In Amber’s Wake
Christine Leunens
Bateman Books
RRP $34.99
Set in New Zealand during the fast-changing, tumultuous 1980s era of the anti-nuclear movement, Springbok rugby tour protests and the bombing of the Rainbow Warrior, this book is a powerful and passionate novel that shows the staggering lengths some people will go to for those they love. Film student Ethan Grieg is in love with his close friend, environmental activist Amber Deering. Amber loves Ethan dearly, but not in the same way; her heart is set on widower Stuart Reeds, a charming, refined British investor almost two decades Amber’s senior. And so begins a long, subtle war between Stuart and his young rival – but when family secrets become exposed and nothing is as it seems, each is cornered into committing acts they could never have predicted. The film adaptation of In Amber’s Wake is currently in advance development with a US production company.
Today A Woman Went Mad In The Supermarket
Hilma Wolitzer
Bloomsbury
RRP $32.99
Another day… and than another, and another, and another. It seemed as if it would all go on forever in that exquisitely boring and beautiful way. But of course it wouldn’t; everyone knows that. In this collection, Hilma Wolitzer invites us inside the private world of domestic bliss, seen mostly through the lens of Paulie and Howard’s gloriously ordinary marriage. From hasty weddings to meddlesome neighbours, ex-wives who just won’t leave, to sleepless nights spent worrying about unanswered chainmail, this book captures the tensions, contradictions and unexpected detours of daily life with wit, candour and an acutely observant eye. The book includes stories first published in magazines from the 1960s and 70s, as well as new writing from Wolitzer, now in her nineties. Witty and electric, this is a fascinating time capsule of womanhood over the past century.
The Water’s Dead
Catherine Lea
Nationwide Book Distributors
RRP $34.95
Meet DI Nyree Bradshaw. For 25 years, Nyree thought she’d solved her toughest cases. She was wrong. The chin tattoo confirms the victim is Māori. The whorls of ink from her lower lip to her chin – the moko – is worn only by Māori women. So ethnicity is a given. Finding out who murdered her and dumped her in the volcanic rock pool at the base of Mason’s Rock is DI Nyree Bradshaw’s latest problem. From the strangely unsympathetic parents to the belligerent boyfriend on home detention, it seems everyone has something to hide; no-one is telling the truth. Then Nyree discovers six-year-old diabetic Lily Holmes is missing, last seen in the victim’s care. Now Nyree must find the killer to save Lily. The Water’s Dead is the first in the DI Nyree Bradshaw series by Catherine Lea, author of the popular Elizabeth McClaine series.
The Anomaly
Herve Le Tellier
Penguin Random House
RRP $37
When Air France flight 006 departed from Paris, the route to New York was just as it had always been. The skies were clear; the passengers were safe. Everything was going to plan. Until the event that would change everything. Amid terrifying turbulence, the plane was somehow doubled. For every one person on board that day, there were now two. A double with the same mind, the same body and the same memories. When it’s time for the doubles to meet, they must confront their extraordinary fate, and only one thing is certain: life as they know it will never be the same. The Anomaly has sold over a million copies worldwide, and was the winner of France’s most prestigious prize, the Prix Goncourt.
The Shadow Broker
Tina Clough
Lightpool Publishing
RRP $35
Does the Kill List exist? And if it does, how would you know if you were on it? The latest thrilling read from Napier-based crime writer Tina Clough is based in 2026, in a climate of curtailed individual freedoms and with state surveillance everywhere. Coded messages on a found burner phone, top-level government corruption, and a shadowy mastermind who calls himself The Broker… Three unlikely friends start quietly looking for connections, setting in motion a deadly game of hide and seek that will change their lives forever. Sometimes, trying to uncover the truth means risking your life – and nothing is more dangerous than searching for evidence of government corruption.
Sh*t Towns Of New Zealand: The Great Kiwi Tiki Tour
Rick Furphy & Geoff Rissole
Allen & Unwin
RRP $24.99
The two self-appointed ‘experts’ on sociology, travel and culture are back! After the success of the original ‘Sh*t Holidays’ Facebook page, and ‘Sh*t Towns of New Zealand’ book (that led to the authors going into hiding after receiving death threats), the boys have come up with the next book in this hilariously tongue-in-cheek guide to your next New Zealand road trip. Each road trip includes a handy map, as well as in-depth coverage of classic Kiwi attractions and events, Furphy and Rissole-style. From the world’s creepiest Santa to the country’s most famous toilet, this guide takes you through some of Aotearoa’s favourite, weirdest and remarkably unremarkable places. This is a book for those who enjoy self-deprecating humour; despite one district mayor suggesting the authors ‘should be shot’, it’s great for a giggle – and it might even help you decide where to travel to next.
Be in to win!
We have one copy of The Shadow Broker and one copy of Sh*t Towns Of New Zealand: The Great Kiwi Tiki Tour to give away. To be in to win, message us on Facebook, let us know which book you’d like, and tell us about your favourite New Zealand town. We’ll draw the winners on 18 February 2022.
