Published...Or Not

Longing, hope and grief are emotions shared by woman in the mothering of a child and if that son grows up and goes to war, also by their wives.  Lenny Robinson has written stories of women, war and motherhood , about taking of life and giving it in ‘And In The Morning’             'Blue Giant' is Jordan Prosser's debut novel that satirises the excesses of our current social condition when the protagonist, Abby, becomes obsessed with the earthbound scheme of colonising Mars. 

When an ancient roman treasure is illegally dug up, three 12 year olds and a ghost go into pursuit, in ‘Hunt for the Nighthawks’. A children’s book that parents will enjoy reading too! Written by prolific author Felice Arena.‘The Picasso Ransom’ by Aidan Prewett is a funny, copy crime novel inspired by the Weeping Woman theft.  

Within a quirky neighbourhood the body of a judge is found trussed up as a scarecrow suggesting the characters and events within that community hide darker secrets in Lauren Williams' debut novel, ‘Neighbourhood Watch’.The complexity of growing up: learning about yourself, changing friendships, and if tragedy happens knowing what to do is all in ‘Tight Lines’ as well as dares, humour, surfing and fishing, very well told by Allee Richards.

'The Ruiners' by Ellena Savage appeals to several literary tropes as the protagonists, with the greatest of expectations, fall into a self destructive cycle that undermines their ideals and ambitions.As author Ed Coper writes ‘If you don’t want to live in a world of angry racist trolls, manufactured culture war outrage and authoritarian destruction’ you should read his book ‘Angertainment’. I did and I learnt a lot.  

The seeds of a new war are sown between East and West just as Europe is liberated from the Nazis. Anthony Byrt sets his thriller, 'Dying Days', within this febrile environment as partisans, facists, communists and allies confront each other in Trieste.Can a top-tier law firm be made accountable for silencing the protests from environmental damage in another country or hiding a paedophile killer.  ‘The Graduate’ is on a quest for justice in this crime novel by Rebecca Lim                            

'Where Truth Ends' reveals just how narrow the gap can be between protest and terrorism and it's the latest novel by Mark Smith.There are two bookshops in different countries and at different time frames but connected by more than just their names in 'The Bookshop of Buried Pasts’. Sarah Clutton has woven together a family saga, Celtic mythology, unmarried mothers and a love of antiquarian books.   

'How to Love the World' by Ilka Tampke is a literary thriller and a meditation on nature and healing.Just who is informing on whom is the question behind the murder that takes place in 'The Informant' by Christine Gregory.

50 years for 3CR and 50 years of writing programs.  Sherryl Clark was a presenter on Writers at Work for many years and talks about her own writing on our Radiothon program.

We would like to believe Elspeth, a successful investigative journalist, is telling the truth but when it comes to her own family, she is damaged. Readers will not be sure whether than can feel for her, or fear her.  Mali Cornish has many twists and turns in ‘The Missing Mother’.The Wheeler Centre in Melbourne plays a pivotal role in developing the culture of writing not just in Victoria but Australia. Xanthea O'Conner talks about 'The Next Chapter' which is an initiative to foster new voices for publication.      

Women proving rape is questionable in court today but what of a 13year old in Vicenza Italy back in 1757.  Christine Balint hasanother wonderful historical fiction written from a well researched fact in a ‘A Single Witness’.  Once again we journey to the highlands of Scotland where an unidentified murder victim and a ten-year old missing persons case converge against a backdrop of ancient myth and folklore in Laura McCluskey's, ‘The Cursed Road’. 

Jung, fairy tales and the future all converge in Karen Comer's latest novel, 'Once Upon Tomorrow'.'The Angry Wives Club' is a domestic noir novel with a chick-lit twist by Gabbie Stroud.

A serial killer enamoured with the internet is a dangerous thing - a scenarion explored in Sarah Bailey's novel, 'Click'.'How to Date Like a Dangerous Woman' is a modern guide to dating safely by Alita Brydon.

'The Belly of the Wolf' is Julianne Negri's verse narrative addressing an adolescent struggling with her best friend's suicide. Always remember, help is only a phone call away through such groups as Headspace (1800 650 890) or Lifeline (131114) should you wish to seek advice.

The success of the miniature railway is being sabotaged. Observant mother Fleck Parker is asked to find out who could possibly be doing this in Kate Solly’s warm hearted ‘The Paradise Heights Miniature Railway Bust-Up’. 'The General Hospital' continues to detail the mental health challenges faced by psychiatric registrars, interns and specialists in the fraught world of public care. It is the third in a detailed series centred around the professional and personal development of Doctor Hannah Wright by Anne Buist an Graeme Simsion.

Irma Gold has written a moving tale 'Shift' set in Kiliptown, South Africa.Sarah Walker’s book is ‘The Water Takes’.  The title is unfinished just as the ending is open but the novel has characters so honestly drawn in their reaction to a catastrophe that they will live on beyond the page.  

A farmer and a movie star, both trying hard to parent their problem kids and both having their much loved spouses die. What future could there be for them in such different life styles. ‘A Farm in the Golden Clouds’, a second time around love story by Leearna Shaw.'Griefdogg' is a sprawling, enigmatic, idiosyncratic delta of a novel by Michael Winkler that poses curious existential questions about memory, responsibility and accountability as the main protagonist would prefer to lead his life as a dog.

In ‘The Writer’s Retreat’, it’s not just fiction that is being written and the closer it becomes to real life is when the suspense just doesn’t happen on the page, cleverly crafted by Victoria Brownlee. 

Gordon Thompson catapults a young William Shakespeare and many of his characters into the present day in his novel, Kill Will.The trauma of war links a small community on an island off Scotland, massacres in Bosnia and an Australian war crimes investigator in Ian Kemish's thriller, Two Islands.

Grace wants the cultural emersion of Italy but has to decide if language barriers limit or enhance desire. ‘Slip’ by Abbey Lay could mean a slide for Grace back into, or out of, her comfortable relationship. An assassination attempt on the journalist, Martin Scarsden, in Chris Hammer's latest novel, ‘Legacy’, leads to the discovery of an age old feud in the outback where the journalist is seeking to hide. 

The loss of a body in Fiona Hardy's latest novel, 'Old Game',' isn't the crime you'd expect in a work of detective fiction but that's not the only surprise when a tennis star's accolytes claim his remains.There are dangerous currents of untold secrets, a vicious Group in the Irish Catholic Church and facing trauma in ‘Shellybanks’, another crime novel by Louise Milligan.