Staff Picks

Throne of the Fallen

Throne of the Fallen


The Prince of Envy has never claimed to be a saint. But when a cryptic note arrives at his demon court, signalling the beginning of a deadly game, he knows it will take more than a hint of sin to win. Riddles, hexed objects, anonymous players, nothing will stand in his way.

Camilla is an artist with troubles of her own: a desperate mistake has landed her in debt to a notorious rake. Threatened with ruinous scandal, she is forced to enter a devil's bargain with Envy. A bargain that reveals secrets and ignites passions that neither of them expects. 

Together, Envy and Camilla must embark on a perilous journey through the underworld - from glittering demon courts to the sultry vampire realm and beyond - while trying to avoid the most dangerous trap of all: falling in love.
 

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How to Keep House While Drowning

How to Keep House While Drowning

When you are neurodivergent, have undiagnosed ADHD or are struggling with your mental or physical health, keeping on top of the laundry pile and tackling dishes in the sink can feel like climbing a mountain. But it doesn't have to be that way.

Licensed therapist KC Davis has been there. Having relearnt the basics of self-care after an adult diagnosis of ADHD, she is here to revolutionise the way you look after your home and your mind. This gentle guide to staying afloat when life is tough shares practical strategies to create a functional home, make your space work for you rather than against you, and treat yourself with more compassion and kindness.

KC's philosophy- good enough is perfect. With her help, your home will feel like a sanctuary again.

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The Shipping News

The Shipping News

Quoyle is a hapless, hopeless hack journalist living and working in New York. When his no-good wife is killed in a spectacular road accident, Quoyle heads for the land of his forefathers - the remotest corner of far-flung Newfoundland. With ′the aunt′ and his delinquent daughters - Bunny and Sunshine - in tow, Quoyle finds himself part of an unfolding, exhilarating Atlantic drama.

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A Brief History of Living Forever

A Brief History of Living Forever

When Adela discovers she has a terminal illness, her thoughts turn to Tereza, the child she gave up at birth. Leaving behind her family in their native Czech village, Adela flies to the United States to find her long-lost daughter before it is too late.Raised in America and living in a fractured New York City, Tereza is working for two suspicious biotech moguls hellbent on immortality. But before Tereza can imagine a cure for Adela, her mother dies and her body disappears.

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The Strange

The Strange

Since Anabelle's mother left for Earth to care for her own ailing mother, her days in New Galveston have been spent at school and her nights at her laconic father's diner with Watson, the family Kitchen Engine and dishwasher, as her only companion. When the Silence came, and communication and shipments from Earth to its colonies on Mars stopped, life seemed stuck in foreboding stasis until the night Silas Mundt and his gang attacked. 

At once evoking the dreams of an America explored in Ray Bradbury's The Martian Chronicles and the harsher realities of frontier life in Charles Portis True Grit, Ballingrud's "brilliant" (Paul Tremblay, New York Times bestselling author of The Cabin at the End of the World) novel is haunting in its evocation of Annabelle's quest for revenge amidst a spent and angry world accompanied by a domestic Engine, a drunken space pilot, and the toughest woman on Mars.

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Scarlet

Scarlet

Revolutionary France is no place to be, especially for aristocrat vampires facing the guillotine. But the League of the Scarlet Pimpernel are determined to rescue them. And they have an ace up their sleeve: Eleanor, a lowly maid from an English estate with a striking resemblance to French royalty.

For Eleanor, the League and their legendary deeds are little more than rumour - until she's drawn into their most dangerous plot yet. The mission? Travel to France in disguise, impersonate Queen Marie Antoinette and rescue the royal family. If they succeed, it'll be the heist of the century.

But there's more to fear than ardent Revolutionaries. For Eleanor stumbles across a centuries-old war between vampires and their fiercest enemy. And they're out for blood . . .

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Hindsight

Hindsight

Cass Lehman has a terrifying 'gift'...The youngest in a family of extraordinary women with supernatural talents, Cass is cursed with the not-so-sexy gift of seeing the past...but not just any past; she sees death. For years she's hidden herself away in her family home. Now, desperate for a better life, she ventures into sleepy Jewel Bay, only to stumble upon murder and mayhem and a killer at large who's long been lurking in their midst. Taking a chance, Cass volunteers to assist Detective Ed Dyson with the investigation. Will Cass be able to save the latest victim - and herself?

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Bride

Bride

Misery Lark, the only daughter of the most powerful Vampyre councilman of the Southwest, is an outcast-again. Her days of living in anonymity among the Humans are over: she has been called upon to uphold an historic peacekeeping alliance between the Vampyres and their mortal enemies, the Weres, and sees little choice but to surrender herself in the exchange. Again . . . . 

Weres are ruthless and unpredictable, and their Alpha, Lowe Moreland, is no exception. He rules his pack with absolute authority, but not without justice. And, unlike the Vampyre Council, not without feeling. It's clear from the way he tracks Misery's every movement that he doesn't trust her. If only he knew how right he was . . . 

Because Misery has her own reasons to agree to this marriage of convenience, reasons that have nothing to do with politics or alliances, and everything to do with the only thing she's ever cared about. And she is willing to do whatever it takes to get back what's hers, even if it means a life alone in Were territory . . . alone with the wolf. 
 

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What Happened to Nina

What Happened to Nina

Nina and Simon are the perfect couple. Young, fun and deeply in love. Until they leave for a weekend at his family's cabin in Vermont, and only Simon comes home.

WHAT HAPPENED TO NINA?

Nobody knows. Simon's explanation about what happened in their last hours together doesn't add up. Nina's parents push the police for answers, and Simon's parents rush to protect him. They hire expensive lawyers and a PR firm that quickly ramps up a vicious, nothing-is-off-limits media campaign.

HOW FAR WILL HIS FAMILY GO TO KEEP HIM SAFE?

Soon, facts are lost in a swirl of accusation and counter-accusation. Everyone chooses a side, and the story goes viral, fuelled by armchair investigators and wild conspiracy theories and illustrated with pretty pictures taken from Nina's social media accounts. Journalists descend on their small Vermont town, followed by a few obsessive 'fans.'

HOW FAR WILL HER FAMILY GO TO GET TO THE TRUTH?

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The Women

The Women

‘Women can be heroes, too’. When twenty-year-old nursing student, Frances “Frankie” McGrath, hears these unexpected words, it is a revelation. Raised on California’s idyllic Coronado Island and sheltered by her conservative parents, she has always prided herself on doing the right thing, being a good girl. But in 1965 the world is changing, and she suddenly imagines a different path for her life. When her brother ships out to serve in Vietnam, she impulsively joins the Army Nurses Corps and follows his path.

As green and inexperienced as the young men sent to Vietnam to fight, Frankie is overwhelmed by the chaos and destruction of war, as well as the unexpected trauma of coming home to a changed America. Frankie will also discover the true value of female friendship and the heartbreak that love can cause.

The Women is the story of one woman who goes to war, but it shines a light on the story of all women who put themselves in harm’s way to help others. Women whose sacrifice and commitment to their country has been all too often forgotten. A novel of searing insight and lyrical beauty, The Women is a profoundly emotional, richly drawn story with a memorable heroine whose extraordinary idealism and courage under fire define an era.

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Shellharbour City Libraries acknowledges the traditional custodians of Dharawal Country and recognises their continued connection to the land. We pay our respects to Elders past, present and emerging and the contribution they make to the life of this City.