The Operator Gretchen Berg Hachette $34.99 This book held so much promise! It looked exciting in the publisher’s summary and I was so very happy to see a copy arrive in the office for us to read. I started just before COVID (and all that went with it) and I …
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The Jacaranda House Deborah Challinor HarperCollins RRP: $36.99 Set in both Australia and New Zealand, this book drew me in instantly. Perhaps that’s because I like a sense of where something is happening, a time and space in which to place my thoughts. Because this novel is set in places …
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To Kill A Man Sam Bourne Hachette $34.99 I have to admit that despite its flaws (and they’re not massive or insurmountable) I inhaled this book. So while I will outline some of the bits I didn’t love, remember that I tend to speed read when I enjoy a book! …
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Catherine House Elisabeth Thomas Hachette RRP: $37.99 The cover boasts “Deliciously sinister. It’s almost impossible not to be seduced” and for the first quarter of the book I’d agree; but sadly, three quarters of the book remains and my love affair with Catherine House soon went from seduction to boredom. …
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The Rearranged Life of Oona Lockhart Margarita Montimore Hachette RRP: $34.99 This is a topsy-turvy life story told with humour and skill; I enjoyed nearly every moment reading it. There’s no denying that this book borrows heavily from Audrey Niffenegger’s “A Time Traveller’s Wife” which was a big hit a …
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Louis & Louise Julie Cohen Hachette RRP: $34.99 Let me start with a bold claim. This was one of my highlight reads of the year. I really loved this book. The very idea of this novel – that you could explore a life lived as a woman, or a life …
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Blood & Sugar Laura Shepard-Robinson Macmillan RRP: $34.99 This book was obviously well researched! 18th century England dock life and the sugar trade has never been as fascinating! This novel straddles, very successfully, two classes of the time – the very rich and the very poor. Our ‘hero’ is tasked …
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Imaginary Friend Stephen Chbosky Hachette RRP: $37.99 This book kept me on the knife edge for sooooooo long and I’m not sure if that’s good or bad. Honestly, about halfway through it started ‘wrapping up’ and I was left holding the book (which is HUGE) and wondering ‘How is this …
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The Wife and the Widow Christian White Hachette RRP: $34.99 My word, this is a clever book! Set on a creepy island, which is bustling in summer with tourists, but chilling (both in temperature and atmosphere) during the off season we follow Kate and Abby who (no spoiler – it’s …
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A Madness of Sunshine Nalini Singh Hachette RRP: $34.99 I’ve often seen Singh’s name on best-sellers lists and heard her discussed and interviewed on the radio. In internationally successful author living in New Zealand is quite a rarity. I was thrilled when the Eldernet Gazette review books arrived to discover …
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