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Kill Your Boomers
‘a furious take on housing inequality’—
The Australian
, ‘the big books of 2026’
Your dream home awaits – there’s only two things in your way…
The great Australian dream is slipping out of reach for Keira and her friends. No partner, no house, no kids. At 30-ahem, she is still languishing in a mould-filled share house, with an unexplained and ever-growing hole in the floorboards that threatens to consume her and her housemates.
Her part-time job as a nanny to a pair of atrocious twins – and her role as emotional support servant at the beck and call of their mother, Johanna – provides barely enough money for the G&Ts she finds necessary to get through her other job as a freelance copywriter – though it does allow her to steal a fancy avocado every now and then. Each day she can feel herself falling further and further behind.
When her best friend Dylan is able to buy an apartment with the help of his partner’s inheritance, Keira sees a way out. The bank of Mum and Dad. But what to do with parents who are in the rudest of health, and whose plans threaten to spend the only lifeline she has? From the lounge room of her rotting share house she hatches a deadly plan to speed up the process of wealth transfer.
An audacious book that asks just how far you will go to get your dream house (or at least a one bedroom flat without mushrooms growing in the bathroom).PRAISE FOR KILL YOUR BOOMERS ‘When parental money becomes a looming solution, desperation sharpens into something darker – and all too recognisably millennial.’— The Sydney Morning Herald , Books to look forward to in 2026‘The gloriously vicious revenge plot “The Great Australian Dream” deserves. A devastating portrait of precarity. Funny, harsh, and sharp in all the right places. A book for the one-third of the population who've been kicked while they're down with a rent increase. A book for a well-meaning middle-class book club to fight over. A beautiful book. Another Wright success.’ —Bri Lee, author of Seed ‘This is a dark, hilarious and urgent book about a younger generation being locked out of the housing market and all the boomers who still think it's because they spend too much on avocado on toast.’ —Felicity Castagna, author of No More Boats
The great Australian dream is slipping out of reach for Keira and her friends. No partner, no house, no kids. At 30-ahem, she is still languishing in a mould-filled share house, with an unexplained and ever-growing hole in the floorboards that threatens to consume her and her housemates.
Her part-time job as a nanny to a pair of atrocious twins – and her role as emotional support servant at the beck and call of their mother, Johanna – provides barely enough money for the G&Ts she finds necessary to get through her other job as a freelance copywriter – though it does allow her to steal a fancy avocado every now and then. Each day she can feel herself falling further and further behind.
When her best friend Dylan is able to buy an apartment with the help of his partner’s inheritance, Keira sees a way out. The bank of Mum and Dad. But what to do with parents who are in the rudest of health, and whose plans threaten to spend the only lifeline she has? From the lounge room of her rotting share house she hatches a deadly plan to speed up the process of wealth transfer.
An audacious book that asks just how far you will go to get your dream house (or at least a one bedroom flat without mushrooms growing in the bathroom).PRAISE FOR KILL YOUR BOOMERS ‘When parental money becomes a looming solution, desperation sharpens into something darker – and all too recognisably millennial.’— The Sydney Morning Herald , Books to look forward to in 2026‘The gloriously vicious revenge plot “The Great Australian Dream” deserves. A devastating portrait of precarity. Funny, harsh, and sharp in all the right places. A book for the one-third of the population who've been kicked while they're down with a rent increase. A book for a well-meaning middle-class book club to fight over. A beautiful book. Another Wright success.’ —Bri Lee, author of Seed ‘This is a dark, hilarious and urgent book about a younger generation being locked out of the housing market and all the boomers who still think it's because they spend too much on avocado on toast.’ —Felicity Castagna, author of No More Boats
239 pages, Kindle Edition
Published March 31, 2026
About the author
Fiona Wright
36 books81 followersFiona Wright is a writer, editor and critic. She is the author of two collections of essays, Small Acts of Disappearance and The World Was Whole, and two poetry collections, Knuckled and Domestic Interior.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 67 reviews
June 3, 2026
Book 34
Rating ⭐️
🇦🇺 I’m always keen to support Australian authors, so when I saw Kill Your Boomers by Fiona Wright, I immediately added it to my TBR. Did I read the blurb? No. Did I know what it was about? Also no. Did I judge it entirely by its title and convince myself it was a domestic thriller? Absolutely.
I went into this book blind, optimistic, and ready to have a good time.
Reader, I did not have a good time.
To be fair, the housing affordability angle hit close to home. As someone who knows how ridiculously difficult it is to save for a first house, I thought this was going to be a sharp, relatable story about a struggle many of us understand all too well.
Instead, I spent about 80% of the book waiting for literally anything to happen.
Every chapter I thought, “Okay, surely we’re getting somewhere now.”
We were not getting somewhere.
Then, when the story finally decided to do something, it took such a bizarre turn that I felt like I had accidentally switched audiobooks without noticing. 😵💫
Being a first-person narrative, the entire book lives and dies by the narrator’s voice. Sadly, I found her so unlikeable that spending hours in her head felt less like reading and more like being trapped in a very long car ride with someone I wouldn’t choose to sit next to.
By the end, I wasn’t invested in anything, and I was mostly listening out of pure stubbornness.
In fact, the only reason I finished this book was because it was an audiobook and I couldn’t be bothered finding another one. That’s probably not the glowing endorsement authors dream of receiving.
When I finished, my main thought wasn’t “Wow.”
It wasn’t “That’s clever.”
It wasn’t even “I hated that.”
It was simply:
“…what?”
I’m still not entirely sure what I was supposed to learn, reflect on, or take away from this experience. If there was a profound message hiding in these pages, it successfully hid from me.
A fantastic title. A very long journey. An ending that made me question reality.
Rating ⭐️
🇦🇺 I’m always keen to support Australian authors, so when I saw Kill Your Boomers by Fiona Wright, I immediately added it to my TBR. Did I read the blurb? No. Did I know what it was about? Also no. Did I judge it entirely by its title and convince myself it was a domestic thriller? Absolutely.
I went into this book blind, optimistic, and ready to have a good time.
Reader, I did not have a good time.
To be fair, the housing affordability angle hit close to home. As someone who knows how ridiculously difficult it is to save for a first house, I thought this was going to be a sharp, relatable story about a struggle many of us understand all too well.
Instead, I spent about 80% of the book waiting for literally anything to happen.
Every chapter I thought, “Okay, surely we’re getting somewhere now.”
We were not getting somewhere.
Then, when the story finally decided to do something, it took such a bizarre turn that I felt like I had accidentally switched audiobooks without noticing. 😵💫
Being a first-person narrative, the entire book lives and dies by the narrator’s voice. Sadly, I found her so unlikeable that spending hours in her head felt less like reading and more like being trapped in a very long car ride with someone I wouldn’t choose to sit next to.
By the end, I wasn’t invested in anything, and I was mostly listening out of pure stubbornness.
In fact, the only reason I finished this book was because it was an audiobook and I couldn’t be bothered finding another one. That’s probably not the glowing endorsement authors dream of receiving.
When I finished, my main thought wasn’t “Wow.”
It wasn’t “That’s clever.”
It wasn’t even “I hated that.”
It was simply:
“…what?”
I’m still not entirely sure what I was supposed to learn, reflect on, or take away from this experience. If there was a profound message hiding in these pages, it successfully hid from me.
A fantastic title. A very long journey. An ending that made me question reality.
April 11, 2026
Kill Your Boomers starts off upsettingly realistic, then takes a strange hallucinogenic turn into the outright weird. It's a kooky book written by a Sydney millennial, for Sydney millennials, all the more unsettling for how understated it is.
My full review of Kill Your Boomers is up now Keeping Up With The Penguins.
My full review of Kill Your Boomers is up now Keeping Up With The Penguins.
April 22, 2026
Not a fan of this one. Given two stars because it's at least well written and it's an aussie author.
My main issue is the protagonist Keira. She spends most of the book complaining. I think maybe if she had worked full time at some point in the novel and still couldn't get ahead I'd have been able to empathise. But instead all we get is her talking about how hard she's working and we never get to see it. Makes for a pretty obnoxious narrator.
Secondly, the parents weren't mean enough to justify any of the thinking. Her descent into madness wasn't big enough. At around the three quarter mark she just starts doing things when there's been no build up to it. There was no set up and pay off.
I think if you're in a similar situation to the protagonist you'll find a lot to like in the dry humour of the book. Not a winner for me.
My main issue is the protagonist Keira. She spends most of the book complaining. I think maybe if she had worked full time at some point in the novel and still couldn't get ahead I'd have been able to empathise. But instead all we get is her talking about how hard she's working and we never get to see it. Makes for a pretty obnoxious narrator.
Secondly, the parents weren't mean enough to justify any of the thinking. Her descent into madness wasn't big enough. At around the three quarter mark she just starts doing things when there's been no build up to it. There was no set up and pay off.
I think if you're in a similar situation to the protagonist you'll find a lot to like in the dry humour of the book. Not a winner for me.
January 21, 2026
Updated review 21/01/2026:
A huge thank you to @ultimopress for this review copy of Kill Your Boomers by Fiona Wright 🏡
Kiera is a 30-ish broke gal, living in a Sydney sharehouse and desperate to have a home of her own.
The sharehouse is full of mould, has a gaping hole in the kitchen floor, and no aircon. A true renters delight.
Kiera gets snippets of joy when she babysits for a rich woman in Double Bay and sees how the other half live, but when this job is threatened Kiera spirals.
She spirals even further when her friend Dylan is able to buy a house thanks to a dead parent’s inheritance.
And maybe this is the way out? If only her very healthy parents would die…
Oh this was so fun. Completely unhinged in all the best ways.
Fiona Wright has very clearly lived in a Sydney sharehouse and faced the horrors of trying to find a liveable place by yourself.
As a renter currently trying to leave a sharehouse and move into my own place, this hit SO close to home. Maybe too close, but it felt great to know we’re not alone in this nightmare.
I also loved reading a book set in Sydney, I haven’t read one for a while so it was a nice little treat!
Kiera’s downwards spiral is so real and relatable, I think we’ve all felt very similarly.
It’s very easy to feel like you’re falling behind your friends who are able to buy a home or live alone, but the reality is so much different.
I absolutely loved the ending of this. No spoilers but I genuinely cackled when I closed the book because it was just the cherry on top.
Kill Your Boomers ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Release date: 31st March 2026
_______________________________________________
Original review 5/01/2026:
Full review to come but oh my god this was FUN.
Set in Sydney and Fiona Wright perfectly captured what it’s like to live in a sharehouse here and how depressing the housing market is.
A huge thank you to @ultimopress for this review copy of Kill Your Boomers by Fiona Wright 🏡
Kiera is a 30-ish broke gal, living in a Sydney sharehouse and desperate to have a home of her own.
The sharehouse is full of mould, has a gaping hole in the kitchen floor, and no aircon. A true renters delight.
Kiera gets snippets of joy when she babysits for a rich woman in Double Bay and sees how the other half live, but when this job is threatened Kiera spirals.
She spirals even further when her friend Dylan is able to buy a house thanks to a dead parent’s inheritance.
And maybe this is the way out? If only her very healthy parents would die…
Oh this was so fun. Completely unhinged in all the best ways.
Fiona Wright has very clearly lived in a Sydney sharehouse and faced the horrors of trying to find a liveable place by yourself.
As a renter currently trying to leave a sharehouse and move into my own place, this hit SO close to home. Maybe too close, but it felt great to know we’re not alone in this nightmare.
I also loved reading a book set in Sydney, I haven’t read one for a while so it was a nice little treat!
Kiera’s downwards spiral is so real and relatable, I think we’ve all felt very similarly.
It’s very easy to feel like you’re falling behind your friends who are able to buy a home or live alone, but the reality is so much different.
I absolutely loved the ending of this. No spoilers but I genuinely cackled when I closed the book because it was just the cherry on top.
Kill Your Boomers ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Release date: 31st March 2026
_______________________________________________
Original review 5/01/2026:
Full review to come but oh my god this was FUN.
Set in Sydney and Fiona Wright perfectly captured what it’s like to live in a sharehouse here and how depressing the housing market is.
February 10, 2026
I really liked this book for 90% of it. The classic inner west imagery was fun and it’s obvious that Wright knows exactly what share-housing is like. Tbh just a bit let down by the ending. The foreboding bad thing ends up happening and then you’re just left to go on your merry way?? No uplifting morality to save the day. Like the whole book you’re kind of connecting with how shitty the protagonists life is, then at the end they’re like yeah it’s honestly always going to be shitty there’s nobody to save you ahahah!!!!
June 6, 2026
Not what I expected - review to come
June 26, 2026
Someone had to do it, someone had to write the "millennial-murders-parents" story. The crushing weight of being propertyless - albeit for a freelance wannabe writer - together with the all-round Sydney real estate angst, is brilliantly rendered here in a way that is both funny and sad.
The only serious flaw for me is Keira getting away with this is not believable.
The only serious flaw for me is Keira getting away with this is not believable.
June 4, 2026
A book of the moment, this is a novel about the housing crisis in Australia. Young people are being priced out of the market. Keira, a broke millennial living in a grotty share flat, considers killing her parents so she can take their house. A fun premise but I really disliked Keira. I think we’re meant to be on her side because she’s broke and so deserves our sympathy but her choices irritated me and the ending fell flat. A good book club pick.
July 12, 2026
As someone who lives in a garage and at times projects my dissatisfaction in life onto the fact I will never own a cute two bedroom weatherboard, I did very much appreciate this millennial housing crisis take. Was it a bit boring? Yes. Did it then get a bit weird? Yes. Was this the millionth book with an unlikeable narrator I’ve read in a row? Yes. Do with that what you will.
May 27, 2026
Unlikeable main character , she has so many options at her disposable on how to turn her life around but sits there and bitches and moans about not being able to afford a house whilst being jealous of anyone and everyone who can/does own a house.
Her parents are lovely people and clearly love her a lot, and don’t deserve any of her unkind thoughts.
If she is such a hard worker as she says she is , she could try to get any job possible that is stable and provides her with decent income. She can still write on the side. I understand writing is her passion blah blah but that doesn’t mean you need to be a struggling bitter artist. She could have written a piece about Johanna and her side of the story and tried to sell that to outlets ! I thought that’s where it was going initially but no! It just continues with her bitter descent.
She could also move in with her parents to save money as well , not sure what the aversion is when her parents are such kind people , it doesn’t mean she’s moving back in life , it’s just a temporary pit stop while she’s getting herself back together again.
“But H.M this is a fiction book you’re taking this too srsly” that’s true! I am , but the plot made no sense and I tried to keep on reading to see where it was going but every chapter felt like a repeat, there were so many angles to take this story but it just fell flat.
Johanna was more likeable than the main protagonist. Didn’t feel any sympathy for her whatsoever and found her extremely dislike able. Her descent into madness doesn’t make much sense either and the book is basically 200+ pages of nothing.
I tried to finish this , I really did , but the story hardly progresses even after reading 100+ pages. The protagonist doesn’t evolve aside from her bitterness making her insane. The concept of the book is good , the writing is great! But everything else sucked.
Her parents are lovely people and clearly love her a lot, and don’t deserve any of her unkind thoughts.
If she is such a hard worker as she says she is , she could try to get any job possible that is stable and provides her with decent income. She can still write on the side. I understand writing is her passion blah blah but that doesn’t mean you need to be a struggling bitter artist. She could have written a piece about Johanna and her side of the story and tried to sell that to outlets ! I thought that’s where it was going initially but no! It just continues with her bitter descent.
She could also move in with her parents to save money as well , not sure what the aversion is when her parents are such kind people , it doesn’t mean she’s moving back in life , it’s just a temporary pit stop while she’s getting herself back together again.
“But H.M this is a fiction book you’re taking this too srsly” that’s true! I am , but the plot made no sense and I tried to keep on reading to see where it was going but every chapter felt like a repeat, there were so many angles to take this story but it just fell flat.
Johanna was more likeable than the main protagonist. Didn’t feel any sympathy for her whatsoever and found her extremely dislike able. Her descent into madness doesn’t make much sense either and the book is basically 200+ pages of nothing.
I tried to finish this , I really did , but the story hardly progresses even after reading 100+ pages. The protagonist doesn’t evolve aside from her bitterness making her insane. The concept of the book is good , the writing is great! But everything else sucked.
May 28, 2026
3.5 rounded up.
The most accurate book I’ve ever read re: renting in Australia. Surprisingly gentle and reluctant, given the blurb and title, but I appreciated the slow build. Felt very Sydney, which is probably the only time I’ll ever use that as a compliment.
The most accurate book I’ve ever read re: renting in Australia. Surprisingly gentle and reluctant, given the blurb and title, but I appreciated the slow build. Felt very Sydney, which is probably the only time I’ll ever use that as a compliment.
April 1, 2026
4.5/5 I need someone to talk to about this book 🤣
May 17, 2026
I really enoyed this book. Beautifully written with a great premise but it felt like the anger and no holds barred attitude at the start petered out by the end. The author pulled some major punches which left me a bit unsatisfied with the ending.
***SPOILERS BELOW***
***SPOILERS BELOW***
May 22, 2026
Well written book, however the protagonist is unlikable and constantly complains. She can’t get ahead, but she doesn’t work in a full time capacity and never seems to have done so. She’s jealous of anyone who has a home or family (including her brother) and steals from her part time employer.
Her parents dote on her, change their plans to include her when she drops in unannounced, take her out to lunch. Yet she feels unhappy that they have what she doesn’t. The ending was a disappointment and fell flat with me.
Her parents dote on her, change their plans to include her when she drops in unannounced, take her out to lunch. Yet she feels unhappy that they have what she doesn’t. The ending was a disappointment and fell flat with me.
May 8, 2026
This book was born out of a madness that can only be understood by those of us who lived in Sydney from the mid 2010s onwards. The girls who get it, get it.
June 9, 2026
2.5/5
cozzie livs innit. kind of exactly like if 'if i had legs i'd kick you' to the t except it's not really about motherhood but about the fucked up housing market.
man i had really high hopes for this, but unfortunately, despite its great premise and it being set in sydney (i am naturally biased towards aussie books), it fell flat for me. the best part was how particular this was to the state of the truly truly abysmal sydney housing market and the individuals who are affected. it pinpoints the constant swirling on domain, the comparison, motherhood, wealth, grifters, the pointlessness and absurdity of who gets to buy houses and how, the depravity of renting - the whole shebang. and that was done really, really well. however - just a lot of absolutely nothing happening, and for a book that's described as funny, this was indescribably sad actually! the fmc is kind of v unlikeable - which would be fine if she was entertaining but she is - understandably, depressed and the combination of depressed and detached to the point of hallucination just isn't super entertaining to read. by the 50% mark i wanted something to happen then by the 70% i was kind of begging for anything to happen - it felt slow despite this being a short book which is a little bit insane.
and then the ending. despite the whole book leading up to it - the actual and maybe that's bcs i don't have a fab relationship with my parents and yet we live in the same house and i am paying with my mental health lol but considering that they were not only ideal but great parents - like i get that they had expectations of what they wanted for her etc. but i just still never understood why she didn't just simply...move back in. it really really bugged me the entire book. maybe it's bcs - obviously the housing market is fucked, obviously most of us will never have houses or rent apartments or anything like that - and so many of us (me included) r predicted to mooch off our parent's property for the rest of our lives...so if i was single and not earning much money at 30 i simply...wouldn't move out still. idk what the insistence is on society given the terrible economic state we're in of moving out (specifically from white people). if wright had addressed this - it would have made sense but since it never comes up and the parents are seemingly willing to assist kiz (even though it is slightly patronising) i just did not understand why it had to come to the ending.
cozzie livs innit. kind of exactly like if 'if i had legs i'd kick you' to the t except it's not really about motherhood but about the fucked up housing market.
man i had really high hopes for this, but unfortunately, despite its great premise and it being set in sydney (i am naturally biased towards aussie books), it fell flat for me. the best part was how particular this was to the state of the truly truly abysmal sydney housing market and the individuals who are affected. it pinpoints the constant swirling on domain, the comparison, motherhood, wealth, grifters, the pointlessness and absurdity of who gets to buy houses and how, the depravity of renting - the whole shebang. and that was done really, really well. however - just a lot of absolutely nothing happening, and for a book that's described as funny, this was indescribably sad actually! the fmc is kind of v unlikeable - which would be fine if she was entertaining but she is - understandably, depressed and the combination of depressed and detached to the point of hallucination just isn't super entertaining to read. by the 50% mark i wanted something to happen then by the 70% i was kind of begging for anything to happen - it felt slow despite this being a short book which is a little bit insane.
and then the ending. despite the whole book leading up to it - the actual and maybe that's bcs i don't have a fab relationship with my parents and yet we live in the same house and i am paying with my mental health lol but considering that they were not only ideal but great parents - like i get that they had expectations of what they wanted for her etc. but i just still never understood why she didn't just simply...move back in. it really really bugged me the entire book. maybe it's bcs - obviously the housing market is fucked, obviously most of us will never have houses or rent apartments or anything like that - and so many of us (me included) r predicted to mooch off our parent's property for the rest of our lives...so if i was single and not earning much money at 30 i simply...wouldn't move out still. idk what the insistence is on society given the terrible economic state we're in of moving out (specifically from white people). if wright had addressed this - it would have made sense but since it never comes up and the parents are seemingly willing to assist kiz (even though it is slightly patronising) i just did not understand why it had to come to the ending.
May 12, 2026
Stuck in yet another shitty rental that’s falling apart and has a literal hole in the kitchen floor, Keira can’t help but think it’s not fair. She’s over educated and under employed, sharing a rental with two other women in their late twenties and the great Australian dream of owning a home has never been further away.
So when the hole in the kitchen floor that the owner refuses to fix starts telling Keira that the only way she will ever get a home is to kill her parents, well it gets harder and harder to ignore.
An Aussie weird girl book! That is unfortunately all too true.
Who amongst us hasn’t felt frustration, despair, and terror when we see that a 3 bedroom dilapidated house is going for over 1mil and knowing we will never own a home? This book ask how far are you willing to go to get some stability?
With biting social commentary this book knows what it’s like to be locked out of the housing market.
It’s a drink with a friend as you make dark jokes about inheritance being the only way out of life long renting.
This was a cathartic read and I devoured this book like the hole in the floor wanted to devour boomers.
So when the hole in the kitchen floor that the owner refuses to fix starts telling Keira that the only way she will ever get a home is to kill her parents, well it gets harder and harder to ignore.
An Aussie weird girl book! That is unfortunately all too true.
Who amongst us hasn’t felt frustration, despair, and terror when we see that a 3 bedroom dilapidated house is going for over 1mil and knowing we will never own a home? This book ask how far are you willing to go to get some stability?
With biting social commentary this book knows what it’s like to be locked out of the housing market.
It’s a drink with a friend as you make dark jokes about inheritance being the only way out of life long renting.
This was a cathartic read and I devoured this book like the hole in the floor wanted to devour boomers.
May 14, 2026
Big thanks to Ultimo Press for sending us a copy to read and review.
A story that just goes about its business without anything really happening.
The promise of a good book was a bit of a letdown.
To buy a house or apartment seems to be out of reach for Keira and her friends.
Living in a share house where mould runs rampant and a big hole in the floor dominates their home.
But Keira can’t afford to buy anything.
Her job as a nanny to two rambunctious toddlers and a slave to the mother doesn’t pay much.
Her other job, a copywriter, is just as bad.
Then her best friend inherits money and purchases a property, leaving her more depressed.
The only way to get what she wants, is to get the money from her parents.
One slight issue…..
They are alive and in good health.
So Keira thinks up a plan…..
Sounds good…. right!
It was just an ok read.
I was expecting it to be more macabre and the premise gives off a lot more energy than what was given.
It starts off quite good, then drags a bit and picks up for the ending.
Pick up at your own risk.
A story that just goes about its business without anything really happening.
The promise of a good book was a bit of a letdown.
To buy a house or apartment seems to be out of reach for Keira and her friends.
Living in a share house where mould runs rampant and a big hole in the floor dominates their home.
But Keira can’t afford to buy anything.
Her job as a nanny to two rambunctious toddlers and a slave to the mother doesn’t pay much.
Her other job, a copywriter, is just as bad.
Then her best friend inherits money and purchases a property, leaving her more depressed.
The only way to get what she wants, is to get the money from her parents.
One slight issue…..
They are alive and in good health.
So Keira thinks up a plan…..
Sounds good…. right!
It was just an ok read.
I was expecting it to be more macabre and the premise gives off a lot more energy than what was given.
It starts off quite good, then drags a bit and picks up for the ending.
Pick up at your own risk.
May 24, 2026
3.5/5 - Very topical premise and a delightfully odd turn of events. It’s always a pleasure to read a book based in your city! The main character, Keira, made the book a bit of a drag for me. She’s unhinged and entitled and I guess it makes her a more interesting character, but I found her annoying and it was hard to stay invested in her story. The ending also felt quite brief, I would have liked to have seen it fleshed out a bit more.
Also, how does Keira organise her bookshelf?!
Also, how does Keira organise her bookshelf?!
May 30, 2026
3.5 stars Keira is never going to be able to afford a house - not in this market, not with that (freelance writer/nanny) job, not when her parents fritter away her inheritance on Teslas and education for her newborn niece. So something has to be done - and with the encouragement of the hole in the floor (you’ll have to read the book), she plots to join the ranks of homeowners. Nice little parallel there, with the fungus which takes control of ants, making them do their bidding, and of course, the mouldy kitchen floor hole - you join the dots.
June 17, 2026
What a nasty book. What an unpleasant character Kiera is. I didn't finish this because I just couldn't stand what a nasty, lazy, self-entitled brat Kiera, the main character was.
June 3, 2026
A cleverly written pretty dark book in someways. Interesting read 2 1/2 stars audiobook.
April 27, 2026
A collision of the despair of the current housing crisis, the yearning for a place of your own, and all that symbolises for your life. An unhinged cascade of inner spiralling about identity, expectations, and the wish to avoid moving house again.
People around our protagonist here are buying houses, moving in, having a family, living their expected lives, whilst she is barely cobbling together rent with freelance writing, and a too temporary nanny gig.
The painful, and all too close to home, truth that to be in a position to own your own property these days, following university and figuring out a career, is for at least one of your parents to die. A brutal reality. And sadly, true for many of us.
The want for permanence, a place to call your own, to hang pictures on the wall, plant a garden, repair things in a timely manner, not have to negotiate shared bathrooms and kitchens and spaces, and to not have to move again. It's destabilising, and consuming, and tips our protagonist to dark places.
The streets of Inner West Sydney are as much of a character as the hole in the sharehouse kitchen. The hole, however, develops a presence all too commanding, suggestive and haunting.
An examination of the state of our world of unaffordability, everyday survival, and the pressures of expectations, and the impact on our lives and mental health.
People around our protagonist here are buying houses, moving in, having a family, living their expected lives, whilst she is barely cobbling together rent with freelance writing, and a too temporary nanny gig.
The painful, and all too close to home, truth that to be in a position to own your own property these days, following university and figuring out a career, is for at least one of your parents to die. A brutal reality. And sadly, true for many of us.
The want for permanence, a place to call your own, to hang pictures on the wall, plant a garden, repair things in a timely manner, not have to negotiate shared bathrooms and kitchens and spaces, and to not have to move again. It's destabilising, and consuming, and tips our protagonist to dark places.
The streets of Inner West Sydney are as much of a character as the hole in the sharehouse kitchen. The hole, however, develops a presence all too commanding, suggestive and haunting.
An examination of the state of our world of unaffordability, everyday survival, and the pressures of expectations, and the impact on our lives and mental health.
June 2, 2026
Didn't know where this one was going to go.. I just couldn't connect with the protagonist, she just wasn't likeable or relatable
May 17, 2026
The only thing I liked about this book is the descriptive imagery of the inner west
April 11, 2026
Thank you Ultimo Press for sending me this advanced copy.
Okay. Real talk.
I was so excited by the premise of this book.
but….
It was a let down.
Keira spends a lot of this book either complaining or hearing the hole in her kitchen talk to her…
It was just underwhelming
Don’t get me started on how I also wanted to DNF because there was more than one instance of snarky comments about colour organised bookshelves. Like. Excuse you. I love my rainbow shelf.
Okay. Real talk.
I was so excited by the premise of this book.
but….
It was a let down.
Keira spends a lot of this book either complaining or hearing the hole in her kitchen talk to her…
It was just underwhelming
Don’t get me started on how I also wanted to DNF because there was more than one instance of snarky comments about colour organised bookshelves. Like. Excuse you. I love my rainbow shelf.
May 18, 2026
Fiona Wright seems to have really looked at Australia’s housing crisis and said, “What if I made this everyone’s intrusive thoughts but funnier and far more unhinged?” And if that was her intention, she has well and truly succeeded.
Kill Your Boomers is dark, sharp, weirdly relatable, and just self-aware enough to stop itself from tipping completely into despair. Keira is in her thirties, drowning in precarious work, trapped in a decaying Sydney share house, endlessly inspecting homes she’ll never afford, while watching people around her quietly leapfrog into property ownership through inheritance, parental help, or sheer luck. Then the rotting hole in her kitchen floor starts talking to her. Weird, but, actually disturbingly believable.
What I loved most about this book is that beneath the satire and absurdity is something painfully recognisable. Not the murder-your-parents part, obviously, but the exhaustion running underneath everything. Like the constant instability, the humiliation of modern housing culture, and the feeling that adulthood has somehow become performative rather than attainable. Wright absolutely nails the psychology of aspiration in her depiction of the open homes with strategically placed flowers and artisanal gin bottles, the fantasy of becoming the kind of person who owns matching ceramics and has opinions about benchtops.
Keira is also allowed to be properly messy in a way female protagonists so often aren’t. She’s bitter, funny, self-aware, petty, exhausted, and occasionally unlikeable, which made her feel incredibly real to me. The novel never turns her into a martyr for “the millennial experience,” and it’s much stronger because of that.
The hole in the floor could have easily become too symbolic or gimmicky in another novel, but here it works strangely well. It becomes this festering physical manifestation of resentment, precarity, and slow psychological erosion. It's half horror device and half intrusive thought.
The pacing sagged slightly for me in parts, and I wanted the ending to hit just a little harder emotionally than it ultimately did, but overall this is such an intelligent, funny, unsettling piece of Australian fiction. It captures a very specific cultural frustration without becoming preachy or self-important.
Also, after finishing this, I may never look at an open home the same way again.
#KillYourBoomers #FionaWright #AustralianFiction #BookReview #ContemporaryFiction
Kill Your Boomers is dark, sharp, weirdly relatable, and just self-aware enough to stop itself from tipping completely into despair. Keira is in her thirties, drowning in precarious work, trapped in a decaying Sydney share house, endlessly inspecting homes she’ll never afford, while watching people around her quietly leapfrog into property ownership through inheritance, parental help, or sheer luck. Then the rotting hole in her kitchen floor starts talking to her. Weird, but, actually disturbingly believable.
What I loved most about this book is that beneath the satire and absurdity is something painfully recognisable. Not the murder-your-parents part, obviously, but the exhaustion running underneath everything. Like the constant instability, the humiliation of modern housing culture, and the feeling that adulthood has somehow become performative rather than attainable. Wright absolutely nails the psychology of aspiration in her depiction of the open homes with strategically placed flowers and artisanal gin bottles, the fantasy of becoming the kind of person who owns matching ceramics and has opinions about benchtops.
Keira is also allowed to be properly messy in a way female protagonists so often aren’t. She’s bitter, funny, self-aware, petty, exhausted, and occasionally unlikeable, which made her feel incredibly real to me. The novel never turns her into a martyr for “the millennial experience,” and it’s much stronger because of that.
The hole in the floor could have easily become too symbolic or gimmicky in another novel, but here it works strangely well. It becomes this festering physical manifestation of resentment, precarity, and slow psychological erosion. It's half horror device and half intrusive thought.
The pacing sagged slightly for me in parts, and I wanted the ending to hit just a little harder emotionally than it ultimately did, but overall this is such an intelligent, funny, unsettling piece of Australian fiction. It captures a very specific cultural frustration without becoming preachy or self-important.
Also, after finishing this, I may never look at an open home the same way again.
#KillYourBoomers #FionaWright #AustralianFiction #BookReview #ContemporaryFiction
May 27, 2026
Keira lives in a shared house with two other females. The house isn't in great shape; there's a hole in the kitchen floor right near the oven that appears to be getting bigger.Her best friend Dylan and his partner Raphe have just received an inheritance and are able to buy an apartment. Keira's brother Josh, his wife, and their daughter seem to be the favourites in her family; they already have a home and the bank of mum and dad is helping with their daughter's education.Keira babysits twins from an affluent family, their mother expressing how much she needed Keira whilst dismissing her at the same time. . Often on her daily shopping walks with the twins she stops at an open house and pretends to be a buyer. The need to own her own place dominating her life. But then when the family no longer need her, her full time job as a freelance copywriter is not going to cover the rent.
Keira and the hole need a plan.
You get pulled in quickly by the background and how Keira's everyday life is consumed by the twins' daily walks and fussy eating habits. Keira's unwavering need to have her own place, the dreams she conjures up whilst walking through real estate. You never get the feeling she is jealous of her brother but she appears resentful that her parents have a house and a comfortable lifestyle. Her parents are kind and loving, so it is a bit confusing that she never tells them she needs help, Her father asks her about work and she reassures him something will come up or that she is working on it. The hole plays a big part in this story. I found it annoying that it is peppered throughout the book. While we all know holes cannot talk Keira's mindset uses the hole as a sounding board, yielding some interesting conversations.
A cheesy story that kept me turning the pages, but I am not totally sure I love the last line. The ending is brutal, unforgiving but I guess that is what it is meant to be.
Keira and the hole need a plan.
You get pulled in quickly by the background and how Keira's everyday life is consumed by the twins' daily walks and fussy eating habits. Keira's unwavering need to have her own place, the dreams she conjures up whilst walking through real estate. You never get the feeling she is jealous of her brother but she appears resentful that her parents have a house and a comfortable lifestyle. Her parents are kind and loving, so it is a bit confusing that she never tells them she needs help, Her father asks her about work and she reassures him something will come up or that she is working on it. The hole plays a big part in this story. I found it annoying that it is peppered throughout the book. While we all know holes cannot talk Keira's mindset uses the hole as a sounding board, yielding some interesting conversations.
A cheesy story that kept me turning the pages, but I am not totally sure I love the last line. The ending is brutal, unforgiving but I guess that is what it is meant to be.
May 13, 2026
This book was perfect to me - I’m not sure I would change anything about it (besides the potshot at people who organise their books thematically - guilty as charged - I kid). It gave me nightmares and made me feel physically ill to read some parts of the book, but that just shows how incredibly effective it was. I read The Conversion by Amanda Lohrey (another novel focussed on the great Australian real estate dream, but from the Boomer perspective) earlier this year and this was the perfect antidote.
Favourite things about this book:
- how it fluctuates between incredible realism (you can tell Fiona Wright has personal experience of long term renting and sharehouses) and the complete absurd, which, in my opinion, is the only sane way to address the current state of housing in Australia
- the clever zombie fungus nod about the hole’s mould invading Kiera’s brain that wasn’t outright stated but felt obvious to me
- the subtlety of the book in general that at the same time clearly foreshadowed what was coming
- the housemate that needs things to be scientifically accurate, loves fungi and is fatalistic about climate change (I feel like this character could’ve been based on me, and it also gave me faith that the science of this was well researched, which was confirmed by my Google searches about a few of the supplements mentioned)
- the subtle critiques of wellness culture
- how deftly grief was handled
- the absolutely gorgeous cover design and fonts used
Every second I wasn’t reading this book, I was thinking about how I wanted to get back to reading it. The audiobook is also really well done - I swapped between print and audiobook.
I can’t believe this book doesn’t have more buzz about it!
Favourite things about this book:
- how it fluctuates between incredible realism (you can tell Fiona Wright has personal experience of long term renting and sharehouses) and the complete absurd, which, in my opinion, is the only sane way to address the current state of housing in Australia
- the clever zombie fungus nod about the hole’s mould invading Kiera’s brain that wasn’t outright stated but felt obvious to me
- the subtlety of the book in general that at the same time clearly foreshadowed what was coming
- the housemate that needs things to be scientifically accurate, loves fungi and is fatalistic about climate change (I feel like this character could’ve been based on me, and it also gave me faith that the science of this was well researched, which was confirmed by my Google searches about a few of the supplements mentioned)
- the subtle critiques of wellness culture
- how deftly grief was handled
- the absolutely gorgeous cover design and fonts used
Every second I wasn’t reading this book, I was thinking about how I wanted to get back to reading it. The audiobook is also really well done - I swapped between print and audiobook.
I can’t believe this book doesn’t have more buzz about it!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
Kill Your Boomers, firstly, what a title! That piques your interest before you even flip it to read the blurb! Secondly, this is such a clever novel, encapsulating what it genuinely feels like to be a woman in her 30s, trying to achieve the 'milestones' of being an adult.
The chapters are short and punchy, which makes the pages turn easier and with an urgency that our protagonist Keira, also oozes.
The common theme in this novel, is the idea of fairness, how we, as humans are constantly looking for things to be fair. And how that just isn't achievable. How everyone's circumstances, lives, families and work commitments are different, and how that shapes what our communities and friendships look like. A clever and thought provoking narrative.
Kill Your Boomers is whitty, expressive and cleverly written. And as someone who is in the same stage of life, as our protagonist, it is incredibly easy to relate to her struggles. Money, work, family, a roof over your head. This novel is raw and gritty and says all of the things that we never meant to say out loud. Its refreshing.
This novel is a conversation starter. It is easy to read, filled with characters that feel real, like people you know. and by the end, i definitely felt connected to the hole in the kitchen...
Thank you to UltimoPress for sending a review copy of this title. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
The chapters are short and punchy, which makes the pages turn easier and with an urgency that our protagonist Keira, also oozes.
The common theme in this novel, is the idea of fairness, how we, as humans are constantly looking for things to be fair. And how that just isn't achievable. How everyone's circumstances, lives, families and work commitments are different, and how that shapes what our communities and friendships look like. A clever and thought provoking narrative.
Kill Your Boomers is whitty, expressive and cleverly written. And as someone who is in the same stage of life, as our protagonist, it is incredibly easy to relate to her struggles. Money, work, family, a roof over your head. This novel is raw and gritty and says all of the things that we never meant to say out loud. Its refreshing.
This novel is a conversation starter. It is easy to read, filled with characters that feel real, like people you know. and by the end, i definitely felt connected to the hole in the kitchen...
Thank you to UltimoPress for sending a review copy of this title. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
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