Jane Grieve was a career woman, having been actively engaged in the establishment of the Australian Stockman's Hall of Fame at Longreach, Queensland, Australia, as its executive director up until the birth of her first child Sam when she was 36 years old. Her childhood being a dim memory, it was no small feat to move from suits, travel, a certain amount of glamour and being in charge of things to the shifting sands of motherhood - a world of being housebound, dressed in whatever, and then only if time allowed, and wondering, quite frankly, just who was in charge. Sam was followed in quite quick succession by Lou, then Jock. These then are the stories of Sam, Lou, Jock and the myriad of household pets, welcome and unwelcome, that attend the raising of children, on acreage, as if that made much difference. These stories will ring bells of truth for those in the thick of it, and memory for those who have survived. Jane hopes they will make you laugh and cry as being the mother of Sam, Lou and Jock enriched her life through both laughter and tears.

On the verge of losing her laboratory, her savings, and all respect for herself, Pandora (Penny) Yee lands her first contract as scientific consult to the police department. And with seventeen murder cases on the go, the surly inspector is happy to leave her to it. Only she’s going to need to get around, and that means her slightly unhinged adopted brother, Matiu, will be doing the driving. But something about the case spooks Matiu, something other than the lack of a body in the congealing pool of blood in the locked room or that odd little bowl. Matiu doesn’t like anything about this case, from the voices that screamed at him when he touched that bowl, to the way his hateful imaginary friend Makere has come back to torment him, to the fact that the victim seems to be tied up with a man from Matiu’s past, a man who takes pleasure in watching dogs tear each other to pieces for profit and entertainment. Hounds of the Underworld blends mystery, near-future noir and horror. Set in New Zealand it’s the product of a collaboration by two Kiwi authors, one with Chinese heritage and the other Māori. This debut book in The Path of Ra series offers compelling new voices and an exotic perspective on the detective drama.

_______________ 'This intricately structured, brilliantly observed modern take on a family saga is both passionate and moving and the prose snaps, crackles and pops with gorgeous detail' - Lesley Glaister 'Vividly and intensely written' - Jane Rogers, author of Mr Wroe's Virgins 'Pure pleasure to read' - Kathy Page, author of The Story of My Face 'A sharp exposé of the devastating effects of the taboos that govern motherhood ... This story is fresh, vivid - and startlingly contemporary' - Alison MacLeod, author of The Changeling _______________ A haunting, lyrical story of love, betrayal, and family secrets buried in the shifting landscape of memory It is 1958 and the Sputnik satellite has taken a dog up into space; back on earth, five-year-old Andy has a new sister, Elaine - a baby who, his father insists, is 'not quite all there'. While his parents argue over whether or not to send Elaine away, Andy sleeps beside her cot each night, keeping guard and watching as his mother - once an ambitious, energetic nurse - twists away into her private, suffocating sadness. Knots keep treasures safe, Andy's rope-maker grandfather tells him, and, as he listens to stories of the great Harry Houdini, Andy learns the Carrick Bend, the Midshipman's Hitch and the Monkey's Fist. Then a young painter, hired to decorate the family's house, seems to call Andy's mother back from the grief in which she is lost. But one day, at The Siding - the old railway carriage that serves as the family's seaside retreat - Andy is left in charge of his baby sister on a wind-chopped beach, where he discovers that not all treasures can be kept safe for ever. Three decades later Andrew returns from self-imposed exile to The Siding, the place where his life first unravelled. Looking back on the broken strands of his childhood, he tries, at last, to weave them together, aided by his grandfather's copy of The Ashley Book of Knots and the arrival of a wild-haired, tango-dancing sculptor - a woman with her own ideas about making peace with the past.

A teenage girl stumbles across the body of her classmate, Tim Pieters, hidden amongst the bushes. His family is devastated, the killer is never found. Eighteen years later, political pressure sees the murder investigation reopened. Detective Ella Marconi tracks down Georgie Riley, the student who found the body, and who is now a paramedic. Georgie seems to be telling the truth, so then why does Ella receive an anonymous phone call insisting that Georgie knows more? And is it mere coincidence that her ambulance partner, Freya, also went to the same high school? Ella's confusion increases when Tim's mother, once so willing to get the police involved, suddenly turns her back on the investigation. Meanwhile, Tim's cousin, the MP whose influence reopened the case, can't seem to do enough to help. The more Ella digs into the past, the more the buried secrets and lies are brought to light. Can she track down the killer before more people are hurt?

Roddy Doyle’s acclaimed Booker Prize-nominated novel, “a darker portrayal of midlife crisis and an expansively farcical chain of misadventures” (The New York Times Book Review) Jimmy Rabitte, Sr., is unemployed, spending his days alone and miserable. When his best friend, Bimbo, also gets laid off, they keep busy by being miserable together. Things seem to look up when they buy a decrepit fish-and-chips van and go into business, selling cheap grub to the drunk and the hungry—and keeping one step ahead of the environmental health officers. Set during the heady days of Ireland’s brief, euphoric triumphs in the 1990 World Cup, The Van is a tender and hilarious tale of male friendship and family life.

Disillusioned D.I Wallace Hammond is unconvinced when his retired commanding officer DCI Lloyd Harris, seeks Hammond's help to investigate a series of dubious suicides. Before he can identify whether there is any truth in Harris' suspicions, Hammond must make a connection between the victims. Then there is another death and Harris goes missing. As Hammond follows a trail of deceit, he becomes an unknown's killer's fixation. Now he is on a one man's crusade to catch the killer before he is the next victim; playing the hunter as well as the hunted in a terrifying game of corruption and murder.

'One morning you open your eyes and you're a teenager. Without warning, you wake up in the body of an overweight stranger who hates everyone, only wears black and has suicidal thoughts eighty-four percent of the time. And I was no exception.' This is Mia: sixteen years old, rebellious, sarcastic, determined, and always ready to face head-on the problems of teenage life: school, classmates, separated parents, and a stormy relationship with a single mother who loves her to bits. Mia has always pursued her one big dream: to get into London's Royal Ballet School. The most prestigious dance school in the world, with a gruelling selection process and fees which are way too expensive for a single mother. And just to make things even more complicated, there's her secret passion for Patrick, her best friend's brother: a boy so charming and unique that it's hard to believe he's not an angel – but, unfortunately for Mia, an angel who thinks of her as a little sister. Her passions for dance and for Patrick are so intense that there's no way Mia would ever be able to give up either. Until destiny presents her with a difficult and painful choice... For fans of Jenny Han and Holly Bourne, a charming young adult novel about first love and big dreams from bestselling Italian author Federica Bosco.

I remember a time when some ones colour was to do with their mood, or how sick they were. When British was a proud boast and a flag flown not an insult to your neighbour. When being born British was said to be like being born with one foot in heaven, before Man Made Lightning and showed us our other foot was in hell. Ulti Zucken is an old man, living alone, unclean in a dirty little house, at the end of his rubbish-strewn garden. Barely seen and almost never heard. With an interest in troubled youth and macabre fascination in the demons they dream. Nathan Trait is a wanna-be journalist who will stop at something to get his story, although he has no idea how far that will be And the rest of them, who cares? Their all mashed up, and mixed up like the rest of us, they could be dragged off any street in any town. Lost in their self-importance, greed and loathing, blind to the one true law every action has a re-action.

An unflinching account of family fragmentation, heart-rending relationships with sons, lovers and partners, and the solace of swimming. Lenka Janiurek's story really begins after the death of her mother when she was a small child, and speaks of the men who came to define her life; she is the daughter of a Polish immigrant father, the sister of five brothers, the wife of one husband, the lover of several men, and the mother of two more. Her memoir speaks of identity and trying to find your place in a country that isn't your own, within a family that doesn't feel like your own. This remarkable book traces Lenka's journey from the UK to Eastern Europe, from the 1960s to the present day. However, across the years, she remains haunted by the rage, addiction and despair of the men she is closest to. Alongside these challenges, she develops a powerful connection with the natural world, particularly water, which provides her with strength and joy.