Cirrus@Austlit

'In 1941, Darwin is bombed, and the war against the Germans and the Japanese gets alarmingly close. While those in the area are raising money for the war effort with backyard concerts, the kids on Bolton Road have their own ideas about how to help out. Notices around the town warn that loose talk kills. Are spies passing information to the enemies right under their noses? Mable convinces Nancy, Janet, Fred and Lennie that catching spies is the best way to do their part. But will their efforts catch the traitors...or make the kids targets?' (Publication summary)

'The House of Ramesses falters as Tausret relinquishes the throne upon the death of her husband, King Seti. Amenmesse's young son Siptah will become king until her infant son is old enough to rule. Tausret, as Regent, and the king's uncle, Chancellor Bay, hold tight to the reins of power, and vie for complete control of the kingdoms.

'Assassination changes the balance of power and Chancellor Bay attempts a coup...

Tausret's troubles mount as she also faces a challenge from Setnakhte, an ageing son of the Great Ramesses who believes Seti was the last legitimate king. If Setnakhte gets his way, he will destroy the House of Ramesses and set up his own dynasty of kings.'

source: Publisher's blurb.

'Merenptah is dead after only nine years on the throne and his son Seti is king in his place. He rules from the northern city of Men-nefer, while his elder brother Messuwy, convinced the throne is his by right, plots rebellion in the south. The kingdoms are tipped into bloody civil war, with brother fighting against brother for the throne of a united Egypt. On one side is Messuwy, now crowned as King Amenmesse and his ruthless General Sethi; on the other, young King Seti and his wife Tausret. But other men are weighing up the chances of wresting the throne from both brothers and becoming king in their place. The House of Ramesses crumbles under the onslaught.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'The school holidays have a bad start. Belinda's father doesn't arrive home and it is raining. The news is that his car went over the cliff into the surf beach, but there is no body. Belinda, her mother and Kate stay at Amanda's family beach house to be near where the car went over. Belinda thinks that her father maybe got washed up further up the coastline and perhaps could be sick or ill somewhere in the back country. The girls discover how unusual their three kittens are. When held, all animal speech can be understood. So with the help of the kittens the three girls spend their wet school holidays searching. There is a helpful dog, grouchy possums and a dopey old horse involved before Belinda's father is found at last.' (Publication summary)

'Belinda's unusual grandmother, with her unusual cat, Senna, is looking after Belinda while her parents are away. Belinda is thrilled because unusual things always happen when grandmother comes to visit... And this visit is no exception, first the girls learn of the missing Will that will save old Miss Higgins, then the petrified gryphon on Miss Higgins' roof accidentally gets woken. If a hungry, angry gryphon wasn't bad enough, Belinda and her friends learn that they must find the gryphon's missing ankh, because it might know the location of the Will, and it won't rest till the ankh is found...' (Publication summary)

'Belinda is an only child, and lonely. When her mother has to leave home to recover from her illness, her grandmother arrives to look after her. Belinda discovers to her delight that she has a very unusual grandmother and her grandmother's cat, a superior Siamese called Senna is equally unusual. Belinda's life suddenly becomes full of friends and adventures. She learns to fly a moth eaten carpet to visit her mother, turn a big black bear back into her father and saves Senna from certain death. ' (Publication summary)

'Samantha and James Hay have been advised that their missing daughter Gaia and Yowie nursemaid Cindy have been located in ancient Australia. The scientist, Dr. Xanatuo, an alien scientist who, along with a lost tribe of Neanderthals and other beings who are working to help mankind, has discovered a way to send them back in time to be reunited with Gaia. Ernie, the old Aboriginal tracker and Garagh, leader of the Neanderthals, along with friends Ratana and Nathan, all characters from the first two books of the trilogy, will accompany them. This team of intrepid adventurers have another mission for the journey along with aiding the Hayes' quest, which is paramount to changing a terrible wrong which exists in the present time. Lauded as the 'Australian Jurassic Park' Looking Glass is a mixture of Aboriginal mythology, present day UFO activity and pure science. It guarantees to please any reader who enjoys well researched, action packed and mind blowing events.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Torn between the wish to find her missing sister Samantha and the fear of her demonic ex-lover Morgan Steele, Andromeda Jones agrees to go on a dangerous mission and soon finds herself entangled in a web of professional jealousy, political betrayal and greed. She helps construct Vox Dei, a machine that ostensibly is built to eliminate wars. But what is its true nature? Who is pulling the strings? The experiment gets out of control, dark powers are unleashed and the danger to mankind relentlessly unfolds .

'Strange, evil shadows are using the Vox Dei, Sam and Morgan to try to get through to our world and this relentless team of beings, some human, some almost immortal, know the time is near when Earth's final destiny will be decided.

'Soon, the team from Australia will come to her aid. James, Max, Amaru, Garagh and the others use the portals to arrive in California. This time, they have aid in the Native Americans and their mythological powers. This fearless team of warriors came to do battle, knowing it may be their last. They know the battle to the save the Earth is not finished. Far from it.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Scarab and her brother Smenkhkare are in exile in Nubia, but are gathering an army to wrest control of Egypt from the boy king Tutankhamen and his controlling uncle, Ay. Meanwhile, the kingdoms are beset by internal troubles and the Amorites are pressing hard against the northern borders. Generals Horemheb and Paramessu must fight a war on two fronts while deciding where their loyalties lie - with the former king Smenkhkare or with the new young king in Thebes. Smenkhkare and Scarab march on Thebes with their native army to meet the legions of Tutankhamen on the plains outside the city gates. The fate of Egypt and the 18th dynasty hang in the balance as two brothers battle for supremacy and the throne of the Two Kingdoms.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'The mysteries of Australia may just hold the answers mankind has been searching for millennium to find. When Doctor James Hay, a university scientist who studies the paranormal mysteries in Australia, finds an obelisk of carved volcanic rock on sacred Aboriginal land in northern Queensland, he knows it may hold the answers he has been seeking. And when a respected elder of the Aboriginal people instructs him to take up the gauntlet and follow his heart, James, Spencer, an old friend and an award-winning writer, Samantha Louis, along with her cameraman and two of James' Aboriginal students, start their quest for the truth. Glass House will take you deep into the mysteries that surround the continent of Australia, from its barren deserts to the depths of its rainforest and even deeper into its mysterious mountains. Along the way, the secrets of mankind and the ultimate answer to 'what happens now?' just might be answered. Love, greed, murder, and mystery abound in this action-packed paranormal/thriller.'

'Ever had one of those days when your car is nearly totalled by a flying cow and the only clothing you can find during a house fire is an old robe that doesn't close in front? Well misery loves company, so join Karen Fainges as she journeys through some of the moments in her life that didn't seem as funny at the time. Here is a family that live in "interesting times".'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Ned Abernathy is a hot-tempered young cowboy in the small town of Hammond's Bluff in the Dakota Territories in 1876. In a drunken argument with his best friend Billy over a girl, he guns him down. He flees, and wanders the plains, forests and hills of the Dakota Territories, certain that every man's hand is against him. Horse rustlers, marauding Indians, killers, gold prospectors and French trappers cross his path and lead to complications, as do persistent apparitions of what Ned believes is the ghost of his friend Billy, come to accuse him of murder. He finds love and loses it, he finds gold in the Black Hills and must defend his new-found wealth against greedy men. Finally, he comes to terms with who he is and what he has done. Ned confronts the ghosts of his past and returns to Hammond's Bluff, where a shocking surprise awaits him at the end of the haunted trail.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Australian Professor Ian Delaney is single-minded in his determination to prove his theory that one can discover the moment that the life force leaves the body. After succumbing to the temptation to kill a girl under scientifically controlled conditions, he takes an offer of work in St Louis, hoping to leave the undiscovered crime behind him. In America, Wayne Richardson seeks revenge by killing his ex-girlfriend, believing it will give him the upper hand, a means to seize control following their breakup. Wayne quickly discovers that he enjoys killing and begins to seek out young women who resemble his dead ex-girlfriend. Ian and Wayne meet, and when Ian recognizes the symptoms of violent delusion he employs Wayne to help him further his research. Despite the police closing in, the two killers manage to evade identification as the death toll rises. John Barnes, the detective in charge of the case, is frantic, willing to try anything to catch his killer. With time running out, he looks desperately for answers. Will John get them before it's too late?'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'January 1945, and the Soviet Army is poised for the final push through East Prussia and Poland to Berlin. Elisabet Daeker and her five young sons are in Königsberg, East Prussia, and have heard the stories of Russian atrocities. They seek to escape to the perceived safety of Germany. This is the story of their struggle to survive, of the hardships endured at the hands of Nazi hardliners, of Soviet troops bent on rape, pillage and murder, and of Allied cruelty in the Occupied Zones of post-war Germany. 'We Came From Königsberg' is based on a true story gleaned from the memories of family members sixty years after the events, from photographs and documents, and from published works of non-fiction describing the times and events that are described in the narrative. Elisabet Daeker's sons, and subsequent daughters, all have families of their own, and have carved out meaningful lives for themselves in far-flung parts of the world. One thing they all claim, though, is - we came from Königsberg.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'A small boy discovers that being a Jew in Germany can be a dangerous thing. Fear prompts Konrad Wengler to put his faith aside and he tries desperately to forget his heritage. He fights in the Great War and is wounded, becomes a policeman in his tiny Bavarian town, where he falls under the spell of the fledgling Nazi Party. He joins the Party in patriotic fervour and becomes a Lieutenant of Police and Schutzstaffel (SS). In the course of his duties as policeman, he offends a powerful Nazi official, who starts an SS investigation of this troublesome police Lieutenant. When war breaks out, he joins the Police Battalions and is sent to Poland where he has to witness the atrocities being committed upon his fellow Jews. The SS investigators have discovered Konrad's origins and follow him into Poland. He is arrested and sent to Mauthausen Concentration Camp. Suddenly, Konrad must face what it means to be a Jew and fight for survival. He has friends on the outside, a wife and a lawyer, but will they be enough to counter the might of the Nazi machine?'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Alexander the Great has returned from India and set up his court in Babylon. Nikometros and a band of loyal Scythians journey deep into the heart of Persia to join the Royal court. Nikometros finds himself embroiled in the intrigues and wars of kings, generals, and merchant adventurers as he strives to provide a safe haven for his lover and friends. The fate of an Empire hangs in the balance, and Death walks beside Nikometros as events precipitate a Funeral in Babylon.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'The chief of the tribe is dead, killed by his son's treachery; and the priestess, the lover of the young cavalry officer, Nikometros, is carried off into the mountains. Nikometros and his friends set off in pursuit. Death rides with them and by the time they return, the tribes are at war. Nikometros is faced with the choice of attempting to become chief himself or leaving the people he has come to love and respect, returning to his duty as an army officer in the Empire of Alexander.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Three thousand years after the reigns of the Amarnan Kings, the archaeologists who discovered the inscriptions in Syria, journey to Egypt to find the tomb of Smenkhkare and his sister Scarab, and the fabulous treasure they think is there. Unscrupulous men, and religious fanatics, also seek the tomb, either to plunder it or to destroy it. Can the gods of Egypt protect their own, or must they rely on modern day men and women of science?'

Source: Publisher's blurb.