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In Australian author, australian women writers

#loveozya :: Summer reading stack :: Contemporary reads

With less than 10 days until Christmas, I'm not sure whether we're still in gift guide territory, or whether we should be moving on to Summer reading recs, but I feel like these books are perfect for both. Tara Eglington's new #loveozya novel The Long Distance Playlist was released today, and it got me thinking about other Aussie contemporary YA books I've either...

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In gift guide, Marvel

Review :: Marvel Museum: The Story of the Comics

Another book that I think would make a fantastic gift tonight - Marvel Museum: The Story of the Comics, which is new out from Scholastic (who kindly sent me this copy). This book is a thing of beauty - it is a large format, with a hardcover, and really fun endpapers inside the front cover, which I think make it that bit more...

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In christmas, kidlit

Christmassy :: Pick a Pine Tree :: Patricia Toht & Jarvis

Tonight I wanted to share the book that has been our favourite bedtime story so far this Christmas - Pick a Pine Tree by Patricia Toht (with illustrations by Jarvis). This book is so divine! Just look at that pretty cover - I always love foil detail, and the red on here is so lovely! The book is about how a pine tree...

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In Australian author, gift guide

Kid lit :: Letter Art Books by Maree Coote

Today I wanted to share a couple of gorgeous books that have been some of our favourites in the second half of this year, and that I think would make lovely gifts for the small people in your life (we've actually bought one for A to give her teacher too). The books feature letter art by Maree Coote, and they are just so...

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In Bloomsbury, book mail

Book Stack :: December book mail

Tonight I wanted to share some of the books I've received in the post from publishers lately.  You can find out more by clicking on the titles to go to the Goodreads page for each book. Oasis by Katya de Becerra This is a YA mystery/thriller, out Jan 202 from Pan Macmillan. Season of the Witch by Sarah Rees Brennan I understand that...

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In adaptations, christmas

Christmassy :: Dashing Through the Snow :: Debbie Macomber/Hallmark

Ok, we all know I love Christmassy romcoms in both novel and film form, so I thought it might be fun to read and watch some book and movie pairs. My local library just happened to have both the original novel and the DVD of Hallmark's movie adaptation of Debbie Macomber's Dashing Through the Snow. Obviously I read the book first. It is...

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In Australian author, australian women writers

Book Stack :: Australian Women Writers

I love reading Australian literature, especially by women writers, and so in honour of November having been #ausreadingmonth I thought I'd share a stack of some of my favourite books by Australian women. As always, click on the titles to go to the  Goodreads page for each book. I'll pop links to my reviews too. Tiddas - Anita Heiss This is a beautiful...

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In australian women writers, head of zeus

Blog tour :: The Boy with Blue Trousers :: Carol Jones

  I'm delighted today to be joining in with the blog tour for Carol Jones' historical fiction novel The Boy with Blue Trousers. Here is the synopsis - read on below to find out what I thought. On the goldfields of 19th-century Australia, two very different girls are trying to escape their past. English governess Violet Hartley has fled from England after a...

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In Allen & Unwin, Australian author

Review :: The True Story of Maddie Bright :: Mary-Rose MacColl

I read The True Story of Maddie Bright months ago - maybe even as long ago as Easter? I thought I should catch up on some reviews and was surprised to find I hadn't published my review of this one yet! First here's the summary from Goodreads... In 1920, seventeen-year-old Maddie Bright is thrilled to take a job as a serving girl on...

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In fantasy, Pan Macmillan

Review :: Five Dark Fates :: Kendare Blake

One of the best series I read last year was Kendare Blake's YA fantasy Three Dark Crowns  - you might remember me raving about it when book 3 (Two Dark Reigns) came out and I binge read all three books in a weekend (check out my review here). Of course I was delighted when Pan Macmillan sent me Five Dark Fates, the fourth...

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In Bookouture, christmas

Review :: A Christmas Wish and a Cranberry Kiss at the Cosy Kettle :: Liz Eeles

I'm keeping this one super short, because to be honest I don't have a whole lot to say about A Christmas Wish and a Cranberry Kiss at the Cosy Kettle. Here's the summary from Goodreads: Running from heartbreak, twenty-five-year-old Becca has moved to the cosy village of Honeyford. Living with her best friend Zac in a little stone cottage, and serving mince pies...

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In Australian author, australian women writers

Review :: The Wailing Woman :: Maria Lewis

I found The Wailing Woman an absolute delight to read. As a Buffy fan from way back I always love an urban fantasy, and I think Maria Lewis might be an absolute master of the genre. Here's the synopsis from the Hachette Australia website - read on to find out some of my favourite things about this one! Good girls don't talk back....

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In christmas, preview

Christmassy :: 2019 tbr

I have taken a little break from my Christmassy NetGalley-athon this week, but don't worry! I still have something festive to share! I wanted to talk a bit about some of the reading plans (aspirations) I have outside of the NetGalley books. Here's my little stack of bookish Christmassy joy: Last Christmas - Edited by Greg Wise and Emma Thompson I mentioned this...

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In contemporary, kidlit

kidlit :: Dream Riders: Storm :: Laura Bloom and Jesse Blackadder

I really enjoyed Dream Riders: Frankie, the first book in the Dream Riders series, when I read it during my Aussie Middlegrade binge in May so I was really pleased when the team at Walker Books sent me a copy of Dream Riders: Storm. This one picks up where Frankie left off - when Frankie and Storm met - and we get the...

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In book stack, non-fiction

Book Stack :: Nonfiction November

I'm terrible at reading nonfiction. I didn't realise quite how little of it I read until I was looking through my Goodreads shelves to see what titles I'd read lately and saw that I haven't read a single nonfiction book this year, and I think I only one or maybe two last year. For the past week or so my Instagram feed has...

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In gift guide, kidlit

kidlit :: The Secret Lives of Unicorns

Now that we're inside of 50 days to go until Christmas I wanted to start sharing some books that I think would make beautiful gifts for kids, starting with the gorgeous The Secret Lives of Unicorns by Dr Temisa Seraphini and Sophie Robin (from Walker Books) If you thought unicorns were strictly imaginary, think again. Anatomy, evolution, life cycle, magical properties: prepare to...

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In christmas, cosy

Review :: It Won't be Christmas Without You :: Beth Reekles

This week's Christmassy NetGalley-athon book is It Won't be Christmas Without You by Beth Reekles. Here's the synopsis (from Goodreads)... Eloise, a self-confessed Christmas obsessive, can’t wait for the big day. Devoted to her Michael Bublé playlist, she’s organising the school nativity play and even her gorgeous Grinch of a neighbour, James, can’t get her down. Her workaholic twin sister, Cara, on the...

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In book mail, book stack

Book stack :: October book mail

I feel super lucky every time I get book mail from publishers, and in the past month or so I've had some especially exciting books arrive so I thought I'd do a little round up here. This is also a kind of sneak peek of some of the books I'll be reviewing her over the next little while. Click the titles to go...

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In AusYABloggers, LoveOzYA

77 Saturday :: Angel Mage :: Garth Nix

We've had some wonderful bookish events in Canberra's bookstores this year, and tonight I spent a fun hour or so listening to Garth Nix talk about his new book Angel Mage  with one of my favourite local authors Leife Shallcross at Harry Hartog in Woden. I have seen Garth speak a couple of times now and I think he is just so engaging...

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In comics, graphic novels

Review :: Pumpkin Heads :Rainbow Rowell & Faith Erin Hicks

I have been seeing Pumpkin Heads  - a gorgeous graphic novel by Rainbow Rowell and Faith Erin Hicks - all over bookstagram this month, and last week I finally caved and bought it. Here's the synopsis from Goodreads: Deja and Josiah are seasonal best friends.Every autumn, all through high school, they’ve worked together at the best pumpkin patch in the whole wide world....

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In Boldwood Books, NetGalley

Review :: Christmas Every Day :: Beth Moran

This week's book for my Christmassy NetGalley-athon was Beth Moran's Christmas Every Day. While it was a perfectly fine read there was one thing that I really didn't expect, and that was a bit of a disappointment - this isn't a Christmas story. It is told over the period of a year, starting at Christmas one year and finishing the next, but really...

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In book stack, readathon

Book stack :: Dewey's Oct :: tbr

I had all intentions of participating - at least some of the time - in the Dewey's 24-hour Readathon. And of posting about my tbr on Friday! But here we are on Sunday evening, the readathon almost over and me only just doing this post (and hardly having read at all this weekend!). Regardless, I thought it would still be fun to share...

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