Jonathan Unleashed, by Meg Rosoff

The smartest and most interesting thing about this book is its title. It is quite possible the title was devised first and the story was dreamed up to fit it. In a wicked twist, the hapless protaganist is a ditzy male in the wrong job and with the wrong partner, instead of a ditzy female. The characters are thinly drawn, with the dogs more believable than most of the humans. Jonathan’s romantic dilemmas are ludicrous. There are occasional funny moments to get you through what is otherwise predictable chick lit.

Suite Française (2014), directed by Saul Dibb

The complexities of human relationships in wartime are no different to those in peace, but they are perhaps more intense. Collaboration can be borne of a bid for survival or a relief from loneliness, or even of true love. Based on the posthumous best selling novel of Irene Nemirovsky, Suite Francaise is an intensely romantic, yet brutal illustration of small town life in German-occupied France during WWII. The ruling class in Bussy, just outside Paris, have more in common with their German overlords then their own poor tenants, but this does them little good in the long run. Cowed by her mother-in-law, gentle Lucille does not greatly miss her soldier husband, whom she barely knows. She finds a kindred spirit in Bruno, the German officer billeted on them and must negotiate a perilous path between fellow villagers and the occupying force, finding courage and strength on the journey. Michelle Williams, Matthias Schonaerts and Kristin Scott-Thomas lead a strong supporting cast of mostly British actors. Williams employs a spot on English accent (as does Aussie Margot Robbie), which is a bit odd, given the film is set in France. With villains and heroes on both sides, there is no black and white in this story of power and its abuse and how war allows this to flourish.

The Girl on the Train, by Paula Hawkins

Voyeurism, infidelity and sociopathic behaviour are the hallmarks of the latest ‘must-read’ thriller, which keeps the reader guessing most of the way through as to who is the real villain. The story is told from the perspectives of three different women, whose lives intertwine in unexpected ways. The primary voice is that of Rachel, a deeply troubled woman who is dubbed by the police “an unreliable witness” and so she proves to be. The red herrings are at times a little clumsy. Rachel’s continuing self-destructive behaviour is exasperating. None of the characters is really likeable, although the women do engender some sympathy. The action zips along and former journalist Hawkins’ crisp style is easy to read, but despite the victims finding way to fight back, the overt misogynistic violence that pervades the book leaves a nasty taste.

Burial Rites, by Hannah Kent

The first novel of Adelaide writer Hannah Kent has been highly acclaimed and awarded. Hype can be off-putting and a story of the last Icelandic woman to be executed sounds grim and not hugely appealing. But latecomers to the book will be rewarded with a stark but engaging tale set in rural Iceland in the 1820s. Immaculate research is blended seamlessly into the fictionalised account of the life and death and Agnes, informing it but never overwhelming it. Believable and moving, the harsh life and landscape is not romanticised. Kent delivers a strong sense of place, which is key to the story of a woman trapped and condemned by the circumstances of her difficult life.

Interstellar (2014), directed by Christopher Nolan

This film was seriously overhyped on release. Watching it several years later on DVD, it is hard to see where all the hoo-ha came from. Possibly it was from Batman afficionados worshipping at the shrine of Christopher Nolan. Probably it played better on the big screen. The film has a solid cast – Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, Jessica Chastain – and a really interesting premise – the search for new worlds to replace the one humans are in the process of killing off. It takes a gamble on hard science, which doesn’t pay off because the subject is very dense and then is eventually overtaken by fantasy. Even devotees of science fiction would find it hard to suspend disbelief. The broad themes are admirably ambitious, but heavy work is made of the messaging and the film drags to an unlikely conclusion. It's disappointing, because there is a sense that it could have been really good when it is just meh.

First Person Shooter, by Cameron Raynes

Bikies, bullying, drugs and dysfunction – all are just as rife in a small regional town as in the city, but with fewer resources devoted to dealing with such problems and fewer places to hide from them. Fifteen-year-old Jayden lost his mum when he was three and his dad is recovering from a serious car accident. He stutters badly and is addicted to the video game Call of Duty. At school he is a weirdo, but not a loner as he has found his tribe, and then there is Shannon – his neighbour and best friend, who could be more. Shannon has her own demons. Her dad died before she was born and her mum is nearing the end of a prison sentence for shooting dead her violent stepfather. Both kids enjoy target practice with their rifles, but avoid shooting live targets, even pest animals like foxes. Raynes evokes an all-too believable country town with issues. The tension builds as the day of Shannon’s mum’s release approaches and the small town and its surrounding farming families brace for repercussions. Jayden’s limits are tested as he learns to rise above his disability and break free of others’ expectations of him.