Barbed Wire and Roses

Luke Elliott and Claudia Marsden have fallen in love at a perilous time. The Second World War is raging in the Pacific, barbed wire and gun emplacements are strung along the northern beaches in preparation for invasion. As the war moves closer, their 'sextet' of loyal school friends is splintering as individual career dreams are pursued. Luke yearns to be a journalist but a start in newspapers is proving challenging. The war's end unexpectedly provides Luke's big break, but the pursuit of his dream will keep him away from Australia and Claudia, with surprising consequences for them both. "Above The Fold is a big-hearted novel that explicitly examines notions of love and loyalty ... Anyone who enjoys reading about post-war Australian history and the attitudes that informed much of it, will be delighted." Gabrielle Lord, author of Dishonour