Cirrus@Austlit

'There's the law. Or there's justice.

Most acts of violence are pretty random. But murdering someone and impaling their head on the railing outside the Royal Courts of Justice... that takes planning. 

'And when the pathologist finds a page from a book rammed down the dead man's throat, DI Charlie George thinks it's safe to assume that someone, somewhere, wants to send a message.

'But people who have the resources to plan a murder like that also have the smarts not to get caught. So Charlie knows he has a problem.

'Whoever the killer is, he doesn't think they've finished handing out their version of justice just yet. He just wishes he could summon the enthusiasm to stop them. Because sometimes people really do get what's coming to them.

'And Charlie and his team are left wondering which side of the law is justice really on? ' (Publication summary)

'Three can keep a secret. If two of you are dead...Two women are snatched off the streets of London in one weekend.

DI Charlie George and his team get to work. The lives of these young women - one of them a mother - are on the line, and the clock is ticking.

'When they catch a lucky break from a CCTV camera, Charlie is sure they have their man. And that's when he gets his first surprise. Because nothing about this case is simple and not everyone is quite what they seem.

'Charlie's job is to find the missing women and get to the truth.But some people would rather the truth stays hidden - even when the bodies start to pile up...' (Publication summary)

'From the author of The Unkillable Kitty O’Kane comes a gripping novel about finding the American Dream—and what it costs.

'In 1913, Sarah Levine sails to New York to start a promising new life with her husband, Micha. Unable to conceive, Sarah despairs of ever having a family of her own. Her dream finally comes true when Micha brings home an abandoned baby girl. Overjoyed, Sarah names the foundling Liberty. She never doubts her husband’s story…not until after Micha’s death, when she discovers the truth hidden in his belongings.

'From struggling to raise Liberty alone in a Lower East Side tenement to building a fashion empire, the only constants in Sarah’s life are her love for her daughter and the terrible secret that she must keep. Sarah gives Liberty everything she has, but the truth cannot stay hidden forever. As Liberty grows to womanhood and the world prepares to go to war again, Sarah is asked to make one last impossible choice…'

(Source: publisher's blurb)

'A dead child is discovered in the bushes next to a disused railway line. For DI Charlie George it looks like an open and shut case: Charlie has a prime suspect and all he has to do is prove it. But the more he digs the more he finds, and the line of investigation soon becomes murky as he is drawn deeper into a web of deadly secrets.

'And what if he's wrong? Even as their suspect's alibi falls apart, Charlie realises he is not the only one in the frame. There's also the dead girl's father; how was it he knew where to find the body - in the dark? Very soon Charlie finds himself sitting in an interrogation room, staring across the desk at true evil and wondering where it comes from. Is it because of an abused childhood, a brutal home? Or is it born with no reason at all?

'Charlie doesn't have the answer. All he knows is that he has to find their killer before another child ends up in the morgue.' (Publication summary)

'England, 1340

'One princess. Two husbands. By order of the King.

'The true story of Joan of Kent, the English princess who defied her family and her king to win the man she loved.

'A princess falls in love with a handsome knight; the stuff of fairy tales, but not very remarkable, even in an age where love was hardly a prerequisite for marriage.

'It is the princess, Joan of Kent, who is remarkable. Forbidden by the king to marry, she does so anyway, in secret. When the King discovers what she has done, he is furious. He needs her to make political alliances and forces her to bigamy.

'But she will not give up. For ten years she defies them all.

'Will she succeed – and what will happen if she does?'

Source : publisher's blurb

"So many ways to die and he knows every one of them.

"When a priest is found crucified in a derelict North London chapel, it makes a dramatic change for DI Charlie George and his squad at Essex Road. The brutal murder could not be further from their routine of domestic violence and stabbings on the estates.

"And that’s only the beginning . . .

"On Christmas Eve, a police officer goes missing and his colleagues can’t help but anticipate the worst. It turns out they’re right to when eventually the body is found and they discover he’s been stoned to death.

"As tensions rise, it’s up to Charlie and his team to venture into the city’s cold underbelly to try and find an answer to the madness — before anyone else dies a martyr’s death."

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'France, 1206

'When Philip of Vercy returns to his lands from his crusade in the Holy Land, he discovers that his life and his country have changed utterly while he has been gone.  He has lost his beloved wife, now his only son is dying.

'He hears about a young woman, Fabricia Berenger – some call her a witch – who lives far to the south, in the Languedoc. People say she can perform miracles. He sets off to find her.

'But the south of France is home to a heretic Christian sect, the Cathars, and the Pope has ordered a crusade against them. The ‘witch’ who Philip is searching for has sought refuge amongst them, in the mist-shrouded mountains.

'If he’s going to find her, Philip and his liege men must battle their way into hell itself. As the Languedoc convulses into flame and revolt, Philip is drawn inexorably into a vortex of passion, vengeance and mystery.

'One more step, and he knows he can never, ever, go back.'

Source : publisher's blurb

'Seville, 1489

'The end of the Reconquista.

'Diego Sanchis is Seville’s most famous painter; his glorious art fills every church in the famous city. But for all the beauty in his soul, Diego himself is no oil painting. Nobody but his father loves him and Diego likes it that way.

'Until one day he is asked to take on a new student.

'Mercedes Goncalvez is the most beautiful young woman in the city, and her father is rich and powerful. What could such a woman possibly see in Diego?

'But there are many ways to see beauty. And beyond the dungeons of the Inquisition; beyond betrayal and torture; and even as the Christian cannons are turned towards the heavenly gardens of the Alhambra, Diego and Mercedes find true beauty among the ashes of last hopes.

'A medieval romance set in Seville and the last days of the Alhambra.

'A story of love, art and genius.'

Source : publisher's blurb

'When fiery and idealistic Kitty O’Kane escapes the crushing poverty of Dublin’s tenements, she’s determined that no one should ever suffer like she did. As she sets out to save the world, she finds herself at the forefront of events that shaped the early twentieth century. While working as a maid, she survives the sinking of the Titanic. As a suffragette in New York’s Greenwich Village, she’s jailed for breaking storefront windows. And traveling war-torn Europe as a journalist, she’s at the Winter Palace when it’s stormed by the Bolsheviks. Ultimately she returns to her homeland to serve as a nurse in the Irish Civil War.

'During Kitty’s remarkable journey, she reunites with her childhood sweetheart, Tom Doyle, but Tom doesn’t know everything about her past—a past that continues to haunt her. Will Kitty accept that before she can save everyone else, she needs to find a way to save herself? Or will the sins of her past stop her from pursuing her own happiness?'

(Source: publisher's blurb)

' THE APOCALYPSE IS NOW! "They set out that day to sail for Vinland. Tromdur Svensson planned to be away for just three years. How the gods were laughing at him, at all of them, on that day." -from The Saga of Harold Half-Face 1000 AD. When the North Men from Ingolfsfell sail from their icy fjord in a single longboat, to establish a settlement across the great sea, they thought they would be gone for just three years. They had no name for the Atlantic then; and America they called 'Vinland', the place of meadows. But a storm takes them off course to an island even the legendary Leif Erikson had never seen. These natives are not savages in skins; and they do not build their homes from hides. They live instead in a great city, in the shadow of a looming volcano. And they do not hunt animals; they hunt men with white hair and blue eyes. Their gods come from the skies, and the Apocalypse is ... now. "There is a river that gives us life. You may dam it; you may swim against it. But in the end, it will flow to the sea, with or without you." -from The Book of the Stars, a manuscript of unknown origin, written in Mayan glyphs circa 1000 AD and found in a Viking burial mound in Greenland, 2001' (publication blurb).

'Amsterdam, 1628

'The Utrecht leaves Holland on an eight-month voyage to the other side of the world. The ship is tiny and overcrowded and navigation around the Horn to the East Indies is down to the skipper’s dead reckoning – guesswork.

'Below decks, Michiel van Texel is a sergeant on the company’s coin, on his way to Batavia to fight the Mataram. It’s a hard life but the only one he knows.

'He sees a fine lady standing on the high deck with the captain, but does not give her a second glance. At any other time, a fine lady like Cornelia Noorstrandt would be far above the likes of him.

'But not this time.

'Their destinies intertwine near the Great Southland, just as a mutiny is fomenting below decks. When the ship founders on the jagged reefs of the Houtman Rocks surviving the wreck is the least of their worries.

'As the noble gentlemen around them reveal themselves for what they really are, Michiel proves to be the only man with the honour and courage to save Cornelia from the bloody nightmare that follows.

'He makes her one promise: “Even if God forsakes you, I will find you.”

'For some men, words are just words. For Michiel, it’s an oath he intends to keep.'

Source : publisher's blurb

'Babylon, 323 BC

'What if Alexander the Great had not died young?

'In this alternative history, he has survived every effort to kill him. Restless, ruthless, he wonders which world to conquer next. He has a powerful new weapon—the war elephants he brought back from India.

'As Alexander plots, a war elephant named Colossus violently lashes out against the soldiers who are tormenting him, and only one trainer has the courage to calm the massive beast. When Alexander notices the young man’s bravery, Gajendra begins a meteoric climb through the ranks of the Macedonian army, protected by the fierce but devoted Colossus.

'As captain of the elephants, Gajendra is deeply loyal to Alexander, the great soldier who plucked him from obscurity. But just when all he has dreamed of is within his grasp, he faces a terrible choice.

'Betray his beloved general – or betray his soul.

'Colossus is an epic tale of alternative history, of immense evil, pitiless gods and burning cities, of dwarves, priestesses and kings, and of a mysterious bond between a man and a wild animal.'

Source : publisher's blurb

'She was taught to obey. Now she has learned to rebel.

'When Princess Isabella is offered as bride to King Edward of England, for her it’s love at first sight. But her dashing husband has a secret, one that threatens to tear their marriage—and England—apart. As Isabella navigates the deadly maelstrom of Edward’s court, her cleverness and grace allow her to subvert Edward’s ill-advised plans and gain influence. But soon the young queen is faced with an impossible choice, taking a breathtaking gamble that will forever change the course of history.

'In the tradition of Philippa Gregory and Elizabeth Chadwick, Isabella is the story of a queen who took control of her destiny—and the throne.'

Source : publisher's blurb

'And Rishou Hass’an thought: How many more sons must I bury?

'Every father on both sides of the divide are now thinking the same thing; the United Nations votes for partition, giving the Jews their own state for the first time since the time of the Romans. But in reality it just means all out war, with the armies of Egypt And Syria and Jordan mass on the borders just waiting for the British to leave.

'But even now, nothing is simple, as Jew turns against Jew and Arab turns against Arab. As the Jews prepare to defend the Old City they have to war with the Hassidim who just want them to leave; in Rab’allah old Zayyad Hass’an finds one of the Arab mercenary commanders raping his wife.

Some men still speak for peace; men like Rishou Hass’an. But how can you speak for peace when the Jews raze your village and you come home to find your wife and your children in bloody tatters in the ruins of your house?

'And so the apocalypse looms, with the fight for the ancient shrines of Jerusalem the final battleground. Rishou’s Jewish lover huddles behind the rubble of a synagogue, prepared to fight to the death; so does Netanel Rosenberg, hoping for a noble to death to release him from the memories of all he did to survive Auschwitz.

'In the end we all become what we hate. As Jerusalem falls and the battle for Israel enters its final days, both sides fight for a peace that may never come. But still they hope to find hope for the future in a land soaked by the blood of the past.

'Israel is the last book in the Jerusalem series, telling the story of the creation of the modern state of Israel in 1948. It is told from the points of view of the Arabs and the Jews, the scenes behind the acts of fury you see every night on the evening news. ' (Publication summary)

'Anything would be better than this, Netanel Rosenberg thought. Anything at all.

Even Auschwitz.

'1946: after surviving the concentration camps, Netanel Rosenberg finds himself shipwrecked on a beach in Israel, and people are still shooting at him. This time it’s the British.

'But at least in Zion, the Jews are organized and now they’re fighting back. He joins the Jewish militia - the Haganah - and dedicates his life to carving out a homeland for himself and other refugees from the Holocaust, and hopes to find his own redemption there.

'But in the hills above Jerusalem, others are getting ready to fight for their homeland, too. Zayyad Hass’an has watched while Palestine has been sold off piecemeal by the Arab muftis and now his sons are getting ready to fight to take it back. He wonders how many more of his sons will die while the muftis get fatter and richer off the war.

'As Palestine descends into violence, some still reach out for love; Rishou Hass’an for a Jewish Haganah agent he met long ago labouring on her father’s kibbutz; Netanel Rosenberg for the girl he loved in Germany when the world was still an innocent place.

'But what will they do when the war comes?

'The Arabs want the Jews out, and the Jews are getting ready to claim Zion, no longer trusting even the British overlords to protect them. And if they cannot protect them, then they must go too.

'High on the Hill of Evil Counsel in Jerusalem, one British official holds the key to the future of Palestine. If he cannot be bought then he must be persuaded.

As two nations wrestle with their shared past, men and women on both sides are torn apart by love and loyalty. Do we follow our hearts, do we stay true to our conscience? Or do we follow our flag, even if it means killing the people we love the most?

'This is the third book in the Jerusalem series, tracing the roots of the Jewish-Arab conflict in the Middle East, from the holocaust in Nazi Germany to the creation of the state of Israel in 1948. It is the story behind the scenes that you see every night on the evening news. ' (Publication summary)

'Frau Rosenberg,

We enclose the ashes of your husband, Josef Rosenberg, who was shot while trying to escape from protective custody at Dachau. He was cremated in line with official government policy. There is an outstanding charge for transport which will be sent to you separately.

Ernst Hasler,

Commandant,

Dachau K.Z.

'Netanel Rosenberg could feel the net closing in. After his father dies in a Nazi concentration camp he tries everything to get himself and his mother out of Germany - even if it means leaving behind the woman he loves.

'Meanwhile in Palestine, other loyalties are being tested; while the Arabs in British-controlled Palestine openly support Hitler, Zayyad Hass’an, in tiny Rab’allah, wonders whether the muftis in the city will lead them to freedom - or just tyranny of a different kind.

'But what does it mean to be an Arab in such a fast changing world? His son Rishou learns he cannot be a true Muslim - and be with the woman he loves. A man is whatn he is born to, and Sarah Landauer will always be forbidden to him.

'For the Hass’ans in Rab’allah, for the Rosenbergs in Bavaria, there are no easy solutions.

'When Netanel Rosenberg is sent to Auschwitz, he loses everything but hope. Little by little he forgets the good Jew he once was in order to survive. He lets go of everything but the dream of one day regaining his freedom and finding a place where a Jew might never be afraid again.

'Two men, two women; two vastly different worlds. From the freezing plains of Poland to the sun baked hills of Palestine, from a world in the grip of war, all that matters is the desperate will to survive.

'This is the second book in the Jerusalem series, tracing the roots of the Jewish-Arab conflict in the Middle East, from the holocaust in Nazi Germany to the creation of the state of Israel in 1948. It is the story behind the scenes that you see every night on the evening news. ' (Publication summary)

'The story of how Palestine became Israel

'‘Rishou Hass'an had decided it was impossible to pick apples all day with a permanent erection …’

'Palestine, 1933. The centuries old rhythms of sleepy Rab’allah have been disturbed by the building of a Jewish kibbutz on the swamp in the valley below the village. The Jews are the future, the twentieth century. The Jews are the enemy. The Jews are their new neighbors.

'The Jews, in the shape of Sarah Landauer are also beautiful, tempting - and a direct challenge to the way the men of Rab’allah have always lived.

'Zayyad Hass’an, Rishou’s father and muktar of the village, can see the future and it fills him with dread. On one side the Jews; on the other, the Britishers and the Arab muftis in Jerusalem, who don’t give a damn about them either. His son, Wagil wants to rise up and fight for Islam. But what is Islam? What is Palestine? And where will the fighting lead them?

'Far away in Europe, another father faces the same impossible dilemmas as Zayyad. Josef Rosenberg has been a respected, even beloved, man in Ravenswald. But he is also Jewish.

'As the Nazis take a hold in his homeland, he watches with despair as his only son falls in love with a German girl. Once he would have objected that his son was finding a match beneath him; now it is his son who battles prejudice of quite another kind.

'Two fathers; two sons; two very different women. A world about to convulse into war. How can they protect all they know and love from the cataclysm to come?

'From the snow-hushed winter streets of Nazi Bavaria, to the burned hills of Palestine, from the Alte Post to the Al-Aqsa, the Dome of the Rock, romance and terror collide in a novel of forbidden loves and ancient hatreds.

'This is the first book in the Jerusalem series, tracing the roots of the Jewish-Arab conflict in the Middle East, from the exodus from Nazi Germany to the creation of the state of Israel in 1948. It is the story behind the scenes that you see every night on the evening news. ' (Publication summary)

'The Holy Land, 1260

'Josseran Sarrazini is chosen to escort the Pope’s emissary on a diplomatic mission to the all-conquering Mongol horde in an effort to save all Christendom from destruction. But although he serves as a Templar warrior, Josseran is not all that he appears to be – and he despises the Pope’s man on sight.

'Now they have to spend nine months in each other’s company on the most dangerous and most inhospitable journey on the earth – across the legendary deserts of Persia, through the horrific black hurricanes of the Taklimakan, along the entire spider’s web of the Silk Road to Khubilai Khan’s legendary capital at Xanadu.

'When he sets out, Josseran cannot know then that he will never see his home again. Because somewhere out there, there’s a Tatar princess who feels just as much an exile among her own kind as he does. 

'From the Storehouse of Winds to the Palace of Myriad Tranquillities, from the Pamirs and Hindu Kush to the legendary Xanadu and the dazzling court of Khubilai Khan, this is adventure on a breath-taking scale.'

Source : publisher's blurb