AustLit

'A lonely windswept lighthouse island in Bass Strait hides a dangerous secret hundreds of years in the making ... Secrets and sabotage keep readers guessing in the new novel from Australian author Kaye Dobbie.

1882

'Laura Webster and her father are the stalwart keepers of Benevolence Island Lighthouse, a desolate place stranded in the turbulent Bass Strait. When a raging storm wrecks a schooner just offshore, the few survivors take shelter with the Websters, awaiting rescue from the mainland. But some of the passengers have secrets that lead to dreadful consequences, the ripples of which echo far into the future ...

2020

'Nina and her team of volunteers arrive on Benevolence to work on repairs, with plans to open up the island to tourists. Also on the expedition, for reasons of his own, is Jude Rawlins, a man Nina once loved. A man who once destroyed her.

But the idyllic location soon turns into a nightmare as random acts of sabotage leave them with no communication to the mainland and the sense of someone on the island who shouldn't be there.

The fingers of those secrets from the passengers lost long ago are reaching into the present, and Nina will never be the same again ...'(Publication summary)

'Can respectable Cleo find love with black sheep Jacob

'1858.

'Alone in Nugget Gully, a goldrush town in Australia, Cleo sets up business as a milliner. Independent and respectable Cleo is determined to be successful but finds herself in financial difficulty.

'Also in Nugget Gully is disreputable black sheep Jacob Raines. He comes to Cleo's aid when she needs him, and grateful as she is, if her association with Jacob was known her reputation would be ruined. And yet, despite everything, Cleo and Jacob cannot stay away from each other. Scandal follows, but will they have a happy ending?' (Publication summary)

'A daring hold-up. Passion. Revenge. A mystery that will echo through the centuries. A compelling romantic adventure, perfect for readers who love Darry Fraser.

'1874,The Victorian Goldfields

'In the town of Ironbark, Aurora Scott faces ruin as the railways supplant the Cobb & Co coach line, the lifeline of her hotel. Aurora is no stranger to adversity; the formidable publican has pulled herself from a murky past to build a respectable life in Ironbark. But when bushrangers storm the hotel, taking hostages as leverage for the Starburst Mine's payroll, Aurora has more trouble on her hands than she can handle.

'This is no random act, but a complex scheme of revenge. The gang turn on each other. Shots ring out. And when the dust settles, the money has vanished, and so has Aurora Scott...

'After 150 years, the mystery of the missing payroll has passed into folklore. And when journalist Melody Lawson helps her brother prepare for the town's annual Gold Hunt Weekend, she is just as drawn into the past as the tourists. But with a surprise inheritance her own family history becomes a puzzle, bound up with the fabled payroll - and as Melody follows the clues, danger mounts...'(Publication summary)

'A sweeping tale of passion and survival from the Victorian goldfields to the dark heart of Sydney Town.

'Winter 1852. Adam has just returned from the Californian goldfields and is heading for Bendigo in Victoria, the new El Dorado. He comes across Ella, injured, penniless and with only the clothes she is wearing. Adam is the son of a convict with the determination and intelligence to 'better' himself. Despite her current circumstances, it is obvious to him that Ella is a lady, and although Adam might believe himself as good as any man, the class divide remains.

'When Ella wakes beside an isolated lagoon, all she can remember are frightening and tantalizing pieces of a dream. Even her name isn't her own, but one given to her by Adam, who has agreed to her travelling with him while she struggles to discover the truth. As the days go by, and their journey northwards continues, Ella learns to adjust to the harsh realities of her new life and grows to like and admire her unlikely companion.

'Ella and Adam must find their way through old dangers and newfound love, to confront the shocking truth. A truth that will change their future forever.'  (Publication summary)

'In 1928 Evie Woodward is running from a past she barely understands. A widow with a young son she agrees to become partners with Daniel Roxburgh in a Psychic Detective Agency. But their bogus investigations soon take on a very real turn.

'Daniel lives his life in the shadows of Melbourne’s gangster world. He’s a dangerous man but he’d do anything for Evie. Just as happiness is in their grasp, an investigation in a house called Blue Waters goes very wrong.

'Evie’s past is catching up with her and Daniel may not be able to save her.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

 (Publication summary)

'An interrupted phone call and a mysterious disappearance bring a family’s secret past crashing into the present…

'1969: Small–town girl Faith Taylor leaves her family home in Willow Tree Bend and lands a job at the Angel–Melbourne’s most infamous nightclub. While Faith relishes her new–found freedom, she can’t help noticing that some things about the club don’t add up. So when a policeman reveals that a former waitress was murdered, Faith realises she must help to bring down the shadowy owner behind the club’s activities.

'More than thirty years later, what happened at the Angel remains a closely held secret. When Faith disappears, her sister Hope–now a famous movie star–is left with an intriguing, though frustrating, piece of the puzzle. But with a tell–all documentary film crew constantly by her side, how can she find where Faith is–and what she’s hiding–while making sure her own secrets stay hidden?

'Faith’s daughter, Sam, is also concerned by her mother’s uncharacteristic behaviour. When she overhears a clue to Faith’s past, she’s determined to unearth the truth. What is the connection between the Angel and Willow Tree Bend? What does Faith’s disappearance mean? And what will happen when the final secret is revealed?' (Publication Summary)

'A passion for photography draws two stories together across time to Mackenzie Crossing.

'Neville 'Pom' Darling, is on the hunt for the perfect photograph.

'Skye Stewart, is searching for her long lost grandfather.

'It's 1939, and Neville, escaping an unhappy marriage and his memories of the Great War, finds himself in Mackenzie Crossing on the day of the terrible Black Friday bushfires. He meets the beautiful Georgie Mackenzie and in an instant knows that she is the subject he has been looking for. As the heat intensifies, Georgie and Pom begin to wonder if they have a future together; but first, they must survive the blaze.

'Almost sixty years later, Sky Stewart returns to the area in search of her grandfather. Did he survive the Black Friday bushfires? Who is the exotic woman in the photograph she found? But when she arrives in Elysian, the closest town to where Mackenzie Crossing used to be, she finds more of her hidden past than she bargained for. A more recent past which she would prefer stayed forgotten... '

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'The chance discovery of an antique wedding dress weaves together the fascinating stories of three women from different eras: Sophie, in hiding from a troubled past; Belle, who must lose everything to learn what really matters; and Martha, forced to give up those she loves in order to avoid exposure.

'It’s 1931 and Belle Bartholomew has arrived in rural Sweet Wattle Creek to claim her inheritance – a run-down grand hotel formerly owned by Martha Ambrose. Determined to solve the mystery of her birth and the reason why she was bequeathed the hotel Belle runs into difficulties with the townsfolk and their desire to keep their secrets safe.

'Sixty years later Sophie Matheson is on a quest to find Belle and her family after discovering the wedding dress. The Sweet Wattle Creek Centenary brings more challenges when her past catches up and she must fight for all that matters to her. Who were Belle and Martha and what links their lives together?' (Publication summary)

'1867. Named by the wife of the paddle steamer captain who finds her half drowned in the Murray River, Alice must survive in a world that reviles her. Because Alice has a gift...or a curse. She can see an aura of colours around the people she meets — and those colours tell her of impending doom. With her friend Rosey, Alice runs away to the gold fields and then joins a troupe of entertainers where people pay to hear her predictions. But she can never escape her past...along with the frightening man in the dark coat who follows her wherever she goes... Present: Annie Reuben is an art restorer in her father’s business, but times are tough. After being given a long-lost painting found in the basement of a condemned hotel, Annie becomes intrigued by the two girls who stare out at her from the ruined canvas. Who were Alice and Rosey? And why does Annie find their lives so important? As Annie becomes caught up with finding answers from the past, she finds herself being stalked by the same frightening man in the dark coat who follows her wherever she goes..." (Publisher's blurb)