Showing results by publisher "Penguin Random House Australia Audio" in Historical Fiction

Told from five different points of view, each one revealing something different, On a Bright Hillside in Paradise tells the story of a family of convict descendants in the back-blocks of Tasmania, on a farm in a place called Paradise. They lead hard-scrabble lives. The drama begins when strangers arrive, Christian Brethren evangelists who hold big revival meetings in local barns. On a Bright Hillside in Paradise tackles big questions of faith and family but remains grounded in the dreams and strivings of its beautifully drawn characters.

It's 1909 and Mary Richards has worked hard to gain an education and become a teacher in her close-knit, picturesque village in the Cotswolds, but not everyone approves of her modern ways. When her sister Emily becomes engaged to David Christmas, it seems fate will intervene in the form of the best man: his eligible brother Johnathon. Mary finds herself in danger of falling for this handsome, almost too perfect stranger, only married women have to give up their careers as soon as they're wed and there's no way Mary is going to sacrifice her dreams for a man.

It's 1969, and mankind has leapt up to the moon, but a young mother in small-town Australia can't get past the kitchen door. Louise Ashland is exhausted - her husband, Steven, is away on the road and her mother, Gladys, won't leave her alone. At least her baby, Dolores, has finally stopped screaming and is sweetly sleeping in her cot. Right where Louise left her. Or is she?

Brothers Thom and Archie are the best of friends and never disagree, until the beautiful, young and very headstrong Molly James comes into their life. Molly might be playing a game with the brothers - but when war strikes and they both join up to fight, it isn't a game anymore. Based on the true story of the author's grandfather's wartime experiences, At the Going Down of the Sun explores the intense bond between soldiers and brothers fighting in war, and a love that may tear them apart.

It's 1955, and four talented young women become best friends while living at the Hollywood Studio Club, the famous boarding house for movie hopefuls. Julia Newman is a rising star. For Peggy Carmichael, Julia's roommate, life is not so easy. She takes classes, auditions constantly, and grabs whatever bit-part is offered. Meanwhile Vivienne Lockhart, the most talented actress of them all, is constantly reduced to 'sexpot' roles. Finally there's aspiring scriptwriter Sadie Shore, who has little interest in the trappings of fame.

In the year 1861, there were three campfires burning outside the gold mining town of Mull Creek, in the British colony of Victoria. With the announcement of the first Melbourne Cup, all three parties descend upon Melbourne town. And the thrilling horserace offers something different for each of them - a new beginning, a chance to be written into history, or a prize bigger than they could imagine. GOOD AS GOLD is a reimagining of the very first 'race that stops a nation', and a heartwarming story about triumph and the things that mean more than gold.

Anna Winter, a young woman unwittingly caught up inside a ring of sophisticated Nazi spies, chooses to flee Germany in 1933, taking her precious doll collection with her as she sets sail for Australia. Soon after her arrival she finds herself in a remote outback town, working as a nanny for the family of Tom O'Hara, owner of the Birdum Hotel. Doubling up as the local bartender and cook, Anna hides her past from the world, until a chance encounter with an eccentric stranger, Alter Mayseh, changes everything.

In 1683 life is gruelling for the young women in Amsterdam's civic orphanage. The sole light in Johanna Timmerman's existence is her forbidden love for Frans, an orphan in the boys' section who has a smile like sunshine. Then he is gone. Floriane Peronneau's privileged world is pleasant and fulfilling until she discovers that it is all built on lies. Far from being the devoted gentleman he seems, her husband, Claes, is a womanising degenerate who has led them to the edge of ruin. And the forces are closing in on him.

John Franklin always wanted to be a sailor. As a volunteer in the Royal Navy at age fourteen, he found himself in the Battle of Copenhagan, but nothing could prepare him for the adventure of a lifetime, when he set off in 1801 with his cousin Matthew Flinders on HMS Investigator as it sought to chart the first circumnavigation of Australia. Taking on responsibility for the chronometers, under the jealous eye of Flinders' younger brother, the young midshipman found all the action, adventure and excitement he'd hoped for in his new life at sea.

The globe-spanning epic of power and family secrets from the Miles Franklin listed author.