Looking for that next ripping yarn? Or perhaps you’re not quite sure where to start with the millions of possibilities?
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The Daily Advertiser has teamed up with the Riverina Regional Library to bring you five new reading options each month.
From psychological thrillers to historical novels, librarian Amy Heap will recommend some of the best titles out there.
Ms Heap said she is a voracious reader who consumes more than 90 books a year.
1. The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton
This is a mix of Agatha Christie, Groundhog Day and Freaky Friday.
There is a party at a country house, but at the end of it someone is murdered and one of the guests has to solve the murder or the day will just get lived over and over again.
Evelyn Hardcastle gets killed every day while this fellow tries to solve the murder, but each day he is in the body of a new guest.
It’s funny, clever and it’s a mystery.
2. Lullaby by Leïla Slimani
Lullaby by Leila Slimani is translated from French and is also known as The Perfect Nanny. This book starts with a murder scene; the nanny kills her two young charges before attempting to kill herself.
It’s a great look at modern parenthood, city living and what happens when we let different people into our lives. It’s a thrilling read. If you like psychological thrillers and Paris, you may love this.
3. Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman
This is set in Glasgow and it’s one of those books that is all about kindness. I call it one of the universally recommendable books. It’s a little bit dark, Eleanor Oliphant is not completely fine.
She dresses the same every day, she works in an office where she has no friends and she drinks all weekend. That’s her whole life.
One of her colleagues gets her to do a random act of kindness one day and after that everything changes. She has to remember what she was drinking to forget so she discovers life just opens up.
It’s all about the importance of kindness and it’s a lovely read.
4. The Silence of the Girls by Pat Barker
She is a writer of war fiction, she won the Booker Prize for one of her books about World War I. This is set during the Trojan War.
It’s told from the perspective of one particular woman, but is the story of the women. Helen of Troy is the famous woman of the war, but you don’t hear of any other women.
The main character was taken as a prize for Achilles. There is lots of historical detail because that was set in 1200 BC (and not necessarily real).
The perspective of what life was like for women during the war is interesting.
5. My Year of Rest and Relaxation
This is a new book. It’s quite a trendy book and is set in New York City.
It’s really dark, with black comedy and it’s about a woman who has finished college. She is tall and thin, inherited a lot of money, has an apartment in Manhattan and she is miserable.
The character decides she needs to sleep for an entire year so finds a crazy psychiatrist who provides her with a mad concoction of drugs.
So, she has a year of rest and mad adventures. It’s about where we find meaning in modern life and the big city.
All books are available to borrow from the Riverina Regional Library. There are 18 branches across the region, which means if your local library doesn’t have the book it can be sourced for you.
For anyone struggling to decide what to read, the Riverina Regional Library can also develop a personalised list for you. Check out how to get one here.
To borrow or request one of the above books click here.