MICHAEL BURGE Tank Water. Reviewed by Mary Garden
In Tank Water Michael Burge brings a fresh dimension to crime fiction set in small Australian towns. Michael Burge’s debut novel Tank Water is a crime thriller set in rural Australia. Beautifully and vividly written, I read it quickly in one day. And a few weeks...
CHARITY NORMAN The Secrets of Strangers. Reviewed by Karen Chisholm
NZ-based Charity Norman’s sixth novel is her second to be shortlisted for Best Crime Novel in the Ngaio Marsh Awards. Taut, tense and cleverly constructed, The Secrets of Strangers is a thriller set in London that explores human behaviour in the high-risk...
WENDY JAMES A Little Bird. Reviewed by Kim Kelly
The ninth novel from Wendy James is a classic page-turning mystery that is both psychologically complex and authentically Australian. Best known as the ‘queen of domestic noir’, James brings a keen understanding of social and political history to her richly layered...
COLSON WHITEHEAD Harlem Shuffle. Reviewed by Robert Goodman
Colson Whitehead’s new novel is a story of ambition and the American dream – and heists, shady characters, and corruption. Colson Whitehead deservedly won the Pulitzer prize (and a bunch of other awards) for his previous two novels. Both detailed tragic times in...
ROBERT GOTT The Orchard Murders. Reviewed by Karen Chisholm
The fourth book in Robert Gott’s ‘Murders’ series frees its cast from the constraints of the newly formed Homicide Squad and plunges them straight into a baffling case that threatens many of their number. Readers who are new to this series might be fine starting...
NICOLA WEST Catch Us the Foxes. Reviewed by Linda Funnell
Nicola West weaves a conspiracy within a conspiracy in her debut crime novel. Nicola West opens Catch Us the Foxes with the protagonist, 29-year-old Marlowe ‘Lo’ Robertson, being introduced to an enthusiastic crowd at the Sydney Opera House: ‘She’s a bestselling...
IMRAN MAHMOOD I Know What I Saw. Reviewed by Ann Skea
The new crime novel from the author of You Don’t Know Me explores the life of a London street-dweller in a confounding situation. What can you do if you witnessed a murder but the police will not believe you? They have no report of anyone missing, they haven’t...
JP POMARE The Last Guests. Reviewed by Jessica Stewart
The new thriller from the award-winning author of Call Me Evie and In the Clearing has a disturbing premise. New Zealand writer JP Pomare opens his sinister thriller setting a scene as though it were a movie set — which it will be, shortly. The Auckland residence...
IAIN RYAN The Spiral. Reviewed by Karen Chisholm
Inventive and brutal, there are good reasons why Iain Ryan’s third novel is being talked about. It’s fair to say that thrillers come at the reader of Australian fiction at a pretty hefty rate, and it’s hard to avoid some familiar story elements, e.g....
DERVLA McTIERNAN The Good Turn. Reviewed by Karen Chisholm
The Good Turn continues Irish-Australian writer Dervla McTiernan’s Cormac Reilly crime series, which has become a firm favourite in a very short time. For those that are new to Cormac Reilly’s story, he’s an Irish Garda officer with a messy professional...
KIM KELLY Her Last Words. Reviewed by Sally Nimon
Historical novelist Kim Kelly (author of Walking, Sunshine and Wild Chicory) turns to the 21st century in her new novel to deliver a tale of intrigue and literary ambition. What a strange year 2020 has been. The world has already had bushfires, floods, pandemics,...
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