the australian book reviews 2022

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Books of the Year 2022

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Kieran Pender

For progressive Australians, 2022 was a year of optimism. But in these turbulent times, there is much work to be done to translate that hope into concrete reform that makes Australia a better place. My book of the year, Ben Schneiders’ Hard Labour: Wage theft in the age of inequality (Scribe), was a powerful reminder of the inequalities at the heart of Australian society. Schneiders, an investigative journalist, has broken most of the major wage-theft stories in Australia over the past decade, revealing hundreds of billions in unpaid wages by major companies. Hard Labour , his book-length account of that reporting, explains the frailties in our industrial system that permit such widescale exploitation and offers suggestions for reform. Dreamers and Schemers: A political history of Australia  (La Trobe University Press, r eviewed in the November 2022 issue of ABR ), by Frank Bongiorno, promises to become the definitive Australian political history. Essential summer reading.

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From the New Issue

The Revolutionary Temper: Paris, 1748-1789 by Robert Darnton

Crimes of the Cross: The Anglican paedophile network of Newcastle, its protectors and the man who fought for justice by Anne Manne

The End of the Morning by Charmian Clift

Appreciation by Liam Pieper

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The Best Books of the Year: 2022

• December 19, 2022
• A.G. Slatter
• Allen and Unwin
• Benjamin Stevenson
• Bonnie Garmus
• Chris Flynn
• Echo Publishing
• Hachette Australia
• HarperCollins Australia
• Holden Sheppard
• Juno Dawson
• katherine j. chen
• Lars Mytting
• Penguin Australia
• Profile Books
• Shehan Karunatilka
• Simon and Schuster Australia
• Steven Rowley
• Sue Lynn Tan
• Text Publishing
• Titan Books
• Vanessa Len

2022 has been a great year for settling in with a good book and escaping the world outside. We’ve reached that part of the year where we all start agonising over our ‘lists’   –best albums, best films, and of course best books.  

We in the Books team have looked back over the year’s releases and compiled a list of our favourite reads; the books we think are the best. With books set across Norway, Sri Lankan, Australia and more, these are the books that have transported us, and helped us escape the everyday.  

It’s by no means an exhaustive list. But, here, in no particular order, are the thirteen books that caught our eye this year and stuck with us…

Here Be Leviathans – Chris Flynn

Simon: It’s been two years since Mammoth made our end of year list, and Chris Flynn is back. This time with his short story collection  Here Be Leviathans . It’s simply a joy of a collection; overflowing with imagination, humour and heart. Fresh from bringing mammoth skeletons to life, here Flynn treats us to stories narrated by grizzly bears, snarky artistic platypuses, as well as rundown motel rooms and plane seats. This collection will make you laugh, make you think, and maybe even cry – sometimes all in the same short story. At this point Flynn can pretty much take my money – I’m already looking forward to seeing what he comes up with next. (UQP Books)

Read our full review HERE | Buy a copy HERE

Lessons in Chemistry – Bonnie Garmus

Emily: Bonnie Garmus ’ debut novel Lessons in Chemistry has dominated the bestseller lists this year. A genre-defying novel about sexism, feminism, love, science and cooking, the intrepid heroine, Elizabeth Zott, has charmed her way onto bookshelves the world over (and will also soon charm her way onto television screens in the guise of Brie Larsen.) This book made me laugh, it made me cry—it is a shining example of everything a book should be and for this reason it’s my number one book of the year! (Penguin Australia)

Buy a copy HERE

Only a Monster – Vanessa Len

Jess: I genuinely don’t understand how there is not more hype about this book! I knew as soon as I put it down that it was going to be my favourite book of the year and despite being open to everything that came my way, nothing else has piqued it. I LOVED this book so much. It was fast-paced and dark, with amazing characters and an awesome concept. I am still dying for the second book in the trilogy: Never a Hero . I am watching Len’s Instagram like a hawk for the release date! (Allen & Unwin)

Read our full review HERE  | Buy a copy HERE

Everyone In My Family Has Killed Someone – Benjamin Stevenson

Jemimah: One of the most enjoyable books I read in 2022 was Benjamin Stevenson ‘s Everyone In My Family Has Killed Someone . It’s an Agatha Christie-style whodunnit about a dysfunctional family stuck in an Australian ski resort. The action is narrated by Ernest, a member of said dysfunctional family, who is himself a writer of how-to guides on crime writing. The story is humorous and engaging, the mystery clever and well-constructed, and the characters highly flawed and quite endearing. An excellent and unique holiday read if you like mysteries, black comedies, and stories of dysfunctional families! (Penguin Australia)

The Guncle – Steven Rowley

Lyn: Steven Rowley ’s The Guncle is a great read; it’s funny, with loads of feel-good moments. It’s a novel that is full of charm, love, and quirky characters who are full of sass and heart. It made me laugh, smile and cry. From the rat race of Hollywood to the dripping sweat of Palm Springs, The Guncle will take you on an adventure that has unexpected moments. I look forward to watching the (eventual) movie! (Simon & Schuster Australia)

The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida – Shehan Karunatilaka

Simon: The Seven Moons of Maali Almeida is the second novel from Sri Lankan rockstar author Shehan Karunatilaka . The novel, which won this year’s Booker Prize, is a darkly humorous satire set amongst the Sri Lankan civil war. Something of a metaphysical whodunit, I found this novel to be an utterly compelling (and educational) romp with a chaotic cast of characters. At times confronting and challenging, any novel with death squads and dismembered bodies is going to be, it is also full of humour, love and most importantly life. (Profile Books)

Joan – Katherine J. Chen

Emily: Katherine J. Chen ’s Joan , is a fictionalisation of the life of Joan of Arc. The book imagines much of the mythologised figure’s life in a way that gives her back some of her agency. It is a masterful novel, and comes endorsed by the late, great Hilary Mantel. This is a book for history lovers. It examines how people become symbols, and the danger of such an occurrence. It was truly delightful. (Hachette Australia)

Daughter of the Moon Goddess – Sue Lynn Tan

Jess: The only good thing about me taking all year to get around to reading this book is that I devoured it just in time for the sequel to come out. At the time of writing, I have literally just picked up Heart of the Sun Warrior  and am grateful to have only had to wait two weeks between finishing the first book and getting my ending. The worldbuilding is rich, the storytelling an incredible blend of what feels like traditional storytelling voice mixed with contemporary YA, and the covers are just *chefs kiss*. Do yourself a favour and go and read this awesome book. (Harper Collins Australia)

A Path of Thorns – A. G. Slatter

Jemimah: A favourite that is very on-brand for me: A.G. Slatter ‘s A Path of Thorns is a Gothic twisted fairytale about a governess with a dark past arriving at a creepy mansion to care for two children. Things are clearly not right – with the family, with the woods around the estate, with the governess herself – from the very first page. This is a twisting, captivating dark fairy tale, full of intrigue and intriguing characters. (Titan)

We Come With This Place – Debra Dank

Lyn: This book made me sit up, pay attention and absorb more of Australia’s past with a connection I hadn’t ever felt in a book before. I could feel Dank’s family’s pain and confusion as she was telling her stories of the Gudanji people. The book offers a real insight into our nation’s Indigenous culture, told through the memories of someone who was there. We Come With This Place  should be included on everyone’s reading list. (Echo Publishing)

The Reindeer Hunters – Lars Mytting

Simon: Lars Mytting ‘s  The Reindeer Hunters  is, for me, historical fiction at its very best. It manages to be epic in scope (historically and thematically), whilst also focusing on those crucial smaller details and the mundanity of everyday village life. I loved my return to the mountain village of Butangen; and can’t wait to get back there again for the third and final book the trilogy and see what the world has in store for the Heknes. Beautifully written, and expertly translated by Deborah Dawkins , The Reindeer Hunters weaves myth and history to create a compelling story that jumps off the page.(Hachette Australia)

Her Majesty’s Royal Coven – Juno Dawson

Jess: This book rocked! I just loved everything about it. A group of modern, middle-age witches, battling against dark prophecies as well as the patriarchy, racism, colonialism, ableism and everything that affects the modern world… this book made me so happy. It’s thoughtful and quirky and fun and terrifying all at once. And I loved how it presented so many different ways to be a woman without ever implying that any one way was better or worse than the others. It approached all its characters with compassion and understanding and god don’t we need more of that! (HarperCollins Australia)

The Brink – Holden Sheppard

Jemimah: The Brink  is one of the most impactful books I read this year. It’s an unflinching, tension-filled story of a group of teenagers on their school leavers trip to an uninhabited island off the coast of Western Australia. It is told from the points of view of three of the characters on the trip, all with their own burdens and secrets to bear. As the week progresses things progressively become more unhinged, with the group splintering for different reasons and the sense of danger growing to flash point. It’s an excellent thriller, enjoyable both for YA and adult audiences alike. (Text Publishing)

Read our full review HERE | Read our interview with author Holden Sheppard HERE | Buy a copy HERE

Thanks to Emily Paull, Jess Gately, Jemimah Brewster and Lyn Harder for their contributions to this list. 

Simon Clark

Books Editor. An admirer of songs and reader of books. Simon has a PhD in English and Comparative Literature. All errant apostrophes are his own.

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Australian book reviews

Weekly reviews of new Australian books from Guardian Australia

16 May 2024

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The Australian Book Review ( ABR ) was established in 1961 to provide a forum for the review of new Australian books. Editors, Max Harris and Geoffrey Dutton, planned to 'notice' or review every new Australian book, but this desire proved difficult to realise due to a rising number of books and the difficulty of defining what an Australian book was. Nevertheless, ABR employed a range of reviewers to provide general readers with authoritative assessments of important books. These reviewers included Frank Kellaway , Olaf Ruhen , Vale Lindsay, Tom Shapcott , Brian Dibble , Bruce Beaver and Don Watson .

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John McLaren was appointed editor, proceeding in a manner similar to the first series by attempting to review all Australian books; but he also faced problems of space and definition. In 1986 Kerryn Goldsworthy replaced McLaren as editor, and introduced a stronger concentration on women's issues. Louise Adler followed Goldsworthy as editor in 1988 and attempted to provoke debate by commissioning controversial reviews, but her term concluded within twelve months. Rosemary Sorenson was appointed editor in 1989, bringing a lighter tone and a desire to attract a new readership with younger writers. Sorenson was assisted by major sponsorship from Telecom, allowing her to fund a series of essays. While ABR had always published features on various topics, the sponsorship gave the essays a more significant place. The essay feature has continued with similar sponsorship from the National Library of Australia and La Trobe University.

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15 book reviews of 2022 that garnered 5 stars

Writing and Publishing

Photo: Shutterstock.

We’ve trawled back through every book ArtsHub has covered this year to present you with the titles that most impressed our reviewers. The list is eclectic, and includes YA, literary and crime fiction, as well as essays, memoir and National Geographic photos.

Daisy & Woolf by Michelle Cahill

Michelle Cahill’s novel revisits a classic and tells the story of Daisy Simmons, a marginalised character in Virginia Woolf’s  Mrs Dalloway (1925). Exploring gender, race and class in colonial India that’s interwoven with a contemporary narrative, the book is multilayered and ambitious.

Intan Paramaditha said: ‘ Daisy & Woolf  is a critical yet playful dialogue between women writers of colour – Mina the protagonist and Michelle Cahill the novelist – and Virginia Woolf, the admired writer and feminist who has marginalised a woman of colour, Daisy Simmons, in her novel.’

Denizen by James McKenzie Watson

Denizen took out the 2021 Penguin Literary Prize and it seems like it was a worthy winner. Moving back and forth in time, the book tracks the troubled life of Parker, from child to adulthood. Set in rural NSW, this bush noir canvasses mental health, self-destruction and the parent-child relationship, among other topics.

Erich Mayer said: ‘ Denizen  is not a horror story but it reveals horrors.  Denizen  is not a thriller but it has you on tenterhooks as you turn the pages wandering what is going to happen next.  Denizen  is not a cry for help but shows what can happen when much needed help is unavailable.’

The Novel Project by Graeme Simsion

The best-selling author of the Rosie series, Graeme Simsion’s latest book draws on his personal experience to help others craft their novel, memoir or biography. It’s a masterclass about writing that newbies, in particular, will find helpful.

Sarah Halfpenny said: ‘Simsion is at pains to make sure his readers know that although he presents the writing of a novel as a highly-structured practice, any of the steps can be modified to suit one’s preferences. He often reminds readers they’re free to break with convention, but advises it to be conscious and informed. He encourages the exploration of all structure options before embracing the freedom to write it your way: confidence backed by knowledge.’

A History of Dreams by Jane Rawson

In 1930s Adelaide, four women turn to witchcraft to challenge a new fascist and patriarchal government that is determined to have them married, uneducated and house-bound.

Annabel Harz said: ‘The prose gambols across the page, frolicking through the narrative and dancing in delight with the joy of diverse sentence structures. Even the darkest sections convey characteristic underlying wit, which alleviates the gloom: some spells are hilarious.’ 

We’ve Got This: Stories by Disabled Parents , edited by Eliza Hull

An anthology written by parents with disabilities, the book explores how they deal with physical, attitudinal and social barriers.

Erin Stewart said: ‘ We’ve Got This  attests to the capacities of disabled parents and to the joys of parenting in an authentic way, without being saccharine or skirting over discrimination or other difficulties. It is an encouraging collection that showcases creativity; and provides sadly necessary affirmation that disabled people can and do grow up to be loving, capable parents.’

The Burnished Sun , by Mirandi Riwoe

Riwoe’s latest book attends to the voices of those wilfully neglected or little heard. The Burnished Sun is a collection of tales that reconfigure the lives of women from a feminist perspective. Witness for instance the story of Annah, who was Paul Gauguin’s maid, model and lover. Elsewhere Riwoe reimagines the sad history of a minor throwaway character in a W Somerset Maugham short story.

I said: ‘Riwoe’s prose is poetic and lyrical; there’s a vibrant life force in all her characters, regardless of how fraught their experiences. With their rich evocation of time and place her narratives, that roam across continents, are such that each story demands attention to the end.’

Waypoints , by Adam Ouston

Ouston’s beguiling debut novel explores love, loss and the obsessive recreation of the first flight on Australian soil by the great escape artist, Harry Houdini.

Erich Mayer said: ‘This is a brilliant work that allows the reader to effortlessly share and understand the emotions and preoccupations of its hero. It is a masterpiece of storytelling with a captivating and delicate touch. It conveys a deep sense of loss without imposing misery. It deals with serious matters like obsession and the overload of information, but doesn’t lose its sense of humour. It is erudite without a trace of snobbishness. It is a great novel.’

Unnecessary Drama by Nina Kenwood

First year university student Brooke tries (and inevitably fails) to live under these three rules in a share house: no pets, no romance and no unnecessary drama.

Jemimah Brewster said: ‘Kenwood has found the ideal balance in tone between light-hearted and joyful, anxious and real, heart-warming and hopeful, and of course everything all turns out well in the end. This is a fun and deeply enjoyable YA rom-com about moving out and growing up, with a sweet enemies-to-lovers arc alongside the coming of age as a young adult plot.’

Desi Girl: On feminism, race, faith and belonging , by Sarah Malik

This memoir-style collection of essays tracks the first-generation migrant experience of Sarah Malik, a Pakistani-Australian teenager growing up in western Sydney. Megan Payne said: ‘Perhaps it’s her journalist experience that makes her writing so informative and generous. As a Muslim woman growing up in Australia, Malik offers a vital perspective regarding feminism, race, faith and belonging.’

The Torrent , by Dinuka McKenzie

Heavily pregnant (and one week away from maternity leave) Detective Sergeant Kate Miles finds herself embroiled in a couple of complicated cases that will ensure her remaining days will be anything but quiet.

Craig Buchanan said: ‘Anyone picking up this novel in the expectation of reading a debut publication runs the risk of being seriously disappointed, however.  The Torrent  reads like the work of a well-established author of long standing, and will inevitably leave its readers with one annoyingly unscratchable itch – the urge to read the many preceding volumes, which, sadly, don’t exist, at least as yet.’

How We Love , by Clementine Ford

A memoir about love in all its permutations and combinations: platonic, maternal, romantic as well as self-regard.

Vanessa Francesca said: ‘In  How We Love , Ford has produced a collection of personal essays that show the need for self-compassion for the little girl inside the feisty woman. Whether it’s memorialising the cost of Tencel jeans in ‘The Queen of Cool’ or negotiating the dilemmas of a teenager on the threshold of adulthood in ‘Sweetie’,  How We Love  demonstrates with humour and verve the liminal spaces between childhood and adulthood, and how they need to be treated with special care.’

The Furies , by Mandy Beaumont

In outback Queensland, a young abattoir worker, Cynthia, is grieving the loss of her sister, Mallory. Bit by bloody bit, their back stories are revealed. This is a dark and visceral novel that’s heightened by Beaumont’s poetic prose.

Nanci Nott said: ‘Falling under the wide umbrella of contemporary Australian fiction,  The Furies  contains elements of paranormal and gothic horror, particularly in its dialectic of life and death. Beaumont’s descriptions of the punishment of women for not being men, and the punishment of women for men being men, and the punishment of women for nothing at all, are brutal, sensory and exquisite. This book is a battle cry of being and becoming, of legacy and revolution.’

Hilda: The Life of Hilda Rix Nicholas , by Richard Travers

Australian artist Hilda Rix Nicholas is probably not as well-known as she should be; this biography makes a good case for her to be feted for her art.

Dr Diana Carroll said: ‘ Hilda: The Life of Hilda Rix Nicholas  really is a superb example of the artist monograph. It is diligently researched, intelligently written, thoughtfully designed and beautifully illustrated. Author Richard Travers makes a good case for his subject, the painter Hilda Rix Nicholas, to be accorded the status of “icon of 20th century Australian art”.’

Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone , by Benjamin Stevenson

This book begins: ‘Everyone in my family has killed someone. Some of us, the high achievers, have killed more than once.’ It’s a self-referential and playfully fun novel that indulges in and perverts the usual tropes of crime fiction.

Erich Mayer said: ‘Run, do not walk, to buy your copy though, because HBO has already seen the potential in  Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone , and has snapped it up for serialisation. That’s great news for Stevenson, and great news for HBO’s ratings, but it begs the question, do you want to be the person who misses out on the murder mystery release of the year, and settles for watching the adaptation – however good it may be – on the small screen?  And that, my friends, is no mystery at all.’

Read: 10 underrated books in 2022

Icebergs to Iguanas , by Jason Edwards

A combination of National Geographic images and behind-the-scenes stories from the photographer’s field journals, this is the first volume in a planned series.

Vicki Renner said: ‘To say this book is beautiful is to undersell its depth, its reach, its courage and its power. Mirroring our tumultuous world,  Icebergs to Iguanas  will challenge and change you, and it has it all: oceans, rivers, coral cliffs, mountaintops, lush rainforests, ancient traditions, human interactions with nature, endangered species, some of humanity’s greatest art and so many animals, insects, amphibians and birds.’

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Thuy On is the Reviews and Literary Editor of ArtsHub and an arts journalist, critic and poet who’s written for a range of publications including The Guardian, The Saturday Paper, Sydney Review of Books, The Australian, The Age/SMH and Australian Book Review. She was the books editor of The Big issue for 8 years. Her debut, a collection of poetry called Turbulence, came out in 2020 and was released by University of Western Australia Publishing (UWAP). Her second collection, Decadence, was published in July 2022, also by UWAP. Her third book, Essence, will be published in 2025. Twitter: @thuy_on Instagram: poemsbythuy

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Posted by popple58 on 12 Apr, 2022 in Australian Crime Fiction , Canberra Weekly , Crime , Forecast Friday , Looking Forward Friday , Outback Crime , serial killer thriller , Thriller | 0 comments

AUSSIE CRIME WAVE: NEW AUSTRALIAN CRIME NOVELS I AM LOOKING FORWARD TO READING IN MID 2022

I recently highlighted Michael Robotham’s Lying Beside You (Hachette, 29 June 2022) as a book I was looking forward to reading: https://murdermayhemandlongdogs.com/forecast-friday-lying-beside-you-by-michael-robotham/

Lying Beside You , however, is only the tip of the iceberg of some very good Australian crime novels scheduled for release before the second half of the year. In addition to new novels by accomplished authors such as Dervla McTiernan and Sulari Gentill, there are debut outback mysteries, a serial killer thriller, two very good second novels and, just slipping over into second half of the year, a new Dan Clements crime story by Dave Warner.

Set out below, I have picked out the books I am most looking forward to reading.

Probably the most eagerly awaited of the new books is Dervla McTiernan’s The Murder Rule , (Harper Collins, 4 May 2022).

With The Murder Rule Dervla takes a break from her popular Irish detective, Cormac Reilly, and instead gives us a standalone thriller. Set in America, it follows Hannah Rokeby who is determined to join the Innocence Project at the University of Virginia, a group dedicated to helping convicted criminals overturn their sentences. Their biggest current case is that of Michael Dandridge, but unlike the rest of her colleagues, Hannah does not want to save Dandridge, she wants to make sure that he never gets out! 

Dervla is a very gifted writer and it will be interesting to see how she manages the shift of location to America and a different style of crime novel.

One of the more sparkling debuts of 2021 was Allie Reynolds’  Shiver . Set in an isolated ski lodge in the French Alps it was a terrific mix of mystery and thrills. Now Allie has shifted her attention away from Europe and snow-boarding, to Australia and surfing. Set at a remote surfing spot,  The Bay , (Hachette, 15 June 2022), finds newcomer Kenna drawn into a world of secrets and extremes where everyone seems to be hiding something. As the tension mounts, one thing comes clear to Kenna about the slice of paradise known as the Bay: nobody ever leaves.

This is one to put on your ‘to read’ list!

Leading an impressive batch of outback crime debuts, is Shelley Burr’s Wake (Hachette, 27 April 2022).

Nineteen years ago young Evelyn McCreery disappeared from the bedroom she shared with her twin sister in the small outback town of Nannie. Now cold case expert Lane Holland desperately tries to solve the mystery around Evelyn’s disappearance in order to claim the reward money and satisfy his own dark motivations.

Sporting a terrific evocative cover, Wake promises to be one of the leading Australian crime debuts of 2022.

Also with an eye catching cover is Dirt Town (Macmillan, 31 May 2022) by Hayley Scrivenor.

Revolving around the disappearance and murder of a twelve year old school girl in a small country town, Dirt Town is described as being “character-rich and propulsive, with a breathtakingly original use of voice and revolving points of view.” With a strong focus on community pressures and personal demons, Dirt Town would seem to be a very emotional and powerful book.

From Dirt Town to Stone Town and another attractive outback cover.

Margaret Hickey displayed strong writing skills with her debut crime novel from last year, Cutter’s End , and Stone Town (Bantam 5 July 2022), follows the central character from that book, Senior Sergeant Mark Ariti, as he investigates the murder of a property developer in the dense bushland surrounding the small South Australian community of Stone Town.

Margaret displayed well developed plotting skills with Cutter’s End and Ariti was a good addition to the ranks of engaging policemen with troubled backgrounds. It will be interesting to see if she can expand on her promising debut.

It is almost a relief to move away from the Australian outback to urban Sydney for Matthew Spencer’s debut novel Black River (Allen & Unwin, June 2022).

The publishers provide the following description of the book:

“A long, burning summer in Sydney. A young woman found murdered in the deserted grounds of an elite boarding school. A serial killer preying on victims along the banks of the Parramatta River. A city on edge.

Adam Bowman, a battling journalist who grew up as the son of a teacher at Prince Albert College, might be the only person who can uncover the links between the school murder and the ‘Blue Moon Killer’. But he will have to go into the darkest places of his childhood to piece together the clues. Detective Sergeant Rose Riley, meanwhile, is part of the taskforce desperately trying to find the killer before he strikes again. Adam Bowman’s excavation of his past might turn out to be Rose’s biggest trump card or it may bring the whole investigation crashing down, and put her own life in danger.”

Despite Spencer’s background as a former journalist for The Australian , I really looking forward to this one. The combination of old dark deeds at a boarding school and a serial killer on the loose, sounds very promising and this should be an enjoyable read.

Sulari Gentill’s series of Rowland Sinclair Mysteries set in 1930s Australia has long been an enjoyable mainstay of the local crime writing scene. Now with The Woman In The Library (Ultimo Press, 1 June 2022) she ventures into the literary crime arena, with what seems to be a cleverly plotted novel about stories within stories.

“Hannah Tigone, bestselling Australian crime author, is crafting a new novel that begins in the Boston Public Library: four strangers; Winifred, Cain, Marigold and Whit are sitting at the same table when a bloodcurdling scream breaks the silence. A woman has been murdered. They are all suspects, and, as it turns out, each character has their own secrets and motivations – and one of them is a murderer.   While crafting this new thriller, Hannah shares each chapter with her biggest fan and aspirational novelist, Leo. But Leo seems to know a lot about violence, motive, and how exactly to kill someone. Perhaps he is not all that he seems.”

I haven’t seen a copy of The Woman In The Library , but sounds like a fantastic read. Sulari is always very entertaining and she has a real love for storytelling. It promises to be an unique and highly enjoyable read.

Dave Warner’s After The Flood (Fremantle Press) is not due out until August, but it is certainly one to put on your ‘watch list’.

Dave’s output has not been voluminous, but each of his books are carefully crafted and well worth reading. His River of Salt is one of the best Australian crime novels of recent years and Before It Breaks was a deserved winner of the 2016 Ned Kelly Award for Best Australian Crime Novel.

After The Flood follows up Before It Breaks and Clear To The Horizon , and takes us back to the Western Australian outback town of Broome and dogged police detective Dan Clement.

“A violent death by crucifixion near a remote north-west station has Detective Inspector Dan Clement and his Broome police officers disturbed and baffled. Other local incidents – the theft of explosives from a Halls Creek mine site, social justice protests at an abattoir, a break-in at a child health care clinic – seem mundane by comparison. But as Clement starts to make troubling connections between each crime, he finds himself caught in a terrifying race. In a landmass larger than Western Europe, he must identify and protect an unknown target before it is blown to bits by an invisible enemy.”

I really enjoy the strong sense of place that Dave brings to his writing and his ability to create interesting, original stories. After The Flood has an interesting premise and I cannot wait to travel back to Broome again.

So some great Australian crime reading to look out for over the next few months, with promise of more to come later in the year with new books by Kyle Perry, Megan Goldin and Garry Disher also scheduled.

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10 Australian Books Coming Out In 2022 We Can’t Wait To Read

Nothing beats the smell of a new book. Hot off the press and in our little hands. Or you’re more of a Kindle advocate (respect), which is fine too. The point is, with hundreds of books that come out each year, it may get a bit overwhelming when choosing one (or a few) to take home.

Whether you’ve just finished the iconic Crying In H Mart by Michelle Zauner and need another heartfelt memoir to fill the void, or you’ve caught up with Sally Rooney’s most recent novel, Beautiful World, Where Are You , it’s time to refresh your ‘to-read’ list for this year. And unlike a simple to-do list, this list *has* to be carefully curated to ensure you’re spending your precious moments on… well, a good read.

So, fret not, we’ve rounded up the best new Australian books that are coming to a bookstore (virtually or physically) near you that are actually worth taking up a spot on your ‘to-read’ list this year.

Let’s get stuck in, shall we?

The Islands by Emily Brugman

One of the most anticipated debut novels this year is The Islands by Emily Brugman. The novel draws on her family’s Finnish migrant experience and is warm and observant. In mid-1950s, a small group of Finnish migrants set up camp on a tiny island in an archipelago off the coast of Western Australia. The island is haunted with its past shipwrecks, yet it possesses an indefinable allure. We follow the Saari’s and their admirable search for ‘home’.

Released: February 1 2022 Order  The Islands  by Emily Brugman  here .  

The Cane by Maryrose Cuskelly

Maryrose Cuskelly dives into the world of fiction with The Cane. A fresh take on Australian rural noir, one missing girl—no suspects.

Barbara McClymont walks the cane fields searching for Janet, her 16 year-old daughter, who has been missing for weeks. The police have no leads and the people of Quala are divided by dread and distrust.

Atmospheric and unputdownable.

Released: February 2022 Order  The Cane  by Maryrose Cuskelly  here .

10 Steps To Nanette by Hannah Gadsby

10 Steps To Nanette is a memoir by the multi-award-winning Australian comedian, Hannah Gadsby. Her stand-up show, Nanette , was sold out across Australia, UK and US. Its launch on Netflix and consequently her Emmy and Peabody wins took her message to the world.

Nanette was a viral success that left audiences captivated by her blistering honesty and her ability to create both tension and laughter in a single moment. But while her fame might have looked like an overnight sensation, her path from open mic to the global stage was anything but.

Release: March 29 2022 Pre-order  10 Steps To Nanette by Hannah Gadsby  here .

Daughters Of Eve by Nina D. Campbell

Joining the crime fiction genre is Daughters Of Eve . A high-profile murder case is in the hands of Detective Emilia Hart, unlike her usual domestic violence cases, this isn’t a simple investigation.

One after another, bodies turn up. All men, all shot in the same way. Once a manifesto is published by a group calling themselves ‘Daughters of Eve’, Hart sees a link between the victims—they had all been perpetrators themselves, offended against women or children.

Panic runs through the streets as the serial killer remains on the loose.

Release: March 29 2022 Pre-order  Daughters Of Eve  by Nina D. Campbell  here .

The Jane Austen Remedy by Ruth Wilson

At 70, Ruth Wilson re-read all six of Jane Austen’s novels. Now 89, Wilson has finished her PhD on Jane Austen. In The Jane Austen Remedy she reveals the power of books to foster hope, joy, and self-reflection, along with the timely reminder that it’s never too late to start a new path in life.

Release: March 29 2022 Pre-order The Jane Austen Remedy  by Ruth Wilson  here .

How To Lose Friends And Influence White People by Antoinette Lattouf

A powerful and personal guide through the balancing act of an activist, advocate and ally, remembering that just because others are learning you don’t need to be the teacher—from the co-founder of Media Diversity Australia, Antoinette Lattouf.

Whether it’s the racist relative across the dining room table, or the CEO blind to institutional barriers to people of colour in the workplace, Lattouf gives valuable insight and advice on what to do—no matter who you’re trying to influence.

Release: May 3 2022 Pre-order How To Lose Friends And Influence White People  by Antoinette Lattouf  here .

Your Best Skin: The Science Of Skincare by Hannah English

This is your essential skincare manual, backed by science. With a pharmaceutical background, Hannah English dives into everything you need to know about caring for your skin in an unbiased way. She also kindly asks us to stop blaming skin conditions on diet and hygiene.

If you’ve ever been confused with all the science jargon on skincare labels, this is the book for you. English guides you to ensure you’re never left guessing when you purchase your next skincare product.

Release: June 1 2022 Pre-order  Your Best Skin  by Hannah English here .

The Eulogy by Jackie Bailey

An autofiction that will undoubtedly stay with readers long after the last page. Jackie Bailey takes us on a journey of self-discovery and a grief filled with love, humour and life.

It’s winter in south-east Queensland, Kathy and her five surviving siblings (whom she hardly speaks to) gather to plan a funeral. Their sister Annie is finally, blessedly, inconceivably dead from the brain tumour she was diagnosed with 25 years ago.   In writing Annie’s eulogy, Kathy attempts to understand her tangled family story: from their mother’s childhood during the Japanese occupation of Singapore in World War II and their father’s experiences in the Malayan conflict and the Vietnam War, to Annie’s cancer and disability, and the events that have shaped the person that Kathy is today.

Release: June 1 2022 Pre-order The Eulogy  by Jackie Bailey  here .

My Sweet Guillotine by Jayne Tuttle

Following her stunning debut Paris or Die, Jayne Tuttle is set to release My Sweet Guillotine , a raw account of piecing oneself back together after a life-changing accident both physically and emotionally.

At 32, Jayne Tuttle leans over a bannister to call for her friends below. She falls and wakes up in a French hospital with a deepening grief of what she has lost.

Following this near-fatal night, Tuttle is brought back to Australia to recover. There, she relives the accident, while trying to restart her life in another foreign place. A budding friendship blossoms with a Melbourne musician, unexpectedly leading Tuttle back to Paris.

Release: July 6 2022 Pre-order  My Sweet Guillotine  by Jayne Tuttle  here .

The Joy Of Better Cooking by Alice Zaslavsky

Better cooking is a lifelong journey. It’s flying hours and muscle memory, from childhood, through school and young-adult years, to bring-a-plates and dinner parties. Australia’s favourite kitchen mistress, Alice Zaslavsky, presents a collection of 70 recipes in The Joy of Better Cooking. Filled with recipes that you’ll want to cook, with tips and tricks scribbled in the margins and explanations where need be .

Release: October 5 2022 Pre-order coming soon .

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The Unseen Library

Expert reviews of the latest and the best in Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Science Fiction and Crime Fiction from an Australian reviewer.

Top Ten Tuesday – My Favourite Australian Books of 2021

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme that currently resides at The Artsy Reader Girl and features bloggers sharing lists on various book topics.  For this week’s Top Ten Tuesday, participants were supposed to list their top new-to-me authors that they read in 2021, however, I am going to do something differently here at The Unseen Library .  I already completed and published this list last week as I knew in advance that I would be doing an alternate list today.  The reason for this is because tomorrow, 26 January, is Australia Day, so I thought I would take this opportunity to highlight some of the top pieces of fiction written by Australian authors that I read in 2021.

Each year talented Australian authors produce an impressive and exciting range of fiction from across the various genres, many of which I am lucky enough to get copies of from the local publishers.  I tend to read and review a ton of novels by Australian authors, most of which turn out to be some outstanding reads that I deeply enjoy.  As such, for the last few years on Australia Day I have taken to highlighting my favourite pieces of Australian fiction for the last few years (check out my 2019 and 2020 lists).  I really love how much awesome Australian fiction there is out in the world, and this list is the perfect way to highlight some of the best recent Australian authors.

Now I tend to take a bit of a different approach to Australian fiction than some other bloggers, as I focus on Australian authors rather than those purely set in Australia or featuring Australian casts.  To qualify for this list, a novel had to be released in 2021 and written by an Australian author, which I am defining as anyone born in Australia or who currently lives here (Australia is very good at adopting talented people as our own).  This resulted in a long list, including several novels that I considered to be some of the best reads of last year.  I was eventually able to whittle this novel down to the absolute cream of the crop and came up with a fantastic top ten list (with my typical generous honourable mentions).  I really enjoyed how this list turned out, especially as it features novels from a range of different genres, all of which were very awesome Australian books.

Honourable Mentions:

The Colonial’s Son by Peter Watt

One of the best Australian historical fiction authors, Peter Watt, started a great new series last year with The Colonial’s Son .  The sequel to his amazing Colonial series (made up of The Queen’s Colonial , The Queen’s Tiger and The Queen’s Captain ), this was a fun and action packed novel that continued some great storylines from the first series.

Prisoner by S. R. White

A taut and clever bushland murder mystery that saw a determined investigator methodically solve a murder through smart police work and multiple interviews with the suspects.

The 22 Murders of Madison May by Max Barry

An extremely exciting novel from awesome author Max Barry that sees a resourceful journalist follow a serial killer throughout the multiverse as he attempts to kill every version of his crush.

The Paris Collaborator by A. W. Hammond

An intense and compelling historical thriller set in occupied Paris; The Paris Collaborator was a great read with a fantastic story to it.

Top Ten List:

Kill Your Brother by Jack Heath

Let us start this list off with the incredibly cool Kill Your Brother by amazing author Jack Heath.  Kill Your Brother is a dark and very clever read that follows an infamously damaged protagonist as they are given a choice to either kill their brother or be killed themself.  Set in rural Australia and loaded with great twists, this was an outstanding and awesome novel that was one of the most entertaining and addictive books I read all last year.

The Councillor by E. J. Beaton

Australian author E. J. Beaton had one of the best debuts of 2021 with her excellent fantasy read, The Councillor .  Set in a divided and besieged fantasy realm, The Councillor follows a palace scholar who is given ultimate power and must decide the fate of her kingdom through politics, treachery and deceit.  An impressive first book that is really worth checking out.

The Housemate by Sarah Bailey

One of the most incredible reads of 2021 was the intense and captivating murder mystery novel The Housemate by Sarah Bailey.  Set in Melbourne, this book sees an infamous murder case reopened after one of the supposed victims reappears and then dies again.  Following a conflicted journalist whose past connections to the crime is slowly driving her crazy, this was an awesome read that I honestly could not put down.

The Warsaw Orphan by Kelly Rimmer

Impressive author Kelly Rimmer produced one of the absolute best historical dramas last year with her moving book, The Warsaw Orphan .  Set in occupied Warsaw, this novel followed two very damaged protagonists as they attempt to save as many Jewish babies as possible from the Nazis.  Grim, intense, and loaded with tragedy, this is an excellent historical drama that comes very highly recommended.

The Enemy Within by Tim Ayliffe

Australian journalist turned crime fiction author Tim Ayliffe had an excellent release in 2021 with The Enemy Within , the third book in his John Bailey series.  Following on from the great stories told in The Greater Good and State of Fear , The Enemy Within had a brilliant story that perfectly utilised recent, controversial Australian events and places Ayliffe’s nosy reporter protagonist right in the middle of them.

Unforgiven by Sarah Barrie

One of the latest Australian books of 2021 that I have read, Unforgiven is an exceptionally dark and powerful novel that follows a former victim of child abuse who has grown up and now hunts the monsters who ruined her childhood.  Containing an exceptional mystery and some brilliant characters, this is an impressive, if grim, thriller that I deeply enjoyed reading.

Aurora’s End by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

The Australian dream team of Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff finished off their amazing young adult science fiction Aurora Cycle series last year with the impressive Aurora’s End .  This awesome and extremely fast paced novel featured a very clever multi-time period storyline that did a fantastic job of wrapping up the compelling story of the previous two novels ( Aurora Rising and Aurora Burning ).  One of the better young adult series of the last few years, I am really glad that Kaufman and Kristoff saw it off in amazing fashion.

2 Sisters Detective Agency by James Patterson and Candice Fox

Ok, so I know that James Patterson isn’t Australian, but his cowriter for this novel, Candice Fox, is one of the best Australian crime fiction authors out there at the moment, and I loved her work on this entertaining and fun book.  Following two very different sisters as they attempt to solve crimes in Los Angeles, this was an extremely exciting and hilarious book that features a really good story.  I had an amazing time reading 2 Sisters Detective Agency and I really hope that this collaboration between Patterson and this rising Australian author continues in the future.  Make sure to also check out Candice Fox’s other 2021 release, The Chase , which had a great prison-break storyline.

She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan

Another epic debut by an Australian author last year was the highly regarded She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan.  This bold and addictive read follows a young girl from rural China who takes her dead brother’s destined greatness and starts a journey to take back China from the Mongolian dynasty and become Emperor.  Featuring a unique and clever story that utilises historical fiction and fantasy elements, this was an amazing read from an impressive new Australian author.

Blood Trail by Tony Park

The final book on this list is the latest novel from one of Australia’s premier thriller authors, Tony Park.  Park’s new novel, Blood Trail , once again journeys to Africa and follows several great characters as they attempt to capture near-magical poachers and kidnappers in a game preserve.  An amazing adrenalin ride from start to finish, Blood Trail was an outstanding read, and I cannot wait to see what Park will release in 2022.

Well, that is the end of this latest list and I am really happy that I got a chance to highlight some of the cool Australian releases of 2021.  The above books represent an outstanding collection of fiction from talented Australian authors, and each of them comes highly recommended by me.  I had a lot of fun coming up with this list and I cannot wait to find out what the best Australian books of 2022 are going to be.  Until then, stay tuned for more epic reviews and lists, and make sure you let me know who your favourite Australian authors are in the comments below.

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19 thoughts on “ top ten tuesday – my favourite australian books of 2021 ”.

It is so cool that you highlighted new Australian books in this post! What a neat thing to do.

My post: https://lydiaschoch.com/top-ten-tuesday-new-to-me-authors-i-discovered-in-2021/

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Thanks, I always like to support my local authors, and luckily there are some amazing Australian authors out there who make that really easy for me.

Great list!

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No Mercy: A review of Scott Morrison’s memoir

'Repetition, cliché, malapropism, daft diction, plodding syntax, more cliché, and bucketloads of sentimentality? This book has got it all.'

Catriona Menzies-Pike

May 14, 2024

Scott Morrison, Plans For Your Good: A Prime Minister’s Testimony of God’s Faithfulness

“Most politicians write books about what they’ve done.” Scott Morrison is absolutely correct on this point.

Most prime ministers write books about what they’ve done. The prime ministerial memoir is an established genre in Australian letters, a response to the not-unreasonable expectation that the leader of the country has a contribution to make to the national record.

That these books tend to be monuments to their authors’ self-regard is beside the point. Prime ministerial memoirs are, effectively, closing statements. They represent a final chance for the departing politician to correct misapprehensions, settle scores and pre-empt criticism before the rest of us — journalists, colleagues, citizens and historians — pass judgment. Writing a memoir is a form of democratic accountability. That was never one of Scott Morrison’s strengths.

In this meagre book, Plans For Your Good , Morrison dispenses with the conventions of the prime ministerial memoir and unburdens himself of any obligations to future historians. This book, he explains, “is my story of what I believe God has done for me through His faithfulness in all my life’s circumstances and how I truly came to understand God’s promise in Jeremiah 29:11. It is also a book about what God can do in your life.”

Morrison may well yearn for his book, subtitled, “A Prime Minister’s Testimony of God’s Faithfulness”, to serve evangelical ends. Whether he likes it or not, though, Plans For Your Good will become a crucial text for anyone trying to understand the governing of Australia between 2018 and 2022. I suspect that Plans For Your Good will deliver unto posterity the portrait of a leader driven by profound faith, yes, but a leader who allowed that faith to licence a political career characterised by evasions, refusals and shockingly little care for the lives of the poor, the suffering and the vulnerable. 

The text that Morrison has bequeathed the nation is neither a coherent narrative of his time in office, nor does it offer any useful insight into the relationship between his faith and the policies implemented by his government. Instead, we have a book about what God has done for Morrison (a lot), with some digressions on what Morrison has done for God (never enough, but that’s okay).

It’s been widely noted that Plans For Your Good was written to introduce Morrison to a North American evangelical audience and as such, the interests of Australian readers are irrelevant, and so too any high-minded notions of prime ministerial duty. Morrison is addressing a reader who needs a baseball analogy in order to make sense of a witless aside about cricket. 

Usually, when Australian authors take a book to the US market, they’re asked to make changes so that local usages can be grasped by American readers. The edition of Plans For Your Good that I read retained Australian spellings, but otherwise no deference is paid to Australian readers. A sheep station is a bit like a ranch, you see, and we say, “how good is such and such” when we want to say how good it is. It’s a sign of Morrison’s indifference to his Australian readers, and to the expectations of the office he once held, that he didn’t insist on removing this stuff for the local edition. Presumably Harper Collins Christian Publishing anticipated selling sufficient copies of the book in Australia to make it worth releasing but the numbers weren’t there to mandate small editorial changes for the local market. 

To say that Plans For Your Good is a patchy account of Morrison’s political career is an understatement. There’s naught here about Morrison the minister for Immigration and border protection, the architect of the punitive Operation Sovereign Borders regime, not even a smug little joke about the disgraceful “ I Stopped These ” trophy he reportedly kept in his office.

The one-time minister for Social Services has nothing to say about welfare, is silent on poverty, and when he uses the term “social justice advocates”, it is to deride his critics. He does not mention robodebt. We hear nothing about either climate change or Morrison’s loyal support for the resources sector. Nothing about the 2019 bushfires. Morrison showers himself with praise for leading the nation through the difficult years of the COVID-19 pandemic — and yet there is not one word in this book about the secret ministries palaver. Morrison is a marketing executive at heart and he’s trying to reach a new audience with Plans For Your Good — why would he bother surfacing these old accusations?

There are two episodes in the book that do prompt Morrison to defend himself at some length. The first is AUKUS, viewed by some, and certainly by Morrison, as his capstone foreign policy achievement. He is at pains to depict himself as both essentially truthful in his dealings with Emmanuel Macron and as unwavering in his commitment to Australia’s national interest. The French, he writes, “failed to appreciate just how seriously we were taking the threat to our security in the Indo-Pacific”.

The AUKUS saga becomes an occasion for Morrison, ever the strategist, to reflect on the shared values of the United States, the UK and Australia, and to establish kinship with his conservative American readers. He invokes Pearl Harbour, has a go at Barack Obama, and elaborates on the threat posed to global order by Chinese militarism. “I decided it was not in Australia’s long-term interests to duck and cover. We had to stand up for ourselves, face our fears, and not capitulate to China’s bullying.”

This section of Plans For Your Good is the one that most resembles a conventional political memoir — until Morrison uses it to present a moral lesson about facing your fears: “God’s assurance enabled me to step out of a mindset of fear and do what I believed was in the best interest of my country.” Morrison’s language as he delivers these lessons — and there are many such hokey, blokey adages in this book — is a reminder of the mutually sustaining relationship between secular self-optimisation literature and evangelical tracts.

Morrison pays little attention to First Nations peoples for most of Plans For Your Good . When he narrates the experiences of his convict forebear William Roberts, he does make reference to the violent settlement of the colony: “Awful cruelty, terrible suffering, and dispossession were also inflicted on our [sic] indigenous [sic] peoples who had been living on our [sic] continent for more than 60,000 years, comprising more than 500 separate nations and 250 languages.” Wait for the coda: “This was not unique to Australia.” How good is Australia?

This formula is repeated in a later chapter when he talks about travelling to Brewarrina to see the fish traps with the Aboriginal singer Col Hardy. “People are complex, and so are nations. Stories of dispossession and violence against indigenous peoples are not unique to Australia, but this makes them no less excusable. You will find similar terrible stories in every country that emerged from colonisation.” It’s a breathtakingly lazy rationalisation, one that reveals Morrison’s shrugging relationship with history.

And so to the second point on which Morrison deigns to answer his critics, his 2022 speech on the anniversary of Kevin Rudd’s 2008 Apology to the Stolen Generations, the one in which Morrison called for First Nations peoples to show forgiveness to settler Australia. He was criticised for this, especially by Indigenous leaders. By way of response, Morrison delivers a homily on forgiveness, taking a detour to clarify a distinction between earthly justice and forgiveness.

Whether you read this section as politics, philosophy or theology, it is a hodgepodge, and he finishes where he began, arguing that “forgiveness is the only real power victims truly have that is entirely within their control.” This may provide insight into how Morrison understands the Christian principle of forgiveness, but it also exposes his reluctance to adopt a position of humility and to listen to his critics.

The only critic Morrison cares about is God — that much is made clear in this full-throated assertion of faith. The former PM shares his frequent conversations with the Lord — “things got pretty heated between me and God as I poured my heart out” — and occasionally ventriloquises Christ. Curiously, the Christ of Plans For Your Good sounds quite a lot like Scott Morrison: “Scott, I get it, I’ve been there and worse, and you know what? I did it all for you.” I am not particularly troubled either by Morrison’s religious convictions or by their intensity, although I do not share them. What distressed me as I read Plans For Your Good was Morrison’s incessant use of his faith to deflect political accountability. 

We are told a great deal about God’s mercy and Christ’s love, and Morrison likens himself explicitly to numerous Biblical figures. However, there’s precious little love or mercy expressed for any folks beyond the former PM’s circle of family and friends. He does let his guard down when he talks about his great love for his daughters and his wife. It’s moving to read of the solace Morrison’s family provided to him as he navigated the tremendous pressures of leadership. It’s just that we never here see him take a compassionate approach to strangers.

Morrison writes, “If you see the dignity and worth of another person, the beating heart in front of you, in all of its complexity, you’re less likely to disrespect them.” How do statements like this square with his cruelty to refugees, his punitive approach to welfare recipients, and his selective largesse during the pandemic? Ideology comes knocking every few chapters in the form of brief tirades against secularism, identity politics and cancel culture — and that’s about it. You would expect a man of such deep commitment to Christianity also to share some of the convictions of that faith concerning the poor and the dispossessed. And yet Morrison failed to see millions of beating hearts in front of him.

Other accounts of Morrison’s time in office bear witness to his mastery of the darker arts of politics — his ruthlessness, his deviousness and his opportunism. Faith might not be politics, but politics was a game that Morrison knew how to play very well. Morrison notes that not all Christians share the same political views, which is certainly true, and yet he will not elaborate on how his faith shaped his neoliberal, pro-business, socially conservative politics. We are left to take it on faith that it did. 

That Morrison is not a gifted prose stylist will come as no surprise. Repetition, cliché, malapropism, daft diction, plodding syntax, more cliché, and bucketloads of sentimentality? This book has got it all. As James Ley wrote of the former PM’s rhetorical abilities in 2022, “He has never shown any interest in what words actually mean, or even the conventional ordering of their syllables.” If you prod Morrison’s aphorisms hoping for a sign of life, they fall apart.

Have a go with this one: “God is not a vending machine where we insert our faith and expect to receive the comforts of life in return. We don’t always get what we want, but we do always get God.” A careful reader might baulk at the transformation of faith into a coin here. I don’t think Morrison did. The Scottification of Biblical stories is one of the expected discomforts of Plans For Your Good : 

“In the last chapter we talked about Daniel and his experiences in Babylon. He wasn’t the only one to face trials and persecution there. He had three really good friends who came with him from Judah. In Australia, we would call them Daniel’s mates.”

I suspect this book was not written at all, but rather recorded and transcribed. Read a few sentences aloud and you can hear the cadences of sermons and the influence of Morrison’s pastors. You can also hear, well, Scott Morrison — without all the bothersome interruptions and interjections from an audience who wishes to hold him to account. 

Patrick Mullins’ superb biography of William McMahon, Tiberius with a Telephone (2018), is haunted by the ghost of an unwritten book, the memoir that McMahon found himself unable to write. Mullins finds a captivating pathos in McMahon’s efforts to write about his maligned tenure, a pathos that is a counterbalance to the scathing assessments of McMahon’s peers. Until not so long ago McMahon was widely supposed to have been the worst leader endured by Australians since Federation. That is no longer the case.

Scott Morrison, like McMahon, couldn’t manage to write a book about his political record. Instead of staying silent, though, he has written a book designed to catapult him into a lucrative consulting career in the United States. I find something revealing in the contrast between McMahon; vain, diligent and ambitious to the end, trying and failing to account for his time in office, and Scott Morrison’s brazen indifference to the office he once held and the country he purported to serve.

Will you be rushing to your nearest bookstore to grab your own copy of Morrison’s memoir? Let us know your thoughts by writing to [email protected] . Please include your full name to be considered for publication. We reserve the right to edit for length and clarity.

About the Author

Contributor

Catriona Menzies-Pike is a writer and editor living in Vancouver BC. Between 2015 and 2023 she was the editor of the Sydney Review of Books . She was awarded the Walkley-Pascall Prize for Arts Criticism in 2023 and publishes a newsletter on literature and the internet called Infra Dig .

• christianity
• political memoir
• Scott Morrison

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Personally, I think Morrison is almost entirely image obsessed and my hunch is, that Christianity for him is largely just an integral part of his image creation. That is, for someone whose political career demonstrates a constant lack of empathy and trustworthiness, proclaiming to be deeply religious, has been a convenient method of fooling those uninclined too look too deeply, that he possesses compassion for the less fortunate and that he can be trusted to carry out good deeds. Or if you like, the morally bankrupt claiming a deep morality. Or the equivalent of loudly and publicly announcing, “This is my leader!”, while already stabbing that leader in the back.

And I suspect that his book being tailored to the American market fits in perfectly with that, as America is probably the most lucrative nation on Earth, for those who want to earn wealth and status, by relentlessly trumpeting that they’re doing God’s work.

It is well said. A lot of it applies to Abbott, too.

Plus Howard who also has much more rat cunning.

Abbott doesn’t get a mention in article, who I reckon will probably out-rank ScoMo on ‘Worst Ever PMofAT’ list. I’m hoping we don’t ever have to rate Dutton, but if Trump can get a second run, the age of alternative reality is here, and anything is plausible. Abbott Mk2?

Arrrrgggghh!

Abbott was an amateur in comparison…

But one doesn’t need to be accountable, empathetic or trustworthy if one’s actions are all part of God’s plan

I think you have an important insight here. Though not just image obsessed but also impression obsessed. How Scotty is perceived is his preoccupation above all else, and perception is more important than facts, they are just what you assemble perceptions on, or push to one side when they conflict with the image being pursued. Thus, necessarily, lying to others and himself is a constant, it’s integral to the man.

Another paradox appears to be, the PM constantly asserts his faith yet this is Scotty from marketing, writing a book for an American evangelical audience he clearly intends to profit from. So is the writing about faith really just bad faith, a hucksters spiel to get the rubes into the tent? Being Scotty, it is probably impossible to disentangle any sort of truth about it. He is so buried in this behaviour of preening and excusing himself that I expect it is hardly even conscious for him, just integral, part of his (shallow) being. For the rest of us, it’s not even worth trying to know where it begins and ends, it is simpler and truer to just dismiss what he says as all self-serving nonsense.

Yes, to me it appears to be a lifetime of him claiming to be the man for the job, without any real intention of doing the job. That is, he’s interested in money and status, but no so much in the hard work required to do a job properly or acquire a deep understanding of any subject. He’ll always be the one taking credit for the efforts of others, but the first to blame others, when his mismanagement causes things to go wrong.

Spot On: you’ve hit the nail on the head! The miscreant was all about stealing credit and deflecting responsibility. Such are the techniques of Prosperity Theology.

I think you have nailed Schmorrison’s comcept of being ‘deeply religious’. Schmorrison is not religious, he is Christian, in the exclusive, prosperity-driven, Americanised version of that identity. Nor is he in any sense, a spiritual person. His relationship to Christianity is all about what it can do for him personally, in terms of his career, his ambition and his success. No-one is more important than himself, not his family, his political colleagues, or his country. He is Trump with perhaps a few more brain cells and not much else. He’ll do well in America, a country that is in the process of destroying itself by espousing the same non-values and disregard for humanity as Schmorrison. I hope they enjoy him. We didn’t.

I read a George Monbiot article a while back, talking about the concept of a pathocracy. That is, government by people with pathological personality disorders. Chiefly the dark personality triad of Machiavellianism, narcissism and psychopathy. With Trump and Morrison, I think two of the three are well represented.

Both are certainly sociopaths with zero empathy.

We should also judge him by his choice of friends which include the disgraced Brian Houston. I expected he would go into business with him and set up a new church (Houston has plenty of practice).

A cultivated image as a barely functional moron?

Yes, a pathological liar cannot be “a leader driven by profound faith”. His best moment was as a child actor in the Vicks VapoRub ad. Should never have been given a speaking role.

Didn’t Julia Banks say in Parliament that even his faith is just another marketing strategy?

Morrison can be summed up in one word. Vacuous.

Surface, all the way down.

“Tailored for an American market”. Sounds likely. They really go for that stuff.

Full of shit,overweening self regard,and wouldn’t recognise the truth if it backed over him.Fuck off and stay fucked off.

Now we’re getting to the response he deserves.

Apparently the F-bomb is more acceptable to the modbot than ‘genitalia’. Go figure….

i gave up trying to figure,I write in these columns( not using bad language) and it gets moderated out .

Me too. A perfectly innocuous comment of mine yesterday took 24 hours to be accepted. So now nobody has read it.

I wanted to say that too ‘Michale B’ but couldn’t quite find the right word!

He can never be full of it because so much runs out his mouth.

He couldn’t write about what he’d done, as it was mostly announcements with little actually achieved. Most that was achieved was harmful to Australia and Australians as a whole. Even the good work he did during the pandemic was soon undone by more failures.

“God’s assurance enabled me to step out of a mindset of fear and do what I believed was in the best interest of my country.” His recent revelations that he relied on anxiety medication, makes it clear that he required pharmaceuticals to cope so clearly his faith was not sufficient to get him through, despite his obvious narcissism demonstrated in his belief that only he could manage all those ministries.

This guy is either a complete BS artist as suggested by his many lies and deceptions, or he is delusional. Perhaps both.

Clearly Both.

Definitely both. And more. He is a transparent fraud, but not even very good at that. And with so little self-awareness that he doesn’t even know he is! Which makes him even more pathetic. (By contrast, Donald Trump KNOWS he is a con artist, and revels in it. He knows it’s all a game, and delights in his “success” in conning his way to the top. Until just recently, anyway.)

‘Even the good work he did during the pandemic’ was largely riding on top of the States. He is probably more proud of the ‘good work’ he did in transferring $Billions of Job Keeper to those owners of businesses which did not qualify under his own government’s rules. It is difficult to find enough words to describe this reprehensible person. Even with his stated belief, I doubt that he actually believes.  His selective use of one quote from the bible, Jeremiah 29:11to give credence to his ‘being’ let alone his ‘life’. One translation I saw says ‘ For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. ’ = which is the one he probably uses as it is about prosperity. Another says, ‘ For I know the plans that I have for you’, declares the LORD, ‘plans for welfare and not for calamity to give you a future and a hope. For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,’ declares the Lord .’ – which his actions spoke louder that his words. The Lord’s plans for ‘welfare and not for calamity’ were clearly not his thoughts or ways.

“ Repetition, cliché, malapropism, daft diction, plodding syntax, more cliché, and bucketloads of sentimentality? This book has got it all.” Superb!

Anyone who does a Bachelor of Science Honours Degree and as the subject of their (Science! )thesis is the Christian Brethren must have a problem! How in 1989 a University such as Sydney University of New South Wales (UNSW) allowed a then 21-year-old Scott Morrison to take such a subject is somewhat unbelievable!

Agree. Utterly absurd. This for an honours degree in SCIENCE!!! Wonder if anyone knows the name of his academic supervisor. That said, the other point is that the voters of Cook continued to vote for this fraud. Still, it is “ the shire”. Giving hobbits a bad name.

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Why The Mirage is closing after 34 years

The final day of operations is July 17.

The Las Vegas Strip is losing another iconic hotel property, dimming the lights for the last time at The Mirage later this summer.

Hard Rock International, which acquired The Mirage in 2022, announced it will officially cease operations of the hotel on July 17.

The last day of hotel occupancy will be July 14, the company stated on its website.

Why The Mirage is closing in Las Vegas

The property, which opened in 1989, helped usher in a transformative era, making way for future luxury and megaresorts in the desert destination.

The Mirage was quickly followed by Excalibur, Luxor, and the MGM Grand, all of which opened within the next four years.

This closure will clear the way for HRI to begin construction and transformation into the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino and Guitar Hotel Las Vegas.

"The property will be reimagined and developed into a new integrated resort featuring a nearly 700 ft. guitar-shaped hotel prominently in the center of the famous Las Vegas Strip," the company stated about the new musical instrument-inspired tower that's slated to open in 2027.

"We’d like to thank the Las Vegas community and team members for warmly welcoming Hard Rock after enjoying 34 years at The Mirage," Jim Allen, chairman of HRI, said in a statement Wednesday.

Las Vegas closes iconic properties for new era

This marks the second hotel and casino closure on the Strip after The Tropicana Las Vegas shuttered in April, just shy of its 67th anniversary.

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The closure of the old-school Sin City landmark was set to make way for a potential $1.5 billion Major League Baseball stadium deal with Oakland A's owner John Fisher, a move that has been criticized by sports experts and fans. And according to ESPN , the team has agreed to a temporary move to Sacramento and share a Triple-A ballpark in the interim "in case the team's planned ballpark on the Las Vegas Strip is not completed in time for the 2028 season."

The Tropicana site built in the 1950s is set to be demolished by implosion in late 2024, according to ABC News Las Vegas affiliate KTNV .

The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority did not immediately respond to ABC News' request for comment.

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The Voice to Parliament Handbook, Lola in the Mirror, Fourth Wing and Welcome to Sex among the 2024 ABIA winners

The Voice to Parliament Handbook by Thomas Mayo and Kerry O'Brien has won Book of the Year at the 2024 Australian Book Industry Awards (ABIAs).

The book, published in the lead-up to the 2023 Voice to Parliament referendum, also took out the General Non-Fiction Book of the Year and Social Impact Book of the Year.

Mayo, an Indigenous leader and one of the signatories of the Uluru Statement of the Heart, told ABC RN Breakfast in 2023 how he invited O'Brien to create a simple guide to the referendum to address misinformation that plagued the campaign.

"I thought a handbook — something simple that people could hold onto, pass around and share with others to help them find the truth — would be important," he said.

The awards acknowledged in a statement that even though the Voice to Parliament was voted down, the guide "stands as a poignant reminder of a significant moment in Australia's history".

O'Brien, a Walkley Award-winning journalist and former host of The 7.30 Report and Four Corners on ABC TV, explained why he was eager to work with Mayo on the project:

"When I see something as important as The Voice and the challenge it lays out and the opportunity it lays out for all Australians … I want to do what I can to help the process of debate and discussion and to clear up the misunderstandings, the confusion and the misinformation because I think this is such an important moment in our history."

Trent Dalton and Pip Williams among 2024 winners

The 2024 ABIAs, presented at a ceremony in Melbourne on May 9, recognised the achievements of authors, illustrators, editors and publishers across 22 categories.

Trent Dalton — who swept the 2019 ABIAs with his debut novel Boy Swallows Universe — won the Literary Fiction Book of the Year for his third novel, Lola in the Mirror (4th Estate, HarperCollins Publishers).

The novel — which tells the story of a mother and daughter on the run from a violent past — tackles the issue of homelessness, which Dalton says is at crisis levels in Brisbane as the city prepares for the 2030 Olympic Games.

"I can't see a more urgent problem than a mum in a car doing Mathletics with her 10-year-old daughter because they can't go home," he told ABC RN's The Book Show .

The Bookbinder of Jericho (Affirm Press) — Adelaide author Pip Williams's follow-up to her bestselling 2020 debut , The Dictionary of Lost Words — took out the General Fiction Book of the Year and Marketing Strategy of the Year.

Set during World War I, Williams's novel centres on Peggy and Maude, two young sisters from a working-class background who work in the bindery of Oxford University Press.

"There's no shortage of World War I books or World War II books … but what I found is that most of those books either portray the experience of men in the trenches or women waiting for someone to come home, or they're about espionage," Williams told The Book Show .

Anna Funder, a previous Miles Franklin Literary Award winner, won the Biography Book of the Year for Wifedom: Mrs Orwell's Invisible Life (Hamish Hamilton, Penguin Random House Australia).

Funder wrote Wifedom after discovering a series of letters written by George Orwell's wife, Eileen, that revealed a side of Orwell not seen in the six official biographies devoted to the writer.

She considered using the letters as material in a fictionalisation of Eileen's story, but settled instead on an unorthodox mix of memoir, fiction and biography.

"A novel wouldn't show the sly ways in which history, in the form of these biographies, has hidden [Eileen]," she told The Book Show .

Sydney author Madeleine Gray took out the Matt Richell Award for New Writer of the Year for her debut, Green Dot (Allen & Unwin), a " sad girl novel " relating the emotional fallout of a 20-something's romantic relationship with her much older workmate .

Welcome to Sex by Melissa Kang and Yumi Stynes and illustrated by Jenny Latham (Hardie Grant Children's Publishing) — which BIG W controversially removed from sale from its physical stores after critics allegedly abused staff over the book's content — took out Book of the Year for Older Children.

Edenglassie (University of Queensland Press) by Melissa Lucashenko won Small Publishers' Adult Book of the Year, while Rebecca Yarros's viral #BookTok hit and New York Times bestseller Fourth Wing (Piatkus, Hachette Australia) was named International Book of the Year.

Magabala Books, an Indigenous publishing house based in Broome in Western Australia, won Small Publisher of the Year, while Publisher of the Year went to Penguin Random House Australia.

​​Australian Book Industry Award Winners 2024

ABIA Book of the Year

The Voice to Parliament Handbook, Thomas Mayo and Kerry O'Brien (Hardie Grant Publishing)

Audio Book of the Year

The Teacher's Pet, written and narrated by Hedley Thomas (Macmillan Australia Audio, Pan Macmillan Australia)

Biography Book of the Year

Wifedom: Mrs Orwell's Invisible Life, Anna Funder (Hamish Hamilton, Penguin Random House Australia)

Book of the Year for Older Children (ages 13+)

Welcome to Sex, written by Melissa Kang and Yumi Stynes, illustrated by Jenny Latham (HGCP Non- Fiction, Hardie Grant Children's Publishing)

Book of the Year for Younger Children (ages 7–12)

It's the Sound of the Thing, Maxine Beneba Clarke (HGCP Older Readers, Hardie Grant Children's Publishing)

Children's Picture Book of the Year (ages 0–6)

A Life Song, written by Jane Godwin, illustrated Anna Walker (Puffin, Penguin Random House Australia)

General Fiction Book of the Year

The Bookbinder of Jericho, Pip Williams (Affirm Press)

General Non-Fiction Book of the Year

The Voice to Parliament Handbook, Thomas Mayo and Kerry O'Brien (Hardie Grant Explore, Hardie Grant Publishing)

Illustrated Book of the Year

Australian Abstract, Amber Creswell Bell (Thames & Hudson Australia, Thames & Hudson)

International Book of the Year

Fourth Wing, Rebecca Yarros (Piatkus, Hachette Australia)

Literary Fiction Book of the Year

Lola in the Mirror, Trent Dalton (4th Estate, HarperCollins Publishers)

Small Publishers' Adult Book of the Year

Edenglassie, Melissa Lucashenko (University of Queensland Press)

Small Publishers' Children's Book of the Year

Artichoke to Zucchini: an alphabet of delicious things from around the world, Alice Oehr (Scribble, Scribe Publications)

Social Impact Book of the Year

The Matt Richell Award for New Writer of the Year

Green Dot, Madeleine Gray (Allen & Unwin)

Lloyd O'Neil Hall of Fame Award

Fiona Stager, co-owner of Avid Reader and Where the Wild Things Are

Pixie O'Harris Award

Jane Godwin

Bookshop of the Year

Fullers Bookshop (TAS)

Commissioning Editor of the Year

Catherine Milne (HarperCollins Publishers)

Marketing Strategy of the Year

The Bookbinder of Jericho (Affirm Press)

​​Small Publisher of the Year

Magabala Books

Publisher of the Year

Penguin Random House Australia

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A gentleman in moscow ending explained.

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A Gentleman In Moscow Cast & Character Guide

Ewan mcgregor's historical drama weirdly copies his 2022 star wars show, the deeper meaning behind a gentleman in moscow episode 3's bees.

Warning: Spoilers ahead for the finale of A Gentleman in Moscow.

• Count Rostov finds family, love, and purpose in his confinement at the Metropol Hotel, despite his initial imprisonment.
• The ending of A Gentleman in Moscow remains ambiguous, leaving Alexander's fate open to interpretation.
• Love and sacrifice are the central themes of the show, as Alexander risks everything to ensure the safety and happiness of his found family.

The ending of A Gentleman in Moscow brings with it the conclusion of Alexander Rostov's story, with his 35-year stretch of imprisonment inside Moscow's Metropol Hotel coming to a halt. After returning home from Paris in 1918 to save his grandmother from the violence of Russia's Bolshevik revolution , Count Rostov is sentenced to life imprisonment for his status as a member of the nation's ruling class. However, instead of being locked in a prison cell, Ewan McGregor's character is confined to the walls of a luxury hotel in the nation's capital.

Alexander's is spared execution, unlike so many of his other social peers. The reason for the leniency is Alexander being incorrectly credited with a poem titled "Where is our Purpose Now?" The literary work, actually written in 1913 by Alexander's old friend, Mishka, was partially credited as inciting the Revolution. The count manages to carve out some level of existence for himself at the Metropol , with the novelty of his situation quickly wearing off. Along the way, Alexander Rostov finds the family he'd never had before, giving a man who'd lost everything something else to lose.

The Paramount/Showtime limited series A Gentleman in Moscow is led by Golden Globe and Emmy winner Ewan McGregor and his wife Mary Elizabeth Winstead.

What Happens To Alexander Rostov After He Leaves The Metropol Hotel Explained

The post-escape fate of mcgregor's character is unknown.

At the end of A Gentleman in Moscow episode 8, "Adieu," Alexander dons his hat and strolls through the doors of the Metropol Hotel. After all the phones in the building ring at once as Richard Vanderwhile's signal that Sofia is safe, Alexander can depart while knowing his surrogate daughter is in trusted hands. While Alexander is shown successfully leaving the building , the other side of the door isn't shown, so it's impossible to confirm what happens to the Count after this scene. Even the show's narrator, an older Sofia, confirms that she never knew what her father did next.

"I discovered that Papa had escaped the hotel, but what happened after remains a mystery. I like to imagine [Alexander and Anna] finally free, living out the rest of their lives together. They gave me the greatest gift of life. I'll keep them in my heart. Always. "

The sequence that's shown of Alexander's reunion with Anna in "Adieu" is shot in the same 4:3 aspect ratio as A Gentleman in Moscow 's flashbacks sequences, which were often from Count Rostov's point of view. However, as Sofia confirms that she never saw her parents again , this particular scene can't be a memory. Instead, what's being shown is Sofia's imaginings, dreaming of the two people who risked so much to save her enjoying a well-deserved, peaceful life.

Alexander does still have his stolen Finnish passport when he leaves the hotel, so it is possible he was able to flee the country and reunite with Anna.

The black apples shown during this scene are another sign that it's nothing more than Sofia's fantasy . Earlier in the same episode, Alexander tells the Metropol staff of an old legend from when he was growing up. The story tells of a tree hidden deep in the woods, bearing " Apples as black as coal ." If a person found and ate the apples, they would have the chance to live their life anew. Alexander immediately adds that he wouldn't eat the apples if he were to find them today, as despite his tumultuous life, it's a journey he doesn't regret.

Alexander is never shown telling Sofia this same story, but the presence of the black apples in the story's closing sequence suggests that he did share the tale with her at some point.

How & Why Sofia Flees Russia At The End Of A Gentleman In Moscow

Sofia's one-way trip to america took careful planning.

Despite being a staunch patriot, Alexander is still of the opinion that Sofia would have a better life in America than she would if she were to stay in Russia. Thankfully, Alexander's spying on the country's top brass in A Gentleman in Moscow episode 7 , "An Assembly," also presents an opportunity for McGregor's character to send his daughter to safety. The scheme is carried out in collaboration with Alexander's American ally , Richard Vanderwhile, who plans the operation for them.

Only Sofia is granted asylum by the Americans, with Alexander telling his daughter that the request for himself and Anna to receive the same treatment was simply too much to ask.

With the recordings from the meeting in her possession, Sofia heads to Paris as part of a musical tour. After performing, she cuts her hair short and changes her clothes to blend in with the crowd and leaves without being spotted. The powers that be grow wise to her scheme, as they move her performance slot from before the interval to the penultimate position in the running order. Thankfully, Sofia still has just enough time and barely manages to avoid being detected. After arriving at the American embassy in Paris, Vanderwhile arranges for Sofia to be flown to the USA .

Where Alexander Rostov Stands With Osip Glebnikov At The End Of A Gentleman In Moscow

Alexander & osip exchange declarations of friendship.

Alexander's relationship with Osip Glebnikov is intentionally unclear throughout A Gentleman in Moscow . Although Osip is essentially responsible for making sure Alexander doesn't break the terms of his sentence by leaving the Metropol, Alexander's jailer chooses to spend more time with his prisoner than is necessary for him to perform his duties. They engage in etiquette lessons, debates about literature, and even start to watch movies together. However, it mostly seems as though Osip is forcing the interactions to take place. Despite the ambiguity of their arrangement, Osip admits in the finale that he values their relationship .

The story of Ewan McGregor's Alexander Rostov from A Gentleman in Moscow shares some strong parallels to that of the actor's Star Wars character.

While warning McGregor's character of the danger Sofia is in - and by extension, Alexander himself - Osip says, " I like you, Alexander. I think of you as a friend ." The count replies in his signature guarded style: " As do I you, in a manner of speaking ." Osip may not have been the most valued figure to Alexander in his day-to-day life, but their friendship offered both men a different perspective. In addition, Osip also assisted Alexander return to the Metropol undetected following Sofia's trip to the hospital - an act that could have had both characters severely punished, if not killed.

Osip is also instrumental in making sure Anna departs for Finland without Alexander. By the time of "Adieu," Osip's wife and daughter are dead. So, Osip wants to make sure Alexander's family doesn't suffer the same fate.

Did Alexander Leave Manager Leplevsky To Die?

Alexander finally takes the revenge he's been trying to avoid.

Leplevsky is the biggest villain throughout the story of A Gentleman in Moscow , with Alexander's life at the Metropol Hotel becoming more difficult as his nemesis rises through the ranks. With Alexander's planned departure from the hotel imminent, it initially seems as though he's willing to let bygones be bygones and spare Leplevsky any acts of revenge. Unfortunately for the hotel manager, his last-minute discovery of Alexander's plan to escape results in McGregor needing to take action .

After arming himself with the dueling pistols from the manager's office, Alexander chains up Leplevsky in the bowels of the Metropol Hotel.

After arming himself with the dueling pistols from the manager's office, Alexander chains up Leplevsky in the bowels of the Metropol Hotel. At the same time, he incinerates the files the manager had been collating about the hotel's staff - Alexander and Sofia included. Leplevsky begs to be set free as Alexander departs , with the exchange between the two adversaries suggesting it would be a while before anyone finds the trapped hotel boss. So, while Alexander doesn't directly murder Manager Leplevsky, he could still be responsible for his death.

How Alexander's Imprisonment In The Metropol Hotel Was The Beginning Of His Life (Not The End)

Alexander rostov's personal life somehow flourished at the metropol.

When Alexander was sentenced to life imprisonment, he was in his early thirties. His only surviving family member was his grandmother, whom he had helped escape the country four years previously. In addition, he was estranged from Mishka - his oldest friend. Alexander had never married, nor fathered any children. Despite his life of wealth and privilege that had preceded his incarceration, he was deeply alone. Somewhat surprisingly, Alexander's decades trapped in the Metropol led to some of the most important relationships in his life .

Despite the early trauma of seeing Prince Nikolai being dragged out of the hotel to be shot in the street in A Gentleman in Moscow episode 1 , Alexander went on to hit a rich vein of social bonds. His friendship with Nina was vital during the early stages of his sentence, and although the pair struggled to stay on the same political wavelengths at times, their special relationship weathered the storm. Alexander also eventually managed to build bridges with Mishka .

Eventually, Alexander's on-and-off romantic dynamic with Anna Urbanova solidified into a solid foundation of love and trust, with the pair essentially becoming joint parents to Sofia.

If Alexander was a father figure to Nina, then he was essentially a grandfather in his role as generational caretaker when Sofia was left in the count's care. Alexander raised Sofia as his own , while making sure she never forgot her birth mother. Eventually, Alexander's on-and-off romantic dynamic with Anna Urbanova solidified into a solid foundation of love and trust, with the pair essentially becoming joint parents to Sofia. As a result, Alexander hit several milestones during his imprisonment that he either neglected or failed to achieve while he was a free man.

The Real Meaning Of A Gentleman In Moscow's Ending

Alexander's unconfirmed destiny compounds the story of love and loss.

A Gentleman in Moscow , like so many other stories, is about love. However, the show's theme of love is also tied into the concept of loss, and how the two interact with one another. The love that Alexander Rostov has for Anna and Sofia results in him putting their safety first , ensuring they are away from the Metropol Hotel and safely on their respective ways to their new homes at the time of him making his escape attempt.

Alexander Rostov's journey in A Gentleman in Moscow has been full of twists and turns, but the bees in episode 3 serve as a brilliant metaphor.

Alexander is fully aware of the risks to himself, Anna, and Sofia that their plan presents. Still, the love he has for his found family makes him willing to put himself in harm's way if it means there's a chance of a better tomorrow for the daughter he cherishes and the woman he loves. Osip acts in a similar vein by helping Alexander. Despite losing his wife and daughter, Osip chooses not to let his grief turn him bitter and instead makes sure Alexander doesn't suffer the same heartbreak.

Sofia's fantasy of her parents living out their days together is about as perfect an ending as the show can expect, with the unconfirmed nature of the scenario contributing to the dark beauty of the story's conclusion.

Sofia's fantasy of her parents living out their days together is about as perfect an ending as the show can expect , with the unconfirmed nature of the scenario contributing to the dark beauty of the story's conclusion. The trio would never have had the life they'd wanted in the building that brought the three of them together. Knowing this, they give their best effort to free themselves of the restrictions imposed upon them by Alexander's prison sentence. A Gentleman in Moscow 's final episode perfectly encapsulates the tale's message of sacrifice in the name of love.

All episodes of A Gentleman in Moscow are available to stream on Paramount+.

A Gentleman in Moscow

Based on the novel by Amor Towles, A Gentleman in Moscow is a historical dramatic-thriller created by Ben Vanstone for Paramount+ and Showtime. Following the advent of the Russian Revolution, Count Alexander Ilyich Rostov is forced to spend several decades locked away in a hotel room and watch as the country around him transforms.

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Daniel is a qualified librarian, former teacher, and citation expert. He has been contributing to MyBib since 2018.

Books | Former Denver Post reporter writes book about…

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Books | former denver post reporter writes book about slain colleague’s murder, “the last story,” by arthur kane tells the story of jeff german’s killing in las vegas.

German is much more than a statistic, though.

In “The Last Story: The Murder of an Investigative Journalist In Las Vegas (WildBlue Press), German’s colleague Arthur Kane delves into the reporter’s professional life, the police investigation into his death, and the evolution of Las Vegas and news media over recent decades.

“It was important to me to get the story out there,” said Kane, an award-winning investigative journalist who worked at The Denver Post for seven years. “As far as we can tell, the last time a public government official was accused or convicted of killing a journalist was in the ’40s in Texas when a [deputy] sheriff killed a radio reporter who was digging into some of his properties he was running brothels out of.”

“We talk about threats all over the world to journalists, but a lot of times people don’t realize it happens here.”

German was 69 when he was fatally stabbed outside his Las Vegas home. He spent four decades working as a reporter there, covering everything from the mob to corrupt politicians. Police allege former Clark County public administrator Robert Telles killed German as retribution for an article he wrote, based on staff interviews, about the “hostile work environment” Telles’ created and an inappropriate relationship he had with a coworker.

A month after the story published, Telles lost a primary for re-election.

His arrest soon after the murder shocked many of German’s colleagues since the articles weren’t among the journalist’s most forceful or impactful. They didn’t expect any serious fallout from what he wrote about Telles, a low-level government official. (After all, German had once been sucker-punched by a mobster.)

“We didn’t think anything of it,” said Kane, who joined the Review-Journal in 2016 and is currently the investigations editor. “There was nothing to indicate that this would be anything different than a politician trying to cover up for things he did wrong in office and blaming the messenger for it.”

“The Last Story” is not just about German’s tragic death, though. It covers much of the newspaperman’s life, homing in on his career, from covering organized crime in Sin City at the Las Vegas Sun — which led him to host the second season of the “Mobbed Up” podcast — to major court trials to questionable actions by government personnel.

Kane doesn’t gloss over the negative moments of German’s career, either; he describes some questionable ethical decisions and calls out some of his colleague’s more arrogant moments. “I [set out to] try and paint the most accurate picture of his life, what happened and what kind of city Las Vegas is away from the Strip, this level of conflict that [German] lived through for 40 years of his life here,” said Kane. “Jeff’s life mirrored a lot of really interesting times in Vegas.”

Kane sometimes gets a little lost in the details of those times, inundating the reader with names and meticulous narrations. But “The Last Story” also paints a larger picture through its exploration of Las Vegas’ underbelly, its exploration of the state of contemporary journalism and the struggle to continue doing the kind of hard-hitting investigating work to which German and Kane devoted their careers.

German’s killing has also raised intriguing questions about a free press — chiefly, whether a journalist’s sources remain protected after death. Information gleaned from German’s personal devices (the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department seized his cellphone, four personal computers and a hard drive after the murder) are an ongoing question despite the Nevada Supreme Court ruling in October that the state’s shield law that protects journalists from being forced to disclose sources remains intact in death. More than 40 news organizations filed a brief asking the judge not to allow police to access German’s electronic devices.

Review-Journal employees recently finished reviewing those gadgets and logging what they consider to be privileged information not relevant to the case; they’re expected to turn over more than 1,000 items to prosecutors.

Telles’ murder trial has been postponed until early August. He has pleaded not guilty and remains in jail without bail. He faces life in prison if convicted.

Kane said he and German used to joke to one another about watching their backs after sensitive stories were published. They’d ask the other journalist to investigate and write about it if a source did come after them. It was, Kane said, “gallows humor.” But it took on a more serious bent after German’s death: Kane had last seen him in person a week earlier, after Telles had lost his re-election and the two journalists recited the same old shtick.

“In a way, I’m keeping a promise to Jeff,” Kane said of the book. “I feel obligated to do what we talked about even if it was joking.”

“The Last Story”

Author: Arthur Kane

Publisher: WildBlue Press

Daliah Singer is a freelance writer.

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2022 Year in Review: eBird, Merlin, Macaulay Library, and Birds of the World

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• Macaulay Library

2022 was a year to remember. From the 20th anniversary of eBird, to the expansion of Merlin Sound ID, to innovative new tools powering scientific and conservation applications, there’s a lot to celebrate from the past twelve months.

More people united in a shared appreciation for birds this year than ever before—and you helped to make it possible. Your bird observations inspire the more than 10 million people who visited Cornell Lab of Ornithology resources this year to learn, study, and conserve bird populations. To the more than 110,000 new eBirders and 2.9 million new Merlin users who joined us for the first time in 2022, welcome! We also appreciate and thank our eBird Supporters who help support eBird and the Cornell Lab by making a monthly contribution.

We’d like to take this time to recognize achievements from the past year that you helped to build. Thank you.

• Resources for science and conservation

New tools and features

• Updates to core infrastructure
• Exciting milestones
• Vital partnerships and collaborations

Resources for Science and Conservation

Through a transformative collaboration with BirdLife International, BirdLife Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas (IBAs) and Key Biodiversity Areas (KBAs) are now integrated into eBird Explore tools and data downloads . This new functionality is designed to support the work of BirdLife International and the BirdLife Partnership to monitor these critically important sites for global plant and animal diversity, while allowing eBirders to view their personal contributions to these efforts.

The eBird Status and Trends project now provides modeled abundance and range maps f or 2068 species —including 868 species added this month. For the first time, these groundbreaking visualizations are now interactive. Zoom in and pan for detailed local population information across a species’ full, global range.

2022 also saw the launch of new, detailed eBird Trends maps for 586 species around the world. These maps, built from eBird data, show precisely where bird populations are increasing and decreasing. Localized insights into population changes are a game-changer for those working to restore declining bird populations and habitats.

Thanks to an improved and streamlined data download process , more than 750 groups accessed eBird Status and Trends Data Products in 2022. eBird Status and Trends products support the work of federal agencies (including the US Fish and Wildlife Service and Canadian Wildlife Service), international organizations such as The Nature Conservancy and World Wildlife Fund, and several hundred regional conservation organizations and universities.

Best of all, your eBird observations help to make this unparalleled scientific resource a reality, with checklists from 464,542 eBirders being used to create this year’s suite of eBird Status and Trends Data Products. Thank you.

A new GIS mapping tool from the Northeast Habitat Conservation Initiative (NBHCI) integrates eBird Status & Trends breeding season data for 43 bird species of conservation priority in the eastern United States with other land and climate data layers across five habitat types. Land trusts and conservation organizations are now using this tool to support their conservation and land management efforts.

Visit Land Trusts Using eBird to see how members of the Cornell Lab’s Land Trust Bird Conservation Initiative have integrated eBird into their work to engage new audiences, inform stewardship planning and land prioritization, and build organizational capacity through birds.

Nearly 3,000 people downloaded the eBird Basic Dataset for analysis this year, including 1,775 academics and students and 577 employees of nonprofits and government agencies. This free data resource is accessed via the Data Download page.

eBird powered multiple scientific advances from studying the impacts of nighttime lights on nocturnal migrating birds and the effects of climate change on the range of bee-eaters , to unraveling the mystery of why tropical mountain birds have narrow ranges . Scientists also turned to eBird to identify important areas for vulture conservation .

Researchers published 160 peer-reviewed publications in 2022 incorporating eBird data bringing the total number of scientific publications using eBird data to more than 780.

Scientists published 56 scientific papers this year using media assets from the Macaulay Library . Audio recordings uploaded to the Macaulay Library powered new and innovative research into how birds respond to alarm calls . Meanwhile, photographs uploaded to the Macaulay Library were used this year to identify a hybrid fairywren and to better understand when and how hummingbirds replace their feathers .

Birds of the World , the Cornell Lab’s premiere ornithological reference tool, expanded to 10,906 species and 249 families this year. Thousands tuned in to the new “ BOW Discovery Series ”—free live webinars on scientific topics including the 2022 Avian Taxonomy update and Adventures in Bird Molt with Peter Pyle.

Birds of the World updated the in-depth scientific content of 568 published species accounts this year, including 407 fully revised accounts in 2022— while growing subscribers by 25% over the past twelve months. Birders, researchers, and conservationists from 130 countries rely on Birds of the World’s comprehensive scholarly content, turning scientific knowledge into action.

Visit the free species accounts on the Birds of the World homepage to see what this definitive science resource has to offer.

Significant revisions to the display of exotic species on eBird maps, checklists, explore pages provide greater flexibility and transparency in how our database handles exotic species. These highly anticipated improvements make it easier to monitor the establishment and spread of human-introduced birds with eBird. Watch for additional integration of Exotic categories into Life Lists, Top100, eBird Mobile, and more in early 2023.

Merlin Bird ID now covers more than 10,000 species (nearly every bird species on Earth!) with new pack releases for Africa and Asia. The latest release of Sound ID includes 277 bird species found in Europe and 507 common and widespread species of Central and South America , plus an improved, more accurate model for 510 species found in the US and Canada.

Adding Merlin sound identifications to your birding lists? Check out our tips and guidelines for reporting the birds you identify with Merlin Sound ID.

eBird Mobile was used to collect 11.5 million eBird checklists in 2022. eBird Mobile users will be excited to hear that ‘updating’ checks have been moved to the background—no more waiting to start a checklist. Those who contribute to eBird Atlases may also notice improved atlasing functions in eBird Mobile , including automatic notifications when approaching or crossing an atlas block boundary. Discover the New Zealand Bird Atlas , one of several bird atlases integrated with eBird, in the most recent eBird Portal Spotlight .

The BirdCast Migration Dashboard reveals bird migration for the contiguous United States at a level of detail previously unavailable to the general public. The Dashboard provides near-real time migration stats for counties the lower 48 states such as how many birds are currently aloft, how high they’re flying, and what direction they are headed.

New learning resources from Bird Academy:

• Fundamentos de eBird —a free Spanish-language version of the eBird Essentials course for eBirders of all experience levels. eBird Essentials/Fundamentos de eBird is the first Cornell Lab Bird Academy course to be offered in both Spanish and English.
• How to Record Bird Sounds —built by veteran sound recordists at the Macaulay Library, this online Bird Academy course offers expert advice to help you create, edit, and curate high-quality recordings of bird sounds.

Updates to Core Technical Infrastructure

Some of our most exciting developments this year happened behind the scenes, including a long-awaited migration of Macaulay Library media processing to the cloud , making photo and audio uploads and downloads faster and more reliable world-wide. Macaulay Library’s Media Search was rebuilt to be easier to update and maintain, and the tools that Macaulay Library staff use to incorporate and curate large collections of media were also significantly improved.

Behind the scenes at Merlin, a major rewrite of the entire Sound ID feature in Merlin Bird ID improved the accuracy and greatly reduced the energy usage of this incredibly popular bird identification resource. MerlinVision , the platform used by volunteer sound annotators to build and improve Merlin’s Sound ID functionality, was expanded to include photo annotations in anticipation of future improvements to Merlin Photo ID.

Maintaining an up-to-date taxonomy is essential to keep the Lab’s content relevant and accessible.The 2022 Taxonomy Update to the Clements Taxonomy resulted in a net gain of 82 species, bringing the global total number of species in the eBird taxonomy to 10,906.

Even more exciting than all the splits, lumps, and name changes in this year’s taxonomy update is a brand new set of administrative tools that streamline taxonomic changes across eBird records, Birds of the World species accounts, Macaulay Library media assets, and Merlin Bird ID packs.

These tools also make it easier to add and manage the 55 languages and 39 regional versions of bird common names in eBird. Huge thanks to the volunteer translators who provide these common names and help us to support 17 languages on eBird.org and 37 languages in eBird Mobile.

Exciting milestones and new growth

In May 2022, eBird celebrated its 20th anniversary . 820,000 eBirders from every country in the world have together contributed more than 1.3 billion bird observations to eBird, including more than 225 million observations submitted this year alone . eBird’s contributions now make up more than half of the biodiversity data in the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) .

On Global Big Day 51,000 birders across 201 countries reported a world-record-setting 7,673 species—an astounding 433 more species than the previous Global Big Day record. October Big Day also set a new October birding record, with 34,600 birders reporting 7,453 species on 80,000 checklists. Mark your calendar for the next Global Big Day: 13 May 2023.

The Macaulay Library reached multiple significant milestones in 2022 including the 40 millionth photo and the 1.5 millionth sound recording . More recordists and photographers archived their media in the Macaulay Library in the past year than ever before. In 2022 alone:

• 15,645 recordists contributed more than 370,000 recordings.
• 69,800 photographers added more than 9.9 million photos.

Thank you for helping the Macaulay Library continue to be a leading resource of media for education and ornithological research! Take a look at the top photos and top recordings of 2022, or take a trip down memory lane with the Macaulay Library’s Best Bird Photos .

Nearly 10 million people have now discovered the magic of Merlin Bird ID . In the past year, 808,000 people added 7 million identifications to their life lists and 1.6 million people identified 177 million birds from their songs or calls with Merlin Sound ID. Merlin experienced a 50% increase in the number of active users over 2021 (and over 80% growth in Europe and Africa) and the number of people using Sound ID in 2022 was also up 544% over the previous year.

eBird, Merlin, Macaulay Library, and Birds of the World were excited to welcome 7 new team members this year to support project management, web development, data visualization, and more. Several positions remain open or are coming soon, visit the eBird Jobs page for details!

Vital Partnerships and Collaborations

The exciting advances made by eBird, Merlin Bird ID, the Macaulay Library, and Birds of the World over the past year are only possible thanks to the heroic efforts of thousands of contributors, volunteers, partners, and collaborators around the world. Below we celebrate some of these many partnerships.

The eBird Young Birders Event returned after a 2-year hiatus with not one but TWO events for teenagers interested in pursuing careers that involve birds. At each event, fifteen aspiring ornithologists learned valuable field skills and made lasting connections with their peers. The application period for the next eBird Young Birders Event (6-9 July 2023) will open in March 2023.

Staff members from eBird and Birds of the World joined the Working Group Avian Checklists (WGAC) in its multi-year mission to align global bird checklists , with the goal of someday having a single consensus taxonomy for all the world’s birds.

Birds of the World continues to empower a global collective of ornithologists working together to organize the world’s information on birds. Six new regional content partners from South Africa, Taiwan, and South America joined the global collective of ornithology experts committed to making Birds of the World the singular, most complete resource for scholarly bird information. The international editorial team for Birds of the World now consists of 28 associates, 8 undergraduate assistants, and more than 2000 scientific authors. This strengthens Birds of the World’s regional scientific content while providing free access to millions of people.

Making up for two years of travel restrictions, eBird, Merlin, BOW, and Macaulay Library staff members hosted meetings, workshops, presentations, and field trips in collaboration with local partners at five international events including Global Birdfair in England, Feria de Aves in Peru, and the Pan-African Ornithological Congress in Zimbabwe. Look for our teams at more conferences and gatherings in 2023!

The eBird Zimbabwe portal was launched this year in collaboration with BirdLife Zimbabwe. This brings the total number of eBird Portals to 52, and the number of eBird Atlases to 8!

More than 2,222 volunteer reviewers and Hotspot editors oversee eBird data quality in 253 countries, territories, or dependencies, including the High Seas. These indispensable volunteers reviewed 4.6 million eBird observations in 2022 to ensure that eBird observations are accurate—a critical piece that makes eBird run smoothly. Thank you for your hard work!

Thanks to the generosity of Carl Zeiss Sports Optics, we were able to award more than 16 eBirders free Zeiss binoculars in 2022 including two pairs of ZEISS SFL 8×40 , the newest member of the ZEISS SF line of binoculars. We are excited to continue working with Zeiss on eBirder of the Month awards in 2023 to thank the eBird community for your bird observations.

eBird partners with the Cornell Lab’s Bird Academy to offer you exciting educational resources in thanks for your eBirding. More than 115 eBirders won access to free Bird Academy courses this year, including two new courses— How to Record Bird Sounds and Let’s Go Outside! How to Connect Kids with Birds and Nature .

Thank you for making this possible

We can’t wait to see what we can do together in 2023. Please stay in touch! Subscribe to our eNews or follow us on social media:

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• Birds of the World: Twitter

Why private equity sees life and annuities as an enticing form of permanent capital

Permanent capital —investment funds that do not have to be returned to investors on a timetable, or at all—is, according to some, the “holy grail” of private investing. 1 Stephen Foley and Henny Sender, “Permanent capital: Perpetual cash machines,” Financial Times , January 4, 2015. Permanent capital owes its exalted status to the time and effort that managers can save on fundraising, and the flexibility it provides to invest at times, like a crisis, when other forms of capital can become scarce.

Permanent capital can take many forms, including long-dated and open-ended fund vehicles. The balance sheet of a life and annuities company is one form of permanent capital that has drawn much attention. In 2021, private investors announced deals to acquire or reinsure more than $200 billion of liabilities in the United States. Such investors now own over $900 billion of life and annuity assets in Western Europe and North America. Assuming the pending deals close successfully, private investors will own 12 percent of life and annuity assets in the United States, totaling $620 billion, and represent more than a third of US net written premiums of indexed annuities. All five of the largest private equity (PE) firms by assets have holdings in life insurance, representing 15 to 50 percent of their total assets under management. By our count, 15 alternative asset managers have entered the market, or stated their intent to do so. Insurance carriers are also benefiting from all the attention: many of the largest insurers have sold legacy books to private buyers, typically to improve their return on equity and to free up capital for reinvestment or return to shareholders. For some public carriers, these transactions have generated near-instantaneous expansion of their price–earnings multiple.

The trend is not new: private investing in insurance dates back more than 50 years to Berkshire Hathaway’s acquisition of National Indemnity in 1967. As that example shows, many forms of insurance beyond life and annuities can serve as permanent capital, including specialty and property and casualty (P&C). In this article, however, we’ll focus on the reasons why many PE firms have concluded that life insurance and annuities represent a once-in-a-generation opportunity. We’ll also look at the requirements for PE firms on the sidelines that want to enter the market, discuss some overlooked ways that PE owners can create value, and highlight some implications for life insurers as they consider either selling a portion of their book of business or emulating and competing with this potent new industry force.

Why PE investments in life insurance are growing

The core attraction is straightforward. The balance sheets of life and annuities companies are well stocked with assets (to match the liabilities of future payouts and indemnities), but until payout, these assets need to be invested to generate returns. And in many cases, the cost of servicing the liabilities is significantly lower than the potential investment return. The spread represents an attractive margin.

The most common way for general partners (GPs) to capture the spread is to set up an insurer that they control through an equity investment (sometimes in conjunction with other investors, such as sovereign-wealth funds) and then acquire or reinsure books from other insurers. To ensure they earn the required returns on acquired books, these GPs typically influence the strategic asset allocation (SAA) and apply their investment management capabilities to earn alpha on some of the asset classes. The benefits to the GP in this case are threefold:

First, in our experience, executing the value-creation playbook can generate internal rates of return (IRRs) of 10 to 14 percent . Investment returns have substantially lifted return on equity (ROE) in recent years. GPs achieve stronger investment returns largely by rotating the asset allocation into classes that are higher risk and higher return (while still meeting regulatory and rating agency guidelines) and achieving higher alpha within these asset classes. Consider what US PE-backed insurers have accomplished: one analysis found that they generated 62 basis points (bps) higher investment yield than the industry average. 2 Insurance companies remain prime targets for private equity , A.M. Best, July 1, 2021. Within three years of acquisition, 80 percent of these insurers had increased their allocation to asset-backed securities (primarily collateralized loan obligations), and over half of their investments were in private loans (compared with 37 percent for the industry). Many PE firms have privileged, at-scale capabilities to originate higher risk-return assets and deliver excess returns. What’s more, the approximately ten times asset-to-equity ratio typical of insurers amplifies the impact of strong investment performance.

A few other factors also contribute to healthy IRRs. For one, disciplined owners are often able to operate the business more efficiently and effectively, as we discuss below. In addition, for some books like variable annuities, public valuations appear to be lower than private valuations. As such, public investors may be wary of the volatility and opaque risk profile, raising the issue of whether such books are better suited to private ownership.

• Second, investing these assets provides a stable base for GPs to rapidly build their alternative credit capabilities . Credit investing is a strategic growth area  for many firms at a time when PE markets are becoming more competitive. Acquiring a life book immediately provides long-term assets for the firm’s credit arm to invest. It’s a much faster way to reach scale and significantly less onerous than raising several credit funds. Depending on the structure of the vehicle, this can provide a significant source of fee-related earnings, which are more resilient to market fluctuations and more stable than carried interest. In particular, PE-backed insurers typically use structured credit products as core assets in their life insurance books. Origination of these asset classes is reaching record levels. For example, collateralized loan obligations, a core asset class for PE-backed insurers, are now a $760 billion market.

Finally, life insurance offers the potential for scale . Traditional life liabilities in Europe total €4.5 trillion; in the United States, life and annuity insurers carry $4.5 trillion of assets on the general account, with an additional $1.5 trillion in separate variable-annuity liabilities, and there are $3 trillion of private-sector defined-benefit liabilities. Even after many large PE acquisitions, a huge supply continues to be available, allowing PE firms that build insurance capabilities to scale and take full advantage of this opportunity.

Another model that some GPs follow is a partnership or outsourced chief-investment-officer (OCIO) model, in which they work with incumbent insurers to manage a portion of their assets for the long term and take only a limited equity stake, or none at all. In this case they still receive the benefits of scaling their credit capabilities, as a high-performing OCIO operation can attract other insurers looking to outsource investment management. This also provides a steady source of fee-related earnings, which can drive higher valuations for the GP. And as a strategy, this too has potential to be scaled, as other insurers seek higher allocations to these high-yielding asset classes.

Sellers are willing

Put it all together, and it’s clear why life insurance is attractive to PE buyers. Further fueling the market is insurers’ willingness to sell: some see an opportunity to shift strategy and move into more attractive businesses ; others think they can deliver greater value by exiting these books and returning the capital to shareholders . One example of the strategic shift is the move by many insurers to a capital-light, fee-based business model (such as investment management and recordkeeping) in structurally advantaged value pools in their domestic markets (for example, in defined-contribution pensions in which assets are growing at 6 to 8 percent annually across Europe and the United States). Similar to GPs with strong fee income in their revenue mix, insurers with a high proportion of fee earnings will typically trade at higher valuations (often nine to 12 times P/E ratio, or 1.1 to 1.7 times book value) than those in capital-intensive businesses (usually five to eight times, or less than 1.1 times book value). Selling a life back book can provide the needed capital to pivot quickly into a new business, and investors are supportive of such moves. For example, one broad-based US player divested its closed block of variable annuities to reduce the volatility of earnings and refocus on capital-light businesses. Investors responded well: over the subsequent three years TSR outperformed the life index by ten percentage points. The carrier’s price-to-book (PB) ratio rose from 1.2 to 1.6 times, at a time when the broader industry’s PB ratio fell from 1.3 to 1.0 times.

Even as the capital-light model has gained favor, the traditional business has become less attractive. Many insurers’ earnings on in-force blocks have come under pressure , as guarantee rates to policyholders are still as high as 150 to 400 bps in some markets, while yields on bonds have declined by 150 to 300 bps since 2010–11. Naturally, this has strained capital as insurers have had to adjust their reserves to reflect future earnings expectations. An average insurer reinvests about 12 percent of its assets annually, so this profitability challenge becomes increasingly acute every year. PE buyers are subject to the same pressures, of course, but with their different approaches to investment and operations, they are better able to overcome the costs of the capital requirements.

In addition, operational and IT issues have continued to challenge profitability and require significant investment and management attention to address. For example, migrating legacy policy-administration systems and investing in automation can be attractive in the medium term but require careful management to prevent technical or servicing issues.

In short, opportunity abounds. But how to take advantage? The playbook varies for PE firms considering an acquisition, those that have owned a life book for some time, and insurers.

Market entrants: How to begin

As so many PE firms have acquired insurance assets, would-be entrants and firms looking to scale their nascent operation may find the market more complicated than it once was.

As always, the approach starts with strategy. PE firms must first get clear on their strategy for insurance investments, choosing from a spectrum that ranges from a one-off opportunistic play to be sold in several years to the foundation for a future platform—and a source of permanent capital. The choice of strategy has material implications down the line, on whether or not to insource IT and operational capabilities; talent strategy; target geographies (where market dynamics and regulatory factors are also important); and target books of business (in annuities, life, or pension risk transfer). Defining the approach up front will save costs later. Further, if the deal is large and part of a platform strategy, the investment could change the DNA of the firm, shifting the focus from PE to private credit, while also posing future regulatory hurdles.

Those firms that are thinking of a platform play, and a long-lasting and growing source of permanent capital, will need three capabilities: proprietary access to potential deals, value-creation skills to make the most of the deals they close, and strong risk-management capabilities  given the nature of insurance.

The most common path for new entrants is to acquire or reinsure a closed block. As competition increases, some GPs are exploring alternatives, such as scaling organically or through a series of smaller transactions. However, these approaches are proving challenging given the need to reach scale to attain attractive economics. A third approach seen in two recent examples is a partnership model. New entrants could consider partnering with insurers in addition to making outright acquisitions. If the two parties share in the upside (and the risks) and share the capabilities (for example, the insurer brings some of the technical capabilities while the GP supplies investment skills), PE firms might be able to secure the benefits of permanent capital while avoiding the complexity of operating a life insurer.

There are a few risks that PE firms should be aware of and take action to mitigate, starting with the asset side of the balance sheet, including illiquidity and credit risk. Rotating the portfolio into higher-risk credit assets has advantages but also creates risk that is important to manage, particularly as the portfolio has typically been invested in more liquid, stable assets. Managing the credit risk of the underlying assets, maintaining sufficient liquidity as needed for policyholders, and managing the mark-to-market volatility on the credit portfolio during a credit downturn to maintain regulatory and rating stability are all critical. This risk has been latent, given the relatively benign credit environment in the past decade, but a future emergence could put stress on balance sheets.

A second concern is regulatory uncertainty. Although regulators are getting used to the idea of PE ownership of life carriers, 3 Allison Bell, “Federal crash spotters eye life insurers’ ‘reach for yield,’” ThinkAdvisor, December 20, 2021; “Turning up the magnification: Regulators have PE-controlled insurers under the microscope (again),” National Law Review , December 9, 2021. approval can take time. As PE firms enter a highly regulated industry for the first time (and encounter all the risks of shifting regulation), they will need skills to engage well with the regulator (and ratings agencies, critical stakeholders in reinsurance), to build their trust, and, ultimately, to persuade them that the firm is a responsible owner.

Public opinion can be another obstacle. In two recent Western European deals, concerns about the impact of a PE owner meant that late-stage negotiations did not succeed. 4 Pamela Barbaglia and Carolyn Cohn, “Aviva sets Feb deadlines for $6.6 billion disposals in France, Poland-sources,” Reuters, January 26, 2021; Kevin Peachey, “LV= leaders criticised over openness in Bain Capital deal,” BBC, November 24, 2021. Finally, firms should consider limited partners’ (LPs) reactions to a life acquisition. The potential for sponsor-owned insurers to invest in other assets and funds raised by the same sponsor may change the GP/LP dynamic. Such governance challenges are subtle and may only emerge over time.

Current owners: The value-creation playbook

Once they’ve acquired a book, firms can turn their attention to driving value. Building on our guidelines  for closed-book value creation, owners have six levers that can collectively improve ROE by up to four to seven percentage points (exhibit):

• Investment performance: optimization of the SAA and delivery of alpha within the SAA
• Capital efficiency: optimization of balance-sheet exposures—for example, active management of duration gaps
• Operations/IT improvement: reduction of operational costs through simplification and modernization
• Technical excellence: improvement of profitability through price adjustments, such as reduced surplus sharing
• Commercial uplift: cross-selling and upselling higher-margin products
• Franchise growth: acquiring new blocks or new distribution channels

Most PE firms view the first lever, investment performance, as the main way to create value for the insurer, as well as for themselves. This lever will grow in importance if yields and spreads continue to decline. Leading firms typically have deep skills in core investment-management areas, such as strategic asset allocation, asset/liability management, risk management, and reporting, as well as access to leading investment teams that have delivered alpha.

Capital efficiency is also well-trod ground, and for private insurers it presents a greater opportunity given their different treatment under generally accepted accounting principles, (GAAP), enabling them to apply a longer-term lens and reduce the cost of hedging. However, most firms have yet to explore the other levers—operations and IT improvement, technical excellence, commercial uplift, and franchise growth—at scale. Across all these levers, advanced analytics can enable innovative, value-creating approaches.

Operations/IT improvement

Cost cutting is a paradox for private acquirers of insurance books. On one hand, the opportunity is tempting: insurers have generally not cut costs as fast as other industries, and the books in question are often high-cost operations. On the other hand, acquirers sometimes underestimate the complexity that drives these costs, given the complicated nature of multiple legacy systems and nuances across policy vintages—to say nothing of new costs for postmerger integration. New entrants have a particular advantage here, as they can adopt a digital-first approach to data and technology, unencumbered by legacy-system issues. Our preliminary analysis suggests that as PE firms achieve scale in insurance, typically defined as at least $10 billion of assets, costs can be wrestled lower. In our study of a small sample of US and European closed-book acquirers, US firms, which have typically reached scale, enjoy costs 20 to 40 percent lower than general life insurers in most major operating-cost categories. But European acquirers are burdened with costs 30 to 60 percent higher, in part due to the more complex books they have acquired.

Many of the techniques to address operating and IT costs are well understood: process streamlining, changes to operating location, and efforts to reduce overhead costs are levers most insurers have pulled to some degree. Many have also attempted to capture scale benefits. To get to the next level , insurers can take a comprehensive look at these levers to understand their interdependencies. For example, unlocking scale benefits requires action to reduce complexity of the book, by offloading legacy products, say, or decommissioning legacy IT systems. For a GP, this can reduce dividends in the short term but offer an attractive return given the longer-dated nature of these investments.

New AI techniques, including machine learning, can also help insurers capture more of these opportunities  than was previously possible. For example, applying these methods to system migration and data extraction allows insurers to bring down part of the costs before executing an outsourcing contract and therefore retain more value.

Technical excellence

Conducting a thorough review of contractual terms and finding opportunities to adjust where appropriate (for example, through reduced surplus sharing) can be a material driver of value. New AI skills and modernized IT systems can also bolster the ability of insurers to apply technical and commercial levers. For example, AI can enhance an insurer’s understanding of customer blocks and enable it to develop a segmented approach with targeted interventions.

Commercial uplift

AI offers additional benefits, such as avoiding lapsing through a better understanding of customers  and identifying opportunities to cross-sell or upsell. For example, one insurer applied AI modeling along with a refreshed strategy for sales force optimization. Agents in this program delivered between 40 and 250 percent more cross-sell revenue than a control group that did not use analytics.

Franchise growth

Identifying attractive new blocks and ensuring an operating model that can successfully scale  without raising costs significantly or damaging policyholder service is a critical lever. Advanced analytics can unlock new opportunities here as well: applying machine learning to model policyholder behavior in a target book, for example, can be 20 to 50 percent more accurate than traditional actuarial methodology. Combining actuarial and AI techniques can unlock significant value as the franchise grows. For new entrants, identifying innovative ways to grow the franchise can be particularly attractive. They might, for example, expand into structured settlements, flow reinsurance, or coinsurance (particularly for those without manufacturing capabilities). There are at least three prominent examples of players that began with a closed-book focus but now derive significant value from organic growth which represents 25 to 50 percent of their flows and assets.

Insurers: Fight or flight?

Several leading insurers already exercise the same value-creation playbook that PE firms are using. In many cases, these insurers are better positioned on the operational, technical, and commercial levers. For example, by running operations and IT transformations or using analytics-powered methods to release capital or improve in-force earnings, they are creating value despite the challenging interest-rate environment.

Insurers are also taking a fresh look at investment levers and, in some cases, studying the moves made by GPs for potential insights. Many insurers are building investment skills, reviewing the strategic-asset allocation, and finding new ways to secure access to, and generate alpha from, higher-yielding, capital-efficient asset classes, provided they can effectively manage the risk. In more challenging asset classes, some insurers are exploring partnership models. For example, at least two insurers have recently partnered with alternative managers; in these deals, the insurer brings operations expertise, and the alternative manager can capture the upside from managing the credit investments and delivering best-in-class capabilities for investment performance. The arrangement lets the insurer capture a share of the upside without having to build or buy all of the needed specialist capabilities, and can create a structure with which to raise external capital.

For insurers who cannot see a path to building leading capabilities or have more attractive investment opportunities, sale or reinsurance of part or all of a capital-intensive book could free up significant capital. To gain the best price, they must understand the PE value-creation playbook sketched above and strike a fair deal.

One final possibility for insurers facing a challenging value-creation path: a few insurers could pool their challenged assets and build sufficient scale to offer a compelling proposition to another insurer, either as a purchase or a joint venture.

The window is firmly open on this once-in-a-generation opportunity—momentum is building, and more investment is sure to come. But as competition increases and credit spreads remain low, firms will need to evolve their value-creation playbook and deploy a broader set of levers to capture the full potential from this opportunity.

Ramnath Balasubramanian and Alex D’Amico are senior partners in McKinsey’s New York office, Rajiv Dattani is an associate partner in the London office, and Diego Mattone is a partner in the Zurich office.

The authors wish to thank Pierre-Ignace Bernard, Jay Gelb, Nils Jean-Mairet, Bryce Klempner, Pankaj Kumar, Ju-Hon Kwek, Nick Milinkovich, Rob Palter, Alex Panas, David Quigley, Andrew Reich, Archie Sinclair, John Spivey, Kurt Strovink, Josue Ulate Chinchilla, and Ulrike Vogelgesang for their contributions to this article.

This article was edited by Mark Staples, an executive editor in the New York office.

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