is known inside the Colony as 

A Glint of Exoskeleton

For over hundred years, humans have battled mosquitoes with pesticides. Now, the mosquitoes are fighting back.

Their newly developed disease will wipe out the human race.

Thirteen year-old Crick and her best friend, a cockroach named Peri, are determined to stop them, travelling to Panama, where the mosquito leader is marshalling her forces. They must use all their wits and draw on a host of insect allies. Will it be enough to survive and stop the mosquitoes?

Adventure for insect lovers!

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The Backstory

Arthropods are amazing! I wanted to write a story in which the bugs took centre stage, relying on real-life superpowers to win the day. Other than their intelligence and speaking ability, the bugs in A Glint of Exoskeleton are ordinary arthropods doing things that their real-life counterparts do every day.

Squelched

Tory’s life is comfortable. She has her cat, her job at Laurel Glen Library, and her friend Jess. She’s happy and content … until she loses her job, finds her deadbeat dad, and discovers she’s a monster with deadly powers.

FBI Agent Nico Michaelson was hoping for the assignment to launch his career. Instead he’s following Tory and her crazy cat. But is she really the monster the government believes she is? And is he willing to kill her, or would he rather ask her out?

Cosy urban fantasy.

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The Backstory

I first wrote this concept as epic fantasy. After banging out a book and a half and hating it, I shifted gears, setting it in the modern day. I added a cat and a library, and it all came together beautifully.

The Ipswich Witch

Not all witches wear black.

A weekend at the beach goes terribly wrong when Pearl and Otto’s parents disappear. The kindly Miss Brisket, owner of the bed and breakfast where they are staying, assures them everything is fine, but strange things start happening, and soon the children are in a race against time to save both their parents and Miss Brisket from the local witches coven.

This standalone fantasy is perfect for children who love animals and adventure.

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Demonic Summoning for the Modern Gardener

When Katie Cochrane gets a burnt out pub for her thirtieth birthday, she does the only logical thing—starts her own restaurant. But the Rifton Pub has issues. Patrons who haven’t even had a drink start showing up ‘drunk’ around Rifton. Unfortunately, the ‘demon drink’ isn’t responsible, but another sort of demon altogether. It’s going to take all of Rifton’s witches to banish what has taken root.

A standalone cosy urban fantasy set in small-town New Zealand. Book 2 of the Rifton Chronicles

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Demonic Summoning for the Modern Woman

When Alex Blackburn returns to small-town Rifton to settle her grandmother’s estate, she doesn’t expect to uncover Gran’s secret affair or accidentally summon a giant centipede from the netherworld. Now she’s got to get rid of it, before it eats all the neighbours’ pets.

Shelby Saunders, grandson of Gran’s lover, might just be the one to help her. If she can convince him the demon is real.

This cosy urban fantasy set in small-town New Zealand is the first book in the Rifton Chronicles series.

You'll look twice at your cat after reading this.
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The Backstory

In the small town where I live, there are several unmarked graves. On long walks during Covid lockdown, my husband and I made up all sorts of crazy stories about who is buried there. Diving into local history to find out the truth about the graves, I found a treasure trove of colourful Canterbury history. I couldn't resist the lure of weaving real historical events with a bit of ridiculous fantasy.

Fatewalker

Kalish is a Fatewalker, chosen by the god Iskra to save her people and their enemies from a common threat. As her shape-shifting power grows, her influence does too, but Kalish’s personal goals—finding a home and a people she belongs to—seem as far away as ever.

Personal and societal struggles intertwine as Kalish and her followers grapple with the question, not of who they are, but of who they wish to become.

Book 2 of the Fatecarver series.

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Fatecarver

Kalish had a plan. The gods had a different one.

Banished from her clan for a prophesied future act of treachery, Kalish is forced far from home. When she discovers a plot to destroy her people, she must defy them in order to save them.

Book 1 of the Fatecarver series takes you to a stunning landscape of harsh beauty and harsh consequences. If you like action-packed fantasy, strong female characters, and magic realism, you’ll love Fatecarver. Pick up your copy today and start your adventure!

From the first chapter, I was pulled in hook, line and sinker!
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The Backstory

This series began as a flash fiction piece, which I realised wanted to be part of a book, and it quickly grew to a 3-book epic fantasy series.

Dragons of Aotearoa New Zealand

A world-first guide to dragons, written in consultation with the dragons themselves.

Hidden for centuries, Aotearoa New Zealand’s dragons step out of the shadows in this unique and informative guide.

Everything you ever wanted to know about New Zealand dragons, their lives culture, and history.

With a foreword by the founding members of the Dragon Defence League, and special commentary by the dragons Rata and Foggy Bottom.

A must-read for dragon lovers!

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The Backstory

For years, I've had readers begging for a book about the species of dragons I've invented for the Dragon Defence League series. It wasn't until I teamed up with the amazing illustrator, Lily Duval, that I was able to make that book a reality. Lily shared my geeky enthusiasm for the biology and ecology of these mythical creatures, adapted to unique New Zealand habitats.

Draconic Search and Rescue

Nathan McMannis is bored. His friends have gone on to new adventures, while he’s stuck at the Alexandra Institute doing correspondence school. All he wants is more excitement, less maths homework.

But you know what they say: Be careful what you wish for.

Another wild, dragon-filled adventure set in modern day New Zealand! This standalone adventure can also be read as Book 5 of the Dragon Defence League series.

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Dragon Homecoming

Something lurks in the mountains—a legend of ice and snow, threatened by climate change. 

When the Dragon Defence League is called in to investigate, they embark on their most audacious mission yet. A mission that will take them to the ends of the earth and require the help of a nation. Can they pull it off before it’s too late?

The fourth book in the Dragon Defence League series takes you on another wild adventure! Don’t miss it!

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November – Brussels Sprouts

For a long time, I thought Lancaster County didn’t have a rush hour. It turns out that before six, before dawn, the roads were filled...
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The Stillness of a Spellbound Audience

I like collecting. Mostly things like pens, books, spices and tropical fevers, but lately also “lean-in” moments. These happen when I’m reading out loud to...
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Under the Influence of Irving – A Review of Queen Esther

Queen Esther, John Irving, Simon & Schuster, 2025, pp. 432 I’ve just finished reading the new John Irving novel, Queen Esther. I loved it. I was...
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The Terrifying Tarap

Tropical fruits are a diverse bunch. On the one hand, we've got pineapples and passionfruit, mangos and mangosteen, all those lovely, sweet and sour flavours...
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Then Someone Said

. I thought I’d play the rapping game: words in rhythm (no chance of gain). . Shyness prevailed, but undeterred, I told my plight of...
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The Language Of Place

Pimp, dick, bumfit admittedly sounds well dodgy. Or at least it does if you don’t live in these parts. Round here though, it’s simply the...
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If the Protagonist Had Slept in

The PROTAGONIST’S room. Chapter One’s bloodstained clothes still cover the floor. The DIRECTOR stands in the doorway, exasperated. —— Look at the state of you....
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A Fresh Start

There comes a point in life* when you must admit that you were wrong. A story is trundling along at an exceptional pace, and you...
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The Book They Actually Wanted

Writers need feedback, and I have found the perfect focus group*. It offers raw, physical reactions, delivered with zero concern for the writer’s feelings. These...
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People Like Those: Aigneis

Aigneis is a diminutive lady in her 80s, still sharp of mind, though frail of limb. She moved to Birmingham from rural Ireland in the...
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Where it all started

When Alphonse de Lamartine said “music is the literature of the heart,” I’m pretty sure he wasn’t envisaging the heavy metal scene. Saying that, I’d...
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If Genre Were A Custody Battle

A conference room. Two GENRES sit fuming on opposite sides of a table. The DIRECTOR sits at the head, looking tired.     Okay, you...
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