Vanlife Diaries

Kathleen Morton, Jonny Dustow and Jared Melrose Hardie Grant, $40

Chronicling the evergrowing world of the modern-day gypsies, Vanlife Diaries follows the trails of those who have hit the roads less travelled. It’s written by three original, so-called “van lifers”, who espoused this nomadic life before it became one long Instagram story. Some of the featured vehicles will cause extreme van envy, most especially a stunning 1994 Airstream Classic that’s a study in cool. Other stories might cause more incredulity, like the family of four living in a 1985 VW Van. It looks very crowded, but California’s Sellmeyer family looks almost beatifically happy in every shot. On that note, the book’s photos are far superior to the prose, which is patchy in quality. Some tales are told well, but others spend too long on backstories that don’t really add anything. FICTION Cyanide Games Richard Beasley Simon & Schuster

Australian author Richard Beasley flies under the radar but has a dedicated following, and it’s not hard to see why. A barrister in Sydney, he draws on his wealth of knowledge of the law and the criminal mind to write gutsy legal thrillers on par with Michael Connelly and John Grisham. In Cyanide Games barrister Peter Tanner juggles cases of ecological disaster, corrupt corporations, drug dealers, dodgy property developers and the death of a young woman in highly suspicious and opulent circumstances. The cases are seemingly connected, but no one has answers and the bureaucracy is unwilling to help. Intelligently written, complex and moving at a cracking pace, it leaves no doubt that no one is above the law.

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