AustLit

'The hunt is on

'A GRUESOME GAME

'A madman is kidnapping women to hunt them for sport.

'A FRANTIC SEARCH

'Detective Janine Postlewaite leads the investigation into the disappearance of Samantha Willis, determined not to let another innocent die on her watch.

'A SHOCKING TWIST

'The killer's newest prey isn't like the others. Sammi is a cop. And she refuses to be his victim.

'A RUN FOR YOUR LIFE

'A stunning, tautly written thriller from police officer turned writer, J.M. Peace' (Publication summary)

'England, 1941: Lara Penrose is a young teacher who is transferred to Australia as a "punishment." She finds herself in a remote town near the idyllic tributary of the Mary River. At first Lara is delighted, until she learns the river is home to hundreds of crocodiles who frequently besiege the hamlet, keeping the villagers in fear. The young teacher soon takes matters into her own hands by hiring a crocodile hunter. She gets wrapped up in his charm, which starts to put her already delicate relationship with Dr. Jerry at risk.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Holloman, Connecticut, 1969. A very rare and lethal toxin, extracted from the blowfish, is stolen from a laboratory at Chubb University. It kills within minutes and leaves no trace behind -- unless a doctor knows what to look for -- and worried biochemist Dr. Millie Hunter reports the theft at once to her father, Medical Examiner Dr. Patrick O′Donnell.

'Patrick′s cousin Captain Carmine Delmonico is therefore quick off the mark when the bodies start to mount up. A sudden death at a dinner party followed by another at a gala black-tie event seem at first to be linked only by the poison and Dr. Jim Hunter, a scientist on the brink of greatness and husband to Millie. A black man married to a white woman, Dr. Jim has faced scandal and prejudice for most of his life, so what would cause him to risk it all now? Is he being framed for murder -- and if so, by whom?

'Carmine and his team of detectives must navigate the competitive world of academic publishing, fraught with politics and prestige. The stakes are high: an amazing art collection, a large inheritance, old and upstanding local families, a gold-digging wife, jealous relatives and a young couple′s future.' (From the publisher's website.)

The Thorn Birds is the unforgettable story of the Clearys, spanning three generations; a sweeping family saga of dreams, titanic struggles, dark passions, and forbidden love in the Australian Outback. (Source: Trove)

'London. 1957. Erin Forsyth’s family own two art galleries in the London area – one in Knightsbridge and the other in White Chapel. When her playboy fiancé cheats on her, she takes revenge by outing him during their wedding ceremony before she runs away to outback Australia with her Uncle Cornelius who deals in precious gems. They set up shop in a dugout in the wild outback town of Coober Pedy, where life gets really interesting. Erin falls in love with Jonathan, an opal miner, who finds himself left with a half aboriginal girl [sic] when her father is killed in a fight with another opal dealer. Unbeknown to him, he’s also left in possession of one of the most precious opals ever found, the Olympic Australis and that puts his and Erin’s life in danger.'

Source: Author's blurb.

'Nurse Elena Fabrizia and handsome doctor Lyle Macallister fall in love at the end of the war. Lyle goes home to break up with his Scottish sweetheart, but she tells him she’s pregnant. So he marries Millie and breaks Elena’s heart. Elena also discovers she’s having Lyle’s baby. Keeping the secret from everyone but her mother, she goes along with her father’s plan to marry an older Italian man. She passes the baby off as his and they all go to live in the Australian outback town of Winton. In a loveless marriage, on an isolated and unprofitable cattle property, life for Elena is unbearable. Meanwhile in Scotland, Lyle’s life is also tragic when he loses his only son with Millie. To escape, he takes up a position as a flying doctor in Australia where Elena’s first born is suffering a mystery illness. Lyle treats the boy, unaware that he’s his own flesh and blood. It’s jealous Millie who discovers the truth about the boy and destroys many lives before Lyle and Elena find each other again.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Handsome, wealthy, and well-born, Jonas Tallent has everything a gentleman needs to enjoy London society to the fullest - and he has. He's played cards until dawn, flirted with eligible young ladies, and made love to some ineligible ones.

'But now he's restless, bored with the mindless frivolity and careless pleasure, so its with a sense of relief that he takes up the reins of his family's estate in rural Devon. His most pressing need is to hire a new manager for the inn–the center of village life. Such a small task, yet he discovers few decent applicants are willing to live in a quiet country backwater. ' (Publication summary)

'A tale of self-discovery against the odds, River of Fortune will take you on a journey of shattering deception and heart-warming redemption.

'The twisting and mysterious saga of a young woman in Australia in 1883: Francesca Callaghan returns to the river port of Echuca to help her father, Joe, who runs a paddle steamer. His arrogant competitor, Silas Hepburn, tries to drive him out of business, and it's starting to look like he may succeed. But when Silas sets his eyes upon young Francesca, his devious antics sink to a new low. Francesca, now a pawn in the family business, cannot deny her own romantic feelings. She falls hard for Monty, a charming river captain. But between ill intrigue and impossible odds, can they ever be together? Perhaps the most shattering secret of all is the one that Francesca's father has kept from her for all these years ... '

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'What has happened to Ingrid?

'Beautiful Ingrid inherits a fortune and leaves Australia, and her friends, and Ralph who loves her, to marry Gil Grey and set up home amid the New York art world. There she becomes the stepmother to Gil's teenage artist daughter Fleur, a former child prodigy, and studies ancient curse scrolls at Columbia University.

But at 9am on September 11, 2001, she has an appointment downtown. And is never seen again.

Or is she?

Searching for clues about Ingrid's life a year later, her friend Julia uncovers only further layers of mystery and deception.

Both an unputdownable mystery and a compelling meditation on the nature of art, truth, friendship and love...' (From the publisher's website.)

'The year is 1967 and the world teeters on the brink of nuclear holocaust as the Cold War goes relentlessly on. On a beautiful spring day in the little city of Holloman, Connecticut, home to prestigious Chubb University and armaments giant Cornucopia, chief of detectives Captain Carmine Delmonico has more pressing concerns than finding a name for his infant son: twelve murders have taken place in one day, and Delmonico is drawn into a gruesome web of secrets and lies.

'Supported by his detective sergeants Abe Goldberg and Corey Marshall, and new team member the meticulous Delia Carstairs, Delmonico embarks on what looks like an unsolvable mystery. All the murders are different, and they all seem unconnected. Are they dealing with one killer, or many? How is the murder of Dee-Dee Hall, a local prostitute, related to the deaths of a mother and her disabled child? How is Chubb student Evan Pugh connected to Desmond Skeps, head of Cornucopia? And as if twelve murders were not enough, Carmine soon finds himself pitted against the mysterious Ulysses, a spy giving Cornucopia′s armaments secrets to the Russians. Are the murders and espionage different cases, or are they somehow linked?

'As the overtaxed police force contends with small town politics, academic rivalry, and corporate greed, the death toll mounts, and Carmine and his team discover that the answers are not what they seem -- but then, are they ever?'  Source: www.harpercollins.com.au/ (Sighted 17/03/2010).

'Danzi is not yet 1,000 years old - a youngster in dragon terms. There is much unrest in the provinces. Soldiers are everywhere and the people are uneasy. It is a dangerous time for a dragon to be without a keeper.' (Publisher's blurb)

'Ancient China. Han Dynasty. Ping and Kai have travelled far, but their journey is not yet over. Danger stalks them. Ping must find Kai a safe place. But how?

'When a hidden message from Danzi makes the way clear, Ping knows that once again the journey of a thousand li begins with a single step.' (Publisher's blurb)