Colleen McCullough Books In Order

Masters of Rome Books In Publication Order

  1. The First Man in Rome (1990)
  2. The Grass Crown (1991)
  3. Fortune’s Favorites (1993)
  4. Caesar’s Women (1996)
  5. Caesar (1997)
  6. The October Horse (2002)
  7. Antony and Cleopatra (2007)

Carmine Delmonico Books In Publication Order

  1. On, Off (2005)
  2. Too Many Murders (2009)
  3. Naked Cruelty (2010)
  4. The Prodigal Son (2012)
  5. Sins of the Flesh (2013)

Standalone Novels In Publication Order

  1. Tim (1974)
  2. The Thorn Birds (1977)
  3. An Indecent Obsession (1981)
  4. A Creed for the Third Millennium (1985)
  5. The Ladies of Missalonghi (1987)
  6. The Song of Troy (1998)
  7. Morgan’s Run (2000)
  8. The Touch (2003)
  9. Angel (2004)
  10. The Independence of Miss Mary Bennet (2009)
  11. Bittersweet (2013)

Non-Fiction Books In Publication Order

  1. The Courage and the Will (1998)

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Colleen McCullough Books Overview

The First Man in Rome

With extraordinary narrative power, New York Times bestselling author Colleen McCullough sweeps the reader into a whirlpool of pageantry and passion, bringing to vivid life the most glorious epoch in human history. When the world cowered before the legions of Rome, two extraordinary men dreamed of personal glory: the military genius and wealthy rural ‘upstart’ Marius, and Sulla, penniless and debauched but of aristocratic birth. Men of exceptional vision, courage, cunning, and ruthless ambition, separately they faced the insurmountable opposition of powerful, vindictive foes. Yet allied they could answer the treachery of rivals, lovers, enemy generals, and senatorial vipers with intricate and merciless machinations of their own to achieve in the end a bloody and splendid foretold destiny…
and win the most coveted honor the Republic could bestow.

The Grass Crown

New York Times bestselling author Colleen McCullough returns us to an age of magnificent triumphs, volcanic passions, and barbaric cruelties. Throughout the Western world, great kingdoms have fallen and despots lay crushed beneath the heels of Rome’s advancing legions. But now internal rebellion threatens the stability of the mighty Republic. An aging, ailing Gaius Marius, heralded conqueror of Germany and Numidia, longs for that which was prophesied many years before: an unprecedented seventh consulship of Rome. It is a prize to be won only through treachery and with blood, pitting Marius against a new generation of assassins, power seekers, and Senate intriguers and setting him at odds with the ambitious, tormented Lucius Cornelius Sulla, once Marius’s most trusted right hand man, now his most dangerous rival.

Fortune’s Favorites

With incomparable storytelling skill, New York Times bestselling author Colleen McCullough brings Rome alive in all her majesty and illuminates the world of those favored by the gods at birth. In a time of cataclysmic upheaval, a bold new generation of Romans vied for greatness amid the disintegrating remnants of their beloved Republic. They were the chosen…
and the cursed blessed with wealth and privilege yet burdened by the dictates of destiny in a savage struggle for power that would leave countless numbers crushed and destroyed. But there was one who would tower above them all a brilliant and beautiful boy whose ambition was unparalleled, whose love was legend, and whose glory was Rome’s: a boy they would one day call ‘Caesar.’

Caesar’s Women

In the blockbuster tradition of ‘The First Man in Rome’ Colleen Mccullough’s monumental ‘Masters of Rome’ series continues. The man behind the legend…
the women behind the man. Villain or hero? Debated for centuries, the volcanic soul of Julius Caesar comes dramatically to life in the new masterpiece of historical fiction from the 1 bestselling author of ‘The Thorn Birds.’ In this sweeping saga, McCullough traces Caesar’s rise to prominence in his world, beginning with his triumphant entry into a new battlefield the Roman Forum, where wars are waged with words and schemes, and where today’s ally may be tomorrow’s foe. Caesar’s victories are not limited to the political arena, however; he also conquers Rome’s noblewomen, including the powerful and vindictive Servilia, mother of a youth called Brutus. Yet the one thing he never gives to any of the women who love him or want him is himself to Caesar, love is just another weapon in his political arsenal. Epic in scope, razor sharp in detail, ‘Caesar’s Women‘ paints an indelible portrait of a man willing to seize any means of moving toward his ultimate goal to be the greatest of all Rome’s First Men, the leader of a world that echoes our own too closely for comfort.

Caesar

It is 54 B.C. Gaius Julius Caesar is sweeping through Gaul. While his victories in the name of Rome are epic, the conservative leaders of the Republic are not pleased they are terrified. Where will the boundless ambition of Rome’s most brilliant soldier stop? He must be destroyed before he can overthrow the government and install himself as Dictator. When Cato and the Senate betray him, Caesar resolves to turn his genius against his ungrateful country. Backed by a loyal and skilled army, he marches on Rome. But before reaching his goal, he must contend with Pompey the Great, a formidable adversary who underestimates the renegade Caesar. These are tumultuous times for Caesar, who endures personal tragedies even as he wages war; for Pompey, who must wrestle with his fear that his greatness is at an end; for Cicero, whose luminous rhetoric is shattered by threat of violence; and for the citizens of Rome, whose destiny lies in Caesar‘s hands. The fifth novel in Colleen McCullough’s unforgettable Masters of Rome series, Caesar brings to life the passion and genius of an incomparable man.

The October Horse

In her new book about the men who were instrumental in establishing the Rome of the Emperors, Colleen McCullough tells the story of a famous love affair and a man whose sheer ability could lead to only one end assassination. As The October Horse begins, Gaius Julius Caesar is at the height of his stupendous career. When he becomes embroiled in a civil war between Egypt’s King Ptolemy and Queen Cleopatra, he finds himself torn between the fascinations of a remarkable woman and his duty as a Roman. Though he must leave Cleopatra, she remains a force in his life as a lover and as the mother of his only son, who can never inherit Caesar’s Roman mantle, and therefore cannot solve his father’s greatest dilemma who will be Caesar’s Roman heir? A hero to all of Rome except to those among his colleagues who see his dictatorial powers as threats to the democratic system they prize so highly, Caesar is determined not to be worshiped as a god or crowned king, but his unique situation conspires to make it seem otherwise. Swearing to bring him down, Caesar’s enemies masquerade as friends and loyal supporters while they plot to destroy him. Among them are his cousin and Master of the Horse, Mark Antony, feral and avaricious, priapic and impulsive; Gaius Trebonius, the nobody, who owes him everything; Gaius Cassius, eaten by jealousy; and the two Brutuses, his cousin Decimus, and Marcus, the son of his mistress Servilia, sad victim of his mother and of his uncle Cato, whose daughter he marries. All are in Caesar’s debt, all have been raised to high positions, all are outraged by Caesar’s autocracy. Caesar must die, they decide, for only when he is dead will Rome return to her old ways, her old republican self. With her extraordinary knowledge of Roman history, Colleen McCullough brings Caesar to life as no one has ever done before and surrounds him with an enormous and vivid cast of historical characters, characters like Cleopatra who call to us from beyond the centuries, for McCullough’s genius is to make them live again without losing any of the grandeur that was Rome. Packed with battles on land and sea, with intrigue, love affairs, and murders, the novel moves with amazing speed toward the assassination itself, and then into the ever more complex and dangerous consequences of that act, in which the very fate of Rome is at stake. The October Horse is about one of the world’s pivotal eras, relating as it does events that have continued to echo even into our own times.

Antony and Cleopatra

A sweeping epic of ancient Rome from the 1 bestselling author of The Thorn Birds In this breathtaking follow up to The October Horse, Colleen McCullough turns her attention to the legendary romance of Antony and Cleopatra, and in this timeless tale of love, politics, and power, proves once again that she is the best historical novelist of our time. Caesar is dead, and Rome is, again, divided. Lepidus has retreated to Africa, while Antony rules the opulent East, and Octavian claims the West, the heart of Rome, as his domain. Though this tense truce holds civil war at bay, Rome seems ripe for an emperor a true Julian heir to lay claim to Caesar’s legacy. With the bearing of a hero, and the riches of the East at his disposal, Antony seems poised to take the prize. Like a true warrior king, he is a seasoned general whose lust for power burns alongside a passion for women, feasts, and Chian wine. His rival, Octavian, seems a less convincing candidate: the slight, golden haired boy is as controlled as Antony is indulgent and as cool headed and clear eyed as Antony is impulsive. Indeed, the two are well matched only in ambition. And though politics and war are decidedly the provinces of men in ancient Rome, women are adept at using their wits and charms to gain influence outside their traditional sphere. Cleopatra, the ruthless, golden eyed queen, welcomes Antony to her court and her bed but keeps her heart well guarded. A ruler first and a woman second, Cleopatra has but one desire: to place her child on his father, Julius Caesar’s, vacant throne. Octavian, too, has a strong woman by his side: his exquisite wife, raven haired Livia Drusilla, who learns to wield quiet power to help her husband in his quest for ascendancy. As the plot races toward its inevitable conclusion with battles on land and sea conspiracy and murder, love and politics become irrevocably entwined. McCullough’s knowledge of Roman history is detailed and extensive. Her masterful and meticulously researched narrative is filled with a cast of historical characters whose motives, passions, flaws, and insecurities are vividly imagined and expertly drawn. The grandeur of ancient Rome comes to life as a timeless human drama plays out against the dramatic backdrop of the Republic’s final days.

On, Off

The captivating new novel from the international bestselling author of ‘The Thorn Birds’. Innocence is no protection! In Holloman, Connecticut, someone is preying on the innocent. At a prestigious research centre fondly known by its staff as the ‘Hug’, parts of a mutilated body are found. Lieutenant Carmine Delmonico of the Holloman Police learns that a string of horrifying murders each with the same modus operandi as the one at the Hug have been commited throughout the state. When another body is found, the medical staff become prime suspects. With the powers that be in turmoil and every member of staff hiding something, Delmonico must delve into the lives of each and every Hug employee. This is the case of his career and he is determined to solve it. But how, when he is hunting a monster who leaves no clues and is always two steps ahead?

Too Many Murders

The thrilling new novel from the author of The Thorn Birds One day, one city, twelve murders. The year is 1967 and the world teeters on the brink of nuclear holocaust as the Cold War goes relentlessly on. On a beautiful spring day in the little city of Holloman, Connecticut, chief of detectives Carmine Delmonico walks into the prestigious Chubb University halls to be greeted by a limp corpse clamped in a bear trap, all traces of life drained from it. And this is just the beginning. Twelve murders have taken place in one day and suddenly Carmine has more pressing matters on his hands than finding a name for his newborn son. Supported by his detective sergeants, and new team member the meticulous Delia Carstairs Delmonico embarks on what look likes an unsolvable mystery. All the murders are different. Are they dealing with one killer or many? And if twelve murders were not enough, Carmine soon finds himself pitted against the mysterious spy, Ulysses who is giving local arms giant Cornucopia’s military secrets to the Russians. Are the murders and espionage different cases, or are they somehow linked?

Naked Cruelty

Carmine Delmonico returns in another riveting page turner by international bestselling author Colleen McCullough. America in 1968 is in turmoil and the leafy Holloman suburb of Carew is being silently terrorized by a series of vicious and systematic rapes. When finally one victim finds the courage to speak out and go to the police, the rapist escalates to murder. For Captain Carmine Delmonico, it seems to be a case with no clues. And it comes as the Holloman Police Department is troubled: a lieutenant is out of his depth, a sergeant is out of control, and into this mix comes the beautiful, ruthlessly ambitious new trainee, Helen MacIntosh, daughter of the influential president of Chubb University. As the killer makes his plans, Carmine and his team must use every resource at their disposal including a highly motivated neighborhood watch, the Gentlemen Walkers.

Tim

Mary Horton is content with her comfortable, solitary existence…
until she meets Tim. A beautiful young man with the mind of a child a gentle outcast in a cruel, unbending world he illuminates the darkness of Mary’s days with his boyish innocence. And he will shatter the lonely, middle aged spinster’s respectable, ordered life with a forbidden promise of a very special love.

An Indecent Obsession

To the battle broken soldiers In her care, nurseHonour Langtry is a precious, adored reminder of theworld before war. Then Michael Wilson arrives under acloud of mystery and shame to change everything. Adamaged and decorated hero, a man of secrets andsilent pain, soon he alone possesses Honour’s selflessheart inciting tense and volatile passions that canonly lead to jealousy, violence, and death.

A Creed for the Third Millennium

Tomorrow’s America is a cold and ravaged place, a nation devastated by despair and enduring winter. In a small New England city, senior government official Dr. Judith Carriol finds the man she has been seeking: a deliverer of hope in a hopeless time who can revive the dreams of a shattered people; a magnetic, compassionate idealist whom Judith can mold, manipulate and carry to undreamed of heights; a healer who must ultimately face damnation through the destructive power of love.

The Ladies of Missalonghi

Sometimes fairy toles can come true even for plain,shy spinsters like Missy Wright. Neither as pretty as cousin Alicianor as domineering as mother Drusilla, she seems doomed to aquiet life of near poverty at Missalonghi, her family’s pitifullysmall homestead in Australia’s Blue Mountains. But It’s a brandnew century the twentieth a time for new thoughts and boldnew actions. And Missy Wright is about to set every self righteous tongue in the town of Byron wagging. Because she hasjust set her sights on a mysterious, mistrusted and unsuspectingstranger…
who just might be Prince Charming in disguise.

Morgan’s Run

In a novel of sweeping narrative power unequaled since her own beloved worldwide bestseller ‘The Thorn Birds,’ Colleen McCullough returns to Australia this time with the story of its birth. At the center of her new novel is Richard Morgan, son of a Bristol tavern keeper, devoted husband and loving father, sober and hardworking craftsman. By the machinations of fate and the vagaries of the 18th century English judicial system, he is consigned as a convict to the famous ‘First Fleet,’ which set sail, bearing, as an experiment in penology, 582 male and 193 female felons sentenced to transportation, in May of 1787 for the continent that Captain Cook had discovered only a few years earlier. The word ‘epic’ is overused, but no other word can do justice to one of the most grueling and significant voyages in human history or to the courage of the convicts whose sufferings were not ended but had only just begun when they set foot on Australian soil at Botany Bay on January 19th, 1788. Of those convicts, Richard Morgan stood out, not only for his strength and his calm determination to let no man bully him, but also for his intelligence, his fair mindedness, his common sense, and his willingness to help others. To these qualities must be added a certain innate dignity that hinted, even in the most terrible conditions, at a life marked by tragedies that would have broken most men. In Richard Morgan, Colleen McCullough has created one of her most compelling characters. We see through Morgan’s eyes the two worlds in which the story takes place: that of 18th century Bristol, where Morgan was born and expected to live out his life, and that of a convicted felon sent to settle ahostile new world. When the book begins, Richard Morgan is a contented man happily married, with a child he adores. Then, piece by piece, his idyll crumbles until he finds himself led into an ambiguous relationship with a beautiful young woman, whose dissolute protector seeks vengeance on Morgan to protect his own skin. He endures the agonies of bereavement and financial loss, incarceration in prison and aboard the notorious ‘hulks,’ then the horrors of the journeys to Botany Bay and Norfolk Island, where he finds against all odds a new love and a new life. Richard Morgan’s story is true, but in making Morgan the central figure of her novel, Colleen McCullough has created a hero whom no reader will ever forget; she has written not only a great adventure and a powerful love story, but also a book that combines the elements of ‘Tom Jones’ and’ Mutiny on the Bounty.’ ‘Morgan’s Run‘ is great fiction, full of drama, passion, history, love, and hatred, full blooded and totally engrossing, a stunning work that is at once rich entertainment and a revelation.

The Touch

Not since The Thorn Birds has Colleen McCullough written a novel of such broad appeal about a family and the Australian experience as The Touch. At its center is Alexander Kinross, remembered as a young man in his native Scotland only as a shiftless boilermaker’s apprentice and a godless rebel. But when, years later, he writes from Australia to summon his bride, his Scottish relatives quickly realize that he has made a fortune in the gold fields and is now a man to be reckoned with. Arriving in Sydney after a difficult voyage, the sixteen year old Elizabeth Drummond meets her husband to be and discovers to her dismay that he frightens and repels her. Offered no choice, she marries him and is whisked at once across a wild, uninhabited countryside to Alexander’s own town, named Kinross after himself. In the crags above it lies the world’s richest gold mine. Isolated in Alexander’s great house, with no company save Chinese servants, Elizabeth finds that the intimacies of marriage do not prompt her husband to enlighten her about his past life or even his present one. She has no idea that he still has a mistress, the sensual, tough, outspoken Ruby Costevan, whom Alexander has established in his town, nor that he has also made Ruby a partner in his company, rapidly expanding its interests far beyond gold. Ruby has a son, Lee, whose father is the head of the beleaguered Chinese community; the boy becomes dear to Alexander, who fosters his education as a gentleman. Captured by the very different natures of Elizabeth and Ruby, Alexander resolves to have both of them. Why should he not? He has the fabled ‘Midas Touch’ a combination of curiosity, boldness and intelligence that he applies to every situation, and which fails him only when it comes to these two women. Although Ruby loves Alexander desperately, Elizabeth does not. Elizabeth bears him two daughters: the brilliant Nell, so much like her father; and the beautiful, haunting Anna, who is to present her father with a torment out of which for once he cannot buy his way. Thwarted in his desire for a son, Alexander turns to Ruby’s boy as a possible heir to his empire, unaware that by keeping Lee with him, he is courting disaster. The stories of the lives of Alexander, Elizabeth and Ruby are intermingled with those of a rich cast of characters, and, after many twists and turns, come to a stunning and shocking climax. Like The Thorn Birds, Colleen McCullough’s new novel is at once a love story and a family saga, replete with tragedy, pathos, history and passion. As few other novelists can, she conveys a sense of place: the desperate need of her characters, men and women, rootless in a strange land, to create new beginnings.

The Independence of Miss Mary Bennet

Everyone knows the story of Elizabeth and Jane Bennet in Pride and Prejudice. But what about their sister Mary? At the conclusion of Jane Austen’s classic novel, Mary, bookish, awkward, and by all accounts, unmarriageable, is sentenced to a dull, provincial existence in the backwaters of Britain. Now, master storyteller Colleen McCullough rescues Mary from her dreary fate with The Independence of Miss Mary Bennet, a page turning sequel set twenty years after Austen’s novel closes. The story begins as the neglected Bennet sister is released from the stultifying duty of caring for her insufferable mother. Though many would call a woman of Mary’s age a spinster, she has blossomed into a beauty to rival that of her famed sisters. Her violet eyes and perfect figure bewitch the eligible men in the neighborhood, but though her family urges her to marry, romance and frippery hold no attraction. Instead, she is determined to set off on an adventure of her own. Fired with zeal by the newspaper letters of the mysterious Argus, she resolves to publish a book about the plight of England’s poor. Plunging from one predicament into another, Mary finds herself stumbling closer to long buried secrets, unanticipated dangers, and unlooked for romance. Meanwhile, the other dearly loved characters of Pride and Prejudice fret about the missing Mary while they contend with difficulties of their own. Darcy’s political ambitions consume his ardor, and he bothers with Elizabeth only when the impropriety of her family seems to threaten his career. Lydia, wild and charming as ever, drinks and philanders her way into dire straits; Kitty, a young widow of means, occupies herself with gossip and shopping; and Jane, na ve and trusting as ever, spends her days ministering to her crop of boys and her adoring, if not entirely faithful, husband. Yet, with the shadowy and mysterious figure of Darcy’s right hand man, Ned Skinner, lurking at every corner, it is clear that all is not what it seems at idyllic Pemberley. As the many threads of McCullough s masterful plot come together, shocking truths are revealed, love, both old and new, is tested, and all learn the value of true independence in a novel for every woman who has wanted to leave her mark on the world.

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