LIKE true mysteries? You'll enjoy my Australian story, a true romantic mystery adventure laced with mystical meaning Shirley MacLaine style.

Illustrations by Jeff 'Wizard of Draws' Bucchino at Cartoon Clip Art

Mystery

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* How did I get to live for six romantic months in New Jersey with a beautiful school teacher I'd never met?
* What happened?
* How did I come to be living in a small Italian alpine village with an Italian nurse - enjoying a guided tour of Rome, Venice, Sienna, Florence, Milan & Sanremo on the Italian Riviera?
* What happened?
* What was the fate of an English Naval Lieutenant when his ship the 'Lady Nelson' was stormed by weapon-wielding Maoris in 1805?
* How did the true mystery fall into my lap?
* Who were my ancestors from 200 years ago who were servants and bedmakers at the colleges in Oxford, England?
* What was the secret they took to the grave?
* What did they know that could have shed light on the mystery I was investigating?
* Who was the Australian Governor escourted back to England to be Court Marshaled?
* How did I come to be living in Regency England with an Oxford History of Arts Major as my guide?
* What were Florence's secret family messages?
* What was Dr Desailly's secret?
* Who but a student of Australian history has ever heard of Australia's only military coup?
* What was Tim's secret?
* What happened to the British convict who escaped from a small settlement inside Port Philip Bay, Australia, when he fell into the hands of the local aborigines?
* Who was secretly married to the Prince of Wales, George, in 1785?
* Was there a cover-up to hide the identity of their children?
* Who was Granny Fitz, just one of Florence's ghost mysteries?
* Since she turned out not to be her real granny, as Florence had imagined, then who was she?
* How did I come to be living in a friend's leaky old caravan parked in the Aussie bush for 5 years, homeless, unemployed and penniless?
* How did I survive?
* What happened?
* What did a psychic channel from New Jersey tell me about the mystery?
* Did her hint of a bomb scare at London's Heathrow Airport come true?
* Where did I find Italy in the Aussie bush?
* Why did the Italians and Swiss come to Australia in the mid 1800s in their thousands?
* What was the mystery of the 'Mary Ann'?
* Why did I end up sleeping overnight at Chicago Airport?
* Did I find Goldilocks sleeping upstairs in the Three Bears' Cottage?
* Did a monkey spirit really raise my spirits?

In a rare limited edition book published 40 years ago in Tasmania, Australia, I found a reference to a doctor and his wife who arrived in Van Diemen's Land (Tasmania), from England in the early days of settlement under suspicious circumstances. It was believed they were persuaded to leave their homeland on a life pension, to silence them because of what they knew about King George III - the one who lost the American War of Independence - a secret that could have changed the whole course of history.

Meanwhile my mother decides to research her family tree. She uncovers three secret messages passed down through the family with clues to a mystery which, incredibly, could throw some light on the doctor's secret.

Then I too become caught up in the drama which unfolds even as I write the story of my own adventures of the past 10 years, of bankruptcy and my struggle to survive living in a friend's old caravan parked by the roadside in the Aussie bush.

My story moves between the present and the past for the first half of the book and eventually merges into one. There are other historical personages who, although relatively unknown, played significant roles on the world stage some 200 years ago, unsung heroes who have stories which need to be told. Fascinating stories emerge of early links with the Australian aborigines and the New Zealand Maori.

When I boarded the plane in Melbourne, Australia, bound for New York with a mere $150 in my pocket, I had no idea what lay in store for me when I arrived at the other end of my flight. I would be greeted, warmly as it turned out, by a beautiful school teacher from New Jersey who I'd never met. We'd been corresponding for the past two years from opposite sides of the planet, never expecting to actually meet. I had fallen in love, at least as much as one can by snail mail and the occasional telephone call.

For six months I lived as if I was the leading man in a romantic Tom Hanks/Meg Ryan movie. And this was only the beginning of my adventure, which took me from New Jersey to Regency England following the clues of a mystery then, a few years later, to Northern Italy being escourted to the romantic cities of Rome, Venice, Florence, Milan and the Italian Riviera by an Italian nurse with the voice of Sophia Loren. My life was never the same again.

Throughout the book I share with the reader my experiences and my ongoing adventure even as events occur. Along the way clues and new leads emerge, often as I'm writing my story, as if this is a mystery that wants to be solved. Now and again strange events and spiritual happenings surface, weaving an undercurrent of mystical meaning Shirley MacLaine style. Even my time in the United States and Italy take on a greater significance within the wider context of the story that I hadn't even imagined at the time.

To read more or order your softcover edition or instant download ebook CLICK HERE!.

Preface
Dr Desailly's Secret
The Actress and the Prince
The Ghost of Granny Fitz
The Courtesan and the Catholic Widow
Florence's Family Secret
The Secret Marriage
The Mystery of the 'Mary Ann'
The Lieutenant Without a Past
The End of the Road
The 'Lady Nelson' Affair
The Three Bears' Cottage
Chief Ti-Pahi and the Maori Episode
An Angel Appears
Bligh Rocks the Boat
Italy in the Aussie Bush
Insurrection
A Pocketful of Miracles
Mutiny (Again)
An Unexpected Turn of Events
Back in Old England
What am I Doing in New York?
Out on a Limb
How Did I Get to England?
Endings and Beginnings
The Sailor King
What am I Doing in the North of Italy?
The Tasmanian Mystery
Mystery Solved?
Appendix A: The Purpose of Life
Appendix B: Tim's Secret

After a career in advertising, working as a copywriter and Creative Director for a number of Melbourne advertising agencies then in my own freelance business, I now write from home on the Internet. ">'The Ghost of Granny Fitz: A True Romantic Mystical Mystery Adventure' is my first book which I've self-published. I live alone in a small seaside fishing village famous for its mussel farms and annual Mussel Festival and Celtic Festival, just across the bay from Melbourne, close to my two daughters and two adorable grand-daughters. I am the author of both this lens (and 85 others) and the book. To read my other lenses click on 'aussiescribe' at the top right corner of this page.

It's the 21st Century and today it's possible for anyone who has access to a computer and a functioning brain, with no writing skills and no previous writing experience, to write, publish and make an income from the comfort of their home. And today the guidance is instantly available to take you by the hand and almost write your book for you - in 10 days!

Gone are the days when you had to submit manuscripts to countless publishers or agents only to have them repeatedly rejected. Today there's nothing to stop you from becoming a published author. Or, for that matter, a work-from-home publisher.

Since today's technology allows you to print on demand (POD) you can order a single copy instead of needing a print run of hundreds or thousands. Why not write your life story for your family? A memoir? Publish a diary? Record the family history? Write an anthology of poems? A children's book (or three)? Your own baby book? A collection of your short stories? A family photo album? A 'how-to' information or instruction manual? Or that GREAT half-written novel you've never finished? You can publish anything you like, of any length, any content (including illustrations). Nor do you need to worry about taking orders or shipping books - that's all handled for you.

And it can be done on a very low budget - I've written and self-published my book (shown above) for absolutely NOTHING. ZERO. $0.00 - to a point where anyone can order a paperback copy or download the e-book online for the price of a normal paperback sold over the counter.

Start now and, I promise you, the rest will be AN EXHILARATING RIDE. Never mind the excellent THERAPY!