Fiction Archives

The Booktopia Book Guru asks Elizabeth Pulford author of Broken, Blackthorn, Tussock and more Ten Terrifying Questions ——————————- 1. To begin with why don’t you tell us a little bit about yourself – where were you born? Raised? Schooled? I was born in a very small town in Ontario, Canada called Grimsby.  After my father died, my... Read more

The Orange Prize for Fiction Shortlist 2012 Esi Edugyan – Half Blood Blues This is a new part of an old story: 1930s Berlin, the threat of imprisonment and the powerful desire to make something beautiful despite the horror. Chip told us not to go out. Said, don’t you boys tempt the devil. But it been one brawl of a night, I tell you. The aftermath of the fall of Paris, 1940. Hierony... Read more

I have been selling master storyteller Stephen King‘s The Dark Tower all of my book selling life. Its reputation in the genre is unmatched. The release of a new book in this series is an event. Here is a word about the book from the UK publisher: “For readers new to Stephen King’s epic 7-volume fantasy masterpiece The Dark Tower, The Wind Through the Keyhole is a stand-alone n... Read more

The Booktopia Book Guru asks Chris McCourt author of The Cleansing of Mahommed Ten Terrifying Questions  —————————– 1. To begin with why don’t you tell us a little bit about yourself – where were you born? Raised? Schooled? I was born in Sydney, in Lakemba, which was a very different, very white bread Lakemba back in those days. ... Read more

From where I sit the 2012 Miles Franklin Literature Award longlist seems right. The names I expected to see are listed, Elliot Perlman, Kate Grenville, Gail Jones, Alex Miller, as are some of the names I hoped to see, Charlotte Wood, Charlotte Wood and Charlotte Wood. There are a few disastrous exclusions,  though. The Life by Malcolm Knox, for one. Kylie Ladd’s Last Summer, is another. A... Read more

Happy 40th anniversary Picador. To celebrate, we have a great prize for one lucky Booktopia customer. Win the full 40th anniversary Picador collection  worth $315.00 The winner will be chosen from the customers who buy books from this collection before April 1st 2012. Click here to view the entire Picador 40th Anniversary Collection We also have 35 of Picador’s iconic tote bags to give aw... Read more

What follows is an exploration of fatherhood, of self, of loyalty, of obligation, of identity and perhaps, of the limits of unconditional love. There are wonderful insights into family, into connection and disconnection, and what it is like to watch someone decide to simply slip away from their moorings. Read more

In Memoirs of an Imaginary Friend, Green has done something quite remarkable. He has written a tense psychological thriller and at the same time, a warm and moving story about life, death, love, loyalty and destiny. Read more

The Booktopia Book Guru asks M. J. Rose author of The Book of Lost Fragrances Ten Terrifying Questions ——————————– 1. To begin with why don’t you tell us a little bit about yourself – where were you born? Raised? Schooled? I was born in New York City – on the upper east side – and raised there. In the shadow of the Metropolitan Museum of Art and Central Park. I went to an all girl school ... Read more

This is a particularly sensual novel, and in that respect, it fits very well into that bush setting. The reader feels the ooze of the soil under hoof, smells the diesel of the red Fergy in the shed, hears the plop of the milk in the pail. And when it comes to longings of a more human kind, Tiffany's sparse and unsentimental style is both deft and poetic. Read more