From New York Times bestselling author Helen Brown comes a witty, uplifting novel about a woman who discovers that it's never too late to build the home--and the life--you've always longed for... The windows rattle. The roof leaks. Every surface cries out to be stripped, painted, or polished. But for writer Lisa Trumperton, the dilapidated manor house that once belonged to her great-grandfather is far more than the sum of its battered parts. It's the chance for a new start on her own terms. The fact that it's in the Melbourne countryside of her Australian homeland, far from the deceitful ex-husband she just left behind in New York...well, that's a bonus. Lisa sets to work refurbishing Trumperton Manor, assisted by her son, his friends, and a "Gray Army" of retired handymen. But it's not just her ancestral home that's being transformed. As she trades her chic Manhattan clothes for jeans and work boots, Lisa is changing and fortifying her relationships with her family and her sense of self. There are floods, fires, and catastrophes, but there are new allies too, including a one-eyed cat, a stubborn cockatoo, and a rugged landscaper with an irresistible grin. Piece by piece, the house is pushing Lisa beyond her old limits, daring her to embrace something bigger, braver, and more rewarding than she ever dreamed. Praise for Helen Brown and Her Books "A buoyant tale, heartfelt and open." --Booklist on Cleo "Brown writes eloquently about the bonds between women ... a moving story of love and identity." --Kirkus Reviews on Cats & Daughters

Life's going down the gurgler for romance writer Lisa Trumperton. The deadline for her next novel is looming, her daughter won't eat but has a new tattoo each week, and now her Wall Street trader husband has run off with a woman at work. Lisa makes a quick escape, home to Australia, where at least her girl - magnet son seems to be making hay. Determined to grow older disgracefully, she turns her back on a trim and tidy townhouse that is close to shops, aged - care providers and her bossy older sister, instead buying a grand old house in the country that once belonged to her great - grandfather. But like its new owner, Trumperton Manor has seen better days. Crumbling, filthy and possibly haunted, the old house defies Lisa's attempts to restore it. Add flood, fire and family secrets, plus a stray cat with attitude and an overly familiar handyman, and the cracks begin to show.

Bestselling pet memoirist Helen Brown has enthralled readers with tales of the cats in her life. Readers all over the globe have fallen in love with Cleo, Jonah, and Bono alike. But now, Helen is taking her readers back to where it all began: her childhood pet, Mickey. This is a memoir about growing up, with the help of a very special cat. The youngest daughter of an eccentric engineer and a musical theater fanatic, Helen Brown grew up in the New Zealand coastal town of New Plymouth in a crumbling castle overrun by nature, and overshadowed by nearby, beautiful Mount Taranaki. It’s 1966, the Pacific islands are being used for atomic bomb testing, and her parents and siblings are swept up in their own lives. Twelve years old, struggling in school, and facing eye surgery—for the second time—Helen feels lonely and lost. . . . Until her father gives her a three-month-old, gray-and-brown tiger-striped tabby with extra toes on each paw. Noticing an M design on the cat’s forehead, Helen names her new companion Mickey. Inquisitive, rambunctious, clever, and skittish, Mickey disrupts the already quirky household with his mischief. But Helen finds love, joy—and herself—in learning what it means to care for a living creature who needs her as much as she needs him. Praise for Helen Brown’s Books “The next Marley & Me.” —Good Housekeeping “An absolute must.” —Cat World

Dante Galand has cured the sickness that trapped him on the Plagued Islands. Now, it's time to leave. And kill a priest. The target is Gladdic of Bressel. Gladdic, who executed Dante's friend, the pirate Captain Twill. Who all but enslaved the Plagued Islands. And whose visions of empire are far from over. But Gladdic is trained in both ether and nether—and a darker magic than Dante has ever known. He's the most dangerous foe Dante has faced. And if Dante falls, so will an entire kingdom. Set in a USA TODAY bestselling world, THE SILVER THIEF is the second book in the Cycle of Galand.

Her Heart’s Desire is another Dockerty saga based on Vivienne’s family tree, set in Victorian Merseyside in 1893.Eighteen year old Lily is spoilt and petted by her father. She spurns the love of Charlie, a twenty-one year old shipyard worker. A courtship from a boy with his lowly background would never do. Lily has her heart set on marrying her cousin Lawrence Patterson, a sea captain with whom Lily has fallen in love.But Lawrence marries Bertha, Lily’s older sister, and Lily, unable to have her heart’s desire, marries Army officer Roland instead. Charlie, who is left bereft when his beloved marries another, finds himself burdened with Mary, a wife who can be cruel and manipulative, causing him to up sticks and make a new life for himself elsewhere.By 1903 both have been widowed. Roland has been killed in the Boer War and Mary died in childbirth. Will fate bring Lily and Charlie back together? Only time will tell...Her Heart’s Desire will appeal to fans of Vivienne Dockerty’s work and those that enjoy historical romance fiction. Vivienne is inspired by Katie Flynn and Maureen Lee and her writing style emulates the work of Dilly Court.

Alfred, Lord Milner was a brilliant public servant and one of Britain's most celebrated – or notorious – empire-builders, who left an indelible imprint on the history of South Africa. Sent to southern Africa to bring President Paul Kruger's obstreperous Boers to heel, Milner was primarily, though not solely, responsible for the Anglo-Boer War (1899–1902), a conflict that marked the beginning of the end of the British Empire. In the aftermath of the war, a determined Milner set out to reconstruct the former Boer republics, but his policies stoked resentment among Afrikaners, particularly in respect of language and education. He left behind a coterie of young administrators, the so-called Kindergarten, who contributed significantly to the unification of South Africa and the fostering of imperial ideals through the Round Table Movement. In this biography, the first by a South African, Richard Steyn argues that Milner's reputation should not be defined by his eight years' service in South Africa alone. Despite his controversial stance on the issue of Irish Home Rule, Milner's legendary administrative ability made him the obvious choice for War Secretary in Lloyd George's five-man War Cabinet, and Milner did much to shape the Allied victory in the First World War. If his personal qualities and beliefs made him the wrong man to send to South Africa, where he failed to accomplish the over-ambitious goals he set himself, he was the right man in a far greater international conflict.

Heroic samurai must defeat an ancient evil unleashed upon the world, before its malign power destroys the realm of Rokugan in this epic Legend of the Five Rings fantasy adventure The Emerald Empire stands on the brink of destruction. The dark sorcerer Iuchiban has escaped his tomb, and desires dominion over all. Unicorn samurai Iuchi Qadan has been welcomed home and celebrated for her part in destroying the Blood- speaker rebellion. Yet she is not herself… Possessed by Iuchiban, Qadan can do nothing but watch as the undying sorcerer lord draws tight the noose he has wrapped around the throat of an unsuspecting empire. And hope that someone will realize she is not who she seems. But the other survivors of Iuchiban’s tomb are few, and made speechless by the horrors they’ve endured. To stop Iuchiban’s evil, new alliances between old enemies must be formed. They will be brittle, untested, and marred by mistrust. Should these alliances fail, there will be no Rokugan.