Sorted on book title (not in series order)

Crime Fiction

The Hidden Room, Stella Duffy

Stella Duffy was absent from the crime writing scene for a long time until THE HIDDEN ROOM was released in 2017. The book then made the shortlist for the 2018 Ngaio Marsh Awards, because, in a nutshell, Duffy knows how to develop strong, realistic characters, and weave them into a plot that...Read more

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The Hidden, Bryan Brown

Two novels, and one collection of short stories in now and I think we can all agree Bryan Brown has a "style". Short, clipped sentences, dry as dust observations, dark and cunning humour and a sense of fringe communities that are quite content with their little eccentric weirdo selves....Read more

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Hidden, Katy Gardner

Mel Stenning has been a victim most of her life. Adopted by very conventional parents, she rebelled (but hated herself for doing it), getting into all sorts of situations and ultimately ending up in Australia, pregnant with no chance of having anything to do with her daughter Poppy's father...Read more

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Hide, S.J. Morgan

Set in 1983, HIDE is one of those novels that clearly demonstrate how a couple of simple life choices can send somebody spiralling into dark territory very quickly. There's nothing unusual in the setup as Alec Johnston moves into the sort of share house we've all probably lived in at some...Read more

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High Beam, sj Brown

A debut novel, HIGH BEAM is set in Hobart, Tasmania featuring DI John Mahoney. Mahoney has recently returned to his hometown and is an unhappy man in his personal and professional lives. The death of high profile victim Brad Finch doesn't make him any happier what with time pressures from...Read more

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Hindsight, Melanie Casey

Saw this book referred to somewhere as CSI meets Medium in print. Which will mean something to exactly the sort of readers that HINDSIGHT is pitched directly at.

Needless to say that's not me. Whilst my paranormal allergy has been mitigated slightly over the years by some...Read more

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Hip Flask and Hanging, Rodney Strong

HIP FLASK AND HANGING is the second in the Silvermoon Retirement Village Cozy series featuring the intrepid, impressive and slightly dodgy 97 year old Alice Atkinson, resident of the aforementioned retirement village and investigator. She of the many many ghosts from the past, although one...Read more

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His and Hers, Alice Feeney

His and Hers, and whoever that other person is.  Television presenter Anna Andrews, DCI Jack Harper and an unknown observer all contribute to this twisted tale of murder and treachery that has its origins in past cruelty inflicted by English school girls.  The very thought of it....Read more

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A History of Crime, Dinah Holman

Combining history with mystery and a hefty dose of romance, A HISTORY OF CRIME was both a fascinating and slightly frustrating read.

The background to Frédérique Bonnell and her connections to France and New Zealand were unknown territory for this reader - as was the idea that...Read more

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Hit, Tara Moss

Meaghan Wallace is invited to one of the "must be at" social events in Sydney - a party at the very very rich Cavanagh household. When her escort (and boss) finally passes out, she stumbles across Damien, the very spoilt son of the family, arguing with other men in the same room as a bed,...Read more

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The Hitchhiker, Gabriel Bergmoser

Fans of the Bee Gees might find themselves with psychological issues post reading or listening to THE HITCHHIKER. I'm not sure I'll hear the particular track that's on high rotation in the car at the centre of much of the action here without a slight twitch ever again to be honest....Read more

The Hollow Girl, Lyn Yeowart

The second psychological thriller from Lyn Yeowart, THE HOLLOW GIRL, is set in the West of Victoria around Ballarat, Ararat and Horsham, employing the dual timelines of the 1960's when a home for 'girls in crisis' near Horsham known as Harrowford Hall, takes in young, unmarried, pregnant...Read more

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Holy Death, Peter Mulraney

Grabbed a copy of this after seeing it on the list of Ned Kelly entrants for 2017 - without paying a lot of attention to the category it was entered in. (I've been cherry-picking from the list when I see a copy of the book available anywhere). I have to confess I went back and checked as I...Read more

Home Before Night, J.P. Pomare

If you were a resident of Melbourne (or any larger city I suppose), the announcement of one of the many COVID lockdowns was a sudden jolt to the nervous system. 

What JP Pomare has done, in HOME BEFORE NIGHT, is add an extra layer of complexity when Lou realises her son Samuel...Read more

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Homecountry, TW Lawless

The first of the Peter Clancy books from T.W. Lawless, HOMECOUNTRY takes Clancy to exactly that - home to the town where he grew up, in outback Queensland to bury his mother. With his credo of never looking back this is the first time he's returned to Clarke's Flat since he left, so for the...Read more

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The Honjin Murders, Seishi Yokomizo

First published in 1946, the story is set in the winter of 1937, in the Japanese village of Okamura. Steeped in both the culture and sensibility of the time, THE HONJIN MURDERS is a classic of Japanese crime fiction, a locked room murder in the style of the Golden Age of crime fiction...Read more

And Hope to Die, J.M. Calder

Set in an unnamed USA city, JM Calder's second thriller AND HOPE TO DIE is chilling. The book opens as a package is received by the parents of a kidnapped little girl. Finding out that this little girl is the 4th child taken by the same kidnapper and then discovering that even though the...Read more

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Hot Flush, Rosy Fenwicke

Comedic crime fiction has to be one of the hardest sub-genre's to pull off. Comedy is so subjective, and crime fiction often tackles tricky subject matter. Add to that a hefty supernatural component and HOT FLUSH is a book that's appealing to a specific sub-set of readers.

The...Read more

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A House Built on Sand, Tina Shaw

Maxine has been losing things lately. Her car in the shopping centre carpark. Important work files—and her job as a result. Her marbles? ‘Mild cognitive impairment’, according to the doctor. Time for a nursing home, according to her daughter, Rose.

Rose

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The Housemate, Sarah Bailey

A standalone from the author of the well-known Gemma Woodstock series, THE HOUSEMATE is a story told in two timelines. Back to nine years ago when three housemates were sharing a property, one of them is killed, one goes missing, one is accused of murder. The current timeline sees...Read more

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How the Dead See, David Owen

It's just so heartening to know that the Pufferfish Series lives on that it's difficult to remain objective about the latest book.  HOW THE DEAD SEE is the second of the re-emergence of David Owen's much loved, acerbic, dry, funny, dark and quite prickly Detective Inspector Franz Heineken...Read more

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Humidity, Dan Kaufman

The opening line of HUMIDITY made me laugh:

Word gets 'round when you're a nude model in a small country town.

That would most definitely get around our nearby small country town, even though it could never be said that we have the...Read more

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