In The Good Books with Luke Bateman

Prepare for a peek inside the one-of-a-kind mind behind some of the most seriously kid-approved stories ever! In this episode, record-breaking and international=ly bestselling children’s author and Australian Children’s Laureate Andy Griffiths shares: How telling neighborhood kids fibs about his bath time led to his love of storytelling How his path to being an author first led to teac...

Luke becomes acquainted with this regency romance classic, with it themes, characters and moments, and what they all have to show us about modern romance today. Stay connected on our socials: Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/inthegoodbooks_podcast/  TikTok - https://www.tiktok.com/@inthegoodbooks_podcast   Thanks to Hachette - for the list of their expert readalikes for Pride and Pr...

Luke is joined by Shen Tao, the brilliant debut author behind  The Poet Empress —a novel Luke proudly declares as his favorite book of the year so far!  But despite being a debut, it was far from Shen's first work. In fact, as she reveals, there were many unpublished books before it... Shen details exactly what made The Poet Empress different, the breakthrough that allowed its firs...

From relentless research, to battling book bans, to a career of 30 bestsellers and counting, Jodi Picoult is a literary force unlike any other. In this conversation, Luke and Jodi trace her journey from reading at three years old and surviving over 100 agent rejections (and getting the ultimate petty revenge decades later) to the eerie 10-word postcard that inspired her new book, Hollow Bones, and...

Sydney-based author Joshua Hortinella, after becoming beloved in the book industry for over a decade, has just penned Hate You to Love You, one of the most vibrant romance debuts of the year. Josh spills wild behind-the-scenes secrets of bookselling—including the joys of stocking, heartwarming customer interactions, and mysterious boxes.  He opens up about how queer representation helpe...

A pre-birth prophecy, a contrarian relationship to fear that pushes her toward her deepest discomforts, and years spent studying both the stars and the greatest monsters of our imaginations alike.  These aren't the notes of a fictional character - this is the lore of V.E Schwab herself!   In this incredibly candid interview, she tells Luke all about it, along with illuminating insig...

There are few more beloved voices in fantasy writing than Australia's own Garth Nix - with Luke accounting for a fair share of that love himself. Here, the two finally sit down to discuss Garth's hesitant awakening as a writer, his process of using 'bad maps' to great novels, how his landmark work  Sabriel was originally intended to be very different, his latest venture (and adventure) into s...

Luke dives into his own personal "Good Book": Raymond E. Feist's fantasy classic, Magician. From picking up a paperback copy fresh out of rehab, to examining how Pug and Tomas's journeys inspired his own path to recovery, Luke shares why this epic story changed his life—and analyzes what it’s like to come back to it now. Stay connected on our socials: Instagram - https://www.instagram....

Luke is joined by Em Rusciano—the powerhouse singer, comedian, author, broadcaster, podcaster and more—for an uninhibited, laugh-out-loud, and deeply honest conversation about midlife awakenings, the transformative power of putting yourself first and the liberating world of spicy romance novels. Em opens up about her love for literary smut and why bookstores urgently need a dedicated "...

Liane Moriarty, author of mega best-sellers  Big Little Lies, Nine Perfect Strangers and more, joins Luke in the studio for a candid, hilarious, and insightful conversation on her writing process, career origin story, and long-awaited return to her most famous literary world. In this episode, Liane opens up about growing up in a story-obsessed household of six kids—where her dad fu...

You wouldn't expect constructing a crime thriller to be a time of laughter and healing after a tragic loss. But that's exactly what it was for Matt Nable. In this conversation, the multi-talented ex-sport star, actor and author talks about why writing is his biggest love above all, the encouragement another legendary Australian writer gave him that changed everything, the moment he felt safe revea...

The episode that proves that you SHOULD meet your heroes Luke is joined by Peter V. Brett, the acclaimed writer behind the Demon Cycle, a fantasy series destined to one of Luke's favourites from the moment he picked it up at 13.  In this raw and far-ranging chat, Luke gets to express just how much Peter's work has meant to him, and explore the incredible impact that fantasy can have as a whol...

Prepare to be immersed in the times and lives of history in the most sweeping epic of Maggie O'Farrell's career yet.  In this episode, Luke breaks down the lyrical, poetry-like prose and perspective-shifting narrative while exploring the story's rich tapestry of 19th-century Irish history, complex family dynamics, and the resonances he himself found with the stories vivid characters.  Ho...

What books do young boys really want to read? Scott Stuart, a passionate children's author and advocate for inclusive stories, joins Luke to reveal the surprising truths about gender bias in reading, how to break free from it, and the simple (and often joyful) acts that can ignite lifelong love of reading - even for reluctant boys. You'll learn how to model reading as a parent, the importance of d...

What does it really take to breathe life into a bestseller? To make another time come alive? To place us into a polyphony of perspectives? In this candid conversation, acclaimed author Maggie O’Farrell joins Luke Bateman to unpack her extraordinary life story and highly intuitive creative process. From surviving a life-altering childhood illness at age eight that forced her to re-learn basic...

'Becoming a man is a process of subtraction' - so says one of the leading experts in masculinity and men's mental health. But why? And what can we do to change that? In this episode, Luke is joined by Dr Zac Seidler: clinical psychologist, Global Director of Research at Movember and Associate Professor with Orygen at the University of Melbourne. Together, they dismantle the many stories men are to...

We're back to finish Luke's list of favourite books he's read this year - including an EPIC fantasy, a global best-seller smash, the end of a romantic trilogy very well known to listeners of this podcast, and Luke's absolute top pick which he now calls one of his favourites of all time! Which of these have you read? What have your favourite book discoveries of the year been so far? Let us know and...

It's the halfway point of the year and, surprise, Luke's read a lot of books so far! Here he takes us through some of his favourite discoveries - from a fantasy at the end of the world, sci-fi that takes you out of this world, a non-fiction that changes the way you see our world and more. Which of these have you read? What have your favourite book discoveries of the year been so far? Let us know a...

Let's be clear - this definitely isn't one to have on in the car with the kids.  Luke is joined by his friend, the beautiful and brilliant Tierney Page, for an unfiltered, laugh-out-loud, and deeply insightful chat that might change how you see romance writing. From her hilariously honest reading roots—recounting how A Court of Thorns and Roses and its "hot fairies" served as her ultima...

For the many years Georgie Tunny has graced our TV screens, and many others before, there was another dream she held: the dream of being an author, a dream she has now achieved with Over to You - her debut novel of fierce female friendships set behind the scenes of the high stakes chaos of the media world.  In this episode, Georgie draws the lines between her own career and the inspirations f...

Charlotte McConaghy ( Wild Dark Shore, Migrations, Once Were Wolves ) is one of Australia's most acclaimed authors; known for her lush prose, fiercely emotional tone and environments so rich you feel instantly transported. And turns out, her process is every bit as wild as what it creates. In this episode, Charlotte tells Luke all about how she practically skipped school homework after starting he...

How far would you go to find hope in a desolate world? Are we all just wild at heart? How can we accept and be loved for who we truly are? These are just some of the questions that arise as you journey with Charlotte McConaghy’s breathtaking climate fiction masterpiece, Migrations (also published as The Last Migration ). In this episode, Luke breaks down McConaghy’s lyrical, screenwrit...

What if the collapse of everything we know isn't a catastrophe to fear, but an opportunity for our fullest humanity? This is the idea explored by multi-New York Times and Amazon bestselling author and social philosopher Sarah Wilson in her latest book  I Eat the Stars. In this conversation, she explains exactly what complex systems collapse means, the process of writing the book, including sp...

Naomi may be the daughter of Nobel Prize winning writer Kazuo Ishiguro, but for her own writing, she is carving a very different and distinctly unique path - particularly in her new book The Rainshadow Orphans . It's one that balances high stakes adventure with writing that feels like a warm coat, that makes our inner children smile, and that tastes like bubble tea. In this chat, Naomi talks...

Luke is putting his spice tolerance to the test by ranking nine of the most romantic books he's read by how hot the action really gets. From the safe and tender pages of mainstream rom-coms to the completely unhinged world of monster smut, Luke lets you know which books keep their socks on and which ones bring serious ghost pepper heat. Turn up the AC - and maybe close the door - because things ar...