After a bit of post-Twilight cultural fatigue, it's safe to say that vampires are now back with a vengance. In movies, TV and books, the number of vampires have been steadily growing; but if you're not sure where to start, or need help separating the romantic from the gory, I am here to help! Whether you prefer your vampires to be murderous, plotting for power, or secretly kind of sweet, I've got a book recommendation that will hit the…

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During the month of October our Readings bookseller and resident horror fiction aficionado, Joe Murray, is sharing his picks for the very best horror short fiction to get you in the mood for Halloween. You might have seen his recommendations on our socials during the month, but here's part one of his in-depth round up of why you need to read these masterful works of horror.

In these tales, horror comes from the strange, frayed edges of the normal world…

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I personally think the season of the witch is 365 days a year, but if you're less fanatical, October is a great season to get into the spooky and magical, and discover the joys of witch lit!

Witches are a versatile fantasy figure that pop up across everything from kid's picture books to horror stories, so here are my recommendations to help you find the right place to start, or discover the genre niche that's right for you.

For the…

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Our team at the State Library Victoria shop, also known as SLV, have some great recommendations for your next read! You can always get expert advice on your TBR by visiting the shop in the State Library and asking our lovely booksellers, but in the meantime here's a curated guide to some of the their favourite titles.

📖Fiction

Holly recommends:

Foster by Claire Keegan

'All of Keegan's books are brilliantly written, with not a word outside of necessity. Foster…

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September is traditionally one of the biggest months for exciting new releases and this year is no exception. Unsurprisingly one of 2024's most anticipated books, Sally Rooney's Intermezzo – an exquisitely moving story about grief, love and family – went straight to number one after less than a week of sales.

There are so many highlights this month it's tempting to mention them all, however we think the list below speaks for itself. From Australian and international literary icons to…

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The Nobel Prize in Literature 2024 has been awarded to the South Korean author Han Kang, 'for her intense poetic prose that confronts historical traumas and exposes the fragility of human life'.

In her oeuvre, Han Kang confronts historical traumas and invisible sets of rules and, in each of her works, exposes the fragility of human life. She has a unique awareness of the connections between body and soul, the living and the dead, and has become an innovator in…

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With Love Your Bookshop Day around the corner on Saturday 12 October, we want to spread the love for all things bookish. So here's a stack of recommended titles for your perusal that are full of the wonder, joy and exploration offered by a good bookshop! From titles for kids, to imaginative genre stories and grounding nonfiction – no matter the tastes of the reader, there's a book out there to capture their love of books.

To teach little ones…

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This month we're reading fiction translated from: Spanish, Italian, Swedish, French, Norwegian, Japanese, Polish and Korean.

The Last Dream by Pedro Almodovar (translated from Spanish by Frank Wynne)

The Last Dream brings together for the first time twelve unpublished stories from Almodovar's personal archive, written between the late sixties and the present day. Both a tantalising glimpse into Almodovar's creative mind and a masterclass in how to tell a story, this intimate and mischievous collection reflects Almodovar's obsessions and many…

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Looking for something juicy to discuss in your book club? Try one of these new releases, chosen by our booksellers to appeal to a wide range of readers and provide plenty to talk about.

Australian fiction

Juice by Tim Winton

Two fugitives, a man and a child, drive all night across a stony desert. As dawn breaks, they roll into an abandoned mine site. From the vehicle they survey a forsaken place – middens of twisted iron, rusty wire, piles…

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Monumenta by Lara Haworth

Olga Pavic’s house has been requisitioned. Her home will become a monument to a massacre. But Olga cannot ascertain which massacre. Three different architects visit, each with a proposal to construct a different monument, to memorialise a different horror. Olga can’t allow them to unearth the secrets held in this space, not until she reunites with her children for a final dinner. Her aspirational, distant daughter, Hilde, and her secretly queer son, Danilo, both reluctantly agree…

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