This post is inspired by the wonderful Marie @ Drizzle & Hurricane‘s current feature called Souvenirs from Across the World which is the chance for us to talk about our hometowns and countries. For more information check out the post here. There’s a link up post which is open until the 26th of June. Marie also speaks about some hidden gems of France in said post, so even if you’re not linking up or participating still make sure to go read it anyway! I highly encourage everyone to participate though as I’d love to hear about where you’re from!
Yesterday I talked about my home state of Western Australia. Today I’m going to talk about some of my favourite Australian books (and authors because not all of these are set in Australia, but still it’s important to support local authors!) and some that I really want to read.
Shift by Em Bailey
What’s it about: Genre bending. CRAZY plot twist. Toxic friendships. Mental illness. Psychological thriller. Fast paced. One of my favourite books ever.
Buy it from: Book Depository // Amazon
Stolen by Lucy Christopher
What’s it about: Kidnapping. Australian desert setting. Extremely realistic portrayal of Stockholm Syndrome. Written in letter format. You’re going to cry.
Buy it from: Book Depository // Amazon
Beautiful Malice by Rebecca James
What’s it about: Toxic friendships. Seriously, seriously toxic friendships. Psychological Thriller. You will cry and then cry some more. Emotional roller-coaster.
Buy it from: Book Depository // Amazon
Cooper Bartholomew is Dead by Rebecca James
What’s it about: New adult with out your typical New Adult plot. Messed Up Uni Students Make Bad Life Choices (but boy is it fun to read about). Whodunnit? Well developed side characters.
Buy it from: Book Depository // Amazon
Sweet Damage by Rebecca James
What’s it about: New Adult with out your tyical New Adult plot. Psychological thriller. Genre bender. The house is haunted… or is it? Agoraphobia representation! Some really fucked up shit goes down.
Buy it from: Book Depository // Amazon
Illuminae by Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff
What’s it about: Lauren’s favourite book that she won’t shut up about. SPACE. Beautifully and uniquely formatted. Written in documents, emails, chat logs ect. INSANE character development. Morally ambiguous Artificial Intelligence. It’ll break your heart. No seriously.
Buy it from: Book Depository // Amazon
The Sidekicks by Will Kostakis
What’s it about: Angsty boys who will break your heart. Magical friendships. Perfect for a The Raven Cycle hangover. Contemporary with no Instalove or Absent Parents. LGBTQ+ REPRESENTATION. Amazing portrayal of grief. You’re going to cry. Multiple POVs.
Buy it from: Book Depository // Amazon
Deltora Quest by Emily Rodda
What’s it about: Middle Grade!!! Nostalgic feels like whoa. Fantasy. Mythical creatures. Magical world building. Action packed Adventure. Quests.
Buy it from: Book Depository // Amazon
High Priority TBR Books
Covers = Goodreads
Rapid Fire Descriptions (left-right): 1) Creepy Cult 2) Non Fiction LGBTQ+ Memoir 3) Non Fiction about Rape culture in Australian Sport 4) Psychopathic little sister 5) Set during WWII in Germany and narrated by Death
Not so into YA? Have some Australian Adult Fiction / Classics!
Covers = Goodreads
I haven’t read these, but they’re either on my TBR or I’ve heard great things!
Rapid Fire Descriptions (left-right): 1) Woman living in 20th century Australia refuses to marry 2) A woman in 1829 Iceland is set to be executed 3) A bunch of school girls disappear or did they? 4) Follows three generations of an Australian family in sheep country
Rapid Fire Descriptions (left-right): 5) Non Fiction about the Stolen Generation and three young Aboriginal girls who cross the Australian desert to return to their families 6) A woman and husband decide to keep a baby they find instead of reporting it 7) A man slaps a child that’s not his own 8) Set in 1940’s Perth about a family who are trying to recover from a disaster
There’s honestly so many more books I wish I could have mentioned because this is just scratching the surface.
Definitely check out some Goodreads lists!
And feel free to browse my Australian shelf on Goodreads.
wonderless reviews 
I’ll be adding some of these to my tbr i think, ive not heard of most of them so I’m up for some diversity in my shelf!
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Ooh, yay! I hope you enjoy them 😊
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Ahhhh I love this, thank you so much for sharing ❤ Especially because I didn't know any of these books, but now I'm glad I do. Shift sounds SO good, I might have to add it to my TBR…and Illuminae as well, I'm too curious not to ahah 🙂
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Thanks so much, Marie 😊 Thank you for creating such a wonderful feature! Ooh yes, I can’t recommend either of them enough. They’re totally different from each other, but both super fast paced and intense.
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I think it’s so cool that you’ve made an Australian book post. I know I haven’t been exposed to a lot of these but they look super interest!
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Aw, thank you!! I want to definitely make a part 2 once I read more because there’s so many I could have mentioned 😊
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You can’t stop gushing about Illuminae, can you. ;D
Such an awesome and informative post. I love your high priority TBR books. Very interesting and eclectic. Holding the Man sounds right up my alley, hehe. Also, I had forgotten that Markus Zusak was Australian. lol
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I have no idea what you’re talking about, Naz 😂 Haha, thanks! I’m super excited to read Holding the Man.
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You chose some really interesting books. I love Illuminae. I read Stolen and thought it was okay. I plan on picking up My Sister Rosa, I’ve heard so many amazing things but it comes out in November here in the US.
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Thank you 😊 Illuminae is everything. I feel like Stolen isn’t for everyone, but I loved it. I’m so excited to read My Sister Rosa.
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You and Illuminae, haha! 😀 Great post, I’ve just signed up to SFATW on Marie’s blog, hopefully I’m not too late! x
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I have no idea what you’re talking about 😂 Ooh, yay!! I look forward to seeing your post 😊
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Hahaha! Of course not! 😉 Haha I hope you enjoy it!
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I loved this idea for a post, a great addition to your SFATW introduction to your country post! 😀
I really enjoyed Illuminae as well, god I am so so excited for the second book because if it is anything like the first then I know I’m going to love it!
Also The Book Thief is so beautifully written and it’s an amazing story, I think you’ll really love it when you get around to it!
There are some others on this list I’ll definitely have to check out at some point as well! 🙂
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Thanks so much, Beth!! I’ll never get sick of talking about how much I love Illuminae 😂 I’m trying to go into Gemina as blind as possible, but everyone’s whose read ARCs have said it’s incredible and I want to read it so badly!! I think I’ll be reading The Book Thief for the Make Me Read It Readathon. If not it’s definitely high up on my TBR!
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I don’t think I will either! I’m the same, I haven’t heard anything about Gemina and I’ve been avoiding all reviews because I don’t want to know anything, I enjoy going into books blind and just being amazed reading the story for the first time, I dont want anything spoiled for me!
Definitely read it soon, honestly you won’t regret it, it’s such an amazing book! 😀
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Same!! I’ve been so worried I’m going to get accidentally spoiled for Gemina, haha. I will not be happy if that happens. Haha, I will!!
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Yeees for Stolen! I loved how intense and creepy it was.
Also I believe we’ve had this conversation before but heeey. I finally started The Book Thief some days ago but put it down to read This Savage Song, but I FINALLY STARTED. AND READ PAST THE FIRST CHAPTER.
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Stolen was amazing! I read it on a bus trip to Perth too so I was in the middle of nowhere and it really helped add to the atmosphere!
HAHAHA!!! Good job 😂😂
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OMG, I can imagine how it would add to the atmosphere! I read it in the comfort of my own bed, so it wasn’t as… creepy or real as it could’ve been. 😛
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The road house the bus stops at actually looks like a scene from a horror movie so that was a definitely fun experience after having read it 😂
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Ooo a lot of these sound great! I added a few to my TBR! 🙂 FANTASTIC post!!
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Ooh yay!!! I hope you enjoy them 😊
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These sound great! Have you read Graffiti Moon by Cath Crowley? It’s a great Australian YA novel
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Thanks!! Ooh yes. I haven’t read that one yet but it’s on my TBR 😊
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Amazing post! I had no idea The Book Thief’s author was Australian :O Or many of the other books’s authors either, actually. So many intriguing books here!
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Thanks 😊!! I only knew because my sister was obsessed with The Book Thief and Markus Zusak haha.
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These look amazing! I’ll be definitely adding some of these books to my TBR, I love finding more international authors to read from 🙂 The Book Thief and Stolen were both so amazing, I really enjoyed them as well ❤
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Aw, yay!!! If you decide to read any I hope you enjoy them 😊 Stolen is one of my all time favourites! I’m hoping to read The Book Thief really soon.
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You had such a great idea posting books set in your home country! Thanks for the suggestions 🙂 Stolen sounds amazing and the novel writer in me loves the idea of letter format but if you say I’m going to cry that probably means I’m going to bawl my eyes out XD
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Aw, thank you so much!! I definitely recommend Stolen. And haha, it does not take a lot to make me cry so I was bawling too. It was definitely worth it though 😂
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I really need to read Illuminae and The Sidekicks!
Also honestly I’m like total Gay Trash™ all of the time. I saw the cover of Holding the Man and without even knowing what it was my brain went like !!!!!!!!!! 😂
Night Games and My Sister Rosa are also on my wishlist! And I had no idea The Book Thief was Australian?!
And Burial Rites! How strange, I had no idea it was from Australia either. 😛
When I read ‘Picnic at Hanging Rock’ I thought it said Panic at the Disco lmao.
I love how mysterious all your short descriptions are. 😂😂😂
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YESSSS.
There’s a movie too!!!! I’m not sure how easy it is to find though because the whole Australian thing.
I actually didn’t know about Burial Rites either, haha. I saw it on a list when I was searching for some Adult Fiction and I was like “wait, what” but yeah Hannah Kent is Australian! I only knew about Markus Zusak because my sister was obsessed with The Book Thief when it was first released.
😂😂😂
Haha, thanks!!
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That’s so wild tho, an Australian book set in Iceland!
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Us wild Australians 😂😂😂
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Yeah you guys need to get a grip! 😂😂😂
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I just read Illuminae and love it! I’ll have to check out some more of these!
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Yay! That makes me so happy!! I hope you enjoy if you decide to check them out 😊
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OMG! The Thorn Birds!! Donna is my middle name. My mother loved the book and the TV adaptation so she chose Meggy as my first name! (Yep, she chose the nickname given by a priest who.. Not gonna spoil, but that’s a weird choice xD) I never see it mentioned, I’m so happy it’s very weird, haha!
I’ve read The Slap and it was one of my favorite book of the year. Don’t ask which year, I can’t remember xD I liked the US TV adaptation with Thomas Sadoski but I haven’t seen the Aussie one.
I’ll probably check them all out but I’ve already added Shift to my wishlist! Thank you! 🙂
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Ahh wow, that is SO COOL!! I should probably read the book because it’s like such an Australian classic.
Ooh, I didn’t even know there was a US version, haha. That’s also another one that I really need to read 😂
Yay!!! That’s one of my all time favourites. I hope you enjoy it whenever you get the chance to read it 😊
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Yes to Illuminae! I love that book so much. I also have Burial Rights on my TBR, it seems really interesting! I’m actually reading a book by an Australian author now, Captive Prince by C.S. Pacat, I’m really enjoying it so far! I’ve heard a lot of good things about it and so far it’s living up to the hype. 🙂
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Yes!! It’s so good. I’ve heard lots of great things about Burial Rites so fingers cross we both enjoy it. Ooh yeah, that’s on my TBR too! I’ve heard some mixed things so I’m glad you’re enjoying it.
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Ahhh! Thank you, thank you, thank you, for this post! I started Ellie Marney’s series last week and became obsessed with Aussie authors’ writings. I had only read Summer Skin, On Jellicoe Road and 2 books in the Rephaim series before last week, but I LOVED them. Anyways, I’m going through an Aussie YA phase and I have yet to read a bad book. I just finished Saving Francesca.
I’ve only heard of Cooper from your list and a friend was able to gift me a copy and I’m hoping to read it soon. I’m especially intrigued by Shift and Beautiful Malice.
Thanks again for sharing! 🙂
Nick @ Nick & Nereyda’s Infinite Booklist
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Aww, no worries!! I love helping share Australian books and authors. I’ve been meaning to read the Every series for so long! It sounds wonderful. I could have easily included a never ending TBR if I wasn’t trying to keep it as short as possible 😂 Ooh yay! Rebecca James is one of my favourite authors. I’m not that big on contemporaries, but she does them so brilliantly. I hope you enjoy it! Shift and Beautiful Malice are two of my all time favourites so I definitely recommend those.
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I absolutely LOVE all of Rebecca James’s books and I’m so glad to see them here as your favourites as well! Finally, someone who loves them all as much as I do! And of course, Illuminae. I have a copy of Shift by Em Bailey but your review really inspires me to pick it up! Lovely wrap up Lauren!
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Ahh, I’m so happy someone knows about Rebecca James!! Her books are my favourites especially Beautiful Malice. I really want her to write more books, haha. Shift is one of my favourites too. I hope you enjoy it when you read it 😊
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