For the last 20 years France has been home for Wollongong-raised author Liza Perrat.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
But her experiences of living in Australia still drive Perrat’s creativity.
A case in point is The Silent Kookaburra, a psychological suspense novel set in 1970’s Australia.
The book has won rave reviews, with Mindsight author Chris Curran saying it was a ‘’compelling psychological drama that delves into the dark heart of family secrets..’’
Embracing the social changes of 1970s Australia, against a backdrop of native fauna and flora, The Silent Kookaburra is a ‘’haunting exploration of the blessings, curses and tyranny of memory’’.
While the book is not set in Wollongong, the city is mentioned throughout.
‘’Funnily enough I refer to the Illawarra Mercury quite a lot,’’ Perrat said.
The novel is the fourth Perrat has published since moving to France.
She worked as a general nurse and midwife for 15-years while living in Wollongong.
But love took her to France after meeting her French husband on a Bangkok bus.
France has been home for the couple and their three children ever since.
Perrat works part-time as a French-English medical translator, and as a novelist.
She completed a creative writing course 10 years ago and since several of her short stories have won awards, notably the 2004 Writers Bureau annual competition.
Her stories have also been published widely in anthologies and small press magazines.
Perrat’s articles on French culture and tradition have also been published in a number of international magazines including France Magazine and France Today.
She is also the author of the historical The Bone Angel series.
Spirit of Lost Angels is the first in the series set against a backdrop of rural France during the French Revolution.
The second in the series, Wolfsangel, set during the WWII Nazi Occupation of France, was published in October, 2013.
The third in the series, Blood Rose Angel, set during the 14th century Black Plague years, was published in October, 2015.
Perrat said Friends, Family and Other Strangers is a collection of humorous, horrific and entertaining short stories set in Australia.
Perrat is also co-founder and member of the Author Collective, Triskele Books, and she regularly reviews books for Bookmuse.
The Silent Kookaburra is available on e-book and paperback.