef has shown a similar level of variety in his print work. As an author, he has children’s...