All the Reviews

The Ghost of Waterloo, Robin Adair

THE GHOST OF WATERLOO is the second Nicodemus Dunne book, set in 1800's Sydney in the earliest days of the Colony.  Reading the first in the series - DEATH AND THE RUNNING PATTERER will give you the complete background to Dunne - how he came to Sydney, how he came to be earning his way as a Running Patterer.  It also explains why his background as a London policeman would lead Governor Darling to call for his assistance when a major robbery and spate of murders proves not just difficult to solve, but potentially embarrassing for the Colony leaders.  Having said that, it would be ... Read Review

Close-Up, Esther Verhoef

There's something about the blurb to this book that seems to suggest that it's tending towards a romance.  If that's what you're looking for, you might want to consider your options.  Whilst we're talking relationship here, we're also talking manipulation, need, dependencies and some really really nasty behaviour.

It's not just the possibility of overt romance that could put a reader off - there's Margot herself.  At the beginning of the book she's starting out after a relationship that obviously controlled her, set her life's path.  She comes across as one of those ... Read Review

A Bali Conspiracy Most Foul, Shamini Flint

The second Inspector Singh novel from Shamini Flint takes Singh to Bali to join the anti-terrorism efforts post a major bombing that ripped through the tourist areas.  What exactly Singh is doing as part of a anti-terrorism squad is no clearer to him than it is to anybody else, but the body in the wreckage, shot dead before the bomb gives Singh the sort of case that he's used to solving - a straight-forward murder.

When I read the first book (A MOST PECULIAR MALAYSIAN MURDER) I did comment "This book is definitely on the lighter side of crime fiction, I'll have to read ... Read Review

In Your Face, Rochelle Jackson

Well it shouldn't come as any surprise that a book written "for" an old time notorious crim seemed somewhat revisionary, but even allowing for that aspect, there's something slightly odd about this book.  Billy Longley is one of those notorious old-time crims - known far and wide in Victoria in particular, who was very active in the equally notorious Painters and Dockers Union.  

I've now read a few books which purport to tell the tales of the Painters and Dockers but I don't think this book is going to add much to anyone's overall understanding of the truth of what used ... Read Review

Chelsea Mansions, Barry Maitland

With any long term series, it's not surprising to see an author rejigging the relationships just a little, bringing in new perspectives or adjusting the expectations.  CHELSEA MANSIONS is the ninth Brock and Kolla book from Barry Maitland, and in the last book there were hints that there is a little viewpoint modification going on.  It's always particularly interesting to watch how various authors move their long-term characters in and out of the limelight, particularly when you have an inherent seniority built in, as you have in a police pairing.  Maitland seems be carefully ... Read Review

Dead Man's Chest, Kerry Greenwood

Despite constantly "bragging" that we live about an hour from just about anywhere... it does mean that every trip in the car do to anything takes a while.  We've recently turned to audio books to fill in the hours of dodging kangaroos and potholes and the most recent that we've been listening to is DEAD MAN'S CHEST by Kerry Greenwood.  Number 18 (good grief.. really!) of the Phyrne Fisher series, the audio version is read particularly well by Stephanie Daniel who does an excellent job of individual accents for each of the characters - and there is a lot of characters in this book, ... Read Review

A Man You Can Bank On, Derek Hansen

I don't know - maybe it's because the book is set in a small country town struggling to survive (and I live 20 kilometres or so out of just such a town), or maybe it was the line on the opening page "He had the sort of body normally achieved by eating plankton.", but I was particularly disposed to liking A MAN YOU CAN BANK ON.  

It's not going to come as much of a surprise that this is a bit of a romp style novel.  There's the local town bank manager, a disgraced cop sent to the outback to serve his time, the bank manager's daughter, the local animatronics expert, a bloke ... Read Review

Whispering Death, Garry Disher

Put a book with Garry Disher's name on the cover down on the table at our place and there's bound to be a bit of sighing from certain quarters.  Fair enough, it normally means that all forms of communication will cease until the book is finished.  Whilst I will admit a slight preference for the Wyatt series, the Challis and Destry books are getting better and better with each outing.  I particularly like the way that the focus is switching between the two main characters, and their romance is developing but not taking over from what is, after all, an excellent police procedural.  I've ... Read Review

The Boundary, Nicole Watson

THE BOUNDARY is the first novel from Australian author Nicole Watson.  Nicole is a member of the Birri-Gubba People and the Yugambeh language group and her novel is set in Brisbane, at the end of an unsuccessful land rights claim, soon after which high profile people start dying.

Reading this book it's impossible not to be aware of some fundamental elements.  There is a sense of anger in the book - anger at the treatment of an ancient people in their land and anger at the deprivation and desecration of those people.  There's also a sense of celebration - Aboriginal ... Read Review