Great Reads
Pick a book, put your feet up and forget about school ...
The best way to de-stress after a busy term
Jack West Jr Series, by Matthew Reilly
Indiana Jones style treasure hunting, with a hint of Batman (kapow, biff, wham!) It may not be great literature, but it will certainly entertain you.
The Secret Life of James Cook, by Graeme Lay
"From the quarterdeck James watched the shoreline recede. This was it, this was the culmination of all he had worked towards, the chance to claim new lands for king and country." Fictional account of Cook's early life, his marriage to Elizabeth and stormy relationship with Joseph Banks. (NZ novel)
The Turning, by Tim Winton
Seventeen overlapping stories of second thoughts and mid-life regrets, set in Western Australia. Self-perception, sudden detours, slow awakenings and nasty surprises abound. The Turning is the largest selling collection of stories from Australia, now a film starring Cate Blanchett, Rose Byrne and Hugo Weaving.
Golden Boy, by Abigail Tarttelin
Max Walker is a golden boy. Attractive, intelligent, and athletic, he's the perfect son, the perfect friend, and the perfect crush for the girls in his school. Max is special. Max is different. Max is intersex. He is forced to consider the nature of his well-kept secret. Why won't his parents talk about it? What else are they hiding from Max about his condition? The deeper Max goes, the more questions emerge about where it all leaves him and what his future holds.
Misspent Youth, by Peter Hamilton
40 years into the future, and following decades of research and trillions of Euro's spent on genetics, Europe rejuvenates the first human being. After 18 months in a medical facility, Jeff Baker aged 78 yr's, emerges as a 20 year old. But life isn't going to be that simple for him and his family, especially when Jeff and his son compete for the same girls. The only reason Europe has paid for his treatment is because they now want their pound of flesh from him.
Nexus, by Ramez Naam
An experimental but illicit drug Nexus, can cause humans to mind-link. There are some who want to improve it, some who want to eradicate it and some who want to exploit it. A young scientist gets caught developing it and is manipulated into a world of international espionage.
An exciting, speculative vision of the future, that seems horrifyingly plausible!
The prey, by Tony Park
If you've read Tony Park before, then you know what to expect! High drama in Kruger National Park where the stakes are high - illegal mining, fear, torture and death. When on of Cameron McMurties's engineers is taken hostage, he doesn't hesitate to mastermind a dramatic rescue. But corporate interference forces him into a deadly battle, one which he may not survive.
The Conqueror series by Conn Iggulden
A young boy abandoned without a tribe on the harsh Mongolian plains, faced certain death. Hunted and alone, he dreamed of revenge against his enemies. In time, he would unite the great tribes, forming one nation under the sky. He would be the father to that nation. He would be Genghis Khan. Book 1 - Wolf of the Plains, begins the epic story of the Khan Dynasty.
The Long Earth, by Terry Pratchett & Stephen Baxter
This is science fiction rather than farce, involving Inter-dimensional travel, using a simple device called a 'Stepper'. Once the plans for the Stepper go viral, people leave Earth in droves, in search of colonial wealth and pillage not seen for millennia. Baxter and Pratchett are both well loved and respected authors who've teamed up for the start of a new series.