Kerry Greenwood

The most elegant investigator returns in her seventeenth escapade to investigate an apparent suicide and a missing heir. The start of 1929 is particularly wearisome for the plucky heroine as a heatwave has hit Melbourne with a vengeance. It is so hard to think when one is so hot – but think Phryne must as she does battle with a particularly dangerous group of bright young things who are dabbling in the occult.

The two cases are separate, but gradually links connect the investigations. Phryne has to deal with weeping mothers, angry son-in laws, drug addicts, terrifying seances, ghosts, spirit guides and treasure hunters before she can solve the mysteries.

Reading a Phryne Fisher mystery such as MURDER ON A MIDSUMMER NIGHT is always very good fun. Cosy with an edge, author Kerry Greenwood takes the sting out of the evil side of life with humour, friendship and some very off the wall characters. Phryne herself is a rich and independent woman who drinks, is not afraid to have casual sex, smokes her gaspers, drives her car fast with little or no regard of road rules, and solves mysteries. Phryne is always on the side of the underdog, and will battle anyone be they rich or poor, exploitative or abusive.

First published in 1995, Shadow Alley is a compilation of short crime stories written around the premise of detectives when they were teenagers.

 

A majority of the authors stuck to this premise, whereas some chose instead to write about teenage characters within the stories themselves.

 

Kerry Greenwood takes Phryne Fisher back to her boarding school days in England, right after her father has inherited the title that makes her an "Hon". AN OVERACTIVE IMAGINATION is set during WWII and Phryne is an adventurous schoolgirl already very dismissive of authority and so called "hierarchy".

 

In FORBIDDEN FRUIT, Jennifer Rowe has Verity Birdwood recounting the story of the death of one of her childhood neighbours and how, as a young child, she was able to provide the clues that correctly identified the perpetrator.

 

Garry Disher introduces a young girl in a difficult position, using her wits when trapped in a building by corrupt police in WHERE THE BODIES ARE BURIED.

 

In TOTALLY DEVOTED, Susan Geason has an unnamed private detective tracking down a young girl who has suddenly gone missing in Kings Cross.

 

Allan Baillie takes great liberties with the premise in the very amusing MURDER AT CROCKUS FLAT.

 

THE TERRIFIC TWO GETS BUSTED by Alison Goodman is a tale of peer pressure and right versus wrong.

 

Claire Carmichael uses GET JACK to explore the feelings of guilt and retribution that are left when a hit run driver kills one friend and leaves the other gravely injured.

 

SQUAT by David McRobbie uses homelessness to provide a brief glimpse of sheer desperation to survive and the cruelty of manipulation of other people's circumstances.

 

Jenny Pausacker uses ANOTHER DAY IN HELL to highlight snobbery and pretension in private school petty power games.

 

All in all, this is a great anthology for teenagers. Even though it's now over 10 years old, the subject matter is current. If you can get hold of a copy of this it's a great series of stories for boys or girls.