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Doom Creek, Alan Carter09/12/2020 - 2:05pmIn this current political climate, the rise of the ugly, radicalised individual is all too real, and the reflection of this in quiet, idyllic New Zealand somehow more shocking. Drafted originally before the appalling Christchurch mosque shootings in 2019, Alan Carter has chosen to (in his words from the acknowledgement) foreshadow the the inevitable consequences of toxic ideology and the ready availability of military style weapons. Likewise for the rural Australian location that I live in, he comments that you can't help but be aware that guns are everywhere, but luckily for us and ... Read Review |
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Death Mask, Kathryn Fox23/11/2020 - 12:48pmThe fifth Dr Anya Crichton book from Kathryn Fox, DEATH MASK combines Anya's forensic physician role with an exploration of professional sport and sexual misconduct. Sexual misconduct is too mild a description really - this book explores the very murky world of mob-behaviour, gang rape, drug abuse, violence and professional sport. Set mostly in America, the behaviour is something that Australian's are also more than aware of, the poor behaviour of many professional sports people hitting the headlines here with distressing regularity. Nobody is going to be all that ... Read Review |
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Into the Void, Christina O'Reilly19/11/2020 - 2:02pmA crime debut from New Zealand author Christina O'Reilly, INTO THE VOID is a short novel with considerable promise. Introducing DSS John (Archie) Baldrick, DC Ben Travers and the rest of their investigation team whilst presenting the reader with a well crafted plot all in 158 pages is quite an undertaking but O'Reilly manages it without letting go of character development, plot, intrigue or pace. The story revolves around the sudden disappearance of banker Richard Harper who appears to have run out on a desperately ill wife, and a pregnant girlfriend. The only glimmer of ... Read Review |
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Welcome to Ord City, Adrian Deans18/11/2020 - 1:01pmWhatever your expectations of WELCOME TO ORD CITY, like me, you may find them rapidly disappearing into puffs of smoke as this story advances. Puffs of smoke that got pretty dense at points, this is not a novel for the partially committed reader, it will require concentration as there's a lot of perspective switches, a largish cast of characters, and a hell of a lot going on. Blurbed as a satirical crime thriller, this is futuristic social commentary where the viewpoint is bleak(ish), the setup uncomfortably believable, and the action and outcomes soberingly ... Read Review |
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Lonelyheart 4122, Colin Watson16/11/2020 - 5:51pmLONELYHEART 4122 sees the introduction of Miss Lucilla (Lucy) Teatime to the mayhem that is Flaxborough and the series is all the better for her presence. Originally published in the late 1960's, this is a time of matrimonial agencies (and is now a good time to admit I was getting Carry on Loving flashbacks... ), although there's considerably more subtlety in the wordplay and characterisations in these novels than was ever attempted in those movies (and no connection whatsoever!). Anyway, pre-Tinder and like "apps", matrimonial agencies, seemingly run by happily married ... Read Review |
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The Amazing Maurice and His Educated Rodents, Terry Pratchett16/11/2020 - 11:25amThe first young adult novel in the Discworld series, THE AMAZING MAURICE AND HIS EDUCATED RODENTS is a spin on the classic Pied Piper theme with a lot of talking rats, their sidekick (also talking) cat Maurice, and a young boy called Keith. Part money making scheme, part survival strategy, as you'd expect from a Discworld novel there's entertainment to be enjoyed, and some very brilliantly constructed messages to be had along the way. Highly recommended if you have kids, although this is number 28 in the Discworld series, it would be a pitch-perfect opening to get them ... Read Review |
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Over My Dead Body, Dave Warner22/10/2020 - 4:46pmTo be honest, I took one look at the blurb for OVER MY DEAD BODY and wondered whether or not it sounded ... quite right (well to be brutally honest, I thought to myself, it sounds as daft as a brush), but if there's one thing I've learnt in quite a lot of years of crime fiction reading, it's expectation and outcome are out the back having a bloody good argument most of the time. Reading the Author Note at the back of this book is probably something that would be advisable for any readers having an insurmountable WT moment with this one - understanding the thinking and the ... Read Review |
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Death In the Ladies' Goddess Club, Julian Leatherdale21/10/2020 - 2:03pmDEATH IN THE LADIES' GODDESS CLUB is set in post World War I Sydney, in the 1930's at a time of great social and political upheaval in Australia's past. Women are just starting to fight back against the constraints society has placed on their lives and behaviour, and the bohemian lifestyle is growing in popularity. Of course it's also the time of the notorious Razor Gangs, and the extreme violence that plagued the Kings Cross Area and inner Sydney in general. Taking full advantage of unrest and upheaval, this is a novel about shaken expectations, family secrets and society in flux. ... Read Review |
The Last Hero, Terry Pratchett19/10/2020 - 4:08pmI have to confess to being very disappointed that the only Audible version of THE LAST HERO available seems to be an abridged version (4 hours and 24 minutes worth), unless I'm older and blinder than I thought I was. Which is also part of the reason that I really love this book so much. Cohen the Barbarian is no youngster, and he's on a final quest to climb the highest mountain in the Discworld and meet his gods. He doesn't like the way they let men grow old and die, and they should be bloody worried about that. Cohen might struggle to remember where he put his teeth these days, but ... Read Review |
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The Good Turn, Dervla McTiernan19/10/2020 - 12:55pmThe Good Turn continues Irish-Australian writer Dervla McTiernan’s Cormac Reilly crime series, which has become a firm favourite in a very short time. Full review at Newtown Review of BooksRead Review |
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The Halifax Slasher02/10/2020 - 2:51pmEven if you kind of think you know the story behind the infamous Halifax Slasher story, this podcast was an outstanding listen. Particularly in this day and age when you'd think we'd realise how easily things go pear-shaped when you have people involved. Makes you despair for the human race really, as there are echoes in today's world. Very apt listen for current day studiers of human inexplicability.Read Review |
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Murder in the Midst, Sandi Wallace02/10/2020 - 1:42pmA collection of eight different short stories, many of them past prize winners, all of them featuring crime and women from differing viewpoints. Journalists, police officers and private investigators are some of the occupations of the different central characters. Perpetrators, investigators, good Samaritans and writers amongst the viewpoints. Those switching perspectives are one of the collection's major highlights, allowing for different impacts, different reactions and varied causes. There's also a range of different involvements - personal and professional, insider ... Read Review |
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Prior Violations, Jonathan MacPherson24/09/2020 - 2:57pmHaving been lucky enough to be offered a copy of PRIOR VIOLATIONS for review I was intrigued to see it come with it's own curated Spotify music list. Made for a particularly unusual reading experience although the music would probably mean more to fans of American TV and movies, nearly all of which I've not seen. PRIOR VIOLATIONS is the prequel novella to BRAZEN VIOLATIONS, both of them are high-octane, action based thrillers in styling, dark and violent with a believable, sympathetic central character. Given the restricted length of a novella, there's no mucking about ... Read Review |
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Either Side of Midnight, Benjamin Stevenson23/09/2020 - 11:44amBenjamin Stevenson's first book featuring documentary maker Jack Quick was a revelation, particularly when considered again, in hindsight, from the viewpoint of the second novel in the series. Quoting from my own review of GREENLIGHT at the time:
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Hopjoy Was Here, Colin Watson17/09/2020 - 5:08pmThe third novel in the Flaxborough series, I've always thought that it was here that Colin Watson declared his hand and intentions most firmly. Everything about this novel is slightly wacky, very English in humour and stylings, and slyly clever. As you will get from the opening line of the blurb:
One would hope not, else the net curtains subsequently ... Read Review |
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Thief of Time, Terry Pratchett11/09/2020 - 1:51pmBook 26 in the overall series, number 5 in the Death sub-series, and I've not regretted a single second of the time spent listening to the audio of the Discworld novels from start to finish. This one contains one of my all time favourite Terry Pratchett quotes, with the exchange that leads up to it for context:
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The Murder Club, Nikki Crutchley09/09/2020 - 1:47pmMiller Hatcher made her debut as a character in NOTHING BAD HAPPENS HERE. In my review of that book I noted that she was "a flawed character, frequently almost pathetic, but there's enough in her back story, and the way her problems presented to make her understandable, if not completely sympathetic, and as a result absolutely real". In this second novel, THE MURDER CLUB, she's more stable, together, and focused, and taking some responsibility for her life and her mistakes. And still absolutely real. So real, that the fear she feels over the death of women who live alone, and her ... Read Review |
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The Night Whistler, Greg Woodland08/09/2020 - 5:49pmRecently busted back down to the rank of Constable, Mick Goodenough is the newest cop in town. Once a detective always a detective though, and it’s impossible for the experienced investigator not to speak up when it appears that his new colleagues are ignoring the sinister signs of an escalating killer. The Night Whistler takes the reader back to 1960’s Moorabool, New South Wales. Mick soon discovers that the job of policing country Moorabool mostly involves managing domestic disturbances, investigating low level crimes, tolerating a little political argy bargy and ... Read Review |
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The Truth, Terry Pratchett08/09/2020 - 5:03pmA Discworld take on crime fiction, THE TRUTH features William de Worde, Discworld's first investigative journalist. A job which came about more by accident than desire, but one that he turns out to be remarkedly good at. With assistance from his staff, and the unintentional help of some dark forces who stupidly try to plot the overthrow of Lord Vetinari. When I was grabbing the blurb for this novel from Goodreads I noticed somebody had posted this quote: “There are, it has been said, two types of people in the world. There are those who, when presented with a ... Read Review |
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Becoming, Michelle Obama07/09/2020 - 3:45pmI wasn't sure what to expect when listening to BECOMING by Michelle Obama, and it was a long listen, it's a big book, but what I got was a masterclass in humanity, care, compassion and understanding. With more than enough hints along the way about the difficulties in having differently coloured skin from others in your community. Extremely well worth reading / listening to / considering - this was instructional in ways I did not expect.Read Review |