From the best-selling author of The Hand that Signed the Paper, winner of the Miles Franklin Award, comes an epic work of speculative fiction.784 ab urbe condita—31 AD. Jerusalem sits uneasily in a Roman Empire that has seen an industrial revolution and now has cable news and flying machines—and rites and morals that are strange and repellent to the native people of Judaea.A charismatic young leader is arrested after a riot in the Temple. He seems to be a man of peace, but among his followers are Zealots and dagger-men sworn to drive the Romans from the Holy Land.As the city spirals into violence, the stage is set for a legal case that will shape the future—the trial of Yeshua Ben Yusuf. Intricately imagined and ferociously executed, Kingdom of the Wicked is a stunning alternative history and a story for our time.

Kingdom of the Wicked Book One: Rules

Literature & Fiction

Dale, Helen

Literary

Ligature

"Astonishingly talented... with the true novelist's gift of entering into the imagination of those she is writing about." -- David Marr As war crimes prosecutions seize Australia, Fiona Kovalenko discovers that her own family is implicated in the darkest events of the twentieth century. This is their story. First published under an assumed identity, The Hand that Signed the Paper remains one of the most celebrated and controversial books in recent Australian literature. With a new introduction by the author, it continues to raise urgent questions about history, responsibility, and truth.

The Hand that Signed the Paper

The epic alternative history from the Miles Franklin Award–winning author of The Hand that Signed the Paper reaches its stunning conclusion.786 ab urbe condita—33 AD. Time is running out for Yeshua Ben Yusuf, on trial for capital crimes after rioting against the moneychangers in the temple. His Roman defence lawyer and the Legion’s military prosecutor bring their witnesses before Pontius Pilate—followers, soldiers, religious leaders, even his mother—revealing the accused man in ways that surprise and move those gathering for the verdict, shifting the orbit of their lives. As Yeshua Ben Yusuf awaits judgment, the wounded Zealots prepare a final desperate strike. On the outskirts of Jerusalem, the occupation, the resistance and one holy man will meet their fate together.

Kingdom of the Wicked Book Two: Order

Our Little Secret

Teen & Young Adult

Webster, Allayne L.

Old friends Vivien and Julia are in crisis mode. Out of the blue, Viv's husband of over 30 years delivers a devastating marital deal-breaker. And world-famous soprano Julia Jefferies fears her brilliant career is at an end. But these are two resourceful-and very contemporary-women. Viv's audacious move sets up a cascade of events that will alter her family forever. Now it's official: love is not only for the young. This romantic comedy of manners is seductive, sophisticated, and in every way provocative. The Age of Discretion upends beliefs and expectations in a hilarious, untidy love story for our times. And for our ages-whatever they may be.

The Age of Discretion

Duigan, Virginia

Humor & Satire