Dianne Blacklock Interview

 The Blade Itself by Joe Abercrombie
Heroic fantasy in the modern style. A fantasy that is laced through with noirish elements, and excellent characterisations. First book of The First Law trilogy.

 Where Have You Been? by Wendy James
What happens when a sister returns after being missing, presumed dead, for twenty years? James enhances her reputation as one of Australia's rising literary novelists.

 Wyatt by Garry Disher
Disher's anti-hero is back after an absence of ten years with a gritty, fast, noirish struggle for survival. All the best aspects of Disher's work are on display here.

 

 Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld
A Young Adult steampunk novel set at the start of an alternate history First World War. Fast-paced, intriguing and totally captivating.

 

 Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick
Dick's novel of the near future when the difference between human and android is barely discernible. One of the great all-time sf titles.

 

 American Journeys by Don Watson
Watson journeys into the heart of America, by train and car. There he discovers the best, and the worst, of humanity and society.

 

 Ghostlines by Nick Gadd
2009 Best First Novel at the Ned Kelly Awards. Murder in the art world involving political intrigue and business corruption in Melbourne.

 

 In It to Win It: The Australian Cricket Supremacy by Peter Roebuck
Roebuck's examination of the rise of Australian cricket post-1987. Some flashes of wonderful insight interspersed with long documentary reportage.

 

 Things We Didn't See Coming by Steven Amsterdam
2009 Age Book of the Year. A post-apocalyptic vision of a country (Australia?) in decline, as seen through the eyes of one man. Told in a series of semi-connected short stories.

 

 Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game by Michael Lewis
Lewis's intriguing look into what makes a good baseball team. It's essentially about sport but should also be read from a people/project management perspective. Fascinating stuff.

 

 Against the Machine: Being Human in the Age of the Electronic Mob by Lee Siegel
Reads like a polemic against the dangers of the internet, but with little in the way of guidance towards the second part of the title.

 

 Blood Moon by Garry Disher
The fifth of Garry Disher's Challis and Destry series set on the Mornington peninsular. A brutal bashing turns political. But is it related to the murder of a local environment protection officer?

 

 Replay by Ken Grimwood
World Fantasy Award winner from 1988. Grimwood's intriguing novel about a man who relives his life over and over. A modern fantasy classic which most readers would not recognise as such.

 

 The Tango Briefing by Adam Hall
The fifth of Adam Hall's Quiller series from 1973 and probably about his best. More physical than McCarry.

 

 The Tears of Autumn by Charles McCarry
McCarry's masterful spy thriller from 1974. Paul Christopher investigates the asssassination of John F Kennedy.