A Sister's Tears
Meg Hutchinson - 2009
. . may the devil tek him! Her knows his temper, felt his fist many a time. And there be others as knows, women he's paid to keep silent about the blows they've suffered, for it tek more'n a roll in bed to satisfy Fenton Gilmore. Emma Lawrence has reason to fear the base cruelty of the man she must call uncle. She and her sister Rachel had been taken into the Gilmore household on the death of their parents and have known nothing but unkindness at the hands of Fenton and his wife. And now Rachel is dead, brutally raped and strangled, and Emma must dry her tears and flee if she is to escape the same fate. Emma falls in with two other orphans, and Timothy and Lily become as dear to her as her own departed sister. But Fenton Gilmore does not give up so easily. His evil ambition is to own a brothel and Emma is vital to his perverted plan.
Girl 43
Maree Giles - 2014
The graffiti on the holding room wall says it all: 'Gunyah is hell on earth'. And Ellen's about to find out why. Ellen was never the daughter her mother wanted. Patent leather shoes and frilly dresses just weren't her thing and, at age fourteen, she's ready to leave school and find her own way. No one is going to stop her from going where she wants, doing what she wants, and hanging out with Robbie. Or so she thinks. But when the police turn up, Ellen is deemed to be in 'moral danger' and is sentenced to the Gunyah Training School for Girls. Suddenly, she's no longer Ellen, she's Girl 43, and she has to follow the rules, work hard and - most importantly - stay quiet. When it's discovered that she's pregnant, there's no respite from the staff. Told she isn't capable of bringing up a child, they twist the truth to make her cooperate. But however hard they try, they can't destroy the connection between a mother and her child . . . or can they? Drawn from experiences in Parramatta Girls' Home in the seventies, "Girl 43" is a story that could have come straight from today's headlines about the shocking treatment of innocent children and teens by people in the very institutions that were supposed to protect them.
The Thompson Gunner
Nick Earls - 2004
She's an icon to her fans, a darling of the media, schmoozed by television networks and an A-list guest at festivals abroad. She's a month and three countries into her current tour, a week away from home – through what exactly 'home' means is problematic these days. On a flight between gigs, a recurring dream raises disturbing questions. Haunting flashbacks provide clues to a past long ago buried – a secret life in another time, a life of lies, pacts and forbidden alliances. Then there's her relationship with Murray and where it went wrong. Out of the spotlight and beneath the punchlines, Meg discovers that memory will find a way to break the surface . . .
Honey Tongues
Helene Uri - 2006
Though they hide it from themselves, their thoughts and memories reveal the spiteful, long-buried motivations behind seemingly innocent actions. The masks finally drop during an eight-course meal on a celebratory trip to Copenhagen, revealing undisguised fear and loathing. Shocking secrets are unearthed as the balance of power subtly shifts from one to the other. Brilliantly observed, this is female bonding at its worst, manipulative, and psychotic, exposing the dependency and deceit behind the compassionate and affectionate facade.
Beneath a Stormy Sky
AnneMarie Brear - 2019
Louisa Reynolds loses her brother when their ship goes down in a storm off the west coast of Australia. Stranded and alone on a deserted beach she is rescued by a young aboriginal girl, who keeps her alive, and teaches her the ways of the native people. When eventually Louisa stumbles into the nearest town of Albany, she must gather her strength to start again. Befriended by two men, old gentleman George and the dashing Connor, she finds that life is worth living. The unexpected friendship with both Connor and George gives her new joy. She’s invited to stay at George’s sheep station. However, as a single woman in the company of men, she is soon the talk of gossips. Her feelings for Connor intensify, but when she learns more about him, she is shattered by a revelation and it is gentle George who she suddenly marries. Only, settling into station life comes with its own problems when Louisa realises that George has money problems and is close to losing everything. Confronted by a devastating fire and a gang of bushrangers, Louisa feels as though her world is spinning out of control. Can she save the sheep station, and how long can she deny the love she feels for Connor?
बारी
रणजित देसाई - 1990
They resorted to dacoity and theft in nearby localities for their living. They hardly ever dreamt of stable life.
Harvest Moon
Judith Saxton - 1995
But when Lady Clifton dies soon after giving birth, Sir George hands the child over to be brought up on Beeswing Farm. John Hoverton and Laurie Clifton are raised as brothers.
Anything But Treason
M.J. Twomey - 2020
Red Dust Dreaming
Eva Scott - 2015
Elizabeth Langtree’s has her life in order – safe, organised, planned. Sure, she has her troubles, but they are nothing she can’t handle. Then everything is turned upside down when her family send her to Australia to collect her orphaned nephew. It all seemed so simple in New York, but Australia is nothing like she expected, and she soon falls under the spell of the Outback – the station, the lifestyle, and the seriously sexy owner who has been caring for Luke since the death of his mother. Elizabeth soon discovers that what seemed simple a world away is anything but, and her duty is at odds with the dictates of her heart. She must choose, knowing that a mistake will not only cost her everything, but destroy the future of a devastated little boy.
The Persistence of Memory
Tony Eprile - 2004
The Baltimore Sun declared Eprile's "horrifying yet heartrendingly beautiful" prose to be "comparable to his fellow authors of Apartheid Andre Brink and Nadine Gordimer." As the novel builds to a harrowing conclusion, the protagonist, a veteran of the secret war in Angola and Namibia, is forced to appear before the Truth and Reconciliation Committee with astonishing results. Nobel Prize-winning author J. M. Coetzee calls The Persistence of Memory "a story of coming to maturity in South Africa in the bad old days. Always warm-hearted, sometimes comic, ultimately damning."
Incredible Bodies
Ian McGuire - 2006
In this sordid and hilarious tale of whopping academic grants, sleeping on the job, sexual confusion and consenting adults, terrifying departmental secretaries, surprise impregnations and alcoholic lecturers we might conclude that most people are just not cut out for university life.
When Opposites Meet
Sachin Garg - 2017
It's the story of love, and the possibility of finding it in the most unlikely of places.
The Ties That Bind
Lexi Landsman - 2016
One by the smallest bruise. The other by a devastating bushfire. And both by a shocking secret . . .Miami art curator Courtney Hamilton and her husband David live the perfect life until their ten-year-old son Matthew is diagnosed with leukaemia. He needs a bone-marrow transplant but, with Courtney being adopted, the chances of finding a match within his family are slim. Desperate to find a donor, Courtney tracks the scattered details of her birth 15,000 kilometres away, to the remote town of Somerset in the Victorian bush. Meanwhile Jade Taylor wakes up in hospital in Somerset having survived the deadly bushfire that destroyed the family home and their beloved olive groves. Gone too are the landmarks that remind her of her mother, Asha, a woman whose repeated absences scarred her childhood.As Jade rallies her fractured family to rebuild their lives, Courtney arrives in the burnt countryside to search for her lost parents - but discovers far more . . .
The Day: A Novel of America in the Last Days (The End of America Series)
John Richard Price - 2014
In the Middle East Israel faces extinction, even though it agreed to a ‘peace treaty’ bowing to US pressure, under which it gave up much of its God-given land. Russia, Iran, Libya and several Muslim countries invade northern Israel, fulfilling Biblical prophecy. Israel cries out for America to come to its military defense. The President refuses. Protestant, Catholic and Jewish leaders plead with the President to change his mind and help Israel survive what will surely be total destruction. Tanks and troops storm into Israel, shedding blood, as Israel pleads for help. The Chief Rabbi of Jerusalem leads a national assembly at the Wailing Wall, praying that God fulfill His Word and destroy the invaders, before Israel is shoved into the sea. Can Israel survive the onslaught?Will America, as a betrayer of God’s chosen people, be destroyed in one day, one hour and one moment? How will Americans who ignored the warnings and didn’t flee survive attacks on US cities? How will preppers fare? What will life be like after The Day for those still alive? What happens to the nations which invaded Israel and to the world after The Day?Are ancient prophecies being fulfilled before our very eyes?