Judi Morison has Gamilaroi and Celtic heritage and lives gratefully on Gumbaynggirr Country. Secrets, her debut novel, in manuscript won the 2022 Boundless Indigenous Writer’s Mentorship and was published by Bundyi (Simon & Schuster) in 2025. Judi’s short fiction and poetry have been published in various literary anthologies and her historical novel manuscript, ‘Crossing the Creek’, was shortlisted for The Australian Fiction Prize 2025 and will be published by Bundyi in 2026.
INGA SIMPSON
Ruth, the widowed matriarch of a grown family, has only months to live, and a secret she’s kept for sixty years. Now she must put things right before she dies. But as she has learned, the longer something is kept hidden, the harder it is to bring it out of the shadows.
With her grandson in gaol and her family fractured, Ruth must address the past, present and future. She must reveal her secret, reconcile her family, and find a way to keep her beloved homestead, Cora, in the family – and her family in Cora.
A sweeping saga spanning more than half a century, Secrets has a cast of indelible characters whose lives have been devastated by racism, trauma, addiction, incarceration, loss and shame. Yet for all that their secrets break your heart, these characters ultimately leave it stronger. This spirited, compassionate novel is a testament to the power of truth-telling and the possibility of healing.
