The best Australian books out in April: what we’re reading this month
At the beginning of each month, Guardian Australia editors and critics pick out the upcoming titles they’ve already devoured – or can’t wait to get their hands on
Anatomy of a Scandal by Sarah Vaughan audiobook review – a smartly realised thriller
Luke Thompson plays the minister who has an affair with a parliamentary aide, in a tale told from contrasting viewpoints
Sebastian Barry: ‘I’m still not over Oliver Twist’
The writer on growing up with Puffin books, his changing attitude to Conrad, and the punk sensibility of Elizabeth Bowen
We Move by Gurnaik Johal review – virtuosic stories of British-Punjabi life
The understated and surprising tales in this debut collection provide multiple perspectives on recurring scenes
Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone by Benjamin Stevenson review – irksomely quirky whodunnit
This much-hyped crime novel has been marketed as Knives Out meets The Thursday Murder Club – but it is excruciatingly self-referential
Beyond Bridgerton: what Regency romance was really like
The ballgowns and handsome suitors make it seem appealing on TV and in fiction – but was finding a partner in the era actually that romantic?
Sell Us the Rope by Stephen May review – Stalin in London
Fictional imaginings ignite the historical facts in this darkly comic tale of political intrigue, with revealing insights into the making of a dictator
John Darnielle: ‘Being an American is like living in a Terry Gilliam world’
The Mountain Goats singer and novelist is using his new novel to interrogate his country’s politics. He talks about ‘castle doctrine’, making an album about his abusive stepfather and why he’s a sucker for things that make him cry
Maps of Our Spectacular Bodies by Maddie Mortimer review – the way of all flesh
This experimental debut novel about blood ties and bodily integrity brings a restlessly inventive approach to a woman’s terminal cancer
Companion Piece by Ali Smith review – a lockdown story of wayward genius
Lyrical visions alternate with fables and farce, history with Covid, in the scheme-busting fifth part of Smith’s seasonal quartet
Zimbabwean novelist Tsitsi Dangarembga among this year’s Windham-Campbell prize winners
Dangarembga, American writer Margo Jefferson and British playwright Winsome Pinnock are among eight recipients of the $165,000 grants, as the award marks its 10th anniversary
Your Show by Ashley Hickson-Lovence review – on the side of the ref who broke all the rules
Freestyle poetry is teamed with kick-by-kick match reports in this stirring novel about Uriah Rennie, the Premier League’s first black match official
In brief: At the Table; The Joy of Science; Listening Still – reviews
A novel of family drama from Claire Powell, Jim al-Khalili on the value of rational inquiry, and supernatural self-fulfilment from Anne Griffin
Night, Neon and Other Stories of Suspense by Joyce Carol Oates review – nuanced, not neat, thrillers
Embracing the twists and turns of everyday American life, the author’s latest short story collection is playful, gripping and disturbing