Maria's Published Books
Engaging Stories - Drawn from Real Life - Absorbing, Relaxing and Thought-Provoking
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(Series Book 1) In so many ways James feels seriously neglected. As the youngest in a family of three boys, he rarely sees his brothers who are working interstate. His father is always away on business, and he is left with his embarrassing posh and over-protective mum to deal with.
But one freak accident, one over-protective mum, and two bearded, super helpful and devilish motor bike riders, come together in a hilarious situation, sending James’ world soaring in ways he could never have imagined.
(Series Book 2) The gods have been looking after James whose dad’s overseas on a business trip. He was missing him for a while, but not any more for he managed to snaffle the ride of his life, on a Harley Davidson, all for two reasons.
1. His overprotective mother and
2. A couple of seriously-funny dental doctors
Since then, things have gone swimmingly. His mother, who has had one ride on a Harley, is all ready to have some motorbike lessons, when her husband sends a text to say he’s arriving home from South America, hoping to take the two of them back there for six months.
They are shocked!
This will ruin their plans!!
What’s a boy to do???
Too easy…take one devious son, a mother who is newly into the thrill of motorbike riding, and a physiotherapist who now sells Harley Davidson bikes, and the problem might be turned into an opportunity.
Ailsa is frantic. She is a busy executive, but needs to find time to completely take stock of her hospitalised father’s apartment, which is bulging with myriad, undoubtedly valuable objets d’art, literally strewn throughout the apartment. In desperation, she rings her mother for help. But Helen steadfastly refuses. Helen and John separated many moons ago.
An unusually heated, confrontational telephone exchange follows, where Ailsa finds herself asking probing, sometimes inappropriate, and relentless questions, about Helen’s cloistered lifestyle. In her mother’s replies Ailsa senses there is something she is holding back, some dark secret (in fact one that Helen has been on the brink of disclosing many times, straining a smouldering mother-daughter relationship).
And then, the hospital doctor informs them that John may have a life-threatening brain tumour. This spurs Helen to reassess the truth about her relationship with John, and to rethink her initial refusal of help. She agrees to take over the organization of John’s apartment, allowing Ailsa to return to work.
Unexpectedly, disaster strikes, and lives are tossed into an ocean of sadness, conflict and frustration, as small fragments of the past reveal many shocking truths that will alter the course of Ailsa’s life.
John’s wife dies. An untimely, though reluctantly anticipated shock. Reflecting, John becomes plagued with remorse, as recognition of his egocentric past builds in his mind.
Purely by chance, he encounters Ania, an inspirational old lady, who has turned her personal adversity into one of promise for those who need a fresh start.
Moved by her very existence, John finds the courage to forgive himself, discovering, through Ania, the depth of meaning in the old maxim “Give – to Live”.
Using his own resources, he quietly and steadfastly embarks on a challenging, emotional, and largely unchartered journey, providing love and hope for others, in ways he could never have imagined.
(Series Book 1) Allie Cashmere, a highly-successful real estate agent, has it all. But she’s not happy. Far from it.
Her conscience is beginning to claim a large part of her thinking. Her job demands that she extract enormous fees for selling the homes of people who can’t always afford to pay.
She needs a career change, but how? In so many ways she is locked in to the system that has delivered so much comfort for her.
Enter a weekend away with some girlfriends, and a giggly dare at a fair, sees her wondering how she could use a tacky fairground practice, and turn it into a positive career path.
She sneakily starts to work on her new self, but eventually, crunch time. She’ll have to confront and convince Brad to go ahead. Good ol’ conservative hubby Brad. He’ll never have a bar of it! Well, here goes…
(Series Book 2) Allie Cashmere is experiencing an epiphany. She is still the highly-successful real estate executive she has worked hard to become. She commands a significant salary, she’s sought-after, and she gets results. Everything she has worked for has come to fruition.
But now Allie realizes that it’s no longer what she wants, not the high salary, nor the stylish inner-city home, nor hob-knobbing with equally-successful people. What SHE wants has nothing to do with status, or acclaim, but everything to do with heart, and to achieve her goals she must start afresh and forge a new journey.
With the tacit support of her husband Brad, she continues her real estate work for the time being, factoring in her fortune telling whenever she can find the time.
One phone call from James, a past client who has concerns about what he sees as a paranormal activity in the house he bought from Allie, coupled with a serendipitous visit to Queensland by the former owner, and Allie encourages a meeting with James and his wife Christina. Light is fortuitously shed on things, friendship is forged, and everyone can breathe easily.
But not quite….James still has concerns because friends are now afraid to visit them. He needs help. Suddenly Allie finds herself offering the services of Sarafina, in order to allay their fears. Success has everything to do with preparation and opportunity. She has work to do, but will the skills she has developed over the years be enough to save the day?
Nature has been more than kind to Gina – probably too kind. She is also incredibly smart. Can you be too smart?
Somehow, she has allowed herself to be presumed on by others – her superiors at work, her husband – and her children.
But Gina has a plan, a dark, devious one that she has worked on furtively for several years. It requires her to be ruthless and cunning, and work reclusively to achieve her goal.
Over the last little while, Gina has leveraged two latent talents that have secretly built her wealth. Now she can escape the fate, close off her current shallow existence, and set off to the Antipodes to find herself.
But danger strikes when she succumbs to the charming writer Max. In her own mind, she develops the perception that Max is stalking her. So now, for the second time, she has to flee – this time from Max’s clutches. A pattern is emerging.
I grew up in Scotland, have spent a few years living on a beautiful island in PNG called Bougainville, and now live in Canberra, Australia with my ever-tolerant husband, who also happens to be my proofreader!
My claim to fame is having won the Temperance Prize for Writing in high school, but that was before I discovered all the fine red wines that Australia has to offer. Does that mean I should give the prize back?
I guess I have an overactive imagination and love to weave situations I come across into captivating tales. Sneaking into the minds of my characters allows me to steal their personalities for a time, but it’s only a temporary trespass and certainly not worth reporting to the police!
Stories are to be found in every person we meet, or in situations we read about. So just be careful if you ever happen my way. You may surreptitiously be woven into a plot!
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