AustLit

'A surfer who becomes horrifyingly one with the sea. A new mother’s devastating search for belonging. A stone gargoyle with a violent history. A fisher boy who discovers the real cost of forbidden love. A farmer whose delight at drought-breaking rain quickly turns to terror. A hedonistic rock star who manifests double trouble. A young girl’s chilling sacrifice for justice. A dirty ex-cop with a dirtier secret. An unscrupulous mayor’s solution to rid her city of the homeless…

'These are just some of the characters you’ll meet in this collection of dark offerings.

'From the harsh terrain of the Outback, to the depths of the Pacific Ocean, the wilds of Tasmania, dystopian futures, enchanted lands, and the familiarity of suburbia, Coralesque and Other Tales to Disturb and Distract takes readers on a journey into unsettling, unforgiving, and unforgettable territory.' (Publication summary)

'In the coastal Queensland town of Midnight Cove, thirteen-year-old Curtis Creed’s world is falling apart.

'Once a talented upcoming surfer, he cannot bring himself to return to the ocean.  His inability to overcome his fear earns him the ridicule of his older brother, Dylan. Worse, his family is struggling to cope with the loss of their father in a rock fishing accident.

'The summer holiday looks long and lonely for Curtis until he meets Navaya, a mysterious sea dweller he rescues from fishing line in a rock pool.

'When Curtis agrees to help Navaya find the Moami, the key to an undersea cavern hiding her people’s most precious secrets, he embarks on a dangerous quest that sees him join forces with awkward but brilliant new girl in town, Morgan.

'Will Curtis be able to overcome his fears to return the Moami to its rightful owners before Navaya’s enemies succeed in their deadly mission? Was his father’s death really an accident? And what exactly is the lore of the ocean?'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'He’s just a poor boy from a fishing family but his heart is captured by a bird of paradise, flitting out of his reach. Tino has a plan to bring his dreams of life with Delice to fruition, but every dream requires that some part of yourself is given up.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.