AustCrimeFiction - All Blogs

Next from a weekend spent getting stuck into the overdue reading list.

From the Blurb:

The summer of 1976 in Auckland, New Zealand. 

There is a severe marijuana drought. 

Two couples; a gynecologist and a physicist, together with a violinist and an actress meet by accident in a pub and help a Maori evade the police. 

A group of Maori plans to deliver a truckload of cannabis to Auckland. 

A Chinese family has harvested four greenhouses of enhanced sensimilla. 

A criminal mastermind plots to start a drug war. 

The final one started over this past weekend - needing in particular a change of hemisphere although I wish now I'd read the first in the series.

From the Blurb:

Leo Junker is back in the snake pit — aka the homicide unit — after a murder case where he was the intended victim. Still abusing prescription drugs and battling his inner demons, he’s doing his best to appear fit for duty.

2nd from the weekend's pile.

From the Blurb:

Melbourne is a city living in fear. 

A sadistic killer is on the loose. 

Policewomen are being targeted and the count stands at seven. 

Detective Jake Miller and Criminal Psychologist Brodie Foxx head the task force. 

As they race to find the killer, the body count continues to rise, leading them deep into a world of pure evil. 

Will they succeed where all others have failed? 

Or will the hunters become the hunted? 

Will they pay the ultimate price? 

From the piles and piles of things I've got queued up at the moment.

From the Blurb:

Boom and Bust is a violent hard-boiled crime novel about a man forced into acts of desperation and depravity by debt. He is over-committed in the property market and is changing careers to have a crack as a real estate agent just as the Global Financial Crisis is about to hit. His timing couldn't be worse and the bodies are piling up around him as he tries to shoot his way out of trouble. 

Being a solo farmer for a week normally I dodge anything too "confrontational" in my reading matter - a) because it's usually impossible to get time to devote to something that's going to require concentration, and b) there's no point in scaring yourself witless if you don't have to (things have a tendency to go bump in the night around here). But this was a most unexpected experience, it was absolutely riveting, confrontational, difficult reading, but illuminating, moving.

So having had my socks blown off by one New Zealand / Ngaio Marsh contender, the next book in the queue was intriguing, another most unusual slow burner of a read with all sorts of potential to go in all sorts of directions. That, needless to say, was the end of all but essential chores for the rest of the weekend.

From the Blurb:

The March update is very late - it's been a tad busy hereabouts.

Read / To be Reviewed:

Detective Work, John Dale

I've been doing some very determined juggling recently as this is a book I've been very keen to read - particularly as the 2nd in the series is now also out. Wonderful sense of place.

From the Blurb:

Steve West, mining engineer and ex-footy star, just wants a dirty weekend in town, but he can't stop people telling him their secrets. When crusading Kara incites a breakout in the desert, Westie finds himself her reluctant accomplice. Soon he's got a runaway asylum seeker in tow, and all the world, it seems, on his tail.

With a true story behind it, The Death Ray Debacle is set in New Zealand in the 1930's.

From the Blurb:

In June 1935 Takapuna inventor Victor Penny was attacked by foreign agents seeking what the newspapers dubbed a ‘death ray’. The government secretly shifted him to Somes Island in Wellington harbour to develop the weapon. The novel of this true story is told by Temporary Acting Detective Dan Delaney, seconded to Special Branch, forerunner of the Security Intelligence Service.

I've been wanting to read this since it came out. 

From the Blurb:

Kevin Rudd was given no warning, but even he lasted longer than Abbott. Julia Gillard had plenty of warnings, but even she lasted longer than Abbott.

Abbott ignored all the warnings, from beginning to end — the public ones, the private ones, from his friends, his colleagues, the media.

Figured while I was doing a little "outside the box" reading then something cross genre would fit the bill.

From the Blurb:

The Fifth Column: the world’s most powerful and secretive organization. They run our militaries. They run our governments. They run our terrorist cells.

Recruited as a child, Sophia is a deniable operative for the Fifth Column. Like all operatives, Sophia’s DNA has been altered to augment her senses and her mind is splintered into programmed subsets.

The final from the Easter reading pile.

From the Blurb:

The year is 1900, and photographer Beatrix Spencer has just opened her photographic studio in the bustling colonial metropolis of Sydney. But it is a turbulent time to start a new business. A deadly outbreak of bubonic plague is threatening the city, causing public panic, putting ships into quarantine and causing unrest on the wharves. The colony is preparing to send soldiers to the Boer War. Women are struggling to gain rights and recognition.

Loved the opening of this - too much hollandaise is indeed a crime, hangover or no hangover.

From the Blurb:

One spring morning a woman is found dead in a Brunswick alley adorned with symbols of the occult. Catherine Kint, milliner, gin enthusiast and raconteur, has no reason to be involved until her friend is under investigation. Armed with her sharp wit, a crime scene background and a barman named Boris, Catherine walks into a world of new age prophecies, curses and money. Honestly, it would drive a girl to drink.

Grant Nicol is originally from New Zealand but his fiction is set in Iceland, where he now lives. This is a bit more of a novella.

From the Blurb:

Everybody Makes Mistakes!

A mutilated body is found on a lonely street in Reykjavík.

Detective Grímur intends to see that justice is done.

Kjartan Jónsson vows that his daughter’s killer will be punished. And that the punishment will fit the crime.

Prime suspect Gunnar Atli desperately needs to prevent his own dark secrets from coming to light. And he’s not the only one.

This year I've really made an attempt to keep up with debut Australian crime novels - although a few, as with this one, have dodged my faulty radar. Catching up now needless to say.

From the Blurb:

An astute novel about Australian racism — and about humanity prevailing over entrenched prejudice.

Wanted something that's guaranteed to be a bit of fun - so this seemed perfect - being from a very good cosy series.

From the Blurb:

Six romance writers
Five secrets
Four poison pen letters
Three stolen manuscripts
Two undercover journalists
One over-complicated love life
Way too many teacups and tiny sandwiches

Having been a huge fan of other forensic investigations of early Australian Crime Writers done by Lucy Sussex, I've been looking forward to this one immensely. Will be reviewed at http://www.newtownreviewofbooks.com.au(link is external)

From the Blurb:

Before there was Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes, there was Fergus Hume’s The Mystery of a Hansom Cab—the biggest- and fastest-selling detective novel of the 1800s, and Australia’s first literary blockbuster.

Used to think I'd be able to keep up with the local crime writing output. Didn't realise I was quite that delusional. This is one from last year that I blinked and missed.

From the Blurb:

When Dimitri Telegonus is promoted to the Serious Unsolved Crime Unit to investigate the disappearance of a beautiful blonde escort, he thinks he’s finally made the big time. He’d always wanted to do detective work; thought it was his destiny.

I've been shuffling this book up the stack for a while now, and somehow it keeps not quite making it to the top. Which is so annoying, that sometimes you have to knock the whole teetering pile to the floor and read what you bloody well want to read.

From the Blurb:

Dear reader, you may know of my love of Japanese crime fiction.

From the Blurb:

SIX FOUR. 
THE NIGHTMARE NO PARENT COULD ENDURE. 
THE CASE NO DETECTIVE COULD SOLVE. 
THE TWIST NO READER COULD PREDICT.

For five days in January 1989, the parents of a seven-year-old Tokyo schoolgirl sat and listened to the demands of their daughter's kidnapper. They would never learn his identity. They would never see their daughter again.

Look I can't explain why I'm reading it either.

From the Blurb:

A woman is attacked in strange circumstances on a midnight street in Valletta, Malta. An island country known for its history of early civilisations and military might is the backdrop for a series of distant relations and revelations as we follow Jack Sant; a Knight of Malta, on his quest to solve some of the country’s worst cold cases. 

This one has had me a little intrigued and a little uncomfortable as it's edged it's way to the top of the queue. Part romance, part detective story, investigating the perils and exhilaration of young love...

From the Blurb:

Love a good thriller, so jumped at the chance to read this new offering from Pantera Press.

From the Blurb:

Stepan Volkov forfeited his future when he was paid to forget his past.

Forced to adapt, he ultimately became the world's most wanted killer... feared, vicious and brutal.

A tool of the Organizatsiya, a Russian crime syndicate that forged him into 'The Wolf', he's pursued by American spies and Australian agents, torn between his need to survive and his desire to be free.

January, being a month in which we took a break from computers, meant a lot of reading and then a scrambling review catchup - which is still not caught up.

Read / To be Reviewed:

Girl Waits with Gun, Amy Stewart

I've been wading around on the darker side for a while now, and this is very light, cosy stuff with a humorous side which kind of appealed over the weekend.

From the Blurb:

It was supposed to be the holiday of a lifetime ...

When Nell Forrest's life hits a speed bump (which is most definitely not a midlife crisis) a cruise around the Mediterranean seems like just the ticket.

I did jump this up the queue. A lot. I just love short story collections, and there are some wonderful writers in this.

From the Blurb:

Is there really such a thing as an innocent person?

Teachers, cops, mothers, wives, everyone has their breaking point; that moment where it could go either way. From the prostitute with no way out, to the bitter author, and a cop who just wants his leave, the characters in this collection will baffle and bewilder you at every turn.

When I was but a girl, my grandmother and I were a tad addicted to Ngaio Marsh, Agatha Christie and Dorothy L Sayers books and we read them all although often lamenting the lack of local crime books with local settings. How excited were we both to discover in the late 80's / early 90's that there were local women writing really good crime fiction. Jean Bedford was one of those discoveries and we hoovered up the Anna Southwood books with relish - often reading the same book at the same time so we could share long telephone calls about them.

Been hearing lots and lots of whispers about how good this interesting approach to true crime is. 

From the Blurb:

In 2004, the body of a young Perth woman was found on the grounds of a primary school. Her name was Rebecca Ryle. The killing would mystify investigators, lawyers, and psychologists - and profoundly rearrange the life of the victim's family.

Review to come!

Due for release in early March so review will be published around then.

From the Blurb:

You don’t have to believe in ghosts for the dead to haunt you.

You don’t have to be a murderer to be guilty.

Within six months of Pen Sheppard starting university, three of her new friends are dead. Only Pen knows the reason why.

From earlier in this week - something I've wanted to read for a while, so one of my "just because" reads for this month.

From the Blurb:

Called to a woman's refuge to take a routine witness statement, DI Marnie Rome instead walks in on an attempted murder.

Trying to uncover the truth from layers of secrets, Marnie finds herself confronting her own demons.  Because she, of all people, knows that it can be those closest to us we should fear the most . . .

The 2nd in the Harry Belltree trilogy and the book I finished this afternoon when I should have been working.

From the Blurb:

Detective Sergeant Harry Belltree, back on the job after a near-fatal confrontation with corrupt colleagues, has become a departmental embarrassment. The solution is a posting away from Sydney and a quiet life in Newcastle.

This book, from India, has such a wonderful sense of place and culture, partially due to the "tone" of the writing, which is beautifully lyrical.

From the Blurb:

The mysterious and alluring Pramila, resident of Avantika Heights, is brutally murdered. Sudhir Das, the security guard from the Golden Red Security Agency, is caught red-handed. 

In steps Sudhir's boss, young Orko Deb, the hesitant avenger. 

His cautious sleuthing, all over Kolkata, throws up more questions than answers. 

Who is Pramila? 

The 4th book in the excellent Cate Austin series, because I'm an absolute idiot, I've missed the 3rd. Now will have to restack the teetering stacks!

From the Blurb:

When Ellie goes missing on the first day of Schueberfouer, the police are dismissive, keen not to attract negative attention on one of Luxembourg’s most important events. 

Wanted a change of pace and something from the true stacks.

From the Blurb:

Ever since the First Fleet dropped anchor, Australia's ports have been a breeding ground for many of Australia's most notorious criminals, and a magnet for local and overseas crime syndicates.

Third book from 2 time Ned Kelly Award winner - I've been hoarding this just a little, until I could sit and do a one / two sitting read. Perfect for the last weekend of holidays then.

From the Blurb:

If Detective Frank Bennett tries hard enough, he can sometimes forget that Eden Archer, his partner in the Homicide Department, is also a moonlighting serial killer . . .

Somewhere in the middle of the month - actually remembered to post some best of's for 2015. Other than that, this is a combination of books read, read and reviewed, and reviews caught up with, because I didn't really keep track of what was what. I was on holidays - from computers and PM tools if nothing else. 

Reviewed in December:

It's always a Good New Year when you open a book from Adrian McKinty and from the starting paragraph you're hooked. 

From the Blurb:

It’s just the same things over and again for Sean Duffy: riot duty, heartbreak, cases he can solve but never get to court. But what detective gets two locked-room mysteries in one career?

Due to be published Jan 2016.

Review to come!

Technically I'm not here - we're taking a few weeks off from computers to try to recharge battered batteries. It's been so bloody hot here we've nearly melted and nope it hasn't rained. Not a bloody drop.

Which has meant some reading time in amongst the hourly trips outside to make sure the poultry at least are surviving this appalling weather.

American Blood, Ben Sanders

I'm mathematically challenged at the best of times, and never more so than when greeted by the need to come up with a "list" of a certain number. Okay so that's probably less to do with maths and more to do with a pathological hatred of arbitrary rules. So let's just go with this being the best of list of all the books (currently at 147 or so) that I was fortunate (in the main) to have read in 2015.

Read this one over the weekend. Review to come.

From the Blurb:

BRISBANE, 1984. Jim Harris is a hard-drinking Australian detective on his way to a nervous breakdown. Every day, he works alongside corrupt cops and dangerous crooks. That is, until a brutal murder case unravels his career, bringing past indiscretions to light. Alone, afraid, and out of control, Harris makes a pact with himself: Four days to locate the killer. Four days to take revenge. Four days to find redemption.

Reading this for a series review at Newtown Review of Books.

From the Blurb:

When Rowland Sinclair is invited to take his yellow Mercedes onto the Maroubra Speedway, renamed the Killer Track for the lives it has claimed, he agrees without caution or reserve.

But then people start to die.

The body of a journalist covering the race is found in a House of Horrors, an English blueblood with Blackshirt affiliations is killed on the race track. and it seems that someone has Rowland in their sights.

A big November, with a welcome back to Andrea Thompson who is posting reviews and blogs now around her busy day job(s), kids, fostering animals, coffee drinking day to day activities :)

Reviewed This Month:

Inside the Black Horse, Ray Berard

Didn't get a heap of reading done over the weekend (went to see The Dressmaker yesterday which took a big chunk out of the day), but I did start this one last night.

From the Blurb:

You can run from everything but your fears.

Three years after a gang brutally murdered his wife and son, Sergeant Cam Fraser has returned with his daughter Ruby to the country town where he was raised - a town too small for trouble. But then a body is found on the school grounds, badly burned and unrecognisable. Who in Glenroyd could possibly be a murderer? And why?

My first Simon Beckett!  Half way in, really intrigued as to when the bubble will burst for the main character. 

Summary from Random House Australia:

Somebody!' I half-sob and then, more quietly, 'Please.' The words seem absorbed by the afternoon heat, lost amongst the trees. In their aftermath, the silence descends again. I know then that I'm not going anywhere...

A change of setting and some very high paced action.

From the Blurb:

A high-octane thriller with a heart-stopping conclusion about a mysterious American woman who disappears into the Cambodian underworld, and the photojournalist who tracks her through the clues left in her diary.

From the "should probably have already read this" but now reading for next f2f bookclub meeting...

From the Blurb:

Set against Iceland's stark landscape, Hannah Kent brings to vivid life the story of Agnes, who, charged with the brutal murder of her former master, is sent to an isolated farm to await execution.

Debut from Kiwi based writer Ray Berard, which came with a very big rap from Craig Sisterson.

From the Blurb:

2nd book in the DI John Mahoney series, set in Tasmania.

From the Blurb:

Tasmania is in trouble. 

While mainland Australia surges through the backwash of the GFC the island state is struggling. Political infighting, bureaucratic ineptitude and a lack of investment have curtailed progress. Too many people are lodging on ‘Struggle Street’. 

The 3rd Cormoran Strike novel, and the 2nd that I've read in the last week :)

From the Blurb:

When a mysterious package is delivered to Robin Ellacott, she is horrified to discover that it contains a woman's severed leg.

Her boss, private detective Cormoran Strike, is less surprised but no less alarmed. There are four people from his past who he thinks could be responsible--and Strike knows that any one of them is capable of sustained and unspeakable brutality.

Another busy October with slightly improved reading numbers. 

Read and Reviewed this Month:

Crime Fiction

Poison Bay, Belinda Pollard

Television reporter Callie Brown likes safe places with good coffee. But she joins friends from the past on a trek into New Zealand’s most brutal wilderness, in the hope of healing a broken heart.

What she doesn’t know is that someone wants them all dead.

Having just had a week of holidays (well partially holidays / partially off-air because we hit the limits of our Internet data cap and have been desperately trying to avoid being shaped which meant no non-essential online activity), got a fair bit of reading done! Stand by for more on this book in December.

From the Blurb:

Set in Australia, written by an English author, from the world of international diplomacy.

From the Blurb:

Diplomat Jess Turner is the British Consul in Canberra. When a British businesswoman is brutally murdered in a Queensland resort, Jess travels to Brisbane to liaise with the police, and help the victim’s next of kin, her journalist sister, Susan.