The book behind the major TV series - Secret City - screening on Netflix and Fox. A sticky scandal. A political jam. A prescient tale of creeping Chinese influence, stuttering US strategy and shaky Australian loyalty, by two veteran Canberra insiders. *the Marmalade Files are documents that allegedly exist within the bowels of Foreign Affairs & trade that have been around for a half century. When seasoned newshound Harry Dunkley is slipped a compromising photograph one frosty Canberra dawn he knows he's onto something big. In pursuit of the scoop, Dunkley must negotiate the deadly corridors of power where the minority toohey Government hangs by a thread - its stricken Foreign Minister on life support, her heart maintained by a single thought. Revenge. Rabid Rottweilers prowl in the guise of Opposition senators, union thugs wage class warfare, tV anchors simper and fawn ... and loyalty and decency have long since given way to compromise and treachery. From the teahouses of Beijing to the beaches of Bali, from the marbled halls of Washington to the basements of the bureaucracy, Dunkley's quest takes him ever closer to the truth - and ever deeper into a lethal political game. Award-winning journalists Steve Lewis and Chris Uhlmann combine forces in this arresting novel that proves fiction is stranger than fact. Praise for The Marmalade Files: 'A banquet of bastardry' Daily Telegraph '[A] cynical, opinionated, lively gallop through the landscape of contemporary Australian politics' Sydney Morning Herald 'Lewis and Uhlmann use the familiar circus of malevolence and blunted expectations to draw the reader into the bigger story of Australia and its place on the perilously shifting ground between China and the US' Weekend Australian 'A rollicking good story' Good Reading

Second novel in the series that brought you Chinese spies, American bluster, and the deadly dance of Australian politics, long before there was fake news. Inspiration behind the major TV series SECRET CITY. A body pulled from the murky waters of Lake Burley Griffin links Canberra, Beijing and Washington in a titanic struggle where war is just a mouse click away. Veteran reporter Harry Dunkley is chasing the scoop of his career, hunting for his best friend's killer. Navigating treacherous political waters where a desperate minority government edges ever closer to disaster, he delves into a cyber world where there are no secrets. Friendship and loyalty give way to betrayal and revenge as Dunkley stumbles into the sights of the mandarins who wield real power - and who'll stop at nothing to retain it. Political insiders Steve Lewis and Chris Uhlmann bring biting wit and behind-the-headlines insights to this sharply observed novel about growing Chinese influence, waning American power, and Australia's inevitable - and deadly - pursuit of a trade deal, in this sequel to the bestselling THE MARMALADE FILES. 'A cracking read' Tony Abbott 'There is an eerie ring of reality' Daily Telegraph 'This is fiction, but truth lurks behind every corner of it' Canberra Times 'A ripsnorter of a political thriller that'll leave you thinking, I wonder if ... Highly recommended' Good Reading 'Intelligent, rollicking entertainment' Weekend Australian

Myfanwy Thomas awakens in a London park surrounded by dead bodies. With her memory gone, she must trust the instructions left by her former in order to survive. She quickly learns that she is a Rook, a high-level operative in a secret agency that protects the world from supernatural threats. But there is a mole inside the organization, and this person wants her dead. Battling to save herself, Myfanwy will encounter a person with four bodies, a woman who can enter her dreams, children transformed into deadly fighters, and terrifyingly vast conspiracy. Suspenseful and hilarious, The Rook is an outrageously imaginative thriller for readers who like their espionage with a dollop of purple slime. "Utterly convincing and engrossing -- -totally thought-through and frequently hilarious....Even this aging, jaded, attention-deficit-disordered critic was blown away."-Lev Grossman, Time

'Charming, touching and very very funny' Jenny Colgan 'Simply too good' Daily Mail From the author of the acclaimed THE GRAN TOUR ONE HOUSE. TWO HOUSEMATES. THREE REASONS TO WORRY: WINNIE AND BEN ARE SEPARATED BY 50 YEARS, A GULF IN CLASS, AND MAJOR DIFFERENCES OF OPINION. When hunting for a room in London, Ben Aitken came across one for a great price in a lovely part of town. There had to be a catch. And there was. The catch was Winnie: an 85-year-old widow who doesn't suffer fools. Full of warmth, wit and candour, The Marmalade Diaries tells the story of an unlikely friendship during an unlikely time. Imagine an intergenerational version of Big Brother, but with only two contestants. One of the pair a grieving and inflexible former aristocrat in her mid-eighties. The other a working-class millennial snowflake. What could possibly go wrong? What could possibly go right? Out of the most inauspicious of soils - and from the author of The Gran Tour - comes a book about grief, family, friendship, loneliness, life, love, lockdown and marmalade.

n this wordless graphic picture book, a young boy feels alone with his worries. He isn't fitting in well at school. His grades are slipping. He's even lashing out at those who love him. Talented Australian artist Mel Tregonning created Small Things in the final year of her life. In her emotionally rich illustrations, the boy's worries manifest as tiny beings that crowd around him constantly, overwhelming him and even gnawing away at his very self. The striking imagery is all the more powerful when, overcoming his isolation at last, the boy discovers that the tiny demons of worry surround everyone, even those who seem to have it all together. This short but hard-hitting wordless graphic picture book gets to the heart of childhood anxiety and opens the way for dialogue about acceptance, vulnerability, and the universal experience of worry.

A simple housecat named Simon encounters some bigger cats: Lion, Puma, Panther, Tiger, and Cheetah. Each of the big cats has something to say about Simon not being “cat” enough. According to them, he just doesn’t measure up. He doesn’t have Lion’s mane or Cheetah’s spots. He doesn’t sleep in trees like Panther or climb mountains like Puma. He’s small and fuzzy, not big and strong. But ultimately, Simon shows the big cats that he’s just like them . . . only smaller. A celebration of both individuality and community, I Am a Cat is a strong debut that shows we’re all more alike than we think . . . if we look closely enough.

The novels that flushed out on Chinese spies, American disorder, and the deadly dance of Australian politics, long before there was fake news. Tie-in to the six-part Foxtel political thriller based on THE MARMALADE FILES and THE MANDARIN CODE Two books in one: THE MARMALADE FILES When seasoned newshound Harry Dunkley is slipped a compromising photograph one frosty Canberra dawn, he knows he's onto something big. In pursuit of the scoop, Dunkley must negotiate the deadly corridors of power where the minority Toohey Government hangs by a thread -- its stricken Foreign Minister on life support, her heart maintained by a single drive: revenge. And all about rabid Opposition senators, union thugs and simpering TV anchors ready to pounce. From the teahouses of Beijing to the beaches of Bali, from the marbled halls of Washington to the basements of the bureaucracy, Dunkley's quest takes him ever closer to the truth -- and ever deeper into a lethal political game. THE MANDARIN CODE A body pulled from the murky waters of Lake Burley Griffin links Canberra, Beijing and Washington in a titanic struggle where war is just a mouse click away. Veteran reporter Harry Dunkley is chasing the scoop of his career, hunting for his best friend's killer. Delving into a cyber world where there are no secrets, he stumbles into the purview of the mandarins who wield real power -- and who'll stop at nothing to retain it. ‘Political insiders Steve Lewis and Chris Uhlmann bring biting wit and behind-the-headlines insight to this sharply observed novel … House of Cards, Canberra style' Sunday Canberra Times

'One of the funniest books of the year' - Paul Ross, talkRADIO WARNING: CONTAINS AN UNLIKELY IMMIGRANT, AN UNSUNG COUNTRY, A BUMPY ROMANCE, SEVERAL SHATTERED PRECONCEPTIONS, TRACES OF INSIGHT, A DOZEN NUNS AND A REFERENDUM. Not many Brits move to Poland to work in a fish and chip shop. Fewer still come back wanting to be a Member of the European Parliament. In 2016 Ben Aitken moved to Poland while he still could. It wasn't love that took him but curiosity: he wanted to know what the Poles in the UK had left behind. He flew to a place he'd never heard of and then accepted a job in a chip shop on the minimum wage. When he wasn't peeling potatoes he was on the road scratching the country's surface: he milked cows with a Eurosceptic farmer; missed the bus to Auschwitz; spent Christmas with complete strangers and went to Gdansk to learn how communism got the chop. By the year's end he had a better sense of what the Poles had turned their backs on - southern mountains, northern beaches, dumplings! - and an uncanny ability to bone cod. This is a candid, funny and offbeat tale of a year as an unlikely immigrant.

The fast-paced deadly conclusion to the Secret City trilogy. 'Political insiders Steve Lewis and Chris Uhlmann bring biting wit and behind-the-headlines insight to this sharply observed novel ... House of Cards, Canberra style' Sunday Canberra Times Once feared newshound Harry Dunkley has fallen, disgraced and dispirited at having failed to reveal the existence of the cabal of mandarins pulling the strings of power in Canberra. But new purpose is in the air. Dunkley receives aid from an unlikely band of adversaries, and as the Australian government teeters between fear and greed -- wanting US security and Chinese cash -- he looks at his enemies afresh. Resurrected Labor powerhouse Catriona Bailey and the hitherto untouchable Defence chief, Sir Jack Webster, leader of the sinister cabal, have played Dunkley at every turn. Yet there is a chink in Webster that might just bring him -- and Bailey --down. 'Lewis and Uhlmann's mischeivous use of contemporary political decisions flirts with the possibilities of a roman-a-clef ... THE SHADOW GAME is a welcome addition to the ranks of fictional representations of life in our capital ... it's a book that deserves to be enjoyed by many' Ed Wright, The Australian 'Spies, sex, vengeance, politics, intrigue ... what more could you want from a book?' Canberra Times 'It reads like an episode of House of Cards or Borgen, however the third book in the Secret City series hits much closer to home ... showcasing Canberra and its politicians at their most evil, corrupt and weak ... an engaging and thought-provoking political thriller.' Law Society Journal