Justifiable Killings

Derek Hardy, a reserved man living in a Manhattan apartment, has long been haunted by memories of relentless bullying from his past. These scars have manifested as post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, and haunting nightmares. To cope, Derek has relied on meditation and visualization techniques, often imagining the bullies meeting grim fates.

However, when these coping mechanisms falter, Derek’s suppressed emotions threaten to overwhelm him. Succumbing to his darkest impulses, he embarks on a chilling spree, exacting revenge on those who tormented him, starting with his boss, Desmond Buckley.

This tale delves into the profound effects of trauma and the dangerous consequences of emotions left unchecked, illustrating how even the most unassuming individual can be pushed to the brink.

Lights at Sea

In the tranquil coastal town where Miranda pursued quiet career in social care, she relished the freedom and flexibility it granted her to nurture her two children, despite their significant age gap. However, when her teenager’s inexplicable decline in energy coincides with an elderly client’s enchantment with mysterious lights at sea, Miranda’s world takes an unforeseen turn. The appearance of an unfamiliar boy on the beach not only saves Tanya from danger but also entangles Miranda in a web of suspicion that threatens to strip her of custody of her younger child. As conflicting family ties unravel, Miranda battles to reclaim her rightful authority in shaping her daughters’ futures, grappling with the tumultuous forces that seek to tear her apart.

Luke Woam - The Missing Link

Luke Woam is out to become a missing person finder. With such awesome skills as being long-term unemployed; award-winning daytime television trivia knowledge; racking breadcake trays (and occasionally injecting jam into doughnuts when needed in an emergency) and generally being good at nothing useful, Luke sets out with his girlfriend in tow, to the metropolis that is London, to work on his first ever case—locating a runaway teenage girl. It’s a case that will take him way out of his comfort zone of his bed, settee, console, television and unhealthy snacks, which (like everything else in his life post-school), have mostly been paid for by the benefit system.

Luke and his partner, Tina, are thrust into a dangerous world far unlike their own back in small-time Bolton. On the plus side, they do possess a cheap, tacky, lucky charm purchased from a gypsy-like night-time street peddler of an old lady; the charm is probably of no real help to be honest, but alas, it is all in the belief, innit? And, both are in their early 20s still, is that a plus or minus, who knows in this lark?

So, do the UK’s newest, fledgling double act crack their maiden case, or does this missing maiden case crack them? One thing is for sure though, it definitely is a case of people, cultures and cities on a cataclysmic, nay, apocalyptic collision…well, they come into contact anyway!

Monique

As early as 1939, the British Secret Intelligent Service was looking for recruits with linguistic talents and other qualities suitable to work for the Service in anticipation of a war in Europe.

Andrew joined the Service and after undergoing training at various establishments, and with war now under way, he was chosen to participate in two missions, the second of which severely tested his ability to think on his feet and alter plans due to the changing circumstances. He and his fellow agent carried out a daring raid well inside enemy territory after which they were pursued by the Gestapo as they fled for France. They narrowly escaped their clutches as they entered France but needed the assistance of a young lady – already well known to Andrew – to complete their escape, this time from the French police.

The novel is a compelling and fast-paced story of a British agent in the early part of WWII.

Murder for A Sideline

In 1960s Ireland, 19-year-old Will Daniels is out hunting rabbits when he comes upon a tinker poaching fish in the river. Thinking to have a bit of fun, Will calls out to the poacher. Things turn nasty when the tinker threatens Will with a knife. Will’s reaction will change his life forever.

Mustang Man And Me

Maria Lawson’s family farm will never be the same now the Shadow horses have taken up residence. Her neighbours, the Sandford family, have also changed her life, while their late son’s best friend only complicates matters. Handsome, charismatic, wealthy and well known, he’s brought his own brand of trouble from the outset.

Has Maria lost her mind in becoming his wife? She must draw on all her courage to ride the roller coaster of emotions, doubt and jealousy, intrigue and unexpected danger that ensues. Can her love for him survive? Will it save her marriage and even their lives?

Nightshades of New Orleans

A fast-paced novel portraying dynastic Southern families, driven by apocalyptic events involving vampires, genetic experimentation and a serial killer investigation during Mardi Gras. New Orleans' colorful history is vividly recounted and interwoven in the plot, including notorious hauntings and mayhem for which the city is famous. This character-driven novel keeps the reader in suspense, with its diabolical twists, and turns up to the story's dramatic ending and…beyond.

Not Another Word!

Lacey and Lloyd Jordan begin a journey no young person should have to embark upon. Their father is serving a ten-year prison term, their mother abandons them.

By the time Lacey is out of foster care, she has been in six foster homes. She has three foster siblings who are missing under mysterious circumstances, each at different times.

She has lost contact with her brother. He ran away from their foster home to search for the missing teens. No one has heard from him since.

A story of perseverance, mystery and suspense, this tale has more twists and turns than a rushing mountain stream.

Nusantara

After dropping out of university, getting a job as a storeman, doing drugs and then splitting up with his wife, Jack, in a fit of depression, joins the Australian Army and is sent to East Timor at the height of the troubles. He “volunteers” for a mission in Indonesia, where the United Nations, with help from the US Navy and the Royal Marines, are trying to rescue a group of foreigners, mostly Europeans, being held hostage by the local rebels. Jack completes his mission only to become the victim of misdirected revenge.

Older

A sociopath managing an aged care facility: What could go wrong?

Precocious and pretty Maxine Gilbert is a clever and talented nine-year-old, adored by a doting father. She is also cruel, sadistic and without remorse, delighting in manipulating others and torturing small animals. When her mother is diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease, Maxine is disgusted, not just by her mother’s disability, but by the inconvenience it brings. Watching a nurse care for her mother, Maxine learns that nurses can hurt or heal. Maxine decides to be a nurse when she grows up.

Forty years on, after countless complaints against her nursing in various clinical care settings, Maxine scams a job as Managing Director of an aged care facility, Treetops, and the residents are in for a rough time.

Under Maxine’s management, physical and medical restraint of residents is encouraged, and neglect, poor hygiene, and restrictions of residents’ liberty, nourishment and medical support are exhorted. Frightened, depressed, and malnourished residents are left isolated, locked away, and laying in their own waste. They develop excruciating infections, suffer illness, and even die. Maxine faces rising antagonism from Treetops’ residents, and their friends and family. 

A new carer at Treetops, Seleena, who recently escaped an abusive marriage, cannot stay silent. Along with warning residents, and others, Seleena writes a letter of complaint. After finding a suspicious lump in her breast, could Maxine, who always hated illness and vulnerability in others, finally learn compassion? Or will she continue her ruthless ways?

Orvil: Trial and Error

Orvil sits alone in a diner to celebrate his 21^st birthday. He feels lonely and abandoned...his new girlfriend just dumped him and his mother recently died. He has no idea who his father is. He hates his first name, lives in a rundown trailer, had sacrificed his studies at City College to care for his ailing parent, and drives trucks just to scrape by. Totally lost since his mother’s death, his free time revolves around eating junk food and chugging beers in front of the tube. As he’s feeling sorry for himself, he perceives a gunman entering the diner and firing his AR-15 at everyone in sight. This experience forever changes Orvil’s life. Powerful and insightful, humourous and tragic, through trial and error, Orvil Smith’s story takes us on a tour of modern America from the rural to the urban, from the poor to the rich, and from the righteous to the corrupt.

Passcodes to Peril

Len Gorski’s new assignment has taken him to Sydney’s heartland to coach the UNSW football team in the State League. On the eve of the grand final, he is embroiled in the aftermath of theft of world-first technology from the team captain, a post-graduate research student.

The search to recover a prototype device and learn the identity of the thieves leads to violence and life-changing adventures for the team captain, his girlfriend, and her former high school sports teacher. Survival skills learned in Len’s earlier life are stretched.