Recently arrived fiction from Aotearoa New Zealand
Letters from Another Galaxy by Steven Radich
Prepare for an out-of-this-world experience in Letters from Another Galaxy. When toolmakers from an outer cluster of the Milky Way Galaxy arrive on Earth, they’re in for a surprise. Instead of the aggressive, sex-addicted species they expected to find, they encounter humans with complex emotions and desires. The Messianic aliens are on a mission to convert humanity, while the Bruin capture humans for genetic experiments and keep them as pets. But why do these alien species resemble monkeys?
Letters from Another Galaxy is a gripping, thought-provoking novel that challenges our assumptions about extraterrestrial life and what it means to be human in a vast, mysterious universe.
A Secret Never to be Told by Lynn John
A chance encounter between Welsh opera singer Lynn John and conductor Eliano Mattiozzi sparked a captivating historical mystery. During rehearsals for Verdi's "Il Trovatore," Eliano dropped a bombshell: he believed that Mozart faked his death in 1791. Lynn, intrigued, acknowledged potential motives – debt, secret societies, affairs – but doubted Mozart's silence. "He'd have composed," she countered. Eliano's next statement floored her: "He did, but through Rossini."
Driven by this audacious claim, Lynn spent two years delving into Eliano's theory. Sadly, his untimely death left the puzzle incomplete. This book explores this scenario with the ultimate conclusion resting with the reader. Do you believe Mozart lived on through Rossini's music?
The Vanishing Point by Andrea Hotere
In 1656, Diego Velázquez painted Las Meninas, a captivating enigma. The painting captured the Spanish court under King Philip IV and his wife Mariana. Central to the scene is the Infanta Margarita, Philip's curious five-year-old daughter, surrounded by her ladies-in-waiting, dwarfs, and guards.
Hotere's story transports us to the heart of the Alcazar, weaving a tapestry of lives: the sheltered Infanta, the observant painter Velázquez, and the drama-filled court shaped by both fervent religious devotion and hidden corruption in the shadow of the Spanish Inquisition. It weaves a richly described historical mystery with supernatural elements that add a touch of intrigue, while the protagonist's pursuit of the truth becomes a fast-paced thrill ride. The result is a deeply satisfying and thoroughly enjoyable read.
Checkerboard Hill by Jade Kake (Ngāpuhi, Te Arawa, Whakatōhea)
When a family member dies in Australia, Ria flies from New Zealand and returns to the family and home in Australia she suddenly left decades before as a teenager. Waiting for her return are her husband and son in New Zealand. Neither family has met the other, and Ria has always kept her Māori, Australian, New Zealand identities and lives separate.
But the family tensions, unfinished arguments, connections to places and meeting of former friends, lead Ria to revisit her memories and reflect on the social and cultural tensions and racism she experienced, and the decisions she made.
From the red soil of her garden in Southgate 1, a crowded suburb of Harare, Nyeredzi watches the world. She knows not to venture beyond the grasses that fence them off from the bush, where the city's violent criminals and young lovers claim the night. But on this red soil, she is sovereign. It is here where she learns how to kill snakes, how to fight off a man, and how to take what she is due. It is here where Nyeredzi and her three older sisters are raised, and where they will each find a different destiny.
Decades prior, a young woman abandons a position of great power to seek justice in the second Chimurenga War, only to return to find her world in shambles. So Zuva Mutongi sets off to build a world of her own, raising four daughters--Nyeredzi, Hannah, Abigail, and Ruth--and defending them from the evils beyond their small Harare home. But when a letter from her long-estranged brother calls her back to a past life, Zuva must reconcile with her duty and heal the broken community she left behind.
Nightshades and Paperwhites by Sophie Rogers
The gold rush fever has subsided, leaving Alexandra a faded shadow of its former glory. Dreams, like the gold itself, have also dwindled for Ginny Doyle, a talented young painter. A flicker of hope arrives with a new wave of immigrants – Chinese miners reworking the abandoned claims. Curiosity pulls Ginny towards their riverside camp, where she encounters Deming Yang, both translator and miner. Days melt into vibrant paintings and endless conversations with Deming, but Alexandra simmers beneath a deceptive calm. A cryptic murder, a baffling illness, a devastating fire at the Chinese boarding house – each incident a smoldering ember threatening to erupt, while a dark family secret lurks in the shadows, wielding the power to shatter everything Ginny holds dear.
The Space Between by Lauren Keenan (Te Āti Awa ki Taranaki)
Frances is an unmarried Londoner newly landed in New Zealand, 1860, at the dawn of the First Taranaki War. Once well-regarded, her family's fall from grace sees them struggling to learn the strange etiquette of settler life.
When Frances comes face-to-face with Henry White, the man who jilted her a decade earlier, he's standing outside Thorpe's General Store with a sack of flour in his arms. Henry is married now - to the proud and hardy Mataria, who is shunned by her whanau due to this controversial marriage.
As conflict between settlers and iwi rises, both women must find the courage to fight for what is right, even if it costs them everything they know.
Accidental Magic by Iris Beaglehole
Rosemary Thorn and her daughter, Athena, face more than just teenage angst after Granny Thorn's mysterious demise. Whispers of inheritance battles draw Rosemary back to the crumbling Thorn Manor, a house harboring more than peeling paint and dusty memories. As magic stirs, mother and daughter find themselves embroiled in a whirlwind of adventure, and murder. Can they clear Rosemary's name, solve the tangled web of secrets, and survive the perils swirling around them? Myrtlewood beckons, promising a delightful brew of cozy charm and thrilling mystery. This first book in the series is a delightful blend of found family, cosy magic and a murder mystery bya Kiwi author!
