Welcome to our monthly book wrap, the place for all of your literary recs to be added to your TBR. As the hosts of Booksmart, Sunny and I (Allie) are constantly on the prowl for a new read to devour, but since we’re only able to choose one Book Club pick per month, we thought that this would be a fab way to share all of the many other books that we are reading and recommending each month.
Enjoy our August selects, and when shopping at QBD Books you can use the code BOOKSMART for 5% off your order.
Let’s Kiss and Tell by Joss Richard
Joss Richard’s debut novel It’s Different This Time is my favourite read of this year, so you better believe that I will be taking a sick day when this is released (if my boss edits this piece, this is a joke…)
Releasing on the 11th of August 2026
Kitten by Stacey Yu
Sunny and I keep on toying with whether we should do this fab book for a Book Club episode of Booksmart… Let us know if you’d be keen for that.
Releasing on the 4th of August 2026
Lost and Found by Tarah DeWitt
Tarah DeWitt’s books all have transportive magic in them and really make you feel like you are witnessing these events from up close, and I expect that this one will be no different.
Releasing on the 4th of August 2026
Embrace by Bal Khabra
Bal Khabra is such a stellar author, with her books in my mind being better than Off Campus and much less problematic. I finished the ARC of this book in 48 hours and every second I was not reading it, I was thinking about it.
Releasing on the 4th of August 2026
Hate You to Love You by Joshua Hortinela
Joshua is a local author who has been taking the Australian literary scene by a storm. Every single time I engage in conversations with book lovers about what they are reading, someone always mentions Joshua. This book promises to have us yearning alongside the characters.
Releasing on the 31st of August 2026
Better Man by Ben Vasiliou
Ben Vasiliou is the CEO of The Man Cave, a Melbourne-based preventative mental health and emotional literacy charity empowering boys to become great men. He is deeply passionate about combatting toxic masculinity, and his book is sure to be a great resource for raising boys into better men.
Releasing on the 31st of August 2026
Take What You Can by Naima Coster
This dazzling novel from Naima Coster explores themes of friendship, motherhood, and sisterhood. It promises to be a deeply engaging and captivating read.
Releasing on the 4th of August 2026
The Project by Annie Lord
Being likened to Dolly Alderton and Monica Heisey, this debut novel from British vogue dating columnist follows two friends in London who try to turn an annoying acquaintance into an ideal partner.
Releasing on the 4th of August 2026