AustLit

'Embracing the excitement and turbulence of sixties Sydney, Ashley is set to make her mark amid uni classes filled with ambitious young males. She imagines her future with a successful career, husband, and a house full of children.

'But life is never quite that easy.

'In this compelling memoir, Ashley shares the incomparable heartache of multiple miscarriages, the challenges of single-motherhood, her surprise entry into modeling and the joy of a second chance at love. And when her world is unexpectedly torn apart, Ashley pushes through her grief to find solace in the arts.

'Laced with humour and moments of thoughtful reflection, A Particular Woman takes you from the back roads of Peron’s Argentina and the mystique of the Far East, to the old country home and garden Ashley painstakingly restores. From the glamour of modeling to the politics of the boardroom, Ashley touches the heart of what it truly means to be a particular woman of our times.'

Source: publisher's blurb

'Betty O’Neill grew up knowing very little about her father, Antoni. She knew that he had fled Poland after World World Two, that he had disappeared overnight when she was just an infant, and that his brief reappearance when she was a young adult had been a harrowing, painful ordeal.

'Fifty-five years after he deserted her family, Betty becomes determined to solve the mystery of her absent father and discover exactly who was Antoni Jagielski.

'When her search takes her to Poland, Betty unexpectedly inherits a family apartment from the half sister she never knew – a time capsule of her father’s life. Sifting through photos and letters she begins to piece together a picture of her father as a Polish resistance fighter, a survivor of Auschwitz and Gusen concentration camps, an exile in post-war England, and a migrant to Australia. But the deeper she searches, the darker the revelations about her father become, as Betty is faced with disturbing truths buried within her family.

'Honest, compelling, and meticulously researched, The Other Side of Absence is an elegant debut memoir of resilience and strength, and of a daughter reconciling the damage that families inherit from war.' (Publication summary)

'Amira Knox is an assassin. Her targets: affluent Europeans. Her commander: the Authenticity Movement. Her weakness: emotion.

'Amira has been loyal to the secret terrorist group the Authenticity Movement for as long as she can remember. Adopted by the leader of the movement as an infant, Amira was trained to be the ultimate weapon. But when her brother goes mysteriously missing and her father seems to be keeping secrets from her, she begins to doubt the Movement's purpose and her own identity.

'Then there's Lukas, the handsome German personal protection agent. Can Amira trust him, or does he have a secret agenda of his own?

'Caught in a web of deception and betrayal, Amira realises she has to get out of the Movement. Fast.

'But how do you escape a terrorist cult when the leader - your father - wants you dead?' (Publication summary)

'Australia, 1914. The world is erupting in war. Jobs are scarce and immigrants unwelcome. For young Catholic Mary O’Donnell, this is not the new life she imagined.

'When one foolish night of passion leads to an unexpected pregnancy and a loveless marriage, Mary’s reluctant husband Liam escapes to the trenches. With her overbearing mother attempting to control her every decision, Mary flees to Melbourne determined to build a life for herself and her child. There, she forms an unlikely friendship with Protestant army reject Tom Robbins.

'But as a shattering betrayal is revealed, Mary must make an impossible choice. Does she embrace the path fate has set for her, or follow the one she longs to take?    

'From the harshness of a pit village in Scotland to the upheaval of wartime Australia, No Small Shame tells the moving story of love and duty, loyalty and betrayal, and confronting the past before you can seek a future.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Anna is in her sixties with her dream job and the man to match. Claire is a forty-six-year-old philanthropist with a picture-perfect family. And then there is Molly, who has seen more strife in her twenty years than anyone should, but has more love to give than most.

'When their lives are turned upside down, these women must discover how to start over. Guided by Suitability, a clothing an styling service for disadvantaged women, Anna, Claire and Molly find the courage to rebuild their lives – with a few outfit changes along the way.

'Inspired by the experiences of the women behind the charity Dress for Success, The Changing Room proves that sometimes losing everything leads you towards freedom, and that hope can be found even in the unlikeliest of places.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'When ruthless political operative Jonathan Wolff is assigned the task of overthrowing corrupt Australian Prime Minister Andrew Gerrard in the federal election campaign, no one is safe from the line of fire.

'Wolff’s tactful manipulation and political prowess guide the opposition towards election success, but fearing they will not win, Wolff must initiate his own explosive campaign to defeat the Prime Minister and remain loyal to the Mercantiles – a long-established group of high-taxpaying business owners out to manipulate the halls of Parliament House.

'With investigative journalist Anita Devlin hot on his trail, Wolff oversees a storm of violent demonstrations in a strategic ploy to advance the cause of independent candidate Jaya Rukhmani. 

'Devlin is determined to be the whistle-blower, but does she have what it takes to expose Wolff and the Mercantiles? Or will political power overcome truth in this gripping Australian political thriller?'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Sydney, Australia 1800s.  

'Thomas O’Neil, an Irish convict and tailor, arrives in Sydney having left his two daughters on the shores of Dublin. Appointed as Governor King’s tailor, O’Neil establishes a successful business in Upper Pitts Row and soon finds a wife, Anne Kennedy. They are to be among the first settlers of Mosman, along with their daughter.

'Two years later, 12-year-old William Foster disembarks from an eight-month journey from Portsmouth after avoiding his death sentence. Governor King, horrified that young boys are being transported, offers William the position of shipwright apprentice. He quickly moves up the ranks and starts a successful business in The Rocks. Eventually, William falls for O’Neil’s young daughter, Anastasia, and the two begin a life together.

'Inspired by extensive research into his own ancestry of the O’Neil and Foster families, Robert Westphal gives a unique historical account of convict history and early Sydney. The Tailor and the Shipwright is a compelling read of resilience that depicts the strength of generational ties.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'When young Irish artist Deirdre O’Mara emigrates from the remote Blasket Islands to Sydney’s The Rocks in the 1920s, she makes an indelible mark on conservative society with her surrealist art and bohemian ways. Just after the Second World War, Deirdre leaves for Europe to be with her lover – leaving behind her estranged daughter and a family secret.  

'Years later, Deirdre’s granddaughter Keira is determined to discover the secret and her mother, Maureen, clinging to her own fears of the past and a desire to change her future, fights to stop her.

'When the three women’s lives intersect amidst the emerging women’s liberation movement and political tension in 1970s Sydney, what price will be paid for the deceptions of the past?'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'When Dr Joan Arakkal chooses to specialise in orthopaedics while training in India, a field traditionally occupied by men, she slots into the world of bones with relative ease.

'But when her career takes her to the UK, and then Australia, she encounters the `bonemen' - a boy's club whose members are easily identified in the hospital corridors by their loud voices and self-assured swagger. Their medieval attitudes wield a stranglehold on the development of orthopaedics, compromising patient care.

'Joan is totally unprepared for the obstacles and prejudices she encounters - but the tables are turned when she suffers a health scare of her own, which ultimately gives her the perspective she needs to speak and fight without fear.

'A provocative reflection on the discrimination, sexism and cartelisation entrenched in the surgical community, and particularly the world of orthopaedics, Slice Girls shines light on a surgical path that is made needlessly challenging for women, and finds that while women are ready for surgery, it forces the question: is surgery ready for women?'  (Publication summary)

'Based on a true story, Two Generations explores the lived familial impact of secrets, suffering, forgiveness, hope and redemption.

'Lae, New Guinea 1943. Jock Connor is part of a regiment sent to set up a base camp at the Butibum River. During an Inspection of Arms, Jock’s Owen sub-machine gun accidentally discharges, killing his twenty-two-year-old friend and fellow solider, Joseph Forrester.

'It’s an event that will hold deep ramifications for years to come.

'On his return to civilian life Jock’s wife, Bess, is faced with a new version of her husband– a man emotionally wounded and spiritually broken, and a father who is short-tempered and withdrawn.

'When Anne Connor delves into her father’s past two decades after his death, she learns about this tragic event for the first time, and begins to tease out the compelling story of her mother and father.

'Weaving a tale of romance, hardship and resilience, Two Generations is an intimate and imaginative retelling of the lasting effect of secrets on a family, and the greater impact of the Second World War on northern Australia.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'‘I had a slight inkling that things were not quite right. I, too, had felt a slender change in me. It was a feeling. I could neither touch nor see it – so how could it be real? I was out of kilter, out of sync.’

'When Kim Hodges’ psychologist suggests she has depression, she immediately recoils from the idea. She is a mother, a wife, an academic – a functional human being! But it is the only diagnosis that explains the days she can barely lift her heavy limbs out of bed, the sick feeling that moves its way across her body and brain, the isolation, alcohol use, the colour that evaporated and left her world grey.

'What follows is a five-year journey that involves six lengthy hospital stays, multiple trips to the Emergency Department, innumerable engagements with health professionals, and eventually, the ability for Kim to overcome the denial, shame and stigma she feels about mental illness to begin her road to recovery.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'A unique history of Australia retold through the extraordinary lives of Peter Bradley’s three ancestors: a father, son and grandson.

'James Bradley was a First Fleet convict found guilty of stealing a white linen handkerchief worth two shillings, and sentenced to seven years transportation to Australia.

'Joseph Bradley worked his life in the most dangerous occupation of the time – whaling – and despite his parents being uneducated and illiterate went on to write a journal about his experiences, rich in history and insight.

'Roland Bradley was a man of unionism and politics, and like his father and grandfather took up the fight against the rich and powerful through his involvement with the early Maritime union. In 1894, he wrote an account of surviving the shipwreck of the SS Kanahooka, which forced its inhabitants to wander the wilderness of North Queensland for 18 days.

'Following the early struggles of a fledgling colony to nationhood, Convicted is an engrossing and highly imaginative retelling of the story of one family, entwined with the history of this country from the landing of the First Fleet in 1788.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'At the age of ninety-two, Marie runs a much-loved café from the house her single mother Rose built in the 1920s. A warm and welcoming refuge for many, Marie is determined not to let a downward spiral in her health get in the way of her busy life helping others.

'Dee, the highly respected principal of a local public school, is facing the biggest challenge of her career – launching an inter-faith curriculum to an unwelcoming school community. But will her own background as a Lebanese Muslim immigrant work against her?

'Isla, the young marketing guru tasked with helping Dee launch the campaign, has suffered the greatest loss of all, and is haunted by a devastating secret from her past.

'Letters to My Yesterday is a moving and tender portrayal of female strength, hardship and friendship, and that beautiful moment when someone comes into your life at just the right moment, and changes it forever.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Veronica Cruickshank’s youngest child Roland is her idealistic one – a fighter of lost causes, and the one that always needs protecting, particularly from himself.

'So when she hears he is back in Hobart helping an old school friend, Treen McShane, Veronica tries to track him down – but all she finds are second hand reports, whispers of horrific abuse, and stories of a small child being hurt.

'Then Roland sends Veronica a text message, asking her to go to the Slipping Place, high on Mount Wellington, a picnic spot known only to their family. Here she discovers Treen’s frozen body.

'Knowing Roland will be suspected of leaving Treen to die, Veronica resolves to find out what really happened. But as long-buried truths slowly surface, she uncovers a secret that brings the violence closer to home than she could have ever imagined…'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Corrupt Prime Minister Andrew Gerrard has engaged in a covert agreement with the Indonesian president to begin building himself a retirement nest egg – if the Australian government agrees to fund immigration detention centres. 

'When his plans are disrupted by a tragic plane accident that kills key members of parliament, Gerrard devises a strategy to rush the entire funding scheme through the parliament within a week. 

'Political stalwart and soon-to-be-retired clerk of parliament, Gordon O’Brien, suspects a conspiracy to defraud the government, and reluctantly sets out to foil the prime minister’s plan with the help of young-gun investigative journalist, Anita Devlin. 

'The first part in the Democracy Trilogy sizzles with insider knowledge into the machinations of Australian politics. It’s a brilliant and suspenseful political thriller where corruption, power and truth collide.'  (Publication summary)

'Born to nomadic parents and humble beginnings, Luke Richmond grew up running wild and free in the Australian outback. After finishing school, he joined the Australian Army and served his country overseas as a qualified infantry soldier – an experience that sparked in him an unrelenting desire for adventure.

'But when he leaves the army Luke finds himself broke and adrift in London, caught up in the soulless world of drug and alcohol addiction. When he wakes up in a police cell with no memory of how he got there, he knows he has hit rock bottom, and makes the snap decision to turn his life around.

'Within days he is in Thailand, training his mind and body at a Muay Thai boxing camp in the jungles of Phuket. In suffering Luke finds his salvation, and he decides to make the most out of life by seeking adventure in remote corners of the world.

'Since then Luke has climbed the highest mountains on six continents, set a new world record for ocean rowing across the Atlantic, battled -60 degree temperatures in the Antarctic, witnessed death at high altitude, was held captive in the humid jungles of West Papua and has thrown himself from cliffs in the adrenalin-fueled world of BASE jumping.

'More than an awe-inspiring story of endurance and adventure, One Life One Chance will ultimately remind you that we only have one shot, so don’t waste a second of it.'  (Publication summary)

'Journey through the Great Barrier Reef with Waru the Green Sea Turtle as she finds a safe place to lay her eggs in this entertaining and educational children’s picture book, which teaches children about the issues impacting this beautiful marine creature.

'Waru the green sea turtle hatches from her egg in the sand and quickly heads for the safety of the ocean. She grows up healthy and strong on the beautiful Great Barrier Reef, and she always makes sure to avoid humans and sharks. But when the time comes for Waru to lay her own eggs, she can’t find anywhere safe – the beach she remembers has been replaced by rows of big houses. Thankfully, she’s got a surprising sea friend to help her.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'When Kate Mathieson wakes feverishly one night and looks at the life she has created – business suits, a nine-to-five career – she feels an inner emptiness that no money or possession can fulfill. On a fast track toward marriage, children, a mortgage, she is disappearing. She is becoming invisible.

'Another life calls her – a life of truth, authenticity, rawness and vulnerability. She is a bird, not a tree, with wings meant for flying.

'Kate leaves Australia and begins an elemental journey across Africa, under skies and stars, through forests and deserts. Weaving a personal tale of soul discovery and adventure, she reflects on the lives we mark for ourselves.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'A Holocaust survivor tells his compelling family story of escape and survival in China and Australia during WWII.

'Living in Berlin in 1939, three-year-old Peter Nachemstein and his parents were forced to escape Nazi Germany by fleeing to Shanghai – one of the only havens left for them and 18,000 other European Jews. Although safe, they became displaced and isolated from the rest of their family, who were scattered across Europe.

'In Escape from Berlin, Peter Nash retraces what became of his family members following the devastating impact of WWII. Using remarkable photographs and documents to bring their captivating stories to life, Peter recounts his own experiences of dislocation as a young boy in alien Shanghai, and then later as a teenager and adult in Australia.

'Meticulously researched and impeccably detailed, Escape from Berlin brings light to a fascinating but not widely known chapter of Holocaust history in a family story that reflects the experiences of many in the Jewish community.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.