Book picks similar to
The North Wind by Bronwyn Parry


christmas
romantic-suspense
romance
novella

Vodka Doesn't Freeze


Leah Giarratano - 2007
    Knowing first-hand the impact of such men on their prey, Jill is ambivalent about pursuing the killer, but when more men die - all known to police as child sex offenders - she is forced to face the fact that a serial killer is on the loose.As the investigation deepens, Jill unearths a long-established Sydney paedophile ring - a club of wealthy men who have thought until now that that they are untouchable. Despite the deaths of some of its members, the club is still operating and until Jill can shut it down, children are still in grave danger. As she faces predators and their victims, a psychotherapist losing her mind, and her own nightmares come to life, Jill is forced to decide whether or not she really wants to catch this killer.

The Painted Sky


Alice Campion - 2015
    The result is a captivating rural novel, brimming with romance, mystery and suspense.Nina never knew what happened to her father, the celebrated artist Jim Larkin. One minute he was her devoted dad, the next he'd disappeared without trace. Seventeen years later, she's still haunted by the mystery.Until a call from outback Wandalla changes everything.At first, Nina's inheritance of a waterless property and a farmhouse stuffed with junk seems more like a burden than a gift. But this was her father's childhood home – and possibly her last chance to discover the truth.So what is the local solicitor, Harrison Grey, not telling her as he hands over the keys? Why does the area's wealthiest resident, Hilary Flint, seem to hate her so much? What is the significance of the gold locket with cryptic engravings that Nina always wears?And why, on top of everything, is she inexplicably drawn to her soon-to-be-married neighbour, Heath Blackett?

Tea with Emma


Diane Moody - 2011
    But an airport mishap with a cranky Englishman gets her off on the wrong foot (quite literally), especially when he moves into the university guest house across the street. Can Maddie find a love for her unapproachable new neighbor, or has she finally met her match?

A Very Country Christmas


Fiona Greene - 2017
    This year she will stop at nothing to ensure that she and the Woodlea community have the best holiday season ever. But from the moment Freya hangs the first piece of mistletoe, her plans unravel faster than red Christmas ribbon...Home For Christmas – Fiona Greene [FIRST TIME IN PRINT]When Sergeant Tate McAuliffe, stationed in Afghanistan, opens his Christmas care package from Australia, he is stunned by both its contents and the sender, Layla Preston. Little could Layla know that this impersonal-but-cheerful holiday gift is set to be the start of something big…The Kissing Season – Rachael Johns A wild past, a secret pregnancy and a disastrous marriage: every family has a black sheep...and Hannah Elliot is it. But when she returns to her home town of Wildwood Point, she is determined to stay on the straight and narrow. Then gorgeous Italian Matteo Della-Bosca walks into her life and Hannah’s resolve starts to slip…12 Daves Of Christmas – Juliet Madison [FIRST TIME IN PRINT]Can love transcend time and space? An uplifting story of a lonely writer, her grandmother’s ghost and a Christmas road trip to visit 12 different Daves.Christmas At Remarkable Bay – Victoria Purman [BRAND NEW STORY]Prickly Sofia has hit a crossroads and is hoping a Christmas alone in idyllic Remarkable Bay will help. Police officer George is also alone at Christmas. Drawn together unwillingly, they try and stay out of each other’s way. But Remarkable Bay is a small place…

Perfect Catch


N.R. Walker - 2016
    They’re both hard-working tradesmen, both love weekends away fishing, both gay, but have never been single at the same time. Until now.What is supposed to be a weekend away fishing with a group of mates, changes at the last minute when friends bail out in an attempt to give Cal and Troy some alone time.With more than just hooks on the line, can these two see what’s been right in front of them the whole time?The Perfect Catch is a short story about falling for your best friend hook, line, and sinker.A 20K short story which was part of the It Was Always You anthology.

Good Oil


Laura Buzo - 2010
    I am the staff trainer. I will call you grasshopper and you will call me sensei and I will give you the good oil. Right? And just so you know, I'm open to all kinds of bribery.'From the moment 15-year-old Amelia begins work on the checkout at Woolworths she is sunk, gone, lost...head-over-heels in love with Chris. Chris is the funny, charming, man-about-Woolies, but he's 21, and the 6-year difference in their ages may as well be 100. Chris and Amelia talk about everything from Second Wave Feminism to Great Expectations and Alien, but will he ever look at her in the way she wants him to? And if he does, will it be everything she hopes?

Elsa Goody, Bushranger


Darry Fraser - 2020
    A thrilling historical romance adventure from a bestselling Australian author.1896 Robe, South AustraliaWhen Elsa Goody's father and brother George die in quick succession she and her sister Rosie are in trouble. Pursued by an unpleasant suitor with dubious motivation, Elsa leaves for Victoria on the hunt for a fortune in gold coins that her brother has hidden. If Elsa can find it she will be able to save Rosie and herself from married slavery.Their quest leads them on a cross-country journey to find the last man who saw her brother alive, Ezekiel Jones. But Elsa is not the only one looking for buried treasure. She and Rosie are beset by bushrangers and in the confusion Elsa is accused of being an accomplice. Luckily not everyone believes that Elsa is a criminal. When she finally catches up with Ezekiel, it's clear that for him she can do no wrong.But with everyone chasing her and bloody violence on the horizon, life is becoming increasingly complicated. Will she and Rosie ever manage to solve the mystery, find the gold and free themselves from a dark future?'Outstanding prose that flows and ripples through every page.' Starts at 60

On His Watch


Katie Ruggle - 2016
    But in a place this far off the map, trust is hard to come by and secrets can be murder...Ice rescue diver Derek Warner never meant to be a hero. But when two little girls go missing, he's the first in line to bring them home-even if that means scouring the wilderness with the woman he once loved and lost, Artemis Rey.Artemis has never stopped wanting Derek. Now, racing to find the girls before it's too late, minutes turn to hours. Night falls. Old flames rekindle. And a danger grows in the darkest wilderness that may be more than even the Search and Rescue brotherhood can hope to face...

The Bookshop on the Corner


Rebecca Raisin - 2014
    The meet-cute, the passion, the drama and the gorgeous men! Now this wouldn’t have been such an issue if she hadn’t been the owner of the only bookshop in Ashford, Connecticut.Ever since her close friend Lil, from The Gingerbread Café, had become engaged she had been yearning for a little love to turn up in her life. Except Sarah knew a good man was hard to find – especially in a tiny town like Ashford. That was until New York journalist, Ridge Warner stepped into her bookshop…Love could be just around the corner for Sarah, but will she be able to truly believe that happy-ever-after can happen in real-life too!

The Broken Shore


Peter Temple - 2005
    He lives a quiet life with his two dogs in the tumbledown wreck his family home has become. It's a peaceful existence - ideal for the rehabilitating man. But his recovery is rudely interrupted by a brutal attack on Charles Bourgoyne, a prominent member of the local community. Suspicion falls on three young men from the local Aboriginal community. But Cashin's not so sure and as the case unfolds amid simmering corruption and prejudice, he finds himself holding on to something that it might be better to let go.

The Werewolf's Christmas Wish


Kristen Painter - 2016
    The tourists think it's all a show: the vampires, the werewolves, the witches, the occasional gargoyle flying through the sky. But the supernaturals populating the town know better.Living in Nocturne Falls means being yourself. Fangs, fur, and all.Bridget Merrow has almost everything a werewolf could wish for. And it’s not that her awesome family and popular business aren’t enough – she just wants someone to share it all with this Christmas. Too bad the someone she wants doesn’t want her. Or does he?Also in Hex the Halls anthology

Treasured Secrets


Kendall Talbot - 2015
    Dangerous enemies. Action-packed romantic suspense.When Italian chef Rosalina Calucci finds a clue to an ancient treasure, she makes the mistake of bringing it to rogue treasure hunter Archer Mahoney, a dangerously sexy, frustratingly irresponsible, Australian millionaire. Something she knows all too well since he’s also her ex-fiancé, a man who would rather keep his secrets to himself.Archer Mahoney, will do anything to drown out his painful past; breaking up with the irresistible, smoky-eyed, woman of his dreams is proof of that. But his talent for finding lost treasure is almost as good as his talent for finding trouble and his feisty ex is just the beginning.Rosalina’s clue could be the key to locating an ancient treasure that’s haunted Archer for years. But some treasures are buried in blood, and a deadly nemesis will stop at nothing to keep a sinful secret contained. Can they mend the ocean between them, or will Rosalina’s quest for answers be just the beginning to Archer’s nightmare? Get ready for the adventure of a lifetime, with a happily ever after guaranteed.Treasured Secrets is book one in the steamy romantic suspense Treasure Hunters series, full of drama, danger, and passion. It features a strong heroine and the rugged-yet-mischievous millionaire who steals her heart.

Ignite the Flame


Susan Griscom - 2011
    Plagued with nightmares of her father's sudden and brutal death, Addie struggles with her anguish and refuses to believe that his demise was accidental. But that's not the only thing Addie struggles with. Caught up in the horrors of her latest nightmare while driving to work one day, she's startled beyond comprehension when she almost runs down a man standing in the middle of the road. A gorgeous, stunning man she can't seem to take her mind or her eyes off of. All of a sudden, the impossible seems possible, and it's not clear whether that's a blessing or a curse.Cael Sheridan may be arrogant and mysterious, but he's also undeniably gorgeous. A member of a secret society, he is sworn to protect the woman he believes to be the daughter of his recently murdered mentor. In the process, he finds it impossible to resist her magnetic sensuality, complicating his efforts to shield and guide her as she learns to manage her newly acquired skills. He's faced with the tough decision of whether to let her in or sabotage their new relationship in order to keep her safe as well as his own heart.Fate has brought them together, but will it make them stronger or destroy them in the end?A supernatural, urban fantasy sure to get your blood running hot, Ignite the Flame is the first book in the Sectorium series set in a sleepy coastal town along the Oregon Coast. Previously published as Whisper Cape and has been re-titled an enhanced for a more enjoyable read.

The Museum of Modern Love


Heather Rose - 2016
    Art will break your heart. There will be glorious days. If you want eternity you must be fearless.' From The Museum of Modern LoveShe watched as the final hours of The Artist is Present passed by, sitter after sitter in a gaze with the woman across the table. Jane felt she had witnessed a thing of inexplicable beauty among humans who had been drawn to this art and had found the reflection of a great mystery. What are we? How should we live?If this was a dream, then he wanted to know when it would end. Maybe it would end if he went to see Lydia. But it was the one thing he was not allowed to do.Arky Levin is a film composer in New York separated from his wife, who has asked him to keep one devastating promise. One day he finds his way to The Atrium at MOMA and sees Marina Abramovic in The Artist is Present. The performance continues for seventy-five days and, as it unfolds, so does Arky. As he watches and meets other people drawn to the exhibit, he slowly starts to understand what might be missing in his life and what he must do.This dazzlingly original novel asks beguiling questions about the nature of art, life and love and finds a way to answer them.

Scrublands


Chris Hammer - 2018
    A year later, troubled journalist Martin Scarsden arrives in Riversend to write a feature on the anniversary of the tragedy. But the stories he hears from the locals about the priest and incidents leading up to the shooting don't fit with the accepted version of events his own newspaper reported in an award-winning investigation. Martin can't ignore his doubts, nor the urgings of some locals to unearth the real reason behind the priest's deadly rampage.Just as Martin believes he is making headway, a shocking new development rocks the town, which becomes the biggest story in Australia. The media descends on Riversend and Martin is now the one in the spotlight. His reasons for investigating the shooting have suddenly become very personal. Wrestling with his own demons, Martin finds himself risking everything to discover a truth that becomes darker and more complex with every twist. But there are powerful forces determined to stop him, and he has no idea how far they will go to make sure the town's secrets stay buried.A compulsive thriller that will haunt you long after you have turned the final page.