Steph Matuku

A busload of high school students crashes in the bush in a remote part of Aotearoa, New Zealand. Only a few of the teenagers survive; they find their phones don't work, there's no food, and they've only got their wits to keep them alive. There's also something strange happening here. Why are the teenagers having nosebleeds and behaving erratically, and why is the rescue effort slow to arrive? To make it out, they have to discover what's really going on and who or what is behind it all.

Flight of the Fantail

"It seems like an ordinary day when Tui and Kae, sixteen-year-old twins, get home from school - until they find their mother, Maia, has disappeared and a swirling vortex has opened up in her room. They are sucked into this portal and dragged down to Rarohenga, the Māori Underworld, a place of infinite levels, changing landscapes and some untrustworthy characters. Maia has been kidnapped by their estranged father, Tema, enchanted to forget who she really is and hidden somewhere here. Tui and Kae have to find a way through this maze, outwit the characters they meet, break the spell on their mother, and escape to the World of Light before the Goddess of Shadows or Tema holds them in the underworld forever"--Publisher information.

Falling Into Rarohenga

K-T Harrison

Lauren Keenan

Kelly Joseph

Shirley Simmonds 

Tangai Waranga

Darryn Joseph

Zeb Nicklin

Atakohu Middleton

Iraia Bailey

Aroha Awarau

Pere Durie

Olivia Aroha Giles

Te Kuru White

Here are the best short stories and novel extracts from the Pikihuia Awards for Māori writers 2017 as judged by Whiti Hereaka, Paula Morris, Poia Rewi and Rawinia Higgins. The book contains the stories from the finalists for Best Short Story written in English, Best Short Story written in te reo Māori and Best Novel Extract categories. This writing competition, held every two years, is organised by the Māori Literature Trust and Huia Publishers as a way to promote Māori writers and their work. The awards and the collection of finalists’ fiction celebrate Māori writing and bring new writers to light.

Contemporary Maori Fiction

HUIA Short Stories 12

"Whetū is about to start school, and no one is happy. Not the chicken. Not the bull. Especially not Ramses the golden ram, who goes missing. Tori the cat and Whetū go on a rescue mission. They catch star beams to strange worlds and find Ramses on another planet. But there's a problem: an evil magician controls the planet"--Publisher information.

Whet¿± Toa and the Hunt for Ramses

When Whetu’s mother takes a job organising a magician’s house and farm, Whetū becomes the animal keeper, looking after a golden ram, three lazy pigs, talking horses, a cowardly bull and the magician's stage assistant – an arrogant white rabbit called Errant. Errant’s been playing around with magic and created a carnivorous lamb, which he can’t change back. Rather than face the magician, Errant disappears and Whetū becomes the magician’s new assistant, just in time for the Royal Performance. It all seems to be going well until Errant reappears to seek his revenge, and Whetū must save the day – and the king.

Whetū Toa and the Magician

Steph Matuku

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