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521 ratings | 394 reviews | avg rating:3.98

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Anthony O'Connor

Goodreads Author

Website

https://anthonyoconnorauthor.com/

Twitter

clawtalk

Genre

Science Fiction, Horror, Young Adult

Member Since

September 2011

URL

https://www.goodreads.com/redd242

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Anthony O’Connor is a writer, reviewer, teacher and journalist. He has written original screenplays for the indie Aussie romcom, Angst, and the blood-soaked, allegorical office horror, Redd Inc. (aka Inhuman Resources in the US/UK).

O’Connor’s first novel was the cult hit Straya, a rip-snorting adventure set in the post-apocalyptic ruins of New Sydney, starring an affable mutant who is bad at violence but quite good at amateur theatre. It was described by Blunt Mag as “the most Aussie sci-fi epic ever” and is currently being developed into an animated series.

His latest book is Emma After, a YA ghost story set in a haunted hotel in rural Australia featuring a colourful cast of the dearly departed and the wretched living “Breathers” they must ...more

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Anthony O'Connor’s books

Average rating: 4.49 · 128 ratings · 61 reviews · 2 distinct works • Similar authors

	Straya 4.62 avg rating — 63 ratings — published 2021 — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Emma After 4.37 avg rating — 65 ratings — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

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Anthony is Currently Reading

Anthony O'Connor is currently reading

Lies Weeping (The Chronicles of The Black Company, #10)

by Glen Cook

bookshelves: currently-reading

read in November 2025

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Anthony O'Connor said: " Man, the latest entry in Glen Cook's longrunning Black Company series may be the weirdest yet. That's quite a claim, considering this is a collection of yarns that features battle-wizards, floating whales, sentient tree gods, demonic dog creatures, a Man, the latest entry in Glen Cook's longrunning Black Company series may be the weirdest yet. That's quite a claim, considering this is a collection of yarns that features battle-wizards, floating whales, sentient tree gods, demonic dog creatures, astral travel, evil shadows, slightly less evil shadows, transdimensional portals, body-swapping ancient demigods, narky ghosts and flying carpet rides.

Lies Weeping picks up the story post Soldiers Live but also contains a surprising amount of material connected to Port of Shadows (which, if you haven't read yet, you should do so before Lies Weeping). However, the biggest change of all is the fact we have two new Annalists in the form of teen smart arses, Shukrat and Arkana. There is a third narrator (who I won't spoil) but the main crux of the story is in the hands of two teenagers written by a man in his 80s. So, does it work?

Honestly, yes, mostly. The characters start off a little obnoxious but that's kind of the point. They do possibly bang on about one another's boobs a little more than I suspect teen girls do, but overall they're an engaging way to kickstart a long dormant series. The third narrator, however, was my favourite and longtime fans can probably work out who it is.

Pacing-wise is where the book suffers the most as the first half is devoted to a lot of table setting and feels a bit inert. Even when the action kicks off it's not large scale battles or tense encounters so much as weird exploration and eerie magic. This is very much the slow-burn opening for a new arc that's designed to go for 4-5 books and ol' mate Glen is in no hurry spinning the yarn.

It works, somehow, in defiance of all storytelling convention. Although I imagine people who haven't read the series in a while or neglected to pick up Port of Shadows will be profoundly baffled.

Lies Weeping is a strange, surreal and absolutely engaging beginning to a brand new take on The Black Company from an author unlike any other. It's gleefully obtuse at times, genuinely hilarious in others and dizzying surreal and edge-of-your-seat tense in its third act. Cook showcases some jaw-dropping chutzpah in this new iteration and I can't wait to see where he goes with it.

The book does end on something of a cliffhanger, FYI, and it feels like a looooong wait until November 2026 and the release of the next book, They Cry. ...more "

Nov 15, 2025 08:54PM · see review

Anthony O'Connor is currently reading

Other Worlds Than These (The Talisman, #3)

by Stephen King (Goodreads Author)

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Oct 06, 2026 12:32AM

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Anthony O'Connor wants to read Kennedy for the Defense (Jerry Kennedy, #1) by George V. Higgins	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
16 hours, 14 min ago · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Kennedy for the Defense by George V. Higgins. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Kennedy for the Defense by George V. Higgins <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
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Anthony O'Connor wants to read Beginning Operations (Sector General, #1-3) by James White	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
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Anthony O'Connor wants to read Hospital Station (Sector General, #1) by James White	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
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Anthony O'Connor started reading Lies Weeping (The Chronicles of The Black Company, #10) by Glen Cook	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Oct 08, 2026 11:49PM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Lies Weeping by Glen Cook. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Lies Weeping by Glen Cook <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Anthony O'Connor wants to read The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Stetson	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
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Anthony O'Connor rated a book really liked it The Lincoln Lawyer (The Lincoln Lawyer, #1; Harry Bosch Universe, #16) by Michael Connelly (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Picked this up on a whim and couldn't put it down the whole time I was reading it. Yes, it is airport fare for normies, but sometimes it's nice just to have a well told yarn with a decent number of twists and turns. ...more
Oct 06, 2026 01:05AM · like · see review · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Lincoln Lawyer by Michael Connelly. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Lincoln Lawyer by Michael Connelly <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
Anthony O'Connor rated a book Lords of Mars: Forge of Mars: Warhammer 40,000, Book 2 by Graham McNeill	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Although it suffers a little second-book-in-a-trilogy syndrome in the first half, with a few plot strands feeling like padding, it kicks off nicely in the back end and sets up a stellar final part. Which I shall read forthwith.
Oct 06, 2026 01:04AM · like · see review
Anthony O'Connor rated a book Lords of Mars: Forge of Mars: Warhammer 40,000, Book 2 by Graham McNeill	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Although it suffers a little second-book-in-a-trilogy syndrome in the first half, with a few plot strands feeling like padding, it kicks off nicely in the back end and sets up a stellar final part. Which I shall read forthwith.
Oct 06, 2026 01:02AM · like · see review

More of Anthony's books…

Quotes by Anthony O'Connor (?)

“I didn’t know what a mandarin was, but honey came from a bee’s clacker, according to a book I’d read, and that seemed less than ideal.”
― Anthony O'Connor, Straya

2 likes

“OI!” I yelled out as loud as I could. “TRAYVOR’S A PISSWEAK GRONK WHO ROOTS DIRTY OLD DOG CLACKS AND IS THE SHITTEST MONGREL EVER!”
― Anthony O'Connor, Straya

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Anthony’s Quotes

“OI!” I yelled out as loud as I could. “TRAYVOR’S A PISSWEAK GRONK WHO ROOTS DIRTY OLD DOG CLACKS AND IS THE SHITTEST MONGREL EVER!”
― Anthony O'Connor, Straya

1 likes

“I didn’t know what a mandarin was, but honey came from a bee’s clacker, according to a book I’d read, and that seemed less than ideal.”
― Anthony O'Connor, Straya

2 likes

“You don't write about the horrors of war. No. You write about a kid's burnt socks lying in the road.”
― Richard Price

tags: writing

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“Stupid people always had a reason to be angry but didn’t have the capacity to understand that they were angry because they were frustrated, and they were frustrated because they didn’t understand, and they didn’t understand because they were stupid.”
― Steven Erikson, The God is Not Willing

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“Often all we need to be civil with one another is the presence of a referee we don’t want thinking us fools.”
― Glen Cook, Bitter Gold Hearts

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