My Books

Cover of novel titled Keeper of the Way, building in flames

cover of novel A Single Light, woman screaming

cover of novel, The Ouroboros Key, raven in flight at mouth of cave

Two book covers. Cover on left shows Book cover shows a bookshelf holding books and various other items plus a plant on the shelves plus title and author text. Cover on right shows green background with gold embossed stylised tree and illustrated hare at base of tree plus title and author text

Reading Recommendations - January 2026 wrap up

Another month of great reading! Here are my January recommendations: The Story Collector by Evie Woods and By Her Hand by Marion Taffe.

Book Reviews

56 minutes ago

Woman with short white hair and blue reading glasses holding up a blue covered book in front of a large window. Inside the room are shelves of books. Outside the room are castles and trees.

Why historical fiction matters

Historical fiction bridges past and present, geographic borders, and gender divides in a way that reaches readers outside of educational institutions. A textbook just doesn’t provide as much “experience” and emotional depth as a well-written historical novel.

On Reading

1 hour ago

On left is grainy black and white image of an engraving after drawing of a sailing ship stuck in ice with its crew working on the ice surface in front of it digging holes and cutting blocks of ice. The image on the right is a colour oil painting from 1846 of a sailing ship on rough seas and surrounded by icebergs. The crew are working on the ice flow in the foreground with smaller boats.

A doomed journey. A terror on the ice. Review of The Terror by Dan Simmons

A review of The Terror by Dan Simmons. An epic story about a failed Arctic expedition to find the Northwest Passage.

Book Reviews

Jan 6

Reading Recommendations - November recap

Join me for another great month of reading. My Reading Recommendations - November recap features reviews of The Lost Apothecary by Sarah Penner, The Winter People by Jennifer McMahon, Three Daughters of Eve by Elif Shafak, and The Price of Loyalty by Malve von Hassell.

Book Reviews

Dec 2, 2025

Christmas Shopping Book Lists

🎄Christmas Shopping Book Lists 🛍️ Over on Facebook and Instagram , I've started a special Christmas Shopping series with links to trending books this Christmas season. Problem is, can't share the links to all the lists on Instagram. So, here is the whole collection. My Books Bookriot’s “best books of 2025” Booktopia’s “What’s hot in Fantasy Fiction” Bookshop.org Book of the Month Waterstones "Best selling Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Books Dymocks "Top 101" Happy shop

Dec 1, 2025

Four book covers. Left to right: The Lost bookshop cover depicts four shelves of a bookcase with a miniature yellow house tucked in between books on the shelf 2nd from top. around the books are vines with green and yellow leaves. The Lost boy cover is a cream background with silhouettes of a boy, a hook and a smaller figure sitting on top of the hook. Veil cover background is dark and moody woods with a ghostly bride in the foreground. The Lepers Garden cover is a light blue background with a red rose through the title and illustrated roses in four corners.

October Reading Recommendations

October was another great month of reading! Love the work of authors, Evie Woods, Christina Henry, and Jeff Clulow!

Book Reviews

Nov 10, 2025

Unleashing Creativity at the History Unbound Historical Novel Writing Festival

Last weekend was the 10th anniversary of Historical Novel Society Australasia’s biennial conference, History Unbound, so I packed my bags and headed to Sydney for the Sunday program.

Conferences and Festivals

Nov 5, 2025

Artificial intelligence in android figure filled with sparkling lights. Figure is writing with a candle on the desk beside them. Night sky with stars in background.

Final Thoughts on the Intersection of AI and Literature

Final Thoughts on the Intersection of AI and Literature: fourth and final in a series on the impact of artificial intelligence on literature and reading. I requested an article on this topic through WIX AI post creator and am pulling it apart one sub-heading at a time.

On Writing

Oct 19, 2025