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Dove
After a violent confrontation with the man next door, Dove paints a daring question on the front wall of her Sunshine Coast hinterland 'What would you do if you had a whole day on earth free of men?'
When tourists and local women answer by writing their pent-up frustrations, fears and confessions, it strikes a nerve with the local blokes. With nowhere to hide from exposed secrets and shameful legacies, tensions boil up, just as the town hits the headlines over a missing teen.
As media scrutiny grows and Dove faces anonymous threats, she fears her secret romance might harbour its own hidden dangers.
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Published March 31, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
March 8, 2026
Dove, wow! This book hit me in a way I didn’t expect. It’s heartbreaking and beautiful all at once. This is the kind of story that crawls under your skin and lingers. THis is a fierce, unfiltered look at what women carry every single day: pressure, silence, survival, and the small pushbacks that keep us alive. It’s an eye‑opener, and it leaves a mark that stays long after you close the last page.
The story unfolds through three alternating voices:
* Dove — living a quiet, frugal farm life, holding more pain and strength than she lets on
* Bella — a teenager trying to figure out who they are in a world that doesn’t make space for difference
* Noah — Dove’s great love, whose presence adds both warmth and ache
Together, their stories form something raw, tender, and painfully real.
What I Really Liked:
* Multiple POVs told in first person narrative
* Women’s empowerment explored with so much depth
* Lessons about love, identity, and freedom included through every chapter
What Didn’t Work for Me:
* One character’s betrayals felt like too much to accept
* A tragic moment that absolutely wrecked me
* The pacing dragged in parts
Breakdown:
* Setting: 5⭐️
* Characters: 5⭐️
* Writing: 4⭐️
* Message: 5⭐️
* Overall: 5⭐️
In summary, Dove is a powerful, emotional story about womanhood, the weight of it, the beauty of it, and the daily battles we fight in a world still learning how to respect, include, and accept us. It’s deep, layered, and emotional. If you love women’s fiction that cuts deep, this one is worth your time. Huge thanks to NetGalley, Penguin Random House Australia, and Georgia Harper for my advance copy.
~ JaNnA ~
The story unfolds through three alternating voices:
* Dove — living a quiet, frugal farm life, holding more pain and strength than she lets on
* Bella — a teenager trying to figure out who they are in a world that doesn’t make space for difference
* Noah — Dove’s great love, whose presence adds both warmth and ache
Together, their stories form something raw, tender, and painfully real.
What I Really Liked:
* Multiple POVs told in first person narrative
* Women’s empowerment explored with so much depth
* Lessons about love, identity, and freedom included through every chapter
What Didn’t Work for Me:
* One character’s betrayals felt like too much to accept
* A tragic moment that absolutely wrecked me
* The pacing dragged in parts
Breakdown:
* Setting: 5⭐️
* Characters: 5⭐️
* Writing: 4⭐️
* Message: 5⭐️
* Overall: 5⭐️
In summary, Dove is a powerful, emotional story about womanhood, the weight of it, the beauty of it, and the daily battles we fight in a world still learning how to respect, include, and accept us. It’s deep, layered, and emotional. If you love women’s fiction that cuts deep, this one is worth your time. Huge thanks to NetGalley, Penguin Random House Australia, and Georgia Harper for my advance copy.
~ JaNnA ~
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April 2, 2026This was great! Tackling women’s rights and violence against women. Men and their disgusting opinions and a refusal to see that they could be the problem. How defenceless women truly are in a room full of men. But please don’t market this as a crime/thriller. That’s my only letdown as I went into this thinking that…
March 20, 2026
Dove has given me SO much to think about in such a simple question; what would you do if you had a whole day on earth free of men? Set in 1993 in small Australian town mablethorpe Dove is both deeply deeply disturbing and so beautiful I’m not going to be able to do it justice in a review, just one to being all your loved experience to as you get to know Dove, Hazel, Bella, Noah and Emily. So powerful, out March 31st, so thankful for my arc Penguin
April 4, 2026
What would you do if you had a whole day on earth free of men?
After a violent encounter with her neighbour, Dove paints this provocative question on the road-facing wall of her farm, leaving tins of paint for women to respond. And they do. Their answers expose secrets, shame, hopes and dreams, while unsettling many of the local men. The wall soon attracts media attention, placing Dove – who is keeping a huge secret of her own – in unexpected danger.
She’s done it again. Georgia Harper has produced another unique and electric premise for a story. In her debut novel, What I Would Do To You, she imagined a future in which the death penalty was reinstated and families of victims could carry out the execution themselves. Having read both her books (and enough thrillers to pave a small runway), I can hand-on-heart say I’ve never read anything quite like them.
From the first page, this book bristles with tension. The prologue ignites the spark and with each chapter the heat builds, the intensity rising from a gentle simmer to a full boil by the final stretch. The story is told from multiple POVs: primarily Dove, her lover Noah, and his daughter Bella. Georgia nails the inner world of each of them with such depth that I wasn’t just reading their thoughts, I was feeling them.
This isn’t the man-hating book you might expect, with Dove coming to the defence of men at one point. Rather, it's a fascinating study of human behaviour in all its messiness and an unflinching reflection of society using a social experiment as the mirror.
From a writing perspective, the structure of the book is *chef’s kiss*. From the hook that reels you in on the opening pages to the pacey finish where short, sharp chapters shut the rest of the world out, this novel is superbly crafted. And the last page. Wow!
A cracking read perfect for book clubs and a great conversation starter (just ask everyone who knows me 🫠).
If you've read it, let me know. I'm keen to discuss!
After a violent encounter with her neighbour, Dove paints this provocative question on the road-facing wall of her farm, leaving tins of paint for women to respond. And they do. Their answers expose secrets, shame, hopes and dreams, while unsettling many of the local men. The wall soon attracts media attention, placing Dove – who is keeping a huge secret of her own – in unexpected danger.
She’s done it again. Georgia Harper has produced another unique and electric premise for a story. In her debut novel, What I Would Do To You, she imagined a future in which the death penalty was reinstated and families of victims could carry out the execution themselves. Having read both her books (and enough thrillers to pave a small runway), I can hand-on-heart say I’ve never read anything quite like them.
From the first page, this book bristles with tension. The prologue ignites the spark and with each chapter the heat builds, the intensity rising from a gentle simmer to a full boil by the final stretch. The story is told from multiple POVs: primarily Dove, her lover Noah, and his daughter Bella. Georgia nails the inner world of each of them with such depth that I wasn’t just reading their thoughts, I was feeling them.
This isn’t the man-hating book you might expect, with Dove coming to the defence of men at one point. Rather, it's a fascinating study of human behaviour in all its messiness and an unflinching reflection of society using a social experiment as the mirror.
From a writing perspective, the structure of the book is *chef’s kiss*. From the hook that reels you in on the opening pages to the pacey finish where short, sharp chapters shut the rest of the world out, this novel is superbly crafted. And the last page. Wow!
A cracking read perfect for book clubs and a great conversation starter (just ask everyone who knows me 🫠).
If you've read it, let me know. I'm keen to discuss!
April 4, 2026
Dove by Georgia Harper
I requested Dove by Georgia Harper because I'd seen a lot of Bookstagram buzz about it. I haven't read Georgia's first book, What I Would Do To You, because the concept seemed absolutely terrifying; In a near-future Australia, the death penalty is reinstated. The catch: the victim's family must carry out the sentence. The cover of Dove asks the question: 'What would you do if you had a whole day on earth free of men?'
Set in the early '90's in the small, conservative rural town of Mablethorpe. Throughout her life, Dove has had a series of scary and threatening encounters with men, including one with the town's only Doctor, but when her neighbour continues to harass her, she paints a question on the fence of her farm: 'Women, what would you do if you had a whole day on earth free of men?', leaving coloured pens nearby, the local women, and then tourists start visting to write their answers and the local men start to feel uncomfortable.
Told from three points of view, Doves, and Dove's high-school sweetheart, Noah. Noah is now a husband and father who feels trapped in his life, and his teenage daughter, Bella, strikes up a friendship with Dove.
If you enjoy thrillers set in rural Australia, like Denizen by James McKenzie Watson or psychological thrillers like Nightwatching by Tracy Sierra, Dove is not a comfortable read. Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Random House for the eARC of Dove by Georgia Harper. It's out now.
Warning: there are themes of domestic violence, abortion, and medical malpractice.
I requested Dove by Georgia Harper because I'd seen a lot of Bookstagram buzz about it. I haven't read Georgia's first book, What I Would Do To You, because the concept seemed absolutely terrifying; In a near-future Australia, the death penalty is reinstated. The catch: the victim's family must carry out the sentence. The cover of Dove asks the question: 'What would you do if you had a whole day on earth free of men?'
Set in the early '90's in the small, conservative rural town of Mablethorpe. Throughout her life, Dove has had a series of scary and threatening encounters with men, including one with the town's only Doctor, but when her neighbour continues to harass her, she paints a question on the fence of her farm: 'Women, what would you do if you had a whole day on earth free of men?', leaving coloured pens nearby, the local women, and then tourists start visting to write their answers and the local men start to feel uncomfortable.
Told from three points of view, Doves, and Dove's high-school sweetheart, Noah. Noah is now a husband and father who feels trapped in his life, and his teenage daughter, Bella, strikes up a friendship with Dove.
If you enjoy thrillers set in rural Australia, like Denizen by James McKenzie Watson or psychological thrillers like Nightwatching by Tracy Sierra, Dove is not a comfortable read. Thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Random House for the eARC of Dove by Georgia Harper. It's out now.
Warning: there are themes of domestic violence, abortion, and medical malpractice.
April 14, 2026
Dove by Georgia Harper is set in 1993 small-town Australia and follows Dove, a fiercely independent woman living on her small farm - until she makes the decision to ask a dangerous question that begins to change everything around her. From there, the tension builds in a deeply unsettling way.
Dove completely carried this for me. She’s strong, self-assured, and unapologetically her own person, which made her such a compelling character to follow. Noah had me in a constant state of whiplash (do I trust you? do I hate you? both??), and every interaction felt loaded because of it. Hazel is incredible in a much quieter way - a steady, almost understated force sitting in the background, but leaving a real impact.
What really elevates this book is the way it explores the invisible weight women carry, particularly within that small-town, early 90s setting, while still feeling completely relevant today. It touches on the mental load, the constant calculations around safety, and the quiet labour that so often goes unseen - while also raising questions around women’s autonomy over their own healthcare, and who really gets to make those decisions. It’s sharp, unsettling, and incredibly well done.
I did pick the “whodunit”, but the *way* the truth is revealed? I was completely blindsided and did not see that coming at all!
Georgia Harper’s second novel is an absolute standout, and I can’t wait to read more from her.
An easy five-star read for me.
Dove completely carried this for me. She’s strong, self-assured, and unapologetically her own person, which made her such a compelling character to follow. Noah had me in a constant state of whiplash (do I trust you? do I hate you? both??), and every interaction felt loaded because of it. Hazel is incredible in a much quieter way - a steady, almost understated force sitting in the background, but leaving a real impact.
What really elevates this book is the way it explores the invisible weight women carry, particularly within that small-town, early 90s setting, while still feeling completely relevant today. It touches on the mental load, the constant calculations around safety, and the quiet labour that so often goes unseen - while also raising questions around women’s autonomy over their own healthcare, and who really gets to make those decisions. It’s sharp, unsettling, and incredibly well done.
I did pick the “whodunit”, but the *way* the truth is revealed? I was completely blindsided and did not see that coming at all!
Georgia Harper’s second novel is an absolute standout, and I can’t wait to read more from her.
An easy five-star read for me.
April 2, 2026
NetGalley review: Dove by Georgia Harper. I have really been looking forward to this because I found the author’s last book “What I Would Do To You” absolutely fascinating, and Dove sounded like a book with another really interesting concept.
It takes place in the early ‘90’s in a small Australian town. Dove has a scary and threatening encounter with her horrible male neighbour, which spurs her to paint a question on the fence of her farm…
“WHAT WOULD YOU DO IF YOU HAD A WHOLE DAY ON EARTH FREE OF MEN?”
Women live in a world where it’s wise to take precautions to keep yourself safe, precautions that men don’t have to consider. So you can imagine some of the answers that had been written, and you can imagine that some of the men haven’t been pleased. Tensions build, and this question ends up with major consequences.
Oh my gosh, this book was so thought provoking. Three different POV’s was really interesting and kept me hooked. Dove, as a character, as a woman, fascinated me. She was full of contradictions, like so many of us. Hard but soft, sensitive but tough, self reliant and incredibly capable but still wanting companionship.
I loved it.
Highly recommend both of Georgia’s books mentioned. 5 ⭐️
Thankyou to NetGalley, the author and publisher for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion.
Pub date March 31 2026
It takes place in the early ‘90’s in a small Australian town. Dove has a scary and threatening encounter with her horrible male neighbour, which spurs her to paint a question on the fence of her farm…
“WHAT WOULD YOU DO IF YOU HAD A WHOLE DAY ON EARTH FREE OF MEN?”
Women live in a world where it’s wise to take precautions to keep yourself safe, precautions that men don’t have to consider. So you can imagine some of the answers that had been written, and you can imagine that some of the men haven’t been pleased. Tensions build, and this question ends up with major consequences.
Oh my gosh, this book was so thought provoking. Three different POV’s was really interesting and kept me hooked. Dove, as a character, as a woman, fascinated me. She was full of contradictions, like so many of us. Hard but soft, sensitive but tough, self reliant and incredibly capable but still wanting companionship.
I loved it.
Highly recommend both of Georgia’s books mentioned. 5 ⭐️
Thankyou to NetGalley, the author and publisher for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest opinion.
Pub date March 31 2026
March 11, 2026
ARC review: Dove by @georgiaharper_author published by @penguinbooksaus and supplied by @netgalley
Release date: 31 March 2026
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Wow, just wow. Georgia really knows how to sucker punch you and get you thinking at the same time. I loved Georgia’s first book, What I Would Do To You, and Dove did not let me down despite having big shoes to fill.
This novel is told from three POVs - Dove, Noah and Bella. It asks the question “What would do if you had a whole day on earth free of men?” What surprised me straight off the bat was this book was not set in the present day but in 1993. It goes to show that while we now have the MeToo movement, the answers that showed up to the question are just as relevant 30 odd years ago as they are today.
I enjoyed the pacing of this book and felt a roller coaster of emotions throughout. The way my jaw hit the floor when Part Two commenced and the wild ride that came from that, whoah.
This book tackles hard issues including violence against women but is also about finding one’s self in the world and if you really like the person you are.
Release date: 31 March 2026
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Wow, just wow. Georgia really knows how to sucker punch you and get you thinking at the same time. I loved Georgia’s first book, What I Would Do To You, and Dove did not let me down despite having big shoes to fill.
This novel is told from three POVs - Dove, Noah and Bella. It asks the question “What would do if you had a whole day on earth free of men?” What surprised me straight off the bat was this book was not set in the present day but in 1993. It goes to show that while we now have the MeToo movement, the answers that showed up to the question are just as relevant 30 odd years ago as they are today.
I enjoyed the pacing of this book and felt a roller coaster of emotions throughout. The way my jaw hit the floor when Part Two commenced and the wild ride that came from that, whoah.
This book tackles hard issues including violence against women but is also about finding one’s self in the world and if you really like the person you are.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
This was a really hard hitting read for me.
The story is told through three POVs which I loved. Each perspective reveals more of what’s really happening and kept me completely hooked. 📖
Set in a Queensland town about 30 years ago, the issues explored still feel incredibly relevant today. After an argument with a neighbour, Dove paints a question on her wall asking women what they would do if they had one day on earth without men. The responses from women in the town reveal fears, frustrations and secrets many have been carrying. 💔
As tensions rise the story takes darker turns with threats, a missing teen among other things
The author’s note at the end really stuck with me. Knowing the wall question was inspired by real responses from women online makes the story feel even more powerful, and a bit heartbreaking too.
I love psychological thrillers and this one definitely made me stop and think. A confronting but powerful read. 📚
The story is told through three POVs which I loved. Each perspective reveals more of what’s really happening and kept me completely hooked. 📖
Set in a Queensland town about 30 years ago, the issues explored still feel incredibly relevant today. After an argument with a neighbour, Dove paints a question on her wall asking women what they would do if they had one day on earth without men. The responses from women in the town reveal fears, frustrations and secrets many have been carrying. 💔
As tensions rise the story takes darker turns with threats, a missing teen among other things
The author’s note at the end really stuck with me. Knowing the wall question was inspired by real responses from women online makes the story feel even more powerful, and a bit heartbreaking too.
I love psychological thrillers and this one definitely made me stop and think. A confronting but powerful read. 📚
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 4, 2026
I haven't read Georgia's other book, What I Would Do To You, but it is certainly going on my tbr list after finishing this book.
What a thought-provoking read that was, at times creepy and scary, with an ending I certainly didn't expect.
I thoroughly enjoyed this read. Having the story told from 3 different perspectives, that of Dove herself, her lover Noah, and Noah's daughter Bella, was very insightful.
Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Australia for the digital ARC. All opinions are my own.
What a thought-provoking read that was, at times creepy and scary, with an ending I certainly didn't expect.
I thoroughly enjoyed this read. Having the story told from 3 different perspectives, that of Dove herself, her lover Noah, and Noah's daughter Bella, was very insightful.
Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Australia for the digital ARC. All opinions are my own.
April 17, 2026
Wow what an amazing book
I don't know how to describe it, if you have ever lived in a small town then this book takes you there and everything that happens could be true. I hated putting the book down, I just wanted to know what happened next.
I loved it!
I don't know how to describe it, if you have ever lived in a small town then this book takes you there and everything that happens could be true. I hated putting the book down, I just wanted to know what happened next.
I loved it!
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
It was beautifully written and a confronting story that makes you stop and think. With so much to NetGalley and to the publisher Penguin Random House Australia for the ARC.
April 4, 2026
What a lively read - tackling a variety of relationship issues in a kind, believable way.
Love your work Georgia
Love your work Georgia
April 12, 2026
AMAZING READ!!!!! I was hookedto found out what happens in the story! This book hits you on so many levels.
April 15, 2026
3.5 stars. The ending made it for me. I felt like things were underdeveloped. There needed to be more. I did not like Noah as a character at all.
It wasn’t to bad.
It wasn’t to bad.
March 20, 2026
What would you do if you had a whole day on earth free of men?
Dove tackles the hard hitting issue of violence against women. What makes it special is that it is set in 1993 - a time when these issues were not openly spoken about.
When Dove paints the question on her front fence, it invokes a lot of feelings across the country. The men are outraged, some women are empowered, others are scared.
This story is multi-pov & cuts deep. If you want a woman’s fiction that makes you question your views & actions, this is it.
Dove tackles the hard hitting issue of violence against women. What makes it special is that it is set in 1993 - a time when these issues were not openly spoken about.
When Dove paints the question on her front fence, it invokes a lot of feelings across the country. The men are outraged, some women are empowered, others are scared.
This story is multi-pov & cuts deep. If you want a woman’s fiction that makes you question your views & actions, this is it.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews