Books published by Ligature Pty Limited

The Tales of the Otori continue...After the devastating battle of Takahara, the Otori have allied with the Saga clan to defeat the Arai and give their clan any chance of survival. But their fragile alliance is threatened by Lord Saga''s descent into paranoia and brutality-and so are the last children of the Arai, renamed and hidden in the temple at Terayama.Arai Sunaomi is training as a warrior monk, but finds himself drawn to the other world and discovering talents he cannot understand-the legacy of his connections in the mysterious Tribe. He soon attracts the attention of the most powerful warlords and sorcerers in the Eight Islands with their demands for loyalty and vengeance.Orphan Warriors brings together the stories that began with The Tale of Shikanoko and the Tales of the Otori as Lian Hearn''s epic saga approaches its thrilling conclusion.

The Tales of the Otori end here...Arai Sunaomi has grown into a warrior on the verge of his coming-of-age, and powerful figures across the clans want him for adoptions and tactical marriages. But he is unable to forget his ghost lover Utahime, who has waited seven years for his return; or her brother Masao, his fellow orphan warrior and the heir to the Saga clan, now a wanted man.As Sunaomi tracks Masao across the Eight Islands he is increasingly torn between the demands of this world and the spirit realm, between life and death. As Masao seems to slip from his grasp, so does any chance of peace between the clans. And his cousins from the Tribe, the sibling assassins Kiyoko and Kichizo, have their own plans...Sibling Assassins builds to a collision of family loyalties and personal enmities, debts and desires, the old world and the new-and a final confrontation that brings the Tales of the Otori to a thrilling conclusion.

The unsettled South Australian frontier near Mount Gambier is a strange and difficult place for a Galway family trying to make sense of their new world. Rosanna and brother Skelly long to escape.  Their older brother Edwin races against poets in steeplechases and schemes over cattle, carts and cards to get ahead. They are all half in love with a visiting priest and a disturbing Irish play about their ancestors.When she goes to work at a nearby station, Rosanna is caught up in a string of events—throwing a horserace, the allure of a visiting actor, violent threats to her Boandik friends, and the wreck of the Admella—that lead to a reckoning with the land, its histories, its religions and its ancient and recent cultures.  Unsettled is fearless and exuberant, playful and erudite, an Australian classic in the making.‘Passionate and uncompromising … brilliantly evoking the complexities of early Australian settlement.’ — Danielle Clode‘Spellbinding historical fiction, offering fresh insight into a 19th-century past which unsettles our present.’ — Laura Bloom 

Almost a century after the Catastrophe, a group of survivors have built a new society deep in the safety of the underground network. Marri knows the rules are there to keep their population healthy and growing, but they don’t leave much room for attraction—let alone love. Her duty is no match for her desire, and now her life is in danger. Can she escape the world below—and what will she find if she does? The Earth Below is a dystopia, an adventure and a love story that introduces a thrilling new voice in young adult fiction.  

‘He knew in his heart that the dog belonged to someone else, but at the same time he felt quite strongly that the dog ought to be his...’When Kel decides to borrow the magnificent bull terrier Brut for the weekend, he has no idea where that choice will lead him and his family—as well as Brut’s real family, Caspian, Spirit and Skye. He soon regrets his decision, but returning Brut is not so simple. The search for Brut leads the children into increasing danger, requiring courage they never knew they had and exposing the fears and frailties of the adults around them. Answers to Brut is a thrilling story about loyalty and our responsibility for our actions, our families, and our best friends. Winner NSW Premier's Literary Awards Ethel Turner Prize for Young People’s LiteratureHonour Book Children’s Book Council Book of the Year Older Readers

An enthralling new computer game arrives from the creator of Space Demons. Andrew can't resist it, and neither can his friends-or his enemies. Skymaze doesn't just pull its players into the game; it extends out into their world, appearing when they are at their most desperate, with life-or-death consequences.Andrew, Ben, Elaine and Mario will need all of their skill, their intelligence and their empathy to survive the game and its dangerous new players.Shortlisted SA Festival National Children's Book Award · Children's Book Council Book of the Year Older Readers

Andrew has never seen a computer game like Space Demons before-a mysterious experiment, captivating in every way, blurring the boundaries between the real and the virtual. At first it's a refuge for Andrew and his friends-from school, their families, the uncertain future. But as the problems of their lives weave into its fabric and the space demons begin to creep into the real world, they can no longer afford to treat it as a game.Winner Children's Peace Literature Prize · SA Festival National Children's Book AwardHonour Book Children's Book Council Book of the Year Older Readers

786 ab urbe condita—33 AD. Time is running out for Yeshua Ben Yusuf, on trial for capital crimes after rioting against the moneychangers in the temple. His Roman defence lawyer and the Legion’s military prosecutor bring their witnesses before Pontius Pilate—followers, soldiers, religious leaders, even his mother—revealing the accused man in ways that surprise and move those gathering for the verdict, shifting the orbit of their lives. As Yeshua Ben Yusuf awaits judgment, the wounded Zealots prepare a final desperate strike. On the outskirts of Jerusalem, the occupation, the resistance and one holy man will meet their fate together.

784 ab urbe condita—31 AD. Jerusalem sits uneasily in a Roman Empire that has seen an industrial revolution and now has cable news and flying machines—and rites and morals that are strange and repellent to the native people of Judaea.A charismatic young leader is arrested after a riot in the Temple. He seems to be a man of peace, but among his followers are Zealots and dagger-men sworn to drive the Romans from the Holy Land.As the city spirals into violence, the stage is set for a legal case that will shape the future—the trial of Yeshua Ben Yusuf. Intricately imagined and ferociously executed, Kingdom of the Wicked is a stunning alternative history and a story for our time.

While British soldiers and settlers colonised Australia, French scientists continued to explore its coastlines and study its strange flora and fauna. Lapérouse and Labillardière, Baudin and Bougainville and others left their own, lighter marks on the country in the name of human knowledge.This is their story-deeply researched and richly imagined by zoologist and award-winning science writer Danielle Clode. Voyages to the South Seas is an exhilarating expedition through a key period in the European exploration of the Pacific and in the history of science.

Fire has shaped the Australian landscape and the lives of Australians for thousands of years-and will continue to do so as the climate changes. For all our advances in prevention and prediction, planning and communication, bushfires keep claiming our lives and our homes. How can we avoid another Ash Wednesday or Black Saturday?Danielle Clode has lived in the bushfire danger zone and studied the past and recent history of fire management and fire-fighting. Here she tells the complex story of Australia's relationship with fire, from indigenous practices to country fire brigades and royal commissions-as well as her own story of living with the threat of fire. A Future in Flames is a vivid history, a sombre reflection and an invaluable guide for living and dealing with fire.