Love. It was infuriating yet strangely addicting. It swirls in unknown waters, testing its limits before striking. The sensation of its claws digging into your flesh was all it took for it to become entranced. And then everything collapsed. Everything began to untangle. Everything slowly crumbled to ground. Everything began to fall apart. And you found yourself in the centre of it all, your hands cradling your heart as tears trickled down your cheeks, the salty liquid creating a dark patch on your jeans as it hit the soft fabric. You're vulnerable. You're scared. You're hurt. You're broken. But when you finally have the courage, to wipe away an trace of a broken heart. When you finally lift yourself from the dark pit you had created. When you finally patch together the remnants of your shattered soul. When you finally close your eyes. When you forget. When you become invincible. When you finally heal. It all comes back. Everything. Like an arrow that had been shot in your back, your eyes widening from the unforeseen attack. That's what happens. Because love is dirty. Love was the ugly, ever changing shadow that would snarl at you, jeering at your pitiful state. But then it was also the beautiful stroke of the paintbrush, as the brush winded across the canvas, the colours flourishing into life. Love was a demon, yet also an angel in disguise. That was love. _____________________________________ [ WARNING ⚠ : I wrote this as an inexperienced pre-pubescent so prepare for a cringefest. So before you call me out, think about the kid you're swearing at :) ] COVER BY SAMUELSTORMBRINGER [ COMPLETED ] HIGHEST RANKS: #31 in romance 09.11.17 #1 in heartbreak 17.12.18 #1 in friendzoned 21.05.18 #1 in ex-husband 21.05.18 #1 in marriage 30.03.19

Inspired by the non-fictional, historical lives of Sir Joseph Banks, Nicolas Baudin, Captain William Bligh, Matthew Flinders and John Macarthur, this 'coming of age' story is set at the dawn of the nineteenth century. It describes Charlotte, an English orphan, being saved from unimaginable misery by a young Irish Catholic priest, Reverend Sean Simmons. Charlotte cannot dream that she is about to embark on a fantastic journey that will take her from the manored estates of gentrified England to the brutal convict settlement on Terra Australis. Navigating the mire of desperate circumstances and characters she encounters along the way will test her mettle and spirit. Yet, meeting the strange and enigmatic Charlotte will also test every person who encounters her on the journey in unpredictable and uniquely different ways. Charlotte, it appears, brings change; nothing is the same again - least of all, the future Australian colony she longs to call home.

Atropa Belladonna Book Summary Eve has recovered from the devastating aftermath of an obsessive affair. She appears to have established a new life with a loving, surrogate family where she can raise her lover Jeff's illegitimate son and secure her reputation. As she embarks on an independent life, Jeff writes to tell her he's been recently widowed and asks Eve to marry him. After tragedy strikes again, Eve is drawn back into his orbit. She moves to Chicago and begins a new life as his wife. Before long she finds herself trapped by his violence. Fearing the worst, she devises a plan to save herself and her children. Atropa Belladonna poetically illustrates the complexities of love, marriage and abuse in the context of the 1950s family. ***Atropa Belladonna is a sequel to Exuberance Is Beauty, my historical novel set in the late 1940s. While Atropa Belladonna is a stand alone novel, it does reveal the plot details and the ending of Exuberance Is Beauty very early in the book.