Contest

Contest by Matthew Reilly drops you straight into a high-stakes action thriller set inside the New York Public Library, transformed overnight into a deadly maze.

If you love fast pacing, claustrophobic settings and the kind of tension that keeps you reading “just one more chapter”, this is a brilliant place to start with Reilly.

Doctor Stephen Swain arrives at the library with his young daughter, Holly, only to find it sealed off for a secret contest where survival is the only prize. With towering bookcases, narrow aisles and hidden stairwells offering equal parts cover and danger, Swain must think like a strategist while keeping Holly safe.

Every choice—run, hide, fight—carries consequences, and the rules are brutally simple.

Perfect for readers who enjoy adrenaline-fuelled page-turners, survival stories, and Australian thriller writers with a cinematic edge.

Step into the stacks and see if you can put it down.