Get ready to meet our 2024 Books of the Year Shortlist!
From gripping fiction and insightful non-fiction to vibrant children’s books, our team of experts has watched the trends closely and selected 15 incredible titles across three categories, and we are delighted to share them with you!
We can guarantee you will ADORE these stories! The winners will be announced on the 1st of November…
Keep reading to dive into the synopsis of each shortlisted title!
FICTION
This fantastic story follows Evie Cormac and Cyrus Haven. The most painful of Evie’s memories have been locked away. Now, Cyrus – a forensic psychologist – is on a mission to guide her to something near normality. When seventeen bodies wash up in front of them on the beach, Evie’s nightmares come roaring back…
An exquisitely moving story about grief, love, and family, from the global phenomenon Sally Rooney. Aside from the fact that they are brothers, Peter and Ivan Koubek seem to have little in common. Both are dealing with the death of their father in their separate ways. For two grieving brothers and the people they love, this is a new interlude – a period of desire, despair, and possibility – a chance to find out how much one life might hold inside itself without breaking…
Blue Sisters tells the story of three exceptional – and exceptionally different – sisters as they return to their family home in New York from their respective lives in Paris, London and LA in the wake of the death of their beloved fourth sister.
Steve Wheeler is retired and enjoying a quiet life. His daughter-in-law, Amy, seeks adrenaline regularly in her day-to-day life. Amy is keeping internationally famous author Rosie D’Antonio alive on a private island. However, trouble is afoot and there is a killer out there plotting Rosie’s demise. Amy turns to the only person she trusts. But can Steve and Amy stay ahead of this deadly enemy?
When human remains are discovered in the forests of regional Victoria, the police are baffled, the locals are shocked, and one group of old friends starts to panic. Their long-held secret is about to be uncovered. It all began in 1999 when sixteen-year-old Aaron ran away from home, dragging his friends into an unforeseeable chain of events that no one escaped unscathed…
NON-FICTION
Part One of a Two-Part Memoir from the Iconic artist and actor, Cher will be hitting our shelves this November.
The extraordinary life of Cher can be told by only one person . . . Cher herself. After more than seventy years of fighting to live her life on her terms, Cher finally reveals her true story in intimate detail…
Throughout a lifetime filled with the highest of highs and the lowest of lows, John has remained steadfast, never losing his unique musical talent, creative strength, and his powerful ability to make human connections through his music. The Voice Inside is like sitting down with an old friend and sharing stories that are both deeply personal and wildly entertaining.
Troy has fallen. After 10 years of war, the Greeks make their way back to their own lands – but what homes now await them? Agamemnon must return to his wife Clytemnestra, who has been nursing her rage since he sacrificed their daughter to the gods for a favourable wind. Her revenge will know no bounds.
Meanwhile, Odysseus has angered the god Poseidon and he is cursed to wander the seas, facing angry monsters and possessive demi-gods as he attempts to return to Ithaca and his patient, clever wife Penelope.
Australia’s favourite home cook, Nagi Maehashi, is back to solve the perennial problem of what’s for dinner tonight … and every night.
With a stunning photo and link to a how-to video for each recipe – and plenty of guest appearances from Australia’s most loved golden retriever, Dozer! – this is a book for every Australian kitchen, for every level of cooking ability, for every budget, for every set of taste buds, and for every single night of the week.
Kasey Chambers is serving up some honest and hilarious truths in her heart-warming new memoir and our October book of the month, “Just Don’t Be A Dickhead”.
This memoir is brimming with whirlwind stories from Kasey’s extraordinary life such as her childhood in the Outback, her chart-topping international success as a musician, and rock-solid life advice.
CHILDREN’S FICTION
Oliver Wormwood is sure his new job in the library will be boring. Until he learns that books hold great power – and danger.
By the end of his first day, Oliver has witnessed a death, been frozen by a book, met a perplexing number of cats, and fought off a horde of terrifying creatures.
With only a mysterious girl called Agatha to show him the ropes, Oliver needs to learn fast . . . if he wants to live longer than the 112 assistant librarians before him.
Discover the bravery inside you in a magical Robin Hood reimagining from author, comedian and actor Ben Miller.
Lonely at school, Charlie prefers to escape into a world of books. But when she finds herself on the other side of the library in a place of outlaws, queens and knights, she is welcomed as the hero who will save the forest from the dastardly sheriff. Learning to use a bow and arrow and stand up against the bullies is harder than it looks, but there might just be some friends to help her with her quest . . .
Meet Thunderhead: awkward, music-obsessed and a magnet for bad luck. Their favourite things in life are listening to records and hanging out with their best (and only) friend Moonflower. But Thunderhead has a big secret. And when Moonflower moves schools, they’re faced with the reality of surviving the wilderness of high school alone. Make new friends? NOTHANKYOUVERYMUCH. As two big life events approach, Thunderhead posts playlists and heartfelt diary entries as an outlet to try to make sense of their changing world, to try to calm the storm brewing in their brain and to try to find the courage to unfurl their heart.
Mr. Wolf. Mr. Shark. Mr. Snake. Mr. Piranha. They’re bad guys, everybody knows that. They’re scary and dangerous and well…just BAD. But these guys want to be heroes. And they’re going to prove it by doing good deeds…like rescuing those dogs from the city pound. Will the Bad Guys become the Good Guys when the dust settles?
Zeke and Daniel have just been made hall monitors by Principal Wombat. This has nothing to do with the fact that they are monitor lizards. And never mind the fact Alicia, the only other monitor lizard in the school, is also a hall monitor.
Somehow, the three hall monitors must impose order on a mix-match group of rowdy animals and simultaneously survive school!
You can find all of these glorious books in your local QBD store or online now. Let us know which one is your favourite! Keep your eyes peeled on our social media for the announcement of the winners on November 1st!
