SUMMER
reading
SUMMER READING GUIDE
Whether you’re looking for a relaxing read for the holidays or a Christmas gift idea for the kids (or grandkids), we have a suggestion for you as we check off some of our favourite books from the past year. The Man Who Died Twice Richard Osman
The ability to make brutal murders feel like warm and cosy fiction is a particularly British gift. The sequel to Richard Osman’s blockbusting The Thursday Murder Club, in
You’re Doing It Wrong Kaz Cooke
Tired of mansplainers? You’re not the only one. This amusing, smart and infuriating volume offers a frolic through centuries of bonkers and bad advice foisted upon women.
Small Joys of Real Life Allee Richards
Eva is an actor, going places. The only problem is she feels like a fraud. She meets Pat and a bright future beckons, but Pat dies, leaving her lost and pregnant. This engrossing
Piranesi
Suzanna Clarke
Piranesi lives in the house. We can be sure of that. Except not even Piranesi – our narrator – is sure who Piranesi is or where the house might be. This acclaimed, strange novel from
Silverview
John Le Carre
The final complete novel from the late John Le Carre, master of the spy genre, is as clear-eyed and brisk as the best of his canon. Having retired early from a career in finance,
Go Tell The Bees That I Am Gone Diana Gabaldon
Outlander fans have been waiting seven years for the latest installment in this timetravelling romance. For those who are new to the series (either the books or the popular TV adaptation), well, this isn’t the place to start.
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which the inhabitants of an English rural retirement home investigate cold cases (and stumble on a hot one), offers a winning blend of twists, thrills and hot cocoa. The plotting is clever and the writing crisp and funny, but the real joy is the characters, who provide a convincing and engaging crosssection of modern Britain, even if they feel like they belong to the past.
Humorist, columnist and author Kaz Cooke has spent decades researching all the things women should do (the housework, look beautiful, be quiet) and shouldn’t do (frown, lead a country, have pockets). The historical directives here cover everything from employment to parenting, via sex, fashion and health. Read it and weep, mostly with laughter.
debut Australian novel captures that mid-20s anxiety when adulthood, with all its seriousnesses and responsibilities, encroaches on the abandon of youth. Eva keeps her pregnancy secret, aside from her two closest friends, and tries to find a way forward through to the future, with all its unknowns, while still coming to terms with the past.
the author of Jonathon Strange and Mr Norrell starts out like an allegorical fantasy and slowly edges closer and closer to the real world. To say more is to risk spoiling the experience for a reader yet to find their way through its wonders, but a little patience with the oddness is soon rewarded. After the first third, it becomes unputdownable.
Londoner Julian sets up a bookstore in a coastal town, where he soon encounters the enigmatic and eccentric Edward. As befits a spy mystery, Edward is not what he seems. The result is an appealing mystery and a deftly-painted character portrait involving the failings of the secret service in the 1990s Balkans War.
The original premise saw 1940s nurse Claire rocketed back to 1700s Scotland, where she met and fell in love with hunky Highlander Jamie. Since then, they’ve been separated, reunited and wound up in the middle of the American Civil War. The new book focuses more on the adventures of their daughter and her husband, but promises more of the same blend of lusty historical drama.
