After more than six years of reviewing books I am taking a break. This website still includes my editing services and author testimonials so feel free to contact me directly if you wish to discuss a project. Happy reading!
2016 Stella Prize Longlist Announced
The Stella Prize, which celebrates the contribution to literature made by Australian women, has announced its 2016 Stella Prize longlist. The prize was awarded for the first time three years ago and has now become a highly anticipated and much-loved literary award. The prize is worth $50,000 and includes both fiction and nonfiction books. This year there ...
I have moved…
I have recently combined my two sites slyonbooks and slyonwords. If you followed me on one of those sites and have now come to this new one, welcome, and thanks for checking me out. I hope to continue reviewing books and supporting authors between my editing commitments.
The Rosie Effect by Graeme Simsion
I loved The Rosie Project but this sequel was, well, a sequel. When the first is so wonderful, the second has so many expectations to live up to. I appreciate that Graeme Simsion is a wonderfully clever writer but I just didn't warm to Don's wife Rosie in this book. And although she was pregnant, ...
Marble Bar by Robert Schofield
What a hoot! Marble Bar is the wonderful sequel to Heist, which you can read about here. Can't wait for the third instalment but when I spoke to the author Robert Schofield he said it might be a wee while as he is completing the trilogy as part of his PhD in Creative Writing. Get ...
West Australian Premier’s Book Awards Announced
West Australian Premier Colin Barnett has announced Richard Flanagan as the winner of the Premier’s Prize at the Premier’s Book Awards for his novel The Narrow Road to the Deep North. Mount Lawley-based novelist Yvette Walker received the Western Australian Emerging Writers Award for her first book,Letters to the End of Love. Mr Barnett said 11 of Australia’s ...
Heist by Robert Schofield
I am not an avid crime reader but I am really pleased to see West Australian (WA) authors currently doing so well in this genre. I have just finished Heist by Perth-based crime writer Robert Schofield and really enjoyed escaping into the Goldfields in outback WA, where the story kicks off. I met Robert last year when Heist was launched ...
Man Booker Shortlist 2014 announced
A huge congratulations to Australia's Richard Flanagan who has made the Man Booker shortlist for 2014 with his novel The Narrow Road to the Deep North. Shame that I bought my friend a copy for his birthday and didn't buy one for myself at the time. The reading pile keeps growing! The shortlist of six, taken ...
Lost & Found by Brooke Davis
Five ★★★★★ for this brilliant debut novel by West Australian author and bookseller Brooke Davis. This book has everything: unforgettable quirky characters, big issues, wise words and a cracking road-cum-train trip across the harsh Australian landscape. At the heart of Lost and Found is seven-year-old Millie Bird who realises everything around her is dying. She starts ...
Sweet One by Peter Docker launched in Broome
Congrats to Broome-based author Peter Docker on the launch of his new book Sweet One on Wednesday 23 July. The book is published by Fremantle Press. Here is a taster: When a senior Aboriginal war veteran dies horribly at the hands of state government authorities, Izzy, a journalist and daughter of a war veteran herself, flies ...
Man Booker Longlist 2014 announced
Today the longlist was announced for this year's Man Booker Prize for Fiction. It is the first time the prize has been open to English novels from around the world. Previously it was for only British and Commonwealth authors. A shame that Richard Flanagan is the only Australian but I wish him well for the ...
The Tea Chest by Josephine Moon
As a tea drinker—and a coffee fiend—I really appreciated the attention to detail which author Josephine Moon pays to the timeless brew in this debut novel. The fictional chain store ‘The Tea Chest’ in not unlike some of the wonderful boutique tea shops that I have frequented, and for me, it’s like visiting a magical ...
