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Mr Roberts On The Tonle Sap and Mekong
In a world in flux, Roberts finds solace along tranquil lakes and serene rivers. Yet shadows of his past, where he was embroiled in the deadly dance of crime, politics, and warfare, still haunt him. When a captivating woman offers Roberts a lucrative opportunity, the stakes seem suspiciously high. With layers of secrets and a pervasive aura of danger, he can’t shake the chilling premonition: ‘This endeavour will end in tragedy.’
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Liverpool Middle Teens
No longer a schoolboy but now a youth embarking on a fresh start. He sensed the significant changes in the air as World War II had just ended. Nations, both victors and vanquished, were scrambling to adapt their economies for peace, sparking an atmosphere of serious excitement about the impending transformation.
‘I’m leaving school this Easter,’ he announced to the September Road boys before descending from the low stone wall and making his way home, bidding his ‘byes’. He was about to join the ranks of the unemployed.
‘Ship’s Engineer or an apprentice to it, perhaps?’ his father had suggested. However, the title ‘Marine Engineer’ was not part of his parents’ final job considerations for him. The subject soon became as obsolete as the proverbial dodo – his first disappointment.
The challenge of finding a job as a young adult had begun, and his life progressed. He was eager to demonstrate enthusiasm and willingness to work.
Setting aside these challenges, he found solace in his reflective moods, comforted by the breathtaking glamour of Hollywood screen actress Rita Hayworth. Her latest film had introduced him to her new visage, now occupying his quieter moments with a vision that both calmed and thrilled him.
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The Dublin Marilyn
The Dublin Marilyn transports readers back to 1960-80s Dublin through one girl’s coming-of-age amongst struggling inner city families. Capturing the era of booming post-war ‘Baby Boomers,’ this nostalgic tale highlights the tight-knit community binding battling neighbourhoods together.
Despite poverty and hardship, an unbreakable solidarity reigned - with helping hands extended whenever crises hit, and no pretensions of anyone being better than the next. Stitching tales steeped in humour and heart, the story unfolds in the lyrical lilt of working-class Dublin speech from a vanished time.
Whether reconnecting older readers to bygone memories or shocking younger minds with harsher lives, The Dublin Marilyn pays tribute to the humour and resilience of cities past. With evocative images complementing the rich narrative, immerse yourself in yesteryear’s vibrant streets – where community meant family and family meant everything.
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The Triptych
Though fiction, The Triptych is firmly based on incidents in the lives of three ordinary men from the Hall family. Spanning nearly a century, this vivid narrative interweaves the fates of three generations caught in the tumult of three key historical events: the 1855 Siege of Sebastopol during the Crimean War; the Expedition to rescue General Gordon in 1884–85; and the fierce Dodecanese Campaign of 1943.
While these stories form the triptych of the title, they are linked via the fate of a second triptych: an imaginary object bequeathed to James Hall by a dying Russian soldier. This passes repeatedly between the Halls and an Italian family, the Lassaros.
These stories bring to life the struggles of those who had no hand in the politics that sent them to battle yet bore the brunt of its consequences. From the brutal battlefields to the quiet courage that followed, their journeys highlight the personal costs of conflicts initiated by distant politicians.
Narrated by a fourth-generation Hall in the twenty-first century, himself a former soldier, The Triptych offers a window into a family’s legacy across a period marked by both volatility and violence. This novel is a tribute to the often unheralded resilience of ordinary people in times of conflict. Their lives paint a vivid triptych of quiet courage, endurance and the survival of the human spirit.£3.50 -
Danube Legion
The Roman war machine is on the move
But behind the Centurions and Legionaries, a vast support network grinds into motion mobilising a new legion towards a hostile river border, its human cogs turning across Roman society: from downtrodden bath slaves, to legionary blacksmiths trying to get through the day, from unscrupulous traders who supply food and materials to corrupt politicians with their own cynical motives.
Danube Legion is the darkly amusing story of what happens behind the scenes – the chaotic, the venal, the incompetent and the corrupt. In amongst it all, and driving most of it, is Lady Lassalia, a ruthless merchant out to ensure her place in Roman society.£3.50 -
A Peal of Socialism
In the shadow of a looming world war, A Peal of Socialism unfolds in the bustling streets of 1930s London, a city at the heart of an empire on the brink of upheaval. This compelling historical fiction novel weaves the intricate lives of five young souls, each drawn to the capital by dreams of change and the rumblings of a new social order.
As the spectre of conflict draws closer, these individuals – bound by their convictions and entangled in a web of love, loyalty, and betrayal – find themselves questioning the very essence of the war that encroaches upon their lives. Amidst the clamour for republicanism, the fervent debates of socialism, and the harsh realities of trade unionism, they are thrust into a world where their principles are tested against the backdrop of personal tragedy and collective hope.
Brigid, a spirited young woman from west Cork, arrives in London with a heart full of aspirations and a resolve as steadfast as the land she leaves behind. Her journey intertwines with Billy, a dreamer caught between the echoes of his past and the tumultuous path that lies ahead. Together with their companions, they navigate the complexities of love, the pain of betrayal, and the relentless pursuit of their ideals.
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Kindling Ashes
Spanning fifty pivotal years of the Northern Ireland Troubles, this novel weaves personal histories with national events—from the 1969 torching of Bombay Street to the 2019 commemoration of that fateful day. Through an intimate lens, the Dunmurry Train bombing, Omagh attack, and other harrowing milestones unfold.
As the final instalment in a trilogy of poetry and prose about the Troubles, this work captures their tragic yet humorous essence with wider scope and more conclusive understanding. Sombre yet insightful, the novel traces one family’s journey through the violence as they try to make sense of Northern Ireland’s bloody history. From the uneasy beginnings in 1969 to the reflective memorials decades later, their story confronts the past while moving uncertainly toward peace.
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The Provincial Election
Dubheasa O’Driscoll, known to her friends as Izzy, never imagined she would find herself in the race for Kingship. But when the High King of Ireland passes away unexpectedly, Izzy, a reluctant and unseasoned aristocrat, is thrust into the spotlight to uphold her family’s legacy and vie for the role of Provincial King.
As Izzy steps into this daunting arena, public scrutiny intensifies, and jealous rivals begin to unearth unsettling secrets about her family’s history. These revelations shake Izzy to her core, leaving her to grapple with doubts about her lineage. Is there truth to her competitors’ allegations, or do the dark deeds of her ancestors cast an unjust shadow over her?
Embarking on a journey fraught with challenges, Izzy must withstand the glare of the public eye, the rigors of the competition, and the weight of her newfound responsibilities. The Provincial Election chronicles her struggle to find her footing in a world where the line between friend and foe is blurred, and the burden of the past looms large.
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Luthuli Detachment – The Hwange Thunderbolt
After intense military training abroad, Umkhonto we Sizwe freedom fighters are determined to return home to South Africa as armed combatants alongside the masses struggling for liberation. Their planned route back necessitates crossing through Rhodesia. So they share their intentions with fellow comrades from the ZPRA forces also battling Rhodesia’s regime.
This dialogue gives rise to a joint military alliance when ZAPU and ANC leadership approve the strategy. Thus, the Luthuli Detachment is born – a combined battalion from ZPRA and Umkhonto we Sizwe named in honour of the late ANC President General Albert Luthuli. On the eve of departing to reach South Africa, these joint forces cross into Rhodesia, though not without casualties.
After successfully navigating the treacherous Zambezi river into Rhodesian land, an explosive encounter in Hwange Game Reserve turns it into the chilling rendezvous point where the Luthuli Detachment’s destiny collides with history’s call to duty. Will they accomplish their mission of participating alongside South African masses hungering for emancipation?
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The Lost Keys
On the island of Singapore, Zacharia Pattara shares his lavish home in the suburbs with his five lively daughters and his beloved wife Anthoula. One fateful night in 1942 whilst they slept, the bombs of an invading Japanese Army signal the beginning of an uncertain future. With the clock ticking and the threat of advancing soldiers he does all he can to keep his family safe.
Forced to separate, Anthoula and three girls evacuate the crumbling city whilst his youngest daughters take refuge in the convent. Soon Singapore falls under ruthless Japanese rule and along with thousands of citizens, Zacharia is taken as a Prisoner of War and held in appalling conditions.
Haunted by regret and with limited food rations he gradually starves, awaiting news of his loved ones. With no end to the war in sight and with nothing but time, he has many questions. Did his wife escape unharmed from the island? Are his daughters safe in the convent? Will they ever be reunited, and can he survive the cruelty of his captors to see that day?
This heartfelt family saga full of twists and turns shows that during the darkest of times, the strength of the human spirit can overcome the worst hardships. The Pattara family were among thousands who lost so much to the Japanese occupation during World War II. Based on real events, this is a story of survival and bravery when all hope seems impossible.
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Winds of Change
The winds of change are blowing over Africa, and South Africa, the last bastion of white supremacy, refuses to give up its unjust policy of Apartheid in the midst of international pressure and internal conflict.
It is the late seventies and Father Christopher Wright one of the few ‘coloured priests’ in Cape Town meets a pregnant Joanna Poggenpoel, a simple coloured country girl working as housekeeper for Fr Patrick O’Shaunessy, a white priest, a missionary from Ireland. This sets off a wave of intricate events and relationships across the racial, religious and political divide bringing together whites, blacks, coloureds and every one in between as crimes unfold and forbidden liaisons are formed.
What unfolds is unimaginable and will shock you, but at the same time the characters in Winds of Change will make you laugh and cry.
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Looking for Wind in the Fields
Looking for Wind in the Fields unfolds an epic tale of resilience and the stark injustice of war, tracing the harrowing journey from the besieged city of Leningrad, through the unforgiving expanses of Siberia, to the serene yet foreign landscapes of Tasmania.
Amidst the backdrop of the siege of Leningrad, two young children, orphaned and vulnerable, find their fates intertwined with a valiant friend whose boundless courage and sacrifice guide them through the darkest chapters of human cruelty.
Their odyssey of survival takes them from the brutal labour camps of Siberia, across the devastated post-war Eastern Europe, and finally, as displaced refugees, to an unexpected sanctuary on the other side of the world.
This narrative is not only a testament to the indomitable spirit of those who face the unimaginable but also a profound reflection on the themes of loss, displacement, and the quest for renewal.
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