WATTYS WINNER 2020 Two interconnected murders, 64 years apart. One woman's search for truth and identity. Readers' comments: 'a masterpiece', 'impeccably written', 'amazing', 'superbly crafted page-turner', 'hauntingly beautiful', 'tremendous plot and character development', 'one of a kind', 'fantastic story telling', 'loved this book', 'a wonderful read", 'absolutely beautiful', 'brought tears to my eyes' and many more Wattys judging panel: 'This is VERY good. We were HOOKED from the beginning, and the writing and plot hold up throughout. This is a very unique, polished, well-written and well-researched piece.' Plot Set partly in rural England, partly on the sun-kissed coast of southerm Italy, The Painted Altar is a murder mystery mixed with romantic and historical elements (World War Two). Given away at two days old, Mary Rice has spent her life in the shadows. When discovering the suspicious circumstances surrounding her biological mother's death, she embarks on a journey which will shine a light not only on the truth but also on her own identity. Brief extract Suddenly, the door had inched open, half a wrinkled face visible behind the tautened chain. "Hello. Who is it?" The words I was going to say had of course been well-rehearsed, repeated over and over in my mind like a mantra, but now that the moment had arrived I found myself struggling to remember them. "Mrs Harvey... I think that you might... well, that you might be..." The door closed, then slowly opened once more, the chain this time unlatched. And there she was before me - half a metre away, within arm's reach. Thin lips gradually crooking upwards at each corner like the slow beatific kindling of a summer's dawn. "Oh yes love, I know who you are." Length: 70,000 words About the author: Originally from England but for the last 16 years I've been living in Italy. I hope therefore that the Italian aspects of the novel will have a certain gloss of authenticity.

Milo Park is a serial romantic with an addiction to online dating. Lee Asano is the barista stuck taking the orders of every date Milo reels in. It wouldn't be an issue if Milo wasn't such a hot topic-star running back for the USFC football team as a freshmen, member of the most iconic fraternity at USFC, and general campus heartthrob. When Milo convinces Lee to be his gym buddy, it sounds and feels like the friend zone. But who knew the #GymLife was so gay anyway? Certainly not Lee.

There once was a supermarket in a small country town that was known for its friendly service and the staff were all real close. One night, a group of employees were asked to work an overnight shift to prepare for the large day ahead of them... Christmas Eve. Everything seemed fine until the power went out. The backup generator kicked in, supplying power to give the workers some light. But, without reason, a man made an attempt to break in, but found that there were several workers busying themselves with the tasks at hand. The man then found a new motive... kill them all. As they run for their lives, who will make it out... and who will be the next victim?