Fruit Fly

In Fruit Fly by Josh Silver, a sharp, contemporary literary thriller circles the messy ethics of storytelling and the hunger to be read. Mallory was once a publishing sensation; seven years on, writer’s block and a fading spotlight have her chasing the kind of material that can’t be fact-checked away.

Then she meets Leo, a young gay man living rough, tangled in addiction, coercion and survival. To Mallory, he’s not just a person—he’s a possible comeback. As she edges closer, the line between empathy and exploitation starts to blur, and the “truth” she wants to shape begins pushing back in ways she can’t control.

Perfect for readers drawn to Australian fiction, dark literary fiction, addiction narratives and morally complex characters, especially if you like books that question who gets to tell a story—and who pays for it.

Add it to your stack when you’re ready for something unnervingly current.