There is nothing better...

than curling up with a good book

There’s nothing better than curling up with a good book and sitting in front of the fire on winter evenings and here on the south coast of WA, we have certainly got to the fire stage of the year.

I’m a winter lover - I should have been born in a snowy country, rather than one in which summer rages with 40 plus degrees! Any temp over about 25 degrees I get a bit thingy about, so when winter roles around, I’m in my element.

Winter represents a lot of things I relish. Really, who can say they that they DON’T love hot chocolates, hearty stews, soups and rain on a tin roof? Or reading in front of the fire?

I wanted to share some FIVE STAR stories I’ve read recently.

And these below are on my to-be-read pile. I’m starting with the new Karin Slaughter one ‘WE ARE ALL GUILTY HERE’ because I love Karin Slaughter! Nothing more complicated than that!

I’ve got a very busy next few months coming up. Most importantly, completing book 3 in the Kalgoorlie series.

The edits for The Missing, which I’ve just competed (and which is due to come out in November, all things being equal) were very taxing! Gee, there’s a lot of work to do before it’s going to be good enough to come to you. When I finished my edit over the weekend, I wrote to my much-suffering publisher, Anna, that “this is a dog’s breakfast and I hope it’s salvageable.” And truely, that’s exactly what it is at this point; a dog’s breakfast. The trouble is when you change a storyline as much as we did with The Missing, I pull one thread and the whole bloody thing unravels and then I’m not sure how to fix it. Anyhow, we will but I’ll be very glad for feedback from Anna and Maddie (publisher and editor respectively) because I’m at a bit of a loss.

There’s some very exciting events coming up soon too.

28th JUNE 2025: If you’re in Perth and are an avid ABC Radio listener like I am, you might have heard about the ABC Big Day of Books in partnership with Fremantle Press, UWA Publishing, Magabala Books and Boffins Books. I’m going to be in conversation with Claire Nichols on the 28th of JUNE and you can book tickets HERE I’m particularly excited about this event because I’ve always love listening to Claire speak to authors and never thought I’d get an opportunity because all those authors she speaks to write either literary novels or are a lot more famous and better authors than I! So if you are in Perth PLEASE do come along. There’s other fabulous authors coming like Margaret Hickey and Angie Faye Martin. This is the program:

BIG DAY OF BOOKS PROGRAM

10:00: Powerful stories: identity and healing

Exploring the recovery of minds and bodies through the power of narrative with Helen Milroy, David Whish-Wilson and Bebe Oliver. How can storytelling assist in reclaiming identity, self-acceptance and agency? Hosted by Jo Trilling.

11:15: Dark pasts, buried secrets and foreboding futures

Small towns with big histories. How crime fiction exposes the fault lines in rural and remote communities with Josh Kemp, Angie Faye Martin and Margaret Hickey. Hosted by Ali Colvin.

12:30: In conversation with Fleur McDonald

Claire Nichols interviews Fleur McDonald, queen of rural crime, about her new novel The Prospect.

1:30 Shadows and prophets

Many Australians know what it is like to live with legacies from elsewhere. Three novelists, Katherine Allum, Louise Wolhuter and Emily Tsokos Purtill ask whether it is possible to fight fate and forge new futures.

2:45: Profanity, profundity and unpredictable plumbing

From dickheads and corn cobs to murder most vile. From bum chafe to crushes and garrulous guile. Writing comedy is never as easy as reading it. Do you have to break a sweat to make people crack a smile? With Andrew HC McDonald, Meg Bignell and Kate Emery, hosted by Carrie Cox.

4:00: Warning: contents may offend

Grumpy old men meet grumpy young them. Former ABC presenter Geoff Hutchison and anarchic debut novelist Patrick Marlborough preview their July new releases How Not to Become a Grumpy Old Bugger and Nock Loose. Hosted by Gary Adshead.

AUGUST:

For those of you in Esperance WA and who are part of the Progressive Women Inc I’ll be speaking on the 7th of August at your AGM.

20th of August at 6:30pm will see me at the Balaklava Library event “Love, Crime and Wine Panel for 2025” along with other exceptional authors JP Pomear, Michael Thompson and Alina Bellchambers. You can book HERE Last I heard over half the tickets had been sold, so if you’re in the area, and want to come along, get your skates on.

SEPTEMBER

7th - 9th is the Bale Up National Women in Dairy conference in Kingscliff NSW, that I’m MC-ing and sitting on a panel on ‘Difficult Conversations in Farming’. Booking link to come. But keep an eye on their website HERE.

25th Manjimup Library (WA) booking link to come

OCTOBER

17th and 18th Festival of Fiction (WA) tickets can be purchased HERE and you can find out what other amazing authors will be attending via the website. Also you can follow Festival of Fiction on Instagram to keep up-to-date.

NOVEMBER

All being equal, my new novel THE MISSING will be hitting the shelves. I’ve seen the cover and it’s INSANELY good. I didn’t think we could top The Prospect, but the design team at HarperCollins have excelled themselves and I can’t wait to show you.

And also, this has happened, which has completely blown my mind. Bravo Echo Oscar (which was my dad’s plane and now mine) is arriving in Kalgoorlie this week so I can start my General Aviation training. I have no idea whether I’ll be able to complete this training, if I’ll be up to task, but I have to have a go. I feel incredibly emotional about BEO and starting my training. My dad was such an exceptional pilot and I’ve always wanted to make him proud. I hope I can continue the Parnell tradition of flying and I desperately want to take dad for a fly in this plane sometime soon, so crossed fingers this old brain is up to the training and learning. If I’m not, that will also be okay - I’ll know that I’ve tried.

To my FACEBOOK SUBSCRIBERS: I’m terribly sorry to be so behind with the Dave chapters. The beginning of this year was very Topsy Turvey with Hayden leaving home, trying to write THE MISSING and lots of other smaller bushfires and chaos that entered life in the last few months. My life is never dull! I’m working on three new chapters which will be available in one hit towards the end of June. And if anyone who hasn’t subscribed is desperately missing Detective Dave and want to know what happens with his kids, feel free to sign up to my subscribers page on Facebook (it is a paid area where you get extra content). I know there were a few people who are annoyed they have to pay to get access. Just to clarify, writing a chapter of Dave still needs to be edited and takes time away from writing my novels, so that’s why there is a nominal charge. This is where you can find the Subscriber Hub.

So dear Readers, I hope this newsy letter finds you well and healthy and enjoying every aspect about life. And if you’re having a tough time know that I’m holding you in my thoughts.

With Love,

Fleur and Shadow (who is most annoyed with the new sign as she’s very good at convincing visitors to leave the gate open so she can go exploring!)