Book picks similar to
Lioness by Katherine Scholes


fiction
aussie-authors
romance
aussie-author

The Forgotten Sea


Beverley Harper - 2001
    Certainly not one the authorities on Mauritius, that gem of a tourist destination in a trio of idyllic islands once known as the Mascarenes, would like to become public knowledge. Their carefully nurtured image was of sparkling blue sea, emerald green palm fringes haphazardly angled along pure white beaches, gentle winds whispering through the casuarinas under an azure sky. This was ugly, messy.When journalist Holly Jones arrives in Mauritius to cover millionaire adventurer Connor Maguire's search for buried ancestral treasure, it promises to be two weeks in an exotic island paradise ... and a chance to start piecing together a broken heart. What she hasn't planned on is an infuriating, reluctant subject with a hidden agenda. Or one who manages to break down her carefully constructed barriers and awaken long-forgotten desires.After the body of a young woman is washed up on a beach, Holly finds herself embroiled in an unsolved murder case and the idyllic island's darkest secrets. Passionate, intriguing and compelling, The Forgotten Sea is Beverley Harper at her best yet.

The Secret


Kathryn Hughes - 2016
    1 Kindle bestseller The Letter, comes The Secret - a heartbreaking novel of tragedy, hope and second chances. Readers who treasure the novels of Lesley Pearse and Susan Lewis will adore this author. Mary has been nursing a secret. Forty years ago, she made a choice that would change her world for ever, and alter the path of someone she holds dear.Beth is searching for answers. She has never known the truth about her parentage, but finding out could be the lifeline her sick child so desperately needs. When Beth finds a faded newspaper cutting amongst her mother's things, she realises the key to her son's future lies in her own past. She must go back to where it all began to unlock...The Secret.

The Red Coast


Di Morrissey - 2017
    While she has made a happy life for herself since moving to Broome, she's never told her friends there why she divorced her husband, nor why she made the heartbreaking decision to return home to Australia, leaving her son behind in France. Jean-Luc's yearly visits to the Kimberley are her happiest periods, matched only by her sadness each time their annual reunions end.Jacqui's tranquil existence is about to be disrupted. A charming filmmaker's flattering attention reminds her that it might be time to put the past behind her. A childhood acquaintance who appears in Broome irritates her just as much as he did when they were young. And the community she has come to love threatens to tear itself apart when a proposed mining development forces people to take sides. Jacqui is faced with difficult choices on all fronts. She wants to do the right thing, but how can she know what the right thing is?

The Book Ninja


Ali Berg - 2018
    Or a relationship. Or just a date with a semi-normal person will do.It’s not that she hasn’t tried. She’s the queen of online dating. But enough is enough. Inspired by her job at The Little Brunswick Street Bookshop, Frankie decides to take fate into her own hands and embarks on the ultimate love experiment.Her plan? Plant her favourite books on trains inscribed with her contact details in a bid to lure the sophisticated, charming and well-read man of her dreams.Enter Sunny, and one spontaneous kiss later, Frankie begins to fall for him. But there’s just one problem – Frankie is strictly a classics kind of gal, and Sunny is really into Young Adult. Like really.A quirky and uplifting love letter to books, friendship and soulmates.

Before the Storm


Diane Chamberlain - 2007
    But his mother sees a boy with a heart as open and wide as the ocean.Laurel Lockwood lost her son once through neglect. She's spent the rest of her life determined to make up for her mistakes, and she's succeeded in becoming a committed, protective parent—maybe even overprotective. Still, she loosens her grip just enough to let Andy attend a local church social—a decision that terrifies her when the church is consumed by fire. But Andy survives…and remarkably, saves other children from the flames. Laurel watches as Andy basks in the role of unlikely hero and the world finally sees her Andy, the sweet boy she knows as well as her own heart. But when the suspicion of arson is cast upon Andy, Laurel must ask herself how well she really knows her son…and how far she'll go to keep her promise to protect him forever.

The Lawson Sisters


Janet Gover - 2020
    But a devastating loss puts her dreams at risk. With no options left, Liz is forced to turn to her estranged sister Kayla for help.Kayla has built a new life in the city as a wedding planner, far removed from the stableyard sweat and dust of her rural upbringing. She never thought she'd go back. But when Liz calls out of the blue, Kayla forms a plan that could save their childhood home.Kayla's return forces Liz to confront her past ... and her future, in the shape of Mitch, her first and only love, who still watches over her from the other side of the creek.But Liz still hides a terrible secret. When Kayla learns the truth, will the Lawson sisters find common ground or will their conflict splinter the family once again?'With the scent of eucalyptus on the air, estranged sisters and a homestead echoing past regrets and missed chances, The Lawson Sisters has everything you want in an Aussie romance.' - Fiona Lowe, bestselling Australian author

The Patterson Girls


Rachael Johns - 2015
    The black sheep of the family, Charlie, feels her life as a barista and exercise instructor doesn’t measure up to that of her gifted and successful sisters.Dealing with their bereft father who is determined to sell the family motel, their loves old and new and a series of troublesome decisions doesn’t make life any easier, but when they go through their mother’s possessions and uncover the shocking secret of an old family curse, they begin to question everything they thought they knew.A warm and wise novel about secrets revealed, finding your soulmate and the unique bond between sisters.

Midwife On The Orient Express: A Christmas Miracle


Fiona McArthur - 2019
    On departure she can't believe her ill-timing when she sees Dr Lucas Black on that platform in Venice.Lucas hates surprises. Offering his seat to the woman who jilted him fifteen years before was bad, but leaving her with his meddling grandmother was a hundred times worse.Transport yourself into the glamorous night and through the next thirty-six hours as emotion, an unexpected medical drama and grandmotherly interference help this midwife and doctor find their miracle for Christmas.

The Rules of Backyard Croquet


Sunni Overend - 2013
    But when her sister Poppy needs a wedding dress, old passions are reignited ... along with threats from her past.As Apple finds herself falling for someone she shouldn't, her quest to re-emerge becomes entangled in a time she wants forgotten, and life unravels as quickly as it began to mend.From the cool heart of Melbourne to Paris and New York, in an effervescent world of croquet, Campari and cocoon coats, can Apple prevail over demons past to become the woman she was born to be?

The Life Intended


Kristin Harmel - 2014
    I Love You, Kristin Harmel weaves a heart-wrenching tale that asks: what does it take to move forward in life without forgetting the past?After her husband's sudden death over ten years ago, Kate Waithman never expected to be lucky enough to find another love of her life. But now she's planning her second walk down the aisle to a perfectly nice man. So why isn't she more excited?At first, Kate blames her lack of sleep on stress. But when she starts seeing Patrick, her late husband, in her dreams, she begins to wonder if she's really ready to move on. Is Patrick trying to tell her something? Attempting to navigate between dreams and reality, Kate must uncover her husband's hidden message. Her quest leads her to a sign language class and into the New York City foster system, where she finds rewards greater than she could have imagined.

The House of Second Chances


Esther Campion - 2019
    After a trip home from Australia, Ellen is keen to bring the neglected home back to its former glory and enlists the help of her dear friend and one of Ireland's top interior designers, Colette Barry.Aidan is already begrudging the work on the house he has avoided for nearly twenty years. The last thing the builder needs is an interior designer who seems to do nothing but complicate his life. With their own personal heartaches to overcome, will Aidan and Colette find the courage to give the house and themselves a second chance?

Parting Words


Cass Moriarty - 2017
    Who are these people and what was their significance to Daniel?  For his eldest son, Richard, there are hidden motives for his impatience to settle the will. His sister Evonne is still hurting from decades of her parents' disapproval. The youngest sibling, Kelly, believes she knew her father best.  As Daniel's children carry out his last wishes, each of them must confront their entrenched ideas about their father, and reconsider their own lives. What they discover is beyond anything they imagined.

The Memories of Us


Vanessa Carnevale - 2018
    One moment can change your lifeWhen Gracie Ashcroft wakes after a crash with severe amnesia, she must choose whether to live a life through other people’s memories or to start a new life all her own.Discovering her late mother left her an old flower farm, Gracie leaves her fiancé, best friend and the home full of forgotten memories behind, hoping to learn who she is now.Torn between wishing she could remember and afraid of losing what she now has, Gracie starts to wonder: if you had your time over, would you live the same life twice?The feel-good novel that fans of Lucy Dillon and Ruth Hogan will love.

The Paris Wedding


Charlotte Nash - 2017
    Instead she stayed on the family wheat farm, caring for her seriously ill mother and letting go of her dreams. Now, Matthew is marrying someone else. And Rachael is invited to the wedding, a lavish affair in Paris, courtesy of the flamboyant family of Matthew's fiancée - a once-in-a-lifetime celebration at someone else's expense in Europe's most romantic city.She is utterly unprepared for what the week brings. Friendships will be upended, secrets will be revealed - and on the eve of the wedding, Rachael is faced with an impossible dilemma: should she give up on the promise of love, or destroy another woman's life for a chance at happiness?If you enjoy reading Rachael Treasure and Rachael Johns, you'll fall in love with this deliciously poignant story about family and friends, and love lost and found.

Before I Let You Go


Kelly Rimmer - 2018
    call is the first time Lexie Vidler has heard her sister’s voice in years. Annie is a drug addict, a thief, a liar—and in trouble, again. Lexie has always bailed Annie out, given her money, a place to sleep, sent her to every kind of rehab. But this time, she’s not just strung out—she’s pregnant and in premature labor. If she goes to the hospital, she’ll lose custody of her baby—maybe even go to prison. But the alternative is unthinkable.As weeks unfold, Lexie finds herself caring for her fragile newborn niece while her carefully ordered life is collapsing around her. She’s in danger of losing her job, and her fiancé only has so much patience for Annie’s drama. In court-ordered rehab, Annie attempts to halt her downward spiral by confronting long-buried secrets from the sisters’ childhood, ghosts that Lexie doesn’t want to face. But will the journey heal Annie, or lead her down a darker path?Both candid and compassionate, Before I Let You Go explores a hotly divisive topic and asks how far the ties of family love can be stretched before they finally break.