Open Season (Jason Akermanis with Gary Smart)

Open Season

Jason Akermanis with Gary Smart

Blurb: Say what you like about Jason Akermanis - legend, troublemaker, showman, show-off - there's no denying that he's made an impression in his 16 years as an AFL star player. Now, after more than 325 games, three premierships and a Brownlow Medal, the curtain has come down on his extraordinary career.

No longer restrained by contractual obligations and free to speak at last, Aker reveals a no-holds-barred look at a stellar sporting career, including behind-the-scenes details of his falling out with Leigh Matthews, his move from the Brisbane Lions to the Western Bulldogs and his explosive final season, which was cut short amid very public controversy. Interwoven through the highs and lows of an outstanding professional life is his personal story of finding and reconciling with his biological father - a married man with a family of his own who lived next door to Aker's childhood home.

Told with trademark honesty and passion, this tell-all memoir is a must-have for all footy fans.

ISBN: 9781740668248 (Hardback)

Year: 2010

Publisher: Hardie Grant Books

Pages: 296 (Non-Fiction)

Links

1. Blog on the book

2. Buy from the ABC shop

3. Review of the book on a footy forum

4. Google books page

5. Publisher's page for the book

Bad Twin (Gary Troup)

Bad Twin

Gary Troup

Blurb: Paul Artisan knows trouble when he sees it. As a private detective, he spends his life seeking out dark places where demons lurk. But lately he's been drifting along, taking on cases about insurance fraud or medical malpractice. Until Clifford Widmore walks into his office, and changes everything.

Clifford, an adult scion to the vast Widmore fortune, needs Artisan's help. Clifford's twin brother, Alexander, has vanished. Although 'Zander' has alienated himself from his family in the past, Clifford believes that this time foul play is involved.

The closer Artisan gets to finding answers, the more danger his life is in. He soon descends into a mirro-world where friends and enemies have a way of looking very much alike. Artisan hatches a plan to uncover the truth. He sets off on a journey across the globe and, along the way, learns the Widmore family is full of dangerous secrets. Some even worth killing for.

Soon an unknown enemy seems to want Artisan off the case - by any means necessary. Undeterred, Artisan continues on his course. But will he get to the truth before the monsters lurking in the shadows get to him?

In Bad Twin, Gary Troup spins a mesmerising tale of mystery and suspense, weaving clues throughout the story that are far more consequential than they seem. Touching on themes of good verses evil, purgatory, and redemption, Bad Twin shows how fate can turn when all seems lost.

It is with a mix of pride and sorrow that Hyperion presents Bad Twin, the last novel by a wonderful author who was taken from us in the very prime of his writing life. As many readers are already aware, Gary Troup has been missing since September 2004, when the jetliner that was carrying him from Sydney to Los Angeles crashed somewhere over the South Pacific. While nothing is more human than to hope for miracles, reason tells us that the author and his fellow travellers cannot have survived that disaster.

In addition to his many novels of mystery and crime, Gary Troup authored several non-fiction books, including The Valenzetti Equation. His disappearance is mourned by all who knew him and enjoyed his work.

ISBN: 1401302769 (Hardback)

Year: 2006

Publisher: Hyperion

Pages: 258 (Fiction)

Links

1. Wiki page on the book

2. Wiki page on the author

3. Buy from Amazon

4. Review of the book

5. Article on the book