Cirrus@Austlit

'York, England, 1852.

'When Caroline Lawson becomes a young widow, her grief is deepened by the loss of her farm. A rash decision to travel to York to find work doesn’t turn out as she expected. Alone and vulnerable, she is unprepared for the harshness of the narrow dirty streets. With money running low and work difficult to come by, Caroline fears she will soon have no choice but to knock on the dreaded workhouse door.

However, she is not without hope, and with her new friends, feisty Trixie, and her two little sisters and the unique Mussy, Caroline learns she is stronger than she realised and that even in the worst of times, friendship is all you need.' Only Trixie and Mussy each have their own secrets, ones which will test their newly formed bonds with Caroline.
When tragedy strikes again, and secrets are revealed, Caroline knows she must protect her friends and get them out of the dangerous city to the countryside she loves, but will she find there the happiness she once had?'

'Or has the past destroyed any dreams for a happy future?' (Publication summary)

'Yorkshire Dales 1850

'As a terrible storm rages, Annabelle Wallis is shocked to find a distressed young woman at her cottage door, heavy with child. Moments later a baby girl is born. But by dawn, the mother has vanished, leaving behind the helpless child wrapped only in a silk peacock shawl.

'When news spreads that Lady Eliza Hartley, sister to wealthy estate owner, John Hartley, has been found dead, Annabelle realises the terrible secret she has stumbled on. Terrified she’ll be blamed for Eliza’s death, Annabelle flees to the filthy slums of York, where she plans to raise the precious orphan as her own.

'The cobbled streets of York’s slums are no place for a young woman like Annabelle or a Hartley babe and John Hartley is determined to bring them both home. But Annabelle proves impossible to find.

'Annabelle can’t hide forever from the wealthy Hartley family, but can she ever give up the baby she loves?'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'1914, West Yorkshire, England.

'Newly married to Noah Jackson, Beth is happily content working on her family’s market stall while Noah fulfils his dreams of being a teacher. Living in a small overcrowded pit house with the Jacksons isn’t ideal, but Beth knows it’s only for a short time and that change is around the corner. However, she could never have expected such shocking changes to happen.

'When war erupts, Beth’s peaceful life is shattered by events beyond her control. Noah enlists to fight alongside his brothers, but it is on Beaumont Farm, Beth’s family home, where life throws the most challenges.

'A devastating accident occurs that changes all their lives and the effects ripple throughout the family. Once a loving home, Beaumont Farm becomes Beth’s responsibility, one she never thought she’d have. Can she cope with the grief and burdens placed upon her as she waits for news from the battlefields of France? Can she save the farm from collapse? And will the man she loves return home safe, or will an old enemy take an opportunity to seek revenge?'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'1851 Ireland.

'After enduring years of a devastating potato famine, Ellen Kittrick is a survivor. Crop failures and a descent into poverty changes her from a happy wife and mother to a woman struggling to keep her children alive. To put food on the table and to stop the landowner's agent from tearing down their cottage due to unpaid rent, Ellen defies her family and works at an Englishman’s manor, but with her husband out of work, and a secretive brother-in-law wanting her for his own, Ellen must face every challenge with new strength.

'When several shocking events occur, it forces her to make an enormous decision. With aid coming from an unlikely source, namely Englishman Rafe Hamilton, Ellen leaves Ireland with what is left of her family to start again in a new country.

'But will the colony give her the security and happiness she longs for, especially when she has left her heart behind? Can Ellen thrive in a strange land?

'Or has she made the greatest mistake of her life?'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Australia 1853

'Settled in the colony, Ellen embarks on making a happy new life for her family and to forget the horrors of famine-struck Ireland. Married for security, she works hard developing their estate in the country to give her children the privileged life they could have only imagined in Ireland.

'However, danger lurks when a dangerous man from her past threatens her beloved sons, and when her marriage begins to crumble, all that she thought was safe is suddenly in jeopardy.

'Rafe Hamilton loves Ellen, but she is married to another, yet when he is faced with helping her once more, he doesn’t hesitate to act. Only, he makes a mistake which could cost him everything he always wanted.

'Confronted by lies and deceit, Ellen refuses to be defeated by tragedy. Instead, she gathers her strength and courage to fight for everything she has gained – no matter the cost.

'Will she rise and build an empire for her children? Can she find a way to mend her broken heart? Or will she lose all that she has struggled to achieve?'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'1913 Yorkshire, England.

'Beth Beaumont enjoys her life as a rhubarb farmer’s daughter in West Yorkshire. Working on the family’s stall selling the fruit and vegetables grown in their own fields gives her a sense of purpose and is healthier than working in a dangerous cotton mill. Although not thinking of marriage, when Beth meets Noah Jackson, a village miner, she is suddenly very aware of Noah as a man who could change her mind.

'The summer brings the two closer and their feelings deepen while Noah studies hard to fulfill his dreams of becoming a teacher and securing a better life than his parents endure. But, a disaster at the coal mine changes lives forever. Noah’s plans are shattered. His love for Beth is put at risk, and he fears they can never find happiness together. However, another man wants Beth.

'Louis Melville, the wealthy son of a local gentry family, is acutely aware of Beth’s beauty and he wants her for himself. At first, he is willing to offer marriage, but when Beth turns him down in favour of Noah, Melville, furious to be denied, reeks revenge with devastating consequences. Will Beth and Noah find the happiness they wish for or will overwhelming events break them apart?'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Cece is gifted a cottage in the Scottish Highlands. She doesn’t want a cottage or to go to Scotland. Her sisters’ gifts were much more interesting. When spurned by the man she loves, and tasked with selling the beloved family home, Cece believes she will never find the contentment her sisters enjoy.

'Despondent and alone, Cece learns that another ‘unwanted gift’ is suddenly very real and forces her to flee to Scotland and to the hated cottage, which proves to be nothing as she imagined. Old, rundown and in need of some tender care like Cece, the cottage becomes her bolt hole to lick her wounds and hide from the world.

'Only, she didn’t plan on sharing her home with a runaway orphan or finding herself the interest of the local villagers, especially the school teacher who breaks through her barriers and makes her feel special, and there’s a certain brooding Highlander that she can’t quite work out. However, just when Cece believes she might find her happy ever after, she is taught to take nothing for granted. Hurtful secrets are revealed, and happiness is destroyed. Who can she trust?

'Then, when she is at her lowest, one man shows her that not all is lost.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'When her feisty grandmama informs Prue of her intentions to take her travelling, she is excited and ready to explore outside of England. Restless, unsure of what she needs and wants, Prue arrives in India intent on adventure. However, Prue soon learns that some escapades come with a price. India is exotic and tantalising, yet also rife with unrest, and closer to home, family secrets unravel destroying lives.

'Leaving India and heartbreak behind her, a wiser Prue travels to Italy. Experiencing that life is short, Prue is determined to make the most of her holiday and have some fun, only she wasn’t prepared to meet a man who would make her question herself.

'Surviving the war was easier than enduring the quiet peace at home. In need of distraction, Brandon Forster and his friend, Vince, spend their time climbing mountains in Europe. The last thing Brandon expected was to meet an attractive English rose with the same edgy spirit as himself. When Prue reveals her past mistakes to Brandon, he must decide if she is the woman for him, but a tragic accident makes them both confront deeper feelings.

'Can they find in each other the missing element they need to make them whole or will previous anguish taint their future?'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Join the family again as they spend Christmas with Millie and Jeremy at Chateau Dumont.

'It's a time of coming together, yet sisters Prue and Cece have very different ideas about how to celebrate the holiday and their clash of personalities also causes damage to their hearts.

'All Millie wants is a happy home, yet her warring sisters try her patience and she's stuck in the middle! Not only that, but her husband Jeremy is dealing with his own problems regarding his parentage, her mother is acting strangely, and her grandmother is as opinionated as always!

'Will Christmas at the Chateau bring the family together or tear them apart?'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Having lost her father, Thea Goodson is alone in the world.

'It is true she has a husband, but Ernie is a brutal man, more inclined to use his fists to keep Thea in line than to build on their marriage. And besides, Ernie Goodson has secrets – secrets that even his wife cannot share.

'But in Victorian Yorkshire, appearances must be kept up, so Thea goes on powdering her bruises and forcing a smile as she toils in Ernie’s home and tobacco shop. There seems to be no other option.

'That is, until a handsome and well-bred stranger arrives to set up shop next door…

'Can Thea escape her misery and break from the conventions of society? Or will the clutches of her abusive husband confine her forever?'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Surviving a shipwreck was the least of her problems.

'Louisa Reynolds loses her brother when their ship goes down in a storm off the west coast of Australia. Stranded and alone on a deserted beach she is rescued by a young Aboriginal girl, who keeps her alive, and teaches her the ways of the native people.

'When eventually Louisa stumbles into the nearest town of Albany, she must gather her strength to start again. Befriended by two men, old gentleman George and the dashing Connor, she finds that life is worth living. The unexpected friendship with both Connor and George gives her new joy. She’s invited to stay at George’s sheep station. However, as a single woman in the company of men, she is soon the talk of gossips.

'Her feelings for Connor intensify, but when she learns more about him, she is shattered by a revelation and it is gentle George who she suddenly marries. Only, settling into station life comes with its own problems when Louisa realises that George has money problems and is close to losing everything. Confronted by a devastating fire and a gang of bushrangers, Louisa feels as though her world is spinning out of control.

'Can she save the sheep station, and how long can she deny the love she feels for Connor?'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'The Great War is over, and Millie is ready to leave her loving family home and be a wife to Jeremy who is everything she had hoped for.

'Until…

'Not long after their wedding, Millie discovers Jeremy is affected by shell shock and moving into his late father’s cold dark estate escalates the problem. Millie tries to help, but Jeremy grows more distant and befriends a homeless, wounded ex-soldier, Monty, who has secrets...

'As Millie’s distrust of Monty grows, a rift is created between her and Jeremy and when he leaves to receive hospital treatment, she is left feeling abandoned. When her family is dealt a terrible loss, it is Millie who must be the strongest. However, just when she feels things couldn’t become worse, she suffers her own heartbreaking tragedy.

'Grieving and alone, Millie wonders if her marriage can ever be mended, but she can’t give up without a fight.

'Will a new home for her and Jeremy in a foreign country be the answer, or will the events of the past destroy everything she wished for?'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Orphan, Victoria Carlton is brought up by her uncle, a banker, to be a lady and make a good marriage. Yet, she is drawn to help the poor families in the slums, much to her family’s disgust. When her uncle dies suddenly, her cousins blame Victoria, and she is thrown out of the house with nothing.

'Victoria flees to the poor side of York to start again in a world that is full of perils. To combat the heartache of being without her family, she befriends the destitute women and children in the slums, but such friendships come with the danger of disease, and increasing poverty, and the threat of a brutal man could cost her everything.

'Can Victoria find the security she has lost? Will a certain doctor be the man she can give her heart to? Or will the ghosts of the past return to take away everything she has worked so hard for?' (Publication summary)

'Charlotte Brookes flees her lecherous guardian, McBride, taking her younger sister with her. After a year on the road, they stumble into a Yorkshire village where the Wheelers, owners of the village shop, take them in. This new life is strange for Charlotte, but preferable to living with McBride or surviving on the roads.

'Harry Belmont is an important man in the village, but he’s missing something in his life. His budding friendship with Charlotte gives him hope she will feel more for him one day, and he will marry the woman he yearns for. When McBride discovers where Charlotte lives, his threats begin. Harry fights to keep Charlotte safe, but World War I erupts and Harry enlists.

'Left to face a world of new responsibilities, and Harry’s difficult sister, Charlotte must run the gauntlet of family disputes, McBride's constant harassment, and the possibility of the man she loves being killed. Can Charlotte find the happiness that always seems under threat, and will Harry return home to her?'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'1914, Australia. As war is declared, the idyllic world of Blue Water Station is torn apart when Oliver, the eldest grandson and heir, shares his desire to enlist in the army. His enthusiasm ignites his brother, cousins and friends to do the same, but upsets his sister, Tilly.

'After a tragic family incident, Tilly is left to run the cattle station and take care of the older folk. A chance meeting with a sophisticated Lieutenant opens up a friendship through letters, but it’s a rogue stockman who attracts her attention with dire consequences. With the men at war, and her heart pulled in two directions, Tilly must grow up quickly and face the consequences of her rash decisions. Will she find her own happiness?

'Surviving a baptism of battle fire in Gallipoli, Turkey, Oliver and the men are sent to France and feel the brutal force of the Western Front. The only glimmer of light for Oliver is his relationship with Jessica, an army nurse. But as the terrors of war impact him, he feels the heavy guilt of encouraging the others to follow him into combat. Will he, and they, ever make it home to Blue Water? Can the grandchildren of Kitty McKenzie survive the horrors of war?'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Grace Woodruff fights for her sisters' rights to happiness while sacrificing any chance for her own. The eldest of seven daughters, Grace is the core of strength around which the unhappy members of the Woodruff family revolve. As her disenchanted mother withdraws to her rooms, Grace must act as a buffer between her violent, ambitious father and the sisters who depend upon her. Rejected by her first love and facing a spinster's future, she struggles to hold the broken family together through her father's infidelity, one sister's alcoholism, and another's out-of-wedlock pregnancy by an unsuitable match.

'Caring for an illegitimate half-brother affords Grace an escape, though short-lived. Forced home by illness and burdened with dwindling finances, Grace faces fresh anguish --and murder-- when her first love returns to wreck havoc in her life. All is not lost, however. In the midst of tragedy, the fires of her heart are rekindled by another. Will the possibility of true love lead Grace to relinquish her responsibilities in the house of women and embrace her own right to happiness?'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Halifax, 1876.

'On the death of her mother and sister, Isabelle Gibson is left to fend for herself and her brother in a privately-run workhouse. After the matron's son attacks her, Isabelle decides to escape him and a life of drudgery by agreeing to marry a moorland farmer she has never met. But this man, Farrell, is a drunkard and a bully in constant feud with his landlord, Ethan Harrington.

'When Farrell bungles a robbery and deserts her, Isabelle and Ethan are thrown together as she struggles to save the farm. Both are married and must hide their growing love. But despite the secrecy, Isabelle draws strength from Ethan as faces from the past return to haunt her and a tragedy is set to strike that will change all of their lives forever.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Can she hold on to her dreams ...?

'It’s 1850 and the Noble family have travelled to the other side of the world to start a new life after scandal drove them from their native England. Pippa Noble is determined to reclaim their honour by making her father’s plan for an outback farm reality, although her ambition is frowned upon by a society that has very set ideas about a woman’s place …

'Pippa learns the hard way about the unforgiving nature of the bush, sometimes with devastating consequences. And when unfortunate circumstance leads to Pippa tending the farm alone, it is the friendship of neighbouring estate owner Gil Ashford-Smith that helps her through.

'Then an unexpected visitor from England arrives, putting Pippa’s dreams in jeopardy. But she refuses to let go. She will hold onto her family’s land, even if it means losing everything else …'

Source: Publisher's blurb.