Category: outback

Australian Rural, Beaufort's Landing, crime, Murder mystery, North Queensland, Novels, outback, Series, Writing

World Curlew Day

My phone just told me that today (21/04/2026) is World Curlew Day, which has jolted me into action on this site.

So, I am reminding you that Book 3 of the Beaufort’s Landing murder mystery series, ‘AT CURLEW CRY”.

Our accidental female sleuth (accidental sleuth, not accidental female) Xelma finds herself embroiled in a disappearance, an apparent suiscide and not one but two murders. She and Detective Ryan Croft are once again at loggerheads, but a gruding respect is starting to develop, which enables them to solve this most intriguing case.

Read and enjoy. Do you have curlews where you live?

I also want to give another call-out to Australia’s premier Historical Faction writer PETER WATT, who was kind enough to offer me his encouragement back in the day before I had written even one novel.

Book 1 of Peter’s Frontier family sagas, ‘CRY OF THE CURLEW‘ is set in the middle years of the ninteenth century and is an exciting, human and humane tale… confronting, graphic, erotic and full of adventure in early Australia. If you haven’t read any of his books you should, and if you have a re-read is in order. Just follow the links above.

Get them both and settle in for a couple of days good reading…

Caio for now,

Australian Rural, Beaufort's Landing, crime, North Queensland, Novels, outback, Series, Writing

OFFICIAL LAUNCH

DEAD RINGER: BOOK 4, BEAUFORT’S LANDING MURDER MYSTERIES

Our psychic sleuth, Xelma, finds herself helping to search for a missing ringer on a property just outside of Charters Towers. He is found, but something is amiss, and as the Wet Season sets in things go from odd to weird to downright dangerous.

Australian Rural, Beaufort's Landing, crime, North Queensland, Novels, outback, Series, Writing

LAUNCHING!!!

At last, Dead Ringer Book 4, the latest in my Beaufort’s Landing series of Murder mysteries is having its launch, Peta the wonderful and helpful owner of Arcane Books in Townsville is allowing me to use some of her precious floor space for the launch. 13th September 9:30 am. I’ll do a short reading and be available for chats and signing. More details to come.

While I’m talking about the murder mysteries — here is a very nice review I recently received :

Percy, what sort of mind-blending concoction did you just slip into my coffee with Becoming Xelma?

We’ve got a dreamy psychic, a Krav Maga master, an artist with Parisian prestige, and, just to keep things spicy, an emotional wreck wrapped in mystery trauma, possibly packing a roundhouse kick and psychic insight while painting a self-portrait. I don’t know if I should cheer for her, fear her, or both. (Okay, both.)

...A prequel with this much soul-snatching potential should be blowing up Kindle pages and making readers cancel brunch plans… They’d love the art, the grit, the mystery, the psychic sass… and the fact that she’d probably knock out a man with a flick of her chakra. 

It feels a bit weird, such braggadocio! Lol…if it gets others reading my work, I won’t complain.

Enough about me—how are you going? Having some writing success? Tell me all about it. Have you read anything good lately? After attending Angie Faye Martin’s author’s talk at Mary Who Book Shop I recently read Melaleuca published by HQ Fiction and enjoyed it immensely. A gritty female protagonist always gets my attention, add an Australian setting, a gripping storyline and well-rounded characters and I am in!

I really have to go now…it’s been nice chatting but work awaits.