We took a couple of weeks off over Christmas / New Year and spent the time driving around in the new car (working out how to drive it / charge it / where the cup holders are - all that sort of stuff), and managed a couple of days of long meanders with the dogs when it wasn't hot enough to melt concrete. Also did some reading - some of which was catchup / some f2f bookclub and some, just because. All of them are marked as review to come as it'll take me a little while to tick off the general admin / email backlog / what was I doing before the break work stuff.






























Two men.
One woman.
A blood feud.
The birth of the Italian mafia in Australia.
Join now and start reading the exclusive "Isolation Edition"
Just $9.90 for all 14 chapters – a saving of over 80% on RRP of the printed book
The Calabrian will be published in August but you can be one of the first to read this pulsating novel by signing up for our "isolation edition" You get access to a new chapter of the book each day. Waiting for the next instalment will only heighten your expectation and anticipation as the story develops.















Cover reveal time, with the announcement from newly formed Corella Press (https://www.austlit.edu.au/corellapress) of their upcoming initial releases: BRIDGET'S LOCKET AND OTHER MYSTERIES by Waif Wander (aka Mary Fortune) and THE MILLWOOD MYSTERY by Jeannie Lockett.
These beautiful covers were created by Kathleen Jennings (https://www.kathleenjennings.com/) whose paper cut silhouettes are amazing.
Corella Press state on their website:
The Mentone Public Library are showcasing local crime fiction author Alison Knight.
Time: 11am-1.30pm
Date: Saturday, 31 August 2019
Venue: Mentone Public Library
Address: Rear, 36 Florence Street, Mentone VIC 3194
Entry: Gold coin (for tea, coffee, biscuits)
Alison will be discussing her three crime novels:
1) Peter Stone
2) The Close
3) The Undiscovered Room and Other Stories






Young offenders, criminal histories:
Ngaio Marsh Award longlist revealed
An extraordinary literary tag-team is among several tales inspired by historic events to be named today on an eclectic longlist for the 2019 Ngaio Marsh Award for Best Novel.







This has been the most fascinating listening. So fascinating I did a ridiculous amount of unpicking of sewing seams over the weekend.
From the Blurb:
Cato Kwong is back in the much anticipated fourth novel in the series, and I'm blissfully happy about that.
From the Blurb:
Backcountry mystery outshone big city crime at WORD Christchurch Festival on Saturday evening as Alan Carter and Jennifer Lane were named the winners of the 2018 Ngaio Marsh Awards.
Post the #neddies it is sometimes hard to get back in the reading groove, so I'm starting with something rather different from what I'd normally contemplate going near. So far the plan is working...
From the Blurb:
The Girl on the Train meets Before I Go to Sleep with a dash of Bridget Jones in this chilling tale of love gone horribly wrong …
From the just finished pile.
From the Blurb:
An outsider detective. The vigilante killer with a message. A cold case they both want solved.
From Amazon Bestseller S.D. Rowell comes a heart-pounding crime mystery that will keep you thinking until the final page…
Big change of pace, but I'm actually reading something written by someone who is not from our neck of the woods!
From the Blurb:
Murder wasn't the hard part. It was just the start of the game.
Joshua Kane has been preparing for this moment his whole life. He's done it before. But this is the big one.
This is the murder trial of the century. And Kane has killed to get the best seat in the house.
But there's someone on his tail. Someone who suspects that the killer isn't the man on trial.
My round up of the 2018 Ned Kelly Awards shortlist is now at Newtown Review of Books
One that I finished over the weekend - review to come asap.
From the Blurb:
A fugitive in the present. A runaway in the past.
Eliza Carmody returns home to the country to work on the biggest law case of her career. The only problem is this time she’s on the ‘wrong side’ – defending a large corporation against a bushfire class action by her hometown of Kinsale.
Another from the New Zealand piles.
From the Blurb:
How do you protect your family when you can't remember who's hunting them? A gripping international thriller, perfect for fans of Lee Child and Mason Cross
A family in England is massacred, the father left holding the shotgun.
PC Lucy Davies is convinced he's innocent
A sleeper agent in Moscow requests an urgent meeting with Dan Forrester, referencing their shared past.
His amnesia means he has no idea who he can trust.
And finally, from the past weekend.
From the Blurb:
Chapman Bouttell, an Australian homicide detective, is drawn violently back into a conspiracy he thought he’d escaped while serving in the Vietnam War when members of his former army unit were found murdered.
Another from the weekend's reading pile.
From the Blurb:
A stranger just put Kelsey’s boyfriend in a coma. The worst part? She asked him to do it.
This list is of standout reads from 2016, grouped into categories with no attempt whatsoever at an arbitrary number and in no particular order.
Favourite Australian Books (Crime Fiction)
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Every now and again I get a chance to read something that's not local :) :) :) This is a thriller from the author of The Good Thief's Guide series.
From the Blurb:
What do you do if your fiancée goes missing, presumed taken?
If you're Daniel Trent, a highly-trained specialist in hostage negotiation, the answer is simple: You find out who took her and you make them talk.