All the Reviews

Nations Divided, Steve P. Vincent

The third book in the Jack Emery series of thrillers from Melbourne based author Steve P. Vincent, NATIONS DIVIDED picks up the ongoing storyline of a special agent that's happier than he's been in a long time. Because nobody has tried to shoot him or blow him up for years, and despite his reservations, he's rather liking his job as Special Advisor to the President of the United States.

The President's term is coming towards an end, and with elections looming, the administration is keen for a big win on the board, and what bigger achievement than a peace accord between ... Read review

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Steve P. Vincent

Twister, Jane Woodham

Set in Dunedin, New Zealand, local writer Jane Woodham obviously loves the place that she lives in. Incorporating a lot of local landmarks, geographical elements and a strong sense of place, TWISTER is her debut novel featuring DSS Leo Judd and a series of investigations into everything from animal torture to gay bashings, and the death of a young schoolgirl.

Starting out in an apocalyptic style, Dunedin is gripped initially by a flu epidemic, and then, after five days of biblical rain, an unusual twister rips through the place, causing havoc, and exposing the body of a ... Read review

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City of Light, Keri Arthur

Does it sound like there is a lot going on in this novel? There is. Vampires, shifters, wraiths, hybrids, rifts; the reader needs to keep sharp as to what Tiger must do in order to break through every obstacle in her rescue efforts. It’s a little exhausting. A debut fantasy novel must in some ways keep it light on the rules and regs, so that we can easily pickup up the vernacular and have some sense of confidence in knowing how everything works. It’s not so easy to visualize the landscape in CITY OF LIGHT; some elements seem to contradict.

Arthur has created a world still ... Read review

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Give the Devil His Due, Sulari Gentill

Sulari Gentill’s award-winning historical crime series is written with verve and spirit, the fiction woven seamlessly into actual events of the time.

Review of Give the Devil His Due, and the entire Rowland Sinclair series at Newtown Review of Books Read review

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Helldiver, Chris Allen

Alex Morgan is back in the 4th book in the Intrepid series and he's got his mojo back. Just in time as the black ops Intrepid division is in real trouble and Morgan and Elizabeth Reigns are the only agents who can sort out the mess.

The Intrepid books are an absolute gem of a thriller series from Australian author (and ex-paratrooper) Chris Allen. Getting the military and action aspects spot on is one highlight, but where Allen really excels is in getting nuance and emotion into an all action type hero, equally capable of hand to hand combat or ruthless gun-play in the ... Read review

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Dark Murder, Helen H. Durrant

DARK MURDER is the first book in a new series built around the character D.I. Stephen Greco. Greco first appeared as supporting cast in an earlier series of books by Helen H. Durrant, but now he's mirrored his ex-wife's move to a new town after their divorce, wanting to continue a good relationship with his young daughter Matilda. His new job at Oldston CID starts off with a series of baffling murders, where the brutal disfigurement of the victims seems to be the only connection. Greco instantly has a number of problems when it comes to solving these cases - the lack of a clear motive ... Read review

Author:

Helen H. Durrant

Skin Deep, Gary Kemble

A paranormal crime thriller with a blokey sensibility, Skin Deep is set in a Brisbane still dealing with the after-effects of many years of Joh rule. Harry Hendrick is a man of his time and circumstance. A journalist by training, he had managed to sabotage his job potential before he even left university. Since then it seems his life has meandered, gently buffeting him along without any overt desire on his part to take control. A flawed character, he’s nonetheless an engaging sort of bloke, tight with his mates despite ... Read review

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The Son, Jo Nesbo

The second book I've read this year with a break out of jail plotline, which means nothing except in my mind. In THE SON, Sonny is a heroin addict, long term prisoner who escapes and goes on a retribution trail on behalf of his father. Simon Kefas is a police officer and husband haunted by his wife's infirmity. He's also the best friend of Sonny's father and the man most likely to see some connections in what seems like a series of unrelated murders.

There's no doubt whatsoever that readers are going to have to accept that a seemingly hopelessly addicted to heroin man, ... Read review

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Please Don't Leave Me Here, Tania Chandler

Told in three parts, Please Don’t Leave Me Here by Melbourne writer Tania Chandler begins with the story of Brigitte – mother of twins and married to policeman Sam – a normal wife and mother, with a secret.

Part I, ‘Come as You Are’, set in 2008, is the present, after Sam and Brigitte have met while she was in hospital recovering from a car accident, a meeting connected to Sam’s investigation into both the accident and the death of Eric Tucker, a music promoter. The injuries Brigitte sustained affect her physically to this day but something about the accident has ... Read review

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Good Money, J.M. Green

Set mostly in the Western suburbs of Melbourne, JM Green’s Good Money introduces Stella Hardy. A social worker by vocation, Hardy is the sort of laksa-loving, inner-city woman who fits into the role of accidental detective with considerable aplomb. She moves through the suburbs on foot, by tram and taxi, regardless of the weather and her own personal health, while sometimes reflecting back to her life as a young girl on a farm – and the lessons (harshly) learnt then.

Reflective in private, a bit of an action woman when required, Hardy is a character able to carry ... Read review

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Four Days, Iain Ryan

Short, sharp and to the point, FOUR DAYS delivers deepest and darkest noir in the unlikely setting of 1980’s Brisbane and Cairns. In the Sunshine State corruption is rife and nowhere more so than in the police force and the licensing department in particular.

Lone wolf Detective Jim Harris isn’t exactly lily-white himself, with a complicated backstory of illicit love affairs and drug use, to say nothing of family relationships that would challenge most genealogy software. He is, however, seemingly the only cop dedicated enough to pursue the truth behind the death of a ... Read review

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Blue Wicked, Alan Jones

BLUE WICKED is the second book by Scottish author Alan Jones I’ve read. Each of them have come with warnings about strong language and use of the Glasgow dialect which is more of an attraction than deterrent for this reader.

The author’s first novel, THE CABINET MAKER, was an interesting variation on standard crime fiction fare. BLUE WICKED has a similar concept at the core, ... Read review

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Dead Wood, SJ Brown

DEAD WOOD is the second book from Tasmanian author s.j. brown, located in his home state, featuring Police DI John Mahoney.

Set within the fallout of the GFC, the novel explores the haves and the have not’s as a result of financial shakedown, within the framework of the very brutal murder of a prominent member of the local business community. Using that structure provides the author with another angle to explore as well - the big fish in a small pond, and the high profile that salacious goings on can give local events.

In the first book in the series, HIGH ... Read review

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Eden, Candice Fox

Right from the commencement of HADES, the first Archer / Bennett book by Candice Fox, it was obvious that this was a series to be watched. Dark, confrontational, emotional and compelling, that book started a journey into the consequences of human damage, and EDEN picks that up, twists it around your throat and pulls tight.

When Eden Archer goes undercover to catch a potential killer, the deprivation of the world into which she immerses herself is unsurprisingly apt. She's a woman with a dark core, a vigilante, an edge dweller, and the way she can step into the odd world ... Read review

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A Certain Malice, Felicity Young (aka Flashpoint)

Before WA based author Felicity Young commenced her extremely good Dr Dody McCleland series, she published a series of police procedural novels one of which built around the central character of Sergeant Cam Fraser in it. FLASHPOINT, originally out in 2005, has recently been re-released in ebook format.

Years ago this reader did read FLASHPOINT and some of the elements remained and obviously a lot didn't (the first version of this review muddled up the Cam Fraser and Stevie Hooper series utterly - with apologies to Felicity Young). FLASHPOINT looks back to recent events ... Read review

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Deadly Diplomacy, Jean Harrod

The Author of DEADLY DIPLOMACY has a background as a diplomat working for many years in Embassies and High Commissions in Australia, Brussels, the Caribbean, China, East Berlin, Indonesia, Mauritius and Switzerland. Her indepth knowledge of the workings of that world stands out in this novel, with her protagonist, Jess Turner, the British Consul in Canberra.

Called upon to support the sister of the victim, Turner is quickly dragged into the investigation. Setting up a diplomat and a cop being forced to co-operate is an unusual approach, but the inclusion of the ... Read review

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Birthdays for the Dead, Stuart MacBride

Something went wrong in the reading universe a while ago and I missed that this had been sitting in the unread list, when I picked up and enjoyed the second in the series - A SONG FOR THE DYING.

Which weirdly turned out to be a good thing as an introduction to a new character and a new series, BIRTHDAYS FOR THE DEAD is not without problems.

MacBride is not the sort of writer who shilly-shally's around with reader sensitivities. So the fact the (fictional) victims here are children and the way that ... Read review

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Stuart MacBride

Inside the Black Horse, Ray Berard

One of the great strengths of really good crime fiction is the exploration of big issues at a local level. INSIDE THE BLACK HORSE is set within a smaller community, revolving around life in the local pub / pokie venue, exploring the destruction and chaos that comes with illicit drug use, and distribution.

Setting the story around a Maori community also gives the author an opportunity to explore the good and the bad effects of drugs on those communities in particular. There’s an interesting comparison of elders trying to keep their traditions alive, a young widow trying to ... Read review

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For the Dignified Dead, Michael Genelin

The 5th book in the Jana Matinova series (as best as can be gleaned from online lists which universally don’t seem to include it), FOR THE DIGNIFIED DEAD was so good the first book leapt straight into Mt TBR. It also extremely readable if you are new to them as well.

Part of the strength of the book was undoubtedly the central character of Jana Matinova who is strong, smart and unwilling to take any crap from anyone - crims and colleagues alike. She’s compassionate without being soppy and dedicated. She’s also very driven in this book as she’s well aware that the killer’s ... Read review

Author:

Michael Genelin

Breathe and Release, Katherine Hayton

It’s no longer surprising that certain “scenarios” seem to be duplicated in a rush of books - and amnesia and/or dementia causing memory loss is the one that has been showing up a lot recently.

BREATHE AND RELEASE is by New Zealand based Katherine Hayton, and in this case, the memory loss is as a result of a car accident, and there’s a complication. Another woman is trapped in an underground hell, unable to escape, barely alive. Readers would be forgiven for assuming that there’s going to be a connection between Elisabet and Lillian, although what the connection is might ... Read review

Author:

Katherine Hayton

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