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In this novel, Kalgoorlie is brought to life through the lives and times of two families, one Australian and one Italian. From the heady early days to the gold rush, to the horrors of the First World War, to the shame and confrontation of post-war riots, it tells the story of Australia itself and the people who forged a nation out of a harsh and unforgiving land.

Julius Levy grows up in a peasant family in a village on the banks of the Seine. A quick-witted urchin caught up in the Franco-Prussian War, he is soon forced by tragedy to escape to Algeria.

It is 1859. At age three, Eliza Forester is left motherless when her father orders his wife from the house. He keeps the child not out of love, but to spite his wife. Here is a woman who loses everything and very nearly her sanity.

Romance and family saga set in a 19th Century newspaper empire.

Mr and Mrs Henry Granville are preparing to launch their daughters on to the London social scene with an extravagant coming-out ball. The sister's deep jealousy of one another leads to fights between the two, a number of scandals threaten to ruin their reputations and when war is declared, they find themselves in an emergency of another kind.

When the Second World War is declared, rich banker Henry Granville moves his family away from London. Even so, life for them remains turbulent.

The Lazenders, a gilded family, have been the envy and pride of Britain for centuries. But Toby Lazender, their heir, is now mysteriously absent. His sister, Campion, is running the familly estates. But the Fallen Angels - among the most powerful and dangerous men in Europe - are plotting revolution and to succeed they need money and the Lazender fortune can provide it. A web of deceit draws Campion ever closer to a subtle trap. Her only hope of survival lies with the Gypsy - her brother's aloof horse master - a man whose loyalties have always been uncertain.

Calico Road runs through a tiny Lancashire hamlet up on the edge of the moors, miles from anywhere. Its folk are an independent breed - and in 1827 they are a thorn in the side of the vicious mill owner in the valley below.

Now a wealthy young widow, former peasant girl Siana Forbes has overcome her humble beginnings to become mistress of Cheverton Manor, the handsome estate which her infant son, Ashley, will one day inherit.

A selection of short fiction written by Austen when she was a teenager.