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Lonely Mouth

A delicious summer read for foodies who love a side of family drama

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Lonely Mouth

By: Jacqueline Maley
Narrated by: Hannah Fredericksen
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Sink your teeth into a slice of family drama with this deliciously funny novel about sisterhood, secrets and the things you can't stomach.

Matilda knows about hunger. She works in one of Sydney's buzziest restaurants, Bocca, while suppressing her cravings, including for her celebrity chef boss, Colson. Everything in her life is tightly controlled: she allows herself one weekend a month to feast and purge, the rest of the time, she stays perfect.

That is, until her younger half-sister Lara crashes back into town, stirring up the family’s chaotic past and bringing long-buried family secrets to the surface. As the pressure rises in the kitchen and at home, Matilda’s carefully compartmentalised life begins to unravel.

A deliciously moreish book club novel about food, appetite, body image, family dysfunction and desire – perfect for readers looking for a smart summer holiday read.

‘Witty, savage and poignant’ NIGELLA LAWSON
'Humane and deeply, darkly humorous' MARINA KEMP, author of UNWILDING
'Gorgeous, mesmerising' CLAIRE POWELL, author of ALL IN

© Jacqueline Maley 2026 (P) Penguin Audio 2026

Family Life Genre Fiction Literary Fiction Women's Fiction World Literature
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Critic reviews

A song of abandonment, ghastly mothers, dysfunctional families, sisterhood and loss... Witty, savage and poignant (NIGELLA LAWSON)
Richly drawn, wry and utterly compelling. I devoured it in a weekend (FELICITY CLOAKE)
Lonely Mouth is humane and deeply, darkly humorous. Maley has a gift for character. Her cast of misfits stayed with me long after reading (MARINA KEMP, author of The Unwilding)
I'm so glad to have discovered Jacqueline Maley. She writes with wit, poise and precision, while her characters are devastatingly real. Lonely Mouth is a gorgeous, mesmerising novel (CLAIRE POWELL, author of At The Table)
Complex, layered, and gut-wrenching, Lonely Mouth laces personal trauma and family dysfunction with humour and humanity. A singularly rich and moreish novel – I couldn't get enough of it (GRAINNE O'HARE, author of Thirst Trap)
Read the first sentence of Jacqueline Maley’s debut novel, and you will be in it until the end. Electrifying, deeply unsettling and so, so satisfying. And, if you’ve ever tried to manage the sharp end of a career with the blunt demands of parenthood, fiercely recognisable (MEG MASON, on The Truth About Her)
Complex, gripping and beautifully realised… Maley’s debut asks some timely and necessary questions about truth, love and our responsibility to others
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