Cirrus@Austlit

'The giant metal man has stood for hundreds of years, head tilted back, mouth open. All the dead of the town are disposed of this way, carried up the long, staircase that winds around him and tipped in. At his toe emerges the Bitters, the lifeblood of the town, keeping them healthy and prosperous as the sick and needy come to buy and drink.

'McNubbin is a happy man with all he wants in life. He’s carried the bodies up since he was 14, a worthwhile, respected job. But when he notices broken girl after broken girl, he can’t stay quiet, and speaking up will change his perfect life.' (Publication summary)

'Strange what chooses to flourish here. Which plants. Which stories.

'Bettina Scott lives a tidy, quiet life in Runagate, tending to her delicate mother and their well-kept garden after her father and brothers disappear — until a note arrives that sends Bettina into the scrublands beyond, searching for answers about what really happened to this town, and to her family.

'For this is a land where superstitions hunt and folk tales dream — and power is there for the taking, for those willing to look.'

Source: Publisher's blurb (Picador ed.)

'Saturnalia in Aufleur is a time of topsy-turvy revels, of the world turned upside down and transformed before your eyes. The city's theatres produce an annual display of reversals, surprises and transformations.

'In this city, flappers can transform into wolves. Even the rats are not what they seem.

'Evie Inglirra is on a mission to infiltrate the theatrical world of Aufleur and discover what lies beneath their glamorous cabaret costumes and backstage scandals. Has she bitten off more than she can chew?'

Source: Publisher's blurb.