Cirrus@Austlit

'Strong female protagonists lead a cast of characters with lives we recognize and know, crossing paths in intimate, surprising and erotic ways. The ripple effect of one tragic event shapes each character’s experiences, but in the end it is their individual need for connection that truly binds them.

'Six Degrees uses the allure, the action or the absence of physical connection to explore these everyday character’s flaws, quirks and strengths. For the first time, Honey has made sexual attraction the intriguing hero of each story. ' (Publication summary)

'The Good Greek Girl will make you laugh, cry, gasp and smile, written with the honesty Maria’s story deserved, and the elegance and craft expected from such an inspiring public intellectual.

Maria Katsonis is the good Greek girl who grew up above her parents’ milk bar and shared a bedroom with her yiayia. That is until university where she discovered her rebellious side, realized her true sexuality and abandoned nine-tenths of an economics degree for a career in the theatre.

Furthering her studies later in life, Maria attended Harvard University and left with a Masters of Public Administration. Little did she know, in five years time, she would be alone on a bed in a white psych ward fighting for her life.' (Jane Curry Publishing)

'The start of World War 2 changed women’s lives and their place in Australian society forever. Thousands of women ventured where few had gone before – into the services and workplaces previously considered the sole preserve of men.

'In preparation for her book Between the Dances, Jacqueline Dinan, interviewed over three hundred women around Australia to collect the last first hand stories from World War Two. Revealing poignant and personal conversations, photographs and letters, Between the Dances is a testament to real life during World War 2.

'From Malta to Australia, New Zealand to the UK, the challenges and adventures faced by these women were unprecedented. Their passion, courage, resilience and commitment during wartime were all a precursor to the astonishing changes brought about by this incredible generation.

'For the first time, women were doing their bit as nurses in war zones, members of the services, farmhands, factory workers or volunteers in community service. The last tradition left was the weekly dance, which ceremoniously brought these courageous women and men together for a quickstep, fox trot and brief respite from the rigours of wartime.' (Publication summary)

'Benworden is a fictional story about Dylan, a young boy who attends a boarding school in a small country town steeped in gold mining history. On his first day at the boarding house he is approached by a year twelve boy who offers him membership into a secret club, a club that established itself long before his arrival and continues to develop during his stay. Benworden holds many secrets, some good some bad, and there are those trying to find the club so they can expose and destroy it.' (Publication summary)

'A grandfather and his young grandson embark on an adventure of exploration and discovery of the lower reaches of the Murray River. River Boy focuses on the current circumstance of environmental decline surrounding the Murray River and along their adventure explores the changes the grandfather has seen in the river since he was a young boy.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

'Philip Cooper’s New York law firm suddenly dispatched him to a country no one had heard of, on a mission he didn’t understand. Having survived both Vietnam and law school, he understood the solace of exhaustion so he went for a run.

Allison Baxter, a sincere American whose banker husband is often away likes Philip’s punishing fitness regime and yearns to share her secrets with him.

Cassandra Sullivan, the Prime Minister’s gorgeous, all-seeing English secretary, has come to Alidar for “a season of abstinence.” The King is interested in her. She is interested in Philip.

Set in a place where perfection is tangible, women are invisible and five times a day a man shouts from a tower that God is great, comes a story of intrigue, romance and scandal where nothing is at it seems.' (Jane Curry Publishing)

'Ten highly intelligent, erotically charged linked short stories set in a top New York law firm, Partners explores the intrigue, sexual politics, romance and misbehaviour that absorb alpha male and alpha female practitioners as much as winning the next client or the next case. With characters like Miriam, a distinguished judge with a provocative imagination, romantic Thomas, lordly Henry and non - conformist Millie, Partners exposes the private lives of lawyers as never seen before. In an era where erotic fiction often means pulp fiction, Partners brings intelligence and sophistication to the genre. Written with a knowing and elegant style by Melbourne based Harrison Young, the characters are passionate, human, flawed, and sexual. The female characters are smart, strong and empowered. This is not a tale of Cinderellas meeting their prince, but sassy consenting adults.' (Publisher's blurb)

'The Ballad of Dexi Lee is a classic misfit tale about a little girl. A little girl with giant hands. Life for Dexi is tough. With her very big hands come some very big problems. Then, a trip to the zoo transforms her world. There she discovers a world of animals with all sorts of strange and unusual features. Dexi suddenly realises being different is actually pretty clever. Using rhyme and repetition, the book is beautifully illustrated with colour paintings by award-winning artist Lucy Culliton.' (Publisher's blurb)

'Ever had an itch you couldn't scratch? Hairy-Nosed Wombat has one, and somebody has chopped down his favourite scratching tree!

'Join our marsupial hero on an itchity, scratchity adventure as he tries to find the perfect place to scratch his butt.

'Itchity, scratchity, grumble and groan.

A shudder and shake, a snort and a moan.

A grunt and a huff, and a spitterly splut.

He said "I really need to scratch my butt."

'Beautiful and valuable books, arcane terms and conventions, eccentric personalities – these are the mainstays of the fascinating world of antiquarian books.

'Kay Craddock has lived in that world for over forty years. She embarked in business from very modest beginnings and overcame considerable personal and cultural obstacles to reach pre-eminence in the international rare book trade.

'In telling their remarkable story, Rare chronicles the fascinating social history of the book trade in the second half of the twentieth century – when antiquarian bookselling emerged as a recognisable profession.

'Stuart Kells has written a thoroughly compelling book which paints an unforgettable picture of the principal figures in Kay (and her mother Muriel's circle), and which also explores how these identities influenced the supply of and demand for old, rare, finely printed and finely bound books.

'Rare gives the reader access to a world that few have entered. It is also a highly personal account of the challenging journey of an amazing Australian woman' (Publication summary)

'Major Matthew Carr is a professional soldier who has served in Iraq and Afghanistan. When faced with a cancerous invasion of his body, Matthew used the expert training he learnt in the Australian Army as a strategy to wage his own fierce and relentless battle with an enemy force. In Battle Scars we learn that the main principles employed by militaries in the conduct of Counter Insurgency Operations can be applied to modern life as much as fighting cancer: 'In January 2002 I was 26, 10-foot tall and bullet proof. Not only well trained and well prepared for war, I was looking for a fight. That same month I was diagnosed with testicular cancer. I suddenly found myself in a battle that I had not been expecting. It was not the type of fight I had been hoping for.'' (Publication summary)

'Ellie Cooper is a smart blonde with a successful career and a finely tuned eye for human weakness. But that doesn't stop her from falling for the worst of romantic clichés - a fairytale wedding to her very own prince charming.

'Unfortunately those old fairytales provide no instruction for married life and Ellie's marriage - and new husband, Tony - prove to be a lot more complicated than she bargained for. Can Ellie and Tony survive their troubles, or should Ellie cut her losses and look elsewhere for love? Only our heroine can make that choice... But will it be the right one?' (From the publisher's website.)