New Blood on the Plain

To the casual observer, it would seem Alice Charters leads a charmed life. She lives in the middle of a scenic wildlife park and makes a living by running a research camp for students. In essence, it was everything she ever wanted out of life. The closer people got, however, the more obvious the cracks in her life became.

Alice's story is well known in the community, and the locals would gossip about it over cold beers at the bush pub. They'd talk about her tragic past, how the vicious war on poaching cost Alice everything she loved. A war that the good guys were slowly losing. The latest gossip was that Alice was about to lose the last thing she had left: her training camp. An impersonal conglomerate was slowly driving her out of business and starving her of necessary funds.

Alice herself knows that she's far past the prime of her life. She feels like she's slowly plodding on toward the inevitable. If only everyone, including Alice, knew how wrong they were. After meeting what she knows might be her last class, Alice is introduced to Zara Barnard, a wild student who's determined to save the world.

Or at least, end the war on poaching. Together, the two uncover a terrible murder that shakes Alice's world and throws her out of her apathetic stupor. They're forced to confront everyone from park rangers to gangsters in their quest to find justice.

Alice has lived without justice for long enough. If she must find it on her own, upending her whole world in the process, then that's what she's going to do. Will she be able to make things right, or is history doomed to repeat itself?

Please Note: Approximately 52,000 words in length. It is a standalone (reading prior or future volumes not required to enjoy the book, no cliffhanger).