Cirrus@Austlit

'After thirty years of marriage, can there be any secrets left? The charming new novel from the author of The Dressmakers of Yarrandarrah Prison

'Diana Forsyth is in the midst of planning the Big Party, a combined celebration of her husband Will's 60th and their 30th wedding anniversary. The whole family is flying in and unbeknownst to Will, Diana is planning a Big Surprise.

'But then she finds a torn scrap of paper hidden inside the folds of one of his cashmere sweaters, with the words, I forgive you. And all of a sudden, Diana realises she's not the only one keeping Big Secrets.

'As empty nesters who have just downsized from the family home, she and Will are supposed to be embracing a new promise of glorious freedom - not revisiting a past that Diana has worked very hard to leave behind.

'A witty, poignant and insightful exploration of marriage: the choices we make - or don't make, the resentments we hold, the lies we tell and what forgiveness really means.' (Publication summary)  

'Can a wedding dress save a bunch of hardened crims? The Full Monty meets Orange is the New Black in a poignantly comic story about a men's prison sewing circle.

'Derek's daughter Debbie is getting married. He's desperate to be there, but he's banged up in Yarrandarrah Correctional Centre for embezzling funds from the golf club, and, thanks to his ex-wife, Lorraine, he hasn't spoken to Debbie in years. He wants to make a grand gesture - to show her how much he loves her. But what?

'Inspiration strikes while he's embroidering a cushion at his weekly prison sewing circle - he'll make her a wedding dress. His fellow stitchers rally around and soon this motley gang of crims is immersed in a joyous whirl of silks, satins and covered buttons.

'But as time runs out and tensions rise both inside and outside the prison, the wedding dress project takes on greater significance. With lives at stake, Derek feels his chance to reconcile with Debbie is slipping through his fingers ...

'A funny, dark and moving novel about finding humanity, friendship and redemption in unexpected places.'

Source : publisher's blurb

'Dark plans are afoot for the peaceful and prosperous land of Avenal. Eleven-year-old Maia, daughter of the Lord, must put aside her dreams of competing in the annual tournament and stand up for her realm. Accompanied by her faithful pony and a rag-tag boy named Raven, Maia must undertake a journey far from home and the ones she loves. Along the way she discovered within her the power to change the world. Eleven-year-old Maia is a better rider than her older brother, and a better shot, but her father, the Lord of Avenal, refuses to let her compete in the annual tournament and prove she is as brave a warrior as him. Angry at her father’s decision, Maia rides her pony deep into the valley where she stumbles across a rag-tag boy called Raven. Little does she realise, this strange boy’s friendship will change her life forever. Dark plans are afoot for the peaceful prosperous land of Avenal and Maia is forced to undertake a journey far from home and the ones she loves. With only her pony and the annoying Raven to help her, Maia must find a way to save Avenal. And, along the way, discover within her the power to change the world.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Interior designer Christina Clemente is caught off guard by an intense affair with her charismatic client, Jackson Plummer. He quickly becomes the cure to Christina's loneliness and a surrogate father to her young daughter Bianca.

'When Jackson suggests moving to a rundown farm in the mountains, Christina soon forgets her initial hesitation and absorbs herself in restoring the rambling century-old house, Bartholemews Run, becoming obsessed with solving its mysterious history.

'But while living on the isolated farm, her once effervescent child transforms into a quiet sullen teenager and Christina increasingly struggles to connect with her.

'Because Bianca has a secret.

'And the monstrous truth threatens to destroy them all.' (Publication Summary)

'Gwen Hill has lived on Green Valley Avenue all her adult life. Here she brought her babies home, nurtured her garden and shared life's ups and downs with her best friend and neighbour, Babs. So when Babs dies and the house next door is sold, Gwen wonders how the new family will fit settle into the quiet life of this cosy community.'

'Francesca Desmarchelliers has high hopes for the house on Green Valley Avenue. More than just a new home, it's a clean slate for Frankie, who has moved her brood from Sydney's inner city to the leafy north shore street in a bid to save her marriage and keep her rambunctious family together.'

'To maintain her privacy and corral her wandering children, Frankie proposes a fence between their properties, destroying Gwen's lovingly cultivated front garden.'

'To Gwen, this as an act of war.'

'Soon the neighbours are in an escalating battle that becomes about more than just council approvals, and boundaries aren't the only things at stake.'