Buffalo Dust by Mel A Rowe Series: Elsie Creek #9 Subgenre: rural romance Release date: 23 Dec 2023 Publisher: self-published Format: ebook and print Length: 338 pages RRP: $5.99 (ebook); $29.69 (print) It’s official. I want to visit Elsie Creek, and I’m a city slicker with zero tolerance for heat, flies, mossies, crocodiles, etc. But I want to see the ‘big sky’ out there. I want to meet the locals, and I certainly want to give Cecil, the ageing water buffalo, a (very cautious) pat and offer him a bunch of daisies to eat. I want to have a spit roast at the hotel, and a cocktail at the Sandfly ..read more

Today is the official release of The Wild Lavender Bookshop by Jodi Thomas (ebook and paperback, Zebra). Here’s the blurb: From beloved New York Times bestselling author Jodi Thomas, a slow burn romance that’s the epitome of comfort reading and features an “inviting setting and quirky, good-hearted characters” (Publishers Weekly). Perfect for fans of Robyn Carr and Susan Mallery! Return to the unforgettable world of Someday Valley, Texas, in this tender, uplifting novel of hearts in search of second chances. The trees that circle Someday Valley near Honey Creek are dressed in their fall fines ..read more

Why is the romance genre treated with such condescension? My introduction to the romance genre was certainly via Georgette Heyer, whose books I devoured in my teenage years. And I’ve re-read many of them quite recently too. They are clever. Sharp. Witty. And they contain principal characters we can admire—a clever, sensitive hero (even if he doesn’t initially appear to be so) and an equally clever, independently minded heroine to act as a counterpoint. Certainly, they are sometimes surrounded by pompous men or bird-brained females, which only serves to bring them into sharper relief. I have re ..read more

Today is the official release of Surprise Proposal, Outback Inheritance by Kandy Shepherd (One Year to Wed #3) (ebook and paperback, Harlequin Romance). Here’s the blurb: The key to Cinderella’s inheritance… When Anastasia finds herself in need of a husband, she turns to her best friend, millionaire tycoon Connor. She’s always carried a torch for the guy from next door, but anything romantic is completely off-limits. The relationship might be faux, but once she’s wearing Connor’s ring, Ana’s very real desire for him becomes impossible to hide any longer… Especially when his “I do” kiss f ..read more

Today is the official release of Falling for the Trauma Doc by Susan Carlisle (Kentucky Derby Medics #1)(paperback and ebook, Harlequin). Here’s the blurb: It’s off to the races with Susan Carlisle’s latest Harlequin Medical Romance as a physician’s assistant and trauma doc treat patients at Churchill Downs, home of the Kentucky Derby…while trying to resist each other! The man she shouldn’t fall for! Callee needs to move on from a huge loss, and the way to do that is to armor plate her heart. So when trauma doc Langston arrives at her clinic to temporarily conduct research, she knows she ..read more

Venue contracts are signed for ARR2025, so please save these dates: Brisbane, Saturday 22 March 2025 Sydney, Sunday 23 March 2025 Melbourne, Saturday 29 March 2025 Perth, Sunday 30 March 2025 We’ve listened to the feedback from readers and will be changing the format of the events a little for 2025. Our plan is to make each day feel more like a mini-convention: we’ll be adding panels/talks in the morning we’ll be adding an author-hosted luncheon (each table hosted by an author; number of spots will be limited); in Perth it will be a high tea signing will be in the afternoon only pricing for ..read more

The April issue of the ARRA newsletter is out today. Members should have received the download code via email. Here’s a quick run down on what you can find in the newsletter this month: save the date(s) for ARR2025 author EOIs for ARR2025 are now open save the date for the next Awards Dinner (in Melbourne) wrap-up of ARR2024 wrap-up of High Tea we talk about Reading lists, awards and reviews win a $10 gift card—if you can Find the Heart! Plus our regular columns—romance roundup, diverse reads, reviews, freebies and upcoming releases. If anyone has any publishing news or deals to report, plea ..read more

The Blue Gum Camp by Léonie Kelsall Subgenre: contemporary romance Release date: 3 Jan 2024 Publisher: Allen & Unwin Format: ebook and print Length: 432 pages RRP: $12.99 (ebook); $32.99 (print) Another entry in the loosely linked Settler’s Bridge series. We’ve all heard of the legendary B&S (Bachelors & Spinsters) Ball, where the hard-working country singles get together in what can be a fairly wild weekend of camping, drinking, dancing, and having fun. The sort that gives you a headache for the next week or so! The three Farrugia sisters, Faith, Hope and Charity, have decided to ..read more

A good heroine is hard to find I’ve never had much trouble coming up with heroes. They tend to pop up all by themselves when I start mulling over a new story. Heroines, though, are hard. They need so many qualities—be appealing, sympathetic, relatable, active, someone the reader is happy to spend time with, deserving of the hero, and a whole lot more. Not an easy character to get right. I came up with the premise for The Grazier’s Son several years ago after reading about a highly respected and admired farmer and stock agent of many years’ standing who misappropriated over a million dollars fr ..read more

Welcome to our favourite reads for March. Each month some of ARRA’s members will tell you a little bit about one of the books they’ve recently read and loved. These are not full reviews of the books, just honest opinions on why they enjoyed the book so much. Hopefully one of these will strike a chord with you. So, we asked our members to tell us about some of their favourite reads for March … Falling for Mr Bad by Melissa Foster (A Bad Boys After Dark crossover story) (contemporary romance) Kane is an arrogant, good-looking and successful billionaire; Sable runs a garage and sings on the weeke ..read more