Ghost Gum Valley is the second book from Australian author Johanna Nicholls. This sweeping saga is set in the early days of the Colony of New South Wales and follows the adventures of Isabel de Rolland, an English aristocrat descended from the Plantagenets, as she is sent out to the penal colony to marry Marmaduke Gamble, in a deal organised by their elders. The debts of Isabel’s family are paid in exchange for the respectability that her lineage gives the rich ex- convict Gamble family. From the inauspicious beginnings of their arranged marriage, Isabel and Marmaduke develop a grudging friendship that looks to bloom into something more. But the secrets of the past are destined to haunt them and the madness and darkness of their families threaten to overwhelm them. This wonderful new story has something for everyone; a bygone era brought to life, the importance of being free of the past to embrace the future and above all a wonderful love story between two of fiction’s most delightful characters.

Jake Andersen is a proud Currency lad with a swagger in his step and a joke for his mates, until he discovers the wife he is besotted with has left him, and taken their young daughter with her. A prize fighter, Jake decides to take matters into his own hands and find his wife, and the mongrel she ran off with. Fuelled by revenge he starts a long search across the colony and vows to never trust "good women" again. Few people seem to think a gypsy girl like Keziah Stanley could ever be a "good woman". Separated by the law from her beloved gypsy husband, Keziah decides to travel to Australia to find the love of her life. With her tarot cards and strong beliefs, Keziah boasts she can read anybody's future, but her own life is proving harder to read, let alone manage. Daniel Browne already knows what his future will be: the life of a great artist. And he is determined to follow his dream; no matter what. When this volatile trio is thrown together in Australia, they form an extraordinary, unexpected alliance that will challenge the establishment. Love, hate, survival and revenge: all will discover the truth.

He won't give up his one true love. Phoebe Fitzgerald’s wedding day should be the happiest day of her life. When her ex turns up a couple weeks before the big day, declaring his everlasting love…doubts crowd in. Is she making a mistake? Is she in love with her fiancé, Marco Petronelli, or just succumbing to an overwhelming bout of lust? Wanting to be fair to them both, confusion has her breaking off her engagement and escaping to a beachside house to unravel her mixed emotions. From the first moment Marco encountered Phoebe he wanted her, but she was involved with another man. He bided his time and when her ex dumped Phoebe, he swooped in and swept her off her feet. So when she declares the wedding is off, he refuses to let her ex ruin what they have. Not one to sit around, Marco follows Phoebe to her beachside destination. He will do anything to convince her that what they have can’t be denied. Seducing her until she can’t think straight is the easy part. Opening up and trusting his soul to her…so much harder.

Vianna Francis, known in the colony as ‘The Sydney Venus’, is a notorious young mistress in keeping to a former gentleman convict, who uses her to entice wealthy men to his gaming tables. A woman of mystery, Vianna is a magnet for scandal. Was she the mistress of a Royal duke? A lady’s maid who learned the tricks of the world’s oldest profession when in service to a Parisian courtesan? Or the widow of a young man executed on the gallows? Men of high rank are determined to possess this passionate, mercenary beauty. The L’Estrange half-brothers were born only months apart. One brother is an idealistic dreamer, the other a volatile adventurer. And the rivals have two things in common – a fatal attraction to get-rich schemes that run afoul of the law -- and their obsession with Vianna.

One night, that’s all it was supposed to be, but fate decided otherwise. New Year, new promotion, what more could Sophie Franklyn ask for? Her one night stand not turning up at work would be top of her list. Unfortunately, luck isn’t on her side and in the middle of a medical emergency, Alex Scavoni shows up like an avenging angel. Life just got a little more interesting. Or was it more complicated? Waking up to an empty bed after the best night of his life could’ve been a blow to Alex’s ego. But it wasn’t. He knew he’d see his masked woman again. Best of all, he had the element of surprise on his side. Fate, however, has a plan for these two lovers. When they find out their night together has consequences neither of them expected, they must decide if it’s going to remain as a one and done deal. Or will it become forever?

Always look beyond the mask Three friends must drop the masks they wear if they want to find true love. Book 1 - Masquerade New Year, new promotion, what more could Sophie Franklyn ask for? Her one night stand not turning up at work would be top of her list. Unfortunately, luck isn’t on her side and in the middle of a medical emergency, Alex Scavoni shows up like an avenging angel. Life just got a little more interesting. Or was it more complicated? Waking up to an empty bed after the best night of his life could’ve been a blow to Alex’s ego. But it wasn’t. He knew he’d see his masked woman again. He had the element of surprise on his side. When they find out their night together has consequences neither of them expected, they must decide if it’s going to remain as a one and done deal. Or will it become forever? Book 2 - Rescuing Dawn Life is easier when you’re alone—that’s the motto Dawn Granger lives by after everyone she’s ever loved has abandoned her. Working the nightshift is her salvation. She can’t date anyone if she works every night. She’s found the perfect way to keep her heart safe. That is, until her former high school sweetheart bursts back into her life, shaking the very walls she’s erected around herself. Andrew Holmes has sailed the world. Older and wiser he knows now that adventure is fine. Almost dying? Not so much. With his eye on making the most out of his second chance, his new career as a paramedic is everything he wants. Then he sees her—the one that got away. He made one stupid, youthful mistake and has regretted it every day since. But Dawn doesn’t smile the way she used to. He sets about rescuing Dawn from her darkness and bringing her back into the light. As much as she tries to resist Andrew, he awakens her sleeping soul. He’s always been a thrill seeker and she sees that drive still lurking below the surface. Can she risk her heart to embrace this new beginning, or is it safer staying in her tower? Book 3 - Seducing Phoebe Planning her wedding should be Phoebe Fitzgerald’s happiest time of her life. When her former lover turns up declaring his everlasting adoration…doubts crowd in. Is she making a mistake? Is she in love with her fiancé, Marco Petronelli, or just succumbing to an overwhelming bout of lust? Wanting space she escapes to a beachside house to unravel her mixed emotions. From the first moment Marco encountered Phoebe he wanted her, only she wasn’t available. He bided his time and when he could, he swooped in and swept her off her feet. When she declares the wedding is off, he refuses to let her ruin what they have. Marco follows Phoebe to her beachside destination. He will do anything to convince her that what they have can’t be denied. Seducing her until she can’t think straight is the easy part. Opening up and trusting his soul to her…so much harder.

He helps save lives, now he wants to save hers. Life is easier when you’re alone—that’s the motto Dawn Granger lives by after everyone she’s ever loved has abandoned her. Working the nightshift is her salvation. She can’t date anyone if she works every night. She’s found the perfect way to keep her heart safe. That is, until her former high school sweetheart bursts back into her life, shaking the very walls she’s erected around herself. Andrew Holmes has sailed the world. Older and wiser he knows now that adventure is fine. Almost dying? Not so much. With his eye on making the most out of his second chance, his new career as a paramedic is everything he wants. Then he sees her—the one that got away. He made one stupid, youthful mistake and has regretted it every day since. But Dawn doesn’t smile the way she used to. He sets about rescuing Dawn from her darkness and bringing her back into the light. As much as she tries to resist Andrew, he awakens her sleeping soul. He’s always been a thrill seeker and she sees that drive still lurking below the surface. Can she risk her heart to embrace this new beginning, or is it safer staying in her tower?

Battarbee and Namatjira is the biography of two artists Rex Battarbee and Albert Namatjira, one white Australian from Warrnambool in Victoria, the other Aboriginal, of the Arrernte people, from the Hermannsburg Mission south of Alice Springs. From their first encounters in the early 1930s, when Battarbee introduced Namatjira to the techniques of water-colour painting, through the period of Namatjira’s popularity as a painter, to the tragic circumstances leading to his death in 1959, their close relationship was to have a decisive impact on Australian art. This biography, illustrated with photographs, makes extensive use of Battarbee’s diaries for the first time, to throw new light on Namatjira’s life, and to bring Battarbee, who has been largely ignored by biographers, back into focus. Some of its findings will be controversial. By moving between the artists and their backgrounds, and looking closely at the nature of their friendship, Edmond is able to portray the personal and social complexities the two men faced, while at the same time illuminating larger cultural themes – the treatment of the Arrernte and Indigenous people generally, the influence of the Lutheran church, the development of anthropology, and the evolution of Australian art.

Harlequin Romance Bundle: Crowns and Cowboys features three heartwarming full-length romance novels: Rancher and Protector by Judy Christenberry, Outback Baby Miracle by Melissa James and Crowned: An Ordinary Girl by Natasha Oakley.

As untamed as the Outback land he masters, cattlemanJake Connors is a mystery to Laila. Something hiddeninside him calls to the woman in her, in a way no otherman ever has.… In the heart of the Outback, Laila Robbins discoversthe heady power of a brooding man. Jake doesn''t wantLaila''s wealth or her family name, but before he cangive her his heart he has to stop running from the darkdemons of his past. Is Laila''s pregnancy surprise the miracle they both need?