AustLit

'The Trainor women have always been excellent at hiding their true feelings... until now. Ellen's estranged husband, David, has managed to interrupt her fabulous life of bridge and zumba by getting himself killed in a Thai boating accident. She's hardly surprised. It's simply the final in a long line of mistakes, the first was leaving her to go on a worldwide sailing trip with his mysterious, long-lost brother. Ah, well. At least she's now free to marry her rich but dull boyfriend, Kenneth.

'Regrettably, her daughter, self-possessed TV news broadcaster Natasha and granddaughter, reality TV producer Georgie, seem to take the whole 'dead' thing very personally and they decide to dig deeper, though neither really has time. Natasha is on the nose at her network and a toxic secret from her past is about to set off a catastrophic personal crisis. Meanwhile, Georgie is furiously focused on denying her true feelings for a contestant on her show, The Single Gal.

'Neither Ellen, Natasha, nor Georgie are agreed on quite how they should feel about David's death but they're certain about one thing - it isn't quite what it seems - and discovering the truth will unravel the tapestry of lies they've been spinning to themselves and each other.

'One way or another, all three women are faking it and as matters come to a head, the truth wills out in the most unexpected of ways...' (Publication summary)

'You can choose your friends, but you can't choose your neighbours. (Trad. proverb, origin: Australian suburbia)

'Food stylist Cara, corporate lawyer Alex and stay-at-home mum Beth couldn't be more different. If it wasn't for the fact they live next door to each other in Cuthbert Close, they'd never have met and bonded over Bundt cake. The Close is an oasis of calm and kindness. The kind of street where kids play cricket together and neighbours pitch in each year for an end of summer party.

'But no one's told Charlie Devine, glamorous wife of online lifestyle guru, The Primal Guy. When she roars straight into the party with her huge removal truck and her teenage daughter with no care or regard for decades-old tradition, the guacamole really hits the fan.

'Cara thinks the family just needs time to get used to the village-like atmosphere. Beth wants to give them home cooked meals to help them settle in. Alex, says it's an act of war. But which one of them is right? Dead guinea pigs, cruelly discarded quiches, missing jewellery, commercial sabotage and errant husbands are just the beginning of a train of disturbing and rapidly escalating events that lead to a shocking climax.

'When the truth comes out, will it be the end of Cuthbert Close?' (Publication summary)

'An unexpected gift left at her daughter's fifth birthday party in the form of a little girl pitches Sydney mum Lisa Wheeldon into events both hilarious and life-changing.

'Liane Moriarty meets Marian Keyes meets Christos Tsiolkas The Slap in this hilarious, touching and clever novel that asks what wouldn't you do to save a child?

'Be careful what you wish for...

'Lisa Wheeldon has a lovely life. Wife to a gorgeous husband, Scott, and a devoted mother to two small daughters, the former accountant has everything she wants - except a third child. But the universe has a strange way of providing.

'On the surface, Ava's fifth birthday party seems the ideal opportunity for Lisa to meet her daughter's new kindergarten friends - all 32 of them! But from beginning to end, the day is a complete nightmare, capped off by the discovery of a little girl hiding in the Wheeldon's backyard. At first, Lisa reasons that Ellie's mum is running late. But when they open a gift from the mysterious little girl, it becomes clear her mother has no intention of returning at all...

'What sort of mother abandons her child? And why has she chosen the Wheeldons?

'Together, Lisa and her sister Jamie launch their own efforts to find the missing mum, a journey that will force Lisa to face her past, Jamie to confront her future and see both embroiled with angry exes, pragmatic fortune-tellers, Russian mobsters and a hyena pack of yummy mummies.

'A journey that will force Lisa to rethink all she knows about being a good mother.' (Publication summary)

'Change isn’t to be feared, as Sophie Masson, author and compiler of the ASA’s book The Adaptable Author, tells Cassie Hamer.' (Publication abstract)

'Being an author no longer means being confined to the printed page—Cassie Hamer investigates new opportunities for writers and storytellers.'  (Publication abstract)

'When the cancer diagnosis comes, it is September and we are at a family wedding 1000 kilometres away. At first, there’s mention of radiation therapy but that talk soon dies away. Bob is 91. His bones are riddled with disease, which explains the recent trouble he’s had with walking.'  (Introduction)

'Writing cross-culturally and want to get it right? Help is available, reports Cassie Hamer.'