Dear Rach & Soph

These are the new fiction releases in Australia for August 2025 – that we know about! We’re relying on information from authors and publishers, but not all of them send it to us, so if you’re an author with an upcoming release, please let us know! 

HISTORICAL FICTION

Until the Red Leaves Fall by Alli Parker

Daughters of Batavia by Stefanie Koens

The Midnight Estate by Kelly Rimmer

GENERAL FICTION

The Life Experiment by Jess Kitching

Lessons in Love at the Seaside Salon by Sophie Green

The Visitor by Rebecca Starford

CRIME

Stillwater by Tanya Scott

ROMANCE

In Spite of You by Patrick Lenton

Lights Camera Love by Natalie Murray

In the Long Run by Emma Mugglestone

YOUNG ADULT

Once a Villain by Vanessa Len

The Set-up Girl by Sasha Vey

Drift by Pip Harry 

For more information about Rachael Johns: https://www.rachaeljohns.com

For more informationabout Sophie Green: https://sophiegreenauthor.com

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Maya Linnell is a beloved author of seven novels, the latest of which is COCKATOO COVE (blurb below). Her writing life began with journalism, and she worked at a rural newspaper before moving into public relations then into writing fiction as well as blogging for Romance Writers Australia. Maya currently lives in rural Queensland with her husband and three children. 

We wanted to talk to Maya about her writing life and her fiction, of course, but she also participates in a number of other creative activities - indeed, she lives a rich, full creative life. If you need some creative inspiration, this is the episode for you! 

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ABOUT COCKATOO COVE

Maggie West has worked tirelessly to prove herself, establishing a successful cattle stud instead of following her father into the crayfishing industry, though it's never enough to stop local speculation about her family's holdings. And with her teenage daughter veering off the rails, she knows all too well that money doesn't provide immunity against heartache or hardship.

Since landing in South Australia's picturesque Limestone Coast, Scottish winemaker Fergus Abernathy has gone from strength to strength. But it isn't just the awards that are keeping him in the district; if he can put down roots, perhaps he can persuade his family to join him Down Under.

Missing his family back in Scotland, Fergus looks a little enviously at the close-knit West family, until a shocking phone call changes everything.

Misunderstandings and long-withheld secrets create roadblocks for Maggie and Fergus, and with a community fundraiser hanging in the balance, it seems they're never destined to be in the right place at the right time.

Set in stunning wine country with border collies, rugged coastlines and generous community spirit, Cockatoo Cove is an exceptional tale showcasing the richness of life on the land.

For more information about Rachael Johns: https://www.rachaeljohns.com

For more informationabout Sophie Green: https://sophiegreenauthor.com

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We never know where a conversation will go on this podcast, whether it’s us talking to each other or talking to a guest. While questions are prepared, a script is never followed to the letter - we both tend to let conversations go where they go. 

This conversation with Jess Kitching, author of new novel THE LIFE EXPERIMENT (published by Simon & Schuster - blurb below), went to several extraordinary places as Jess told us her story. At one point Sophie has to ask Rachael to take over because she's crying, so that will give you a sense of it. 

Jess started writing thrillers; THE LIFE EXPERIMENT is something quite different, a love story that is completely unconventional and thought-provoking. It was inspired by the death of a friend of Jess’s, and that same circumstance also inspired Jess to move to Australia from the United Kingdom, where she was born and lived. There is so much more to Jess’s story, though, and the story behind this novel. Suffice to say that in changing genres, Jess also changed her life, and as is the way of things she may very well change readers’ lives too. You’ll have to read her book to find out, and we hope this conversation will inspire you to do just that. 

Did you know? Dear Rach & Soph is on Substack! If you’d like to peruse the archive - on video and audio - go to dearrachandsoph.substack.com

For more about Rachael Johns: https://www.rachaeljohns.com

Rachael's latest book is Outback Reunion (2025) Preorder The Lucky Sisters

For more about Sophie Green: https://sophiegreenauthor.com

Sophie's latest book is Lessons in Love at the Seaside Salon (2025)

For more information about Rachael Johns: https://www.rachaeljohns.com

For more informationabout Sophie Green: https://sophiegreenauthor.com

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Here’s the latest instalment of our ‘writer therapy’ and this time our guest is Ky Garvey (bio below), who volunteered herself for some of the tough love we seem to dish out. Please note we are not therapists! But we are writers (who may need therapy) and as Sophie is also a publisher (who often gives advice to writers) we feel somewhat qualified to talk other writers through any issues they may be having.

This episode was recorded quite a while ago - on Mother’s Day, in fact. It’s taken this long to publish because we banked a lot of episodes knowing that we were both heading into writing new manuscripts and would need to concentrate on that. So you’ll hear Mother’s Day mentioned and there’s bonus mention of us talking about whether or not the moon influences tiredness levels, and we also talk about how we can schedule worrying as an activity. 

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Ky Garvey is a writer and podcaster based in Brisbane. She is the host of Totally Lit, an award-winning interview style podcast celebrating reading, writing and creating literature. Ky writes shorts stories, is a children’s author and an advocate within the disability and carers space. Her debut picture book, Easy Peasy, was published in 2023 and other writing has been included in several anthologies and recognised in several writing competitions. In 2024, Ky launched the Inaugural Totally Lit Micro Fiction Prize.  

For more information about Rachael Johns: https://www.rachaeljohns.com

For more informationabout Sophie Green: https://sophiegreenauthor.com

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It’s a double episode today! That’s because we're late posting the July new releases. As it happens, Rachael recorded that one on her own, and as Sophie made the Emma Clancey episode (posted earlier) on her own, it has lined up nicely that we post both episodes today. So instead of one episode with us together, you have one from Soph and one from Rach. Lots of great new reading in this episode! Details of the books mentioned in this episode appear below.

Title: What Did I Miss?

Author: Holly Brunnbauer

Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers Australia 

Genre: Romantic comedy

Title: Second Chance Station

Author: Renae Black

Publisher: HQ/HarperCollins

Genre: Rural romance

Title: August Reunion

Author: Juliet Madison

Publisher: Bloodhound Books - available on Amazon

Genre: Women's fiction/romance

Title: The Peak

Author: Sam Guthrie

Publisher: HarperCollins

Genre: Political thriller

Title: The Revisionists

Author: Michelle Johnston

Publisher: HarperCollins

Genre: Thriller

Title: Moonlight and Dust

Author: Jasmin McGaughey

Publisher: Allen & Unwin

Genre: YA speculative fiction

Title: Fractured Pieces - The Nexus Series 2

Author: Mandi Kontos

Publisher: KDP

Genre: Fantasy

Title: Brooke Road

Author: Matthew Spencer

Publisher: Allen & Unwin

Genre: Crime

Title: Ruins

Author: Amy Taylor

Publisher: Allen & Unwin

Genre: Literary fiction

Title: Your Friend and Mine

Author: Jessica Dettmann

Publisher: Allen & Unwin

Genre: Contemporary fiction

Title: The Path Through the Coorong Trees

Author: Léonie Kelsall

Publisher: Allen & Unwin

Genre: Rural romance

Title: Love Overdue

Author: Ali Berg and Michelle Kalus

Publisher: Allen & Unwin

Genre: Romcom

Title: The Trauma-Informed Writer

Author: Dr Alicia Leigh

Publisher: Gininderra Press

Genre: Non-fiction

Title: The Haunting of Mr and Mrs Stevenson 

Author: Belinda Lyons-Lee

Publisher: Transit Lounge

Genre: Historical crime

Title: The Neighbours

Author: Emma Babbington

Publisher: HQ/HarperCollins

Genre: Part psych thriller, part family mystery

For more information about Rachael Johns: https://www.rachaeljohns.com

For more informationabout Sophie Green: https://sophiegreenauthor.com

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‘Writing and healthcare aren’t that different. At their core it’s an interest in people and it’s an interest in telling and understanding stories.’

Sydney-based medical student and author Emma Clancey says this deep in Sophie's recent interview about her outstanding YA fantasy This Dream Will Devour Us (blurb below), which is out now from Allen & Unwin and which will be published in the USA next year. 

This is an interview Sophie did solo as while we have been pretty good at lining up times, we found ourself without a time in common for this chat. Emma was so interesting and inspiring to talk to – she is fitting in a vigorous writing schedule around her studies, and it is clear that she is passionate about both of these significant parts of her life. We talk about how she came to write the novel, the use of magic as a device in it, the importance of character development, and her overseas publication. 

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ABOUT THIS DREAM WILL DEVOUR US

An intoxicating mix of magic and the machinations of the rich and powerful and a compulsive, bingeable read for readers who love Krystal Sutherland and Karen McManus.

Sometimes you've got to kill a dream to escape a nightmare.

Nora is the opposite of lucky. She's still wrangling her dead dad's debts when a mysterious illness lands her brother in hospital. But her fortunes take an unexpected turn when she wins the lottery to attend the Lamour family's exclusive magical Dream Gala. If Nora can win over the Lamour heirs, she'll get a coveted spot in their magical training program - and the money she needs to save her brother.

There's just one problem: Nora never bought a lottery ticket.

Determined to discover who wants her at the Gala - and why - Nora plunges headfirst into magical high society. Caught up in a decadent world of brutal billionaires and cutthroat celebrities, Nora is soon in over her head. When her search for answers uncovers a sinister conspiracy, will Nora stay silent or risk the wrath of a family powerful enough to get away with murder?

For more information about Rachael Johns: https://www.rachaeljohns.com

For more informationabout Sophie Green: https://sophiegreenauthor.com

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Some people will make a change from a ‘conventional’ career path to a creative career; some will move from one form of creative practice to another. Melburnian Miranda Nation has done both.

After commencing studies in medicine at university, Miranda instead decided to pursue a creative life, training as an actor at at Jacques Lecoq in Paris from 2003 to 2005, then becoming a director and screenwriter, completing a Graduate Diploma in Directing at the Australian Film, Television and Radio School in 2010. 

That alone would have been reason enough for us to want to talk to her for Dear Rach & Soph, because the conventional path is often the easier one to take, due to there being less resistance along it – from family, friends and those around you – and there’s always a story attached to the decision to take a creative path instead. 

Miranda has taken it a step further, though. She’s had great success in screen - her short film, Perception, won the Dendy Award for Best Short Film at the 2014 Sydney Film Festival and her critically acclaimed debut feature as writer/director, Undertow, premiered at Melbourne International Film Festival and was released in cinemas in early 2020. The easier choice there would have been to stick to the artform she knew. Except she has taken on another: writing fiction. Her debut novel, New Skin, was released a few weeks ago by Allen & Unwin, and we speak quite a bit about that as well (blurb below). 

That’s not to say she has left screen behind! Miranda's original six-part series as creator/writer/EP, Playing Gracie Darling, will premiere on Paramount+ soon and stars Celia Pacquola, Anne Tenney and Harriet Walter.

So there was so much to ask her about, and Miranda gave great insight into the choices she’s made and what it’s taken to inhabit her creative being. We hope you enjoy meeting her as much as we did. 

In the intro we talk about Rach's Substack serial, Meanwhile in Mount Merry-Glen, which is being released one week at a time and it is fab! Want to find out more? Go to rachaeljohnsauthor.substack.com

ABOUT NEW SKIN

New Skin is Miranda’s powerful debut novel about first love and second chances. Alex and Leah meet at medical school and form an immediate and intense connection. Over the course of four years, they are caught in the push-pull of passion and betrayal, longing and reunion. Neither can quite give up the relationship, even as they question whether they are good for each other.

Years later, when Alex and Leah are drawn together once more, will they make the right choice?

New Skin evokes a coming of age in the 1990s and charts the course of first love and its power to shape who we become. Spare and compelling, this powerful debut introduces a dazzling new voice in Australian fiction.

For more information about Rachael Johns: https://www.rachaeljohns.com

For more informationabout Sophie Green: https://sophiegreenauthor.com

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Léonie Kelsall is the bestselling author of seven rural romance novels. Her eighth is The Path Through the Coojong Trees, has just been released. Léonie keeps a fast pace as a writer, currently producing two books a year while also running a counselling practice and running a farm that is home to many animals. 

We wanted to talk to Léonie about the relationship between her counselling work, in particular, and her writing but – as often happens – this chat covered a lot of other territory, including Léonie being both a traditionally published and self-published author, how her writing process is not at all structured, and how a childhood without television led to a lifelong love of reading. 

We had a great time chatting to Léonie, who is a creative powerhouse, and clearly someone who makes the most of each day. You can read more about Léonie below.

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Raised initially in a tiny, no-horse town on South Australia's Fleurieu coast, then in the slightly more populated wheat and sheep farming land at Pallamana, Léonie Kelsall is a country girl through and through. Growing up without a television, she developed a love of reading before she reached primary school, swiftly followed by a desire to write. 

An animal rescuer and carer, Léonie now divides her time between the lush Adelaide Hills, the location of her professional counselling practice, and the stark, arid beauty of the family farm at Pallamana, which provides both the setting for many of her stories and a refuge for the rescues that can't be released. 

For more information about Rachael Johns: https://www.rachaeljohns.com

For more informationabout Sophie Green: https://sophiegreenauthor.com

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This episode is long and all of it worth your attention, mostly because Allison Tait - who writes as A.L. Tait - is one of the most dynamic people working in Australian writing and publishing, and you can find her bio below. Also because it’s an unusual conversation we have for some of it - and that’s because Allison talks about her contemporary women’s fiction book being rejected by its publisher after it was accepted for publication and she did more work on it. The extra angle is that Sophie was her literary agent at that time.

So Sophie know Allison well. And Allison and Rachael have known each other for a while through Romance Writers of Australia. Therefore this is a free-flowing conversation in which Allison is also really honest about what it was like to have what was her big dream at the time - to be a published novelist - be crushed. 

So it’s about a massive disappointment, and also what she made of that and what her career became afterwards.

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Allison Tait (A.L. Tait) is the internationally published bestselling author of 12 middle-grade novels, including fantasy adventure series The Mapmaker Chronicles the Ateban Cipher novels, and the Maven & Reeve Mysteries.

Her first contemporary middle-grade novel THE FIRST SUMMER OF CALLIE McGEE was published in 2023 and was longlisted for the 2024 Margaret and Colin Roderick Literary Award.

Allison’s latest middle-grade novel WILLOW BRIGHT’S SECRET PLOT is out now (Scholastic 2025), with DANGER ROAD (Scholastic 2025) to follow on 1 July.

A multi-genre writer, creative writing teacher and speaker with many years’ experience in magazines, newspapers and online publishing, Allison is co-host of the top-rating Your Kid’s Next Read podcast and former co-host of the So You Want To Be A Writer podcast.

For more information about Rachael Johns: https://www.rachaeljohns.com

For more informationabout Sophie Green: https://sophiegreenauthor.com

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Dear listeners-slash-viewers - or ‘liewers’, as Soph has taken to calling you - this episode was recorded in April and because Soph mentioned her upcoming appearance at the Festival of Fiction in it, we had to hold it until the festival was announced, which has just happened! And the reason we mention the festival is that our guest, Mona Farrokhi, is involved with the festival.

Mona volunteered a little while ago for writer ‘therapy’, in which writers bring us their writerly challenge and we try to help them through it. Mona has been working on a manuscript for a while and wanted our advice on what she should do about it. Suffice to say Soph declared that this would be a ‘tough love’ session! Thanks to Mona for her honesty and as she is no doubt not alone in this challenge, perhaps some of you will find the episode of interest.

If you’d like to receive some of our tough love, please send Soph or Rach a DM on social media or email sophiegreenbooks [at] gmail [dot] com

The delay on releasing this means the intro we recorded is technically out of date but as Soph listened to it in preparation for publication, she realised it’s kinda not! We talk about ideas we have for books and also those ideas being rejected and us not being attached.

For more information about Rachael Johns: https://www.rachaeljohns.com

For more informationabout Sophie Green: https://sophiegreenauthor.com

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