2020 WATTYS WINNER in NEW ADULT! Oliver Ausman has been given a second chance at life, but it's hard to feel grateful when he was the one trying to end it in the first place. Returning to his normal life after being released from the hospital is hard, especially since his parent's idea of normal is made up of dinner parties, prep school, fancy suits, and fake manners-- all paired with a complete disregard for the mental health of their firstborn. He's long been fed up with it, but the final straw is when he finds out that his "father" isn't actually his father at all. Oliver decides he's had enough of the perfect facade, so he packs a suitcase and grabs his younger brother, "borrowing" his mother's car to sneak off on a trip to find his biological father. But he never expected to pick up a girl with her own similar set of problems, to be followed across the country by a money-hungry pair of criminals, or most of all, to find out that maybe this life thing isn't as bad as he thought. 𝐂𝐎𝐌𝐏𝐋𝐄𝐓𝐄𝐃 (𝐮𝐧𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐝) - 𝟏/𝟐𝟐/𝟐𝟎

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.