Cirrus@Austlit

'A story of silence that must be told.

'Shy, petite Daisy Croucher lives in other people’s shadows and is practically invisible, even in her own family. She is surprised and flattered when popular pub local Jeff Singleton looks her way. ‘Skinny Minnie,’ he calls her.

'Jeff has a golden rule when it comes to women – never keep one for more than thirty days. Then he meets Daisy.

'Life with Jeff is a roller-coaster ride, the likes of which Daisy never imagined. She soon discovers that marriage consists of more than playing happy families in the suburbs. Daisy’s marriage has its secrets. Matthews positions the reader to walk a mile in Daisy’s shoes. Can she step out of the shadows and shine?'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Sam Leach is a gangster’s daughter, brought up the hard way in inner-city slums, making a living any way she can, always running from someone or something. She’s smart enough to know that her luck won’t last forever though. She has plans for a new life, perhaps a future in harbourside real estate.

'But Sam’s carefully laid plans come apart when an old friend disappears in the wilds of Asia’s Golden Triangle. So now its decision time. What’s a girl to do?

'Enlisting the help of a damaged Special Forces veteran, Sam heads off into the great unknown. From Darwin to Singapore to a muddy river bank in the wilds of western Burma, Sam is out of her depth, over her head and completely out of her comfort zone.

'As a dangerous net closes in around her, and old family secrets are revealed, Sam realises she has far more to lose than she ever imagined.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'After being compromised by involvement in a web of police corruption, Harry Becker is discharged from the New South Wales police force. Weighed down by regret, he commits to doing things right.

'Taking on what seems to be a simple investigative job, he discovers his client, Evelyn Crowley, has links to the underworld. The escalating drama takes him on a dangerous course that tests his character and new resolve. 

'Is there a difference between doing things right and doing the right thing? Is it possible for him to act honourably and survive the menace of the Mafia?'  (Publication summary)

'"Aren't you tired of a past littered with escapes? Think about the woman you're becoming!" Leonie said, trying to prevent Cassie's flight. "You could be going from the frying pan into the fire."

'The past denied and her dance championship dreams discarded, Cassie Sleight leaves home. In the seemingly idyllic coastal town of Keimera, she starts a career on the English staff of the local high school. Exposure to Mark Talbut, a man struggling to be modern yet threatened by power shifts in the workplace and in society, causes Cassie to assess her reactions as a woman and a teacher. As she does so, the secrets of her past surface. Will that past continue to choreograph Cassie's present steps? What sort of woman does she become?' (Publication summary)

'I’m not Mavis anymore.

'For years, songbird Nikki Mills (aka Mavis Mills) dreamed of the freedom and lifestyle that came with being a platinum record artist. To get there, she put her career and son first and her love life on hold.

'Now an international singing sensation, Nikki discovers her reality is very different from what she had imagined. Determined not to be caged by the fan and media circus, Nikki struggles to protect her son, their relationship and lifestyle. That struggle is complicated by her desire for a love life.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Mavis was born to be a songbird. Her parents named her after one, a bird with a distinctive song worthy of poetry. With her wings clipped by circumstance, Mavis spent six years of her life grounded and her dream of soaring flight almost forgotten. Unexpectedly, Mavis discovers she has a choice: accept a life that is ordinary or be among the one percent that shine. It is a long way to the top in the Australian music industry and more than a name needs to change in order to succeed. It is a gruelling challenge with exhausting demands and subtle traps for the uninitiated. Can Mavis make it? Can she build a better life for herself and her son? Can she have it all?' (Publisher's blurb)