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Colleen McCullough Colleen McCullough i(A29259 works by) (a.k.a. Colleen McCullough Robinson; Colleen Margaretta McCullough)
Born: Established: 1 Jun 1937 Wellington, Wellington area, Wellington - Dubbo - Narromine area, Central West NSW, New South Wales, ; Died: Ceased: 29 Jan 2015 Norfolk Island, Australian External Territories,
Gender: Female
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Works By

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1 y separately published work icon Sins of the Flesh Colleen McCullough , Sydney : Simon and Schuster , 2013 6856683 2013 single work novel crime

'It's August 1969 in the sleepy college town of Holloman, Connecticut, and police Captain Carmine Delmonico is away on vacation. Back at home, first one, then two anonymous male corpses turn up-emaciated and emasculated. After connecting the victims to four other bodies, Sergeant Delia Carstairs and Lieutenant Abe Goldberg realize that Holloman has a psychopathic killer on the loose. Luckily, Carmine decides to come back from vacation early. Carmine's team begins to circle a trio of eccentrics, who readily admit to knowing all the victims, but their stories keep changing. They share family ties, painful memories, and a dark past. One of them is a new friend of Carmine's invaluable sergeant, Delia Carstairs, as is the respected head of the mental hospital, who has been doing groundbreaking work rehabilitating one very difficult patient who is now her trusted assistant. When another vicious murder rocks Holloman, Carmine faces the revelation that two killers are at large with completely different modus operandi even as he barely escapes being next in the body count. Suddenly the summer isn't so sleepy anymore. A riveting mystery series by an author of astounding range and skill, Colleen McCullough's Carmine Delmonico books take you back to an age of classic police work, before DNA analysis and computers. SINS OF THE FLESH is her finest work yet, pitting her beloved hero against every cop's nightmare scenario in a plot that turns on the sort of science that McCullough herself knows so well.' (Publisher's blurb)

7 11 y separately published work icon Bittersweet Colleen McCullough , Sydney South : HarperCollins Australia , 2013 6346887 2013 single work novel historical fiction

'Bittersweet is an enthralling tale of women - and of love.

'This is the story of two sets of twins, Edda and Grace, Tufts and Kitty, who struggle against all the restraints, prohibitions, laws and prejudices of 1920s Australia. Only the submissive yet steely Grace burns for marriage; the sleekly sophisticated Edda burns to be a doctor, the down-to-earth but courageous Tufts burns never to marry, and the too-beautiful, internally scarred Kitty burns for a love free from male ownership.

'Turbulent times, terrible torments, but the four magnificent Latimer sisters, each so different, love as women do: with tenderness as well as passion, and with hearts roomy enough to hold their men, their children, their careers and their sisters.' (Publisher's blurb)

5 2 y separately published work icon The Prodigal Son Colleen McCullough , Sydney : HarperCollins Australia , 2012 Z1846486 2012 single work novel crime

'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.)

1 4 y separately published work icon Life Without the Boring Bits Colleen McCullough , Sydney : HarperCollins Australia , 2011 Z1815961 2011 single work autobiography 'World-famous writer and national treasure Colleen McCullough has always resisted the idea of writing an autobiography - books on the subject of the self tend to be "stuffed to pussy′s bow with boring bits". But her mind has a life of its own. Here, finally, is its portrait.

Among the personal reminiscences and thought-provoking musings in Life Without the Boring Bits lie clues as to the shaping of this extraordinary mind: the confused, impulsive, thoughtlessly cruel mother; the miserly absentee father; the far-reaching effects bureaucrats can have on the lives of strangers; the riddle of Time ...

Colleen′s mind laughs at life. It cries at life. Its memory is phenomenal, its appetite for new knowledge insatiable. And though it holds the secrets to how the books were written, this is a mind that can tell stories against itself and see things that were never there.

If Colleen McCullough has any lesson to teach in Life Without the Boring Bits, it is that nothing above, below, or on the surface of the Earth can keep a good mind down, let alone break it.' (Publisher's blurb)
1 2 Morgan’s Run : The Musical Colleen McCullough , Gavin Lockley (composer), 2011 single work musical theatre

'At the centre of Morgan's Run is Richard Morgan, son of a Bristol tavern-keeper, devoted husband and loving father, sober and hardworking craftsman. By the machinations of fate and the vagaries of the 18th-century English judicial system, he is consigned as a convict to the famous "First Fleet," which set sail, bearing, as an experiment in penology, 582 male and 193 female felons sentenced to transportation, in May of 1787 for the continent that Captain Cook had discovered only a few years earlier.

The word "epic" is overused, but no other word can do justice to one of the most grueling and significant voyages in human history or to the courage of the convicts whose sufferings were not ended but had only just begun when they set foot on Australian soil at Botany Bay on January 19th, 1788. Of those convicts, Richard Morgan stood out, not only for his strength and his calm determination to let no man bully him, but also for his intelligence, his fair-mindedness, his common sense, and his willingness to help others. To these qualities must be added a certain innate dignity that hinted, even in the most terrible conditions, at a life marked by tragedies that would have broken most men.

In Richard Morgan, Colleen McCullough has created one of her most compelling characters. We see through Morgan's eyes the two worlds in which the story takes place: that of 18th-century Bristol, where Morgan was born and expected to live out his life, and that of a convicted felon sent to settle a hostile new world. When the book begins, Richard Morgan is a contented man — happily married, with a child he adores. Then, piece by piece, his idyll crumbles until he finds himself led into an ambiguous relationship with a beautiful young woman, whose dissolute protector seeks vengeance on Morgan to protect his own skin. He endures the agonies of bereavement and financial loss, incarceration in prison and aboard the notorious "hulks," then the horrors of the journeys to Botany Bay and Norfolk Island, where he finds against all odds a new love and a new life.

Richard Morgan's story is true, but in making Morgan the central figure of her novel, Colleen McCullough has created a hero whom no reader will ever forget; she has written not only a great adventure and a powerful love story, but also a book that combines the elements of Tom Jones and Mutiny on the Bounty. Morgan's Run is great fiction, full of drama, passion, history, love, and hatred, full-blooded and totally engrossing, a stunning work that is at once rich entertainment — and a revelation Source: www.gavinlockley.com (Sighted 25/05/2011).

1 The Getting of Wisdom : Lessons Learnt from Life : Colleen McCullough Colleen McCullough , 2011 single work column
— Appears in: Good Weekend , 19 February 2011; (p. 38)
5 4 y separately published work icon Naked Cruelty Colleen McCullough , Pymble : HarperCollins Australia , 2010 Z1733509 2010 single work novel crime thriller

'America in 1968 is in turmoil and the leafy Holloman suburb of Carew is being silently terrorised by a series of vicious and systematic rapes. When finally one victim finds the courage to speak out and go to the police, the rapist escalates to murder.

'For Captain Carmine Delmonico, it seems to be a case with no clues. And it comes as the Holloman Police Department is troubled: a lieutenant is out of his depth, a sergeant is out of control, and into this mix comes the beautiful, ruthlessly ambitious new trainee, Helen MacIntosh, daughter of the influential president of Chubb University.

'As the killer makes his plans, Carmine and his team must use every resource at their disposal - including a team of highly motivated neighbourhood watch, the Gentlemen Walkers...' (From the publisher's website.)

10 5 y separately published work icon Too Many Murders : A Carmine Delmonico Novel Colleen McCullough , Pymble : HarperCollins Australia , 2009 Z1652943 2009 single work novel crime thriller

'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).

1 12 The Thorn Birds Gloria Bruni , Colleen McCullough , Michael Bogdanov , Gloria Bruni (composer), 2009 single work musical theatre
1 Something About Mary Colleen McCullough , 2008 extract novel historical fiction (The Independence of Miss Mary Bennet)
— Appears in: The Courier-Mail , 27 - 28 September 2008; (p. 20-21)
10 13 y separately published work icon The Independence of Miss Mary Bennet Colleen McCullough , Pymble : HarperCollins Australia , 2008 Z1530730 2008 single work novel historical fiction

'Everyone knows the story of Elizabeth and Jane Bennet in Pride and Prejudice. But what about their sister Mary, she of the atrocious singing voice and the staidly religious bent of mind?

'Master storyteller Colleen McCullough paints a life for Mary Bennet twenty years after Jane Austen's novel closes.

'So far on in time, each of Mary's sisters is settled in her own way. Happily married Jane is the mother of many children; Elizabeth has to cope with an unwelcome social pre-eminence she had not envisioned; Lydia is still entranced by military officers; and Kitty is one of the stars of London's fashionable salons.

'Events transpire that free Mary from her family obligations and dangle the allurements of independence before her hungry gaze. Fired with zeal by the newspaper letters of the mystery man Argus, she resolves to publish a book about the plight of England's poor. Plunging from one predicament into another, Mary embarks upon a mission of investigation that eventually leads her into mortal danger and reveals the surprising identity of Argus.

'The Independence of Miss Mary Bennet is both a page-turning look at the ongoing lives of the Bennet sisters, and a sparkling romance that shows it is never too late to find love. Abounding with beloved characters in new guises as well as people we have not met before, it is funny, tragic, and eminently satisfying. This is a novel for every woman who has yearned to leave her mark upon the world - Colleen McCullough at her lively best.' (Publisher's blurb)

1 7 y separately published work icon Antony and Cleopatra Colleen McCullough , Pymble : HarperCollins Australia , 2007 Z1432457 2007 single work novel historical fiction 'Mark Antony, famous warrior and legendary lover, expects that he will be Julius Caesar's successor. But when Caesar is murdered, his eighteen-year-old nephew, Octavian, is named as his heir. No-one, least of all Antony, expects Octavian to last; but his youth and slight frame conceal a remarkable determination and a sharp strategic mind.' Source: Libraries Australia. (Sighted 01/10/2007).
1 y separately published work icon Carmine Delmonico Colleen McCullough , 2005 Pymble : HarperCollins Australia , 2005- Z1656267 2005 series - author novel crime thriller
2 8 y separately published work icon On, Off Colleen McCullough , Pymble : HarperCollins Australia , 2005 Z1220215 2005 single work novel crime thriller 'It is 1965, and in Holloman, Connecticut, someone is preying on the innocent. At a prestigious research centre for the neurosciences familiarly called the 'Hug', parts of a body are discovered. Very soon Lieutenant Carmine Delmonico of the Holloman Police learns that a string of horrifying disappearances, each fitting the same modus operandi as the Hug's body, has been occurring throughout the state. Then another body is found, again linked to the Hug. With the Hug's hierarchies of power in turmoil and every member of its staff hiding something, Delmonico delves into the lives and pasts of each and every Hugger. It is the case of his career, and he is determined to solve it. But how do you find a monster who leaves no clues and is always two steps ahead?' (Publisher's blurb)
1 X-Ray Vision Colleen McCullough , 2005 extract novel (Angel Puss)
— Appears in: The Age , 7 January 2005; (p. 4-5)
1 The Funniest Thing You Ever Said Colleen McCullough , 2005 extract novel (Angel Puss)
— Appears in: The Age , 7 January 2005; (p. 4-5)
4 10 y separately published work icon Angel Puss Colleen McCullough , Pymble : HarperCollins Australia , 2004 Z1156411 2004 single work novel Twenty-one-year-old Harriet, a newly qualified X-ray technician earning a coveted male wage, ignores her father's warning that 'only fools, Bohemians and tarts live at Kings Cross' and moves into Mrs Delvecchio Schwartz's rooming house. There she discovers that Mrs Delvecchio Schwartz has more sources of income than rents. She finds casting horoscopes, reading tarot cards, and gazing into her crystal ball to be far more profitable! But it is mute four-year-old Flo - her mother's medium and beloved angel puss - who captures Harriet's heart. As she learns about men, love, and tarot cards, Harriet finds that following your heart is not always easy. And protecting those you care for most can be hardest of all. (Source: Trove)
6 6 y separately published work icon The Touch Colleen McCullough , London : Century , 2003 Z1078073 2003 single work novel historical fiction Alexander Kinross is remembered in his native Scotland only as a shiftless boilermaker's apprentice and a godless rebel. But, when he writes from Australia to summon his bride, his Scottish relatives realise that he has made a fortune on the goldfields and is a man to be reckoned with. Arriving in Sydney after a difficult voyage, sixteen-year-old Elizabeth Drummond meets her husband-to-be and discovers that he frightens and repels her. Offered no choice, she marries him and is whisked at once across wild, uninhabited countryside to Alexander's own town, named Kinross after himself. In the crags above it lies the world's richest gold mine. Isolated in Alexander's great house and with no company save Chinese servants, Elizabeth finds that the intimacies of marriage do not prompt her husband to enlighten her about his past life - or his present one. She has no idea that he still has a mistress, the sensuous, tough, outspoken Ruby Costevan. Captured by their very different natures, Alexander resolves to have both Elizabeth and Ruby - why should he not? He has the fabled M̀idas Touch', a combination of curiosity, boldness and intelligence that he applies to every situation and which only fails him when it comes to these two women. For while Ruby loves Alexander desperately, Elizabeth does not. (Source: Trove)
2 6 y separately published work icon The October Horse Colleen McCullough , New York (City) : Simon and Schuster , 2002 Z990978 2002 single work novel historical fiction

'With her renowned storytelling gifts in full force, Colleen McCullough delivers a breathtaking novel that proves once again that she is the top historical novelist of our time.

'Grand in scope and vivid in detail, McCullough's gripping narrative thrusts readers headlong into the complex and fascinating world of Rome in the tumultuous last days of the Republic. At the height of his power, Gaius Julius Caesar becomes embroiled in a civil war in Egypt, where he finds himself enraptured by Cleopatra, the nation's golden-eyed queen. To do his duty as a Roman, however, he must forsake his love and return to the capital to rule.

'Though Caesar's grip on power seems unshakable, the political landscape is treacherous – the returning hero has no obvious successor, and his legacy seems to be the prize for any man with the courage and cunning to fell Rome's laurelled leader. Caesar's jealous enemies masquerade as friends and scheme to oust the autocrat from power and restore true republican government to Rome. But as the plot races to its dramatic conclusion, it becomes clear that with the stakes this high, no alliance is sacred and no motives are pure.' (Publication summary)

1 I Was There Colleen McCullough , 2001 single work criticism
— Appears in: The Sunday Age , 14 January 2001; (p. 35)
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