All the Reviews

Second in the Dan Calder series, THE SECOND GRAVE moves the action from being all in New Zealand, to England, when Dan returns home to help out his best friend and ex-colleague Nick Hetherington. Hetherington's daughter has been arrested in connection with a murder, and both men can't believe for a moment that she would have had anything to do with the death of a Nottingham based prostitute.

Whilst it's not absolutely essential that the earlier book in the series (THE AGENCY) must be read first, this is one of those occasions where it really wouldn't hurt. There's a lot ... Read review

Any author who starts out a blurb with "darkness is coming" and then gives Logan McRae a happy home life needs a damn good glaring at. The only saving grace is that things are typically shit creek / broken paddle at work so it's not a massive glaring at...

Book number 12 in the Logan McRae series, ALL THAT'S DEAD, finds him still an Inspector in Professional Standards, sucked into an ongoing murder investigation when the lead investigator is himself about to be outed by the papers as a member of a Scottish Nationalist group. Most inconvenient timing as a high profile anti ... Read review

I know that summer is supposed to be finished, but no one told the sun and its mate, the wind that blisters off the plain, making me feel like a dry frog stranded between water points. But I see the plains grass is still green, the dust is holding low, and the kurrajong tree leaves are shaking their shiny vigour, so perhaps the last few months haven't been that hot. Can't say I've been paying attention.

Richard Anderson's latest novel BOXED opens with a series of tableau paragraphs, almost photographic in their capture of place, and a man. Right from that start ... Read review

Louisiana 1913. Three young boys are enjoying their summer playing outside near the edge of the forest as their wealthy parents Henry and Mary entertain guests at the family lake house.   Next, the unthinkable happens.  The Davenports are well known and respected in Opelousas and the disappearance of their youngest child galvanizes the small community into action.  After an extensive search, it seems there can be no explanation other than that the four year has been kidnapped.  A substantial award is offered for Sonny’s return.

With reporters and locals both camping out ... Read review

“Rebecca waited for the ferry staff to give her the all-clear to walk down the gangway. She felt a thrill of anticipation at finally setting foot on the island. There was something else, too, a voice breathing over her in the faint breeze. She liked to think it was saying Welcome home, Rebecca but it could just as easily have been saying Go home.”

The islands off the west coast of Scotland can be both beautiful and inhospitable places. On one hand there is the stunning scenery, rugged coastlines, deserted beaches and, on calm sunny days, a light which seems like ... Read review

Rural noir is a thing at the moment, which means some stellar entries in the category, and some not so good ones. Makes opening each new novel and settling in for the experience a bit of rollercoaster ride. So did 55 live up to the hype? Well yes, yes it did.

It's an intriguing premise - a man stumbles into the police station in a small town, covered in dried blood. His name is Gabriel and he claims he was hitch-hiking, looking for work, when he was picked up, drugged and restrained by iron chains in a small shack in the bush. His captor, known ... Read review

This is now the second book by NZ author David McGill that I've read, both of which share a central detecting character, and a style being a combination of true history and crime fiction. The first novel, THE DEATH RAY DEBACLE was set in 1935, and this one, THE PLOT TO KILL PETER FRASER, is in the period around the end of World War II and, interestingly, in the early days of the development of the United Nations. Peter Fraser was the 24th Prime Minister of New Zealand, serving in that role from March 1940 until December 1949. A Labour Party member, he was renowned for leading New ... Read review

Book two in the Bill Murdoch series, CLASS ACT follows up almost immediately from the action in the first outing, HEADLAND. This series, now up to three novels with the release of BASE NATURE in 2018, is well worth getting into.

Set in small-town, seaside New South Wales, based around reluctant Private Investigator, ex-bad boy, Bill Murdoch, the first book introduces him, his background and the events that bring him to small town life, the big house by the beach and the fancy car. It may be best if you start this series with the first book if possible, as the lead up to ... Read review

BROKEN SILENCE is the story of seventeen-year-old Kelsey, a kid who has had a lot to deal with in life. Confused and very vulnerable, she cared for her gravely ill mother until she had to go into care. Her remarried father has disappeared from her life, and Kelsey finds herself living in a scruffy flat with her brother Pete and a couple of his mates. She feels rejected by her father, in her brother's road, and she's hiding the physical signs of abuse that her boyfriend regularly doles out. Her life is a mess, and she's hurting, physically and emotionally.

The character of ... Read review