The Paradise Heights Craft Store Stitch-Up, by Kate Solly

Felicity ‘Fleck’ Parker loves solving puzzles; crosswords, wordplays, sudoku, acrostics – all types keep her brain alive while caring for her three small children. When fellow school mum Trixie is accused of stealing from the charity craft shop where she volunteers, Fleck puts her brain to solving the mystery of who is really responsible and clearing Trixie’s name. The initial chapters of this novel were so ‘mumsy’ it was tempting to just chuck it. For sure having three kids under five would be exhausting and mind-numbing but it’s really not interesting to read about. Fortunately things improve as the action gets underway. The plot, involving people trafficking and money laundering, is patently absurd, but for the most part this is an entertaining and undemanding read as Fleck and Trixie solve everyone's problems along the way. Cosy crafting crime.

In the Midst of Winter, by Isabel Allende

An unlikely friendship forms between three very different people in the depths of a New York winter. Exuberant Chilean writer Luisa Maraz has lived in the Brooklyn basement flat of her boss, stitched up academic Richard Bowmaster, for several months but he has resisted her friendly overtures. A minor bingle and a dreadful storm sees them holed up in the house with a young Guatemalan woman, Evelyn Ortega, who is undocumented and living in fear. As they share their stories and slowly build a connection the three embark on a road trip in the snow to try to secure Evelyn’s future. The somewhat ludicrous road trip is a vehicle for exposure of the two women’s traumatic pasts. Both have been refugees but Luisa received more support in her escape from 70s political violence than Evelyn’s 2008 flight from a country overrun by gang violence. This novel is set in 2016 and one can only shudder at their likely experiences now. Richard’s history of more emotional turbulence is rather tacked on later in the book. His character is less well-rounded and less credible than the two women, making the romance that develops towards the end of the tale even less likely.

The Redline, by Adrian Hyland

Jesse Redpath is acting sergeant in the small country police station of Satellite when a colleague is killed in a traffic incident. But was it an accident or murder and if the latter then why? What follows is a melange of missing people, corruption, shady security officers, a feral child and murder. This is apparently the third outing for Jesse so one would expect her voice to be clearer. She doesn’t ring true as a character and her licence to operate as a lone wolf with little accountability within the police force seems highly unlikely. A large amount of exposition in the early part of the novel is tedious. The geography of the region is confusing, which is a problem as it is fundamental to the plot – it’s a country town on the urban fringe, described as remote but somehow within easy access of Melbourne. The first person style doesn’t lend itself well to the (many) times Jesse is in danger as it makes the stakes low – she is telling the tale so we know she gets through it.

The Hallmarked Man, by Robert Galbraith

This latest Strike novel sees detective agency partner Robin Ellacott suffering PTSD from her last case and Cormoran Strike havering over his newly-acknowledged feeling for her. Neither is in great shape for an investigation into a bizarre murder in a silver shop with Freemasonry links. The body has been identified by police as a crime figure, but their client believes it is her missing boyfriend and wants them to prove it. They discover five potential candidates and attempting to rule them in or out leads the agency into the murky worlds of the SAS, porn films, sex trafficking and, of course, Freemasons. At almost 900 pages this could be a slog, but Galbraith’s fluent style and short sharp chapters keep the action moving swiftly. Nevertheless the seven-year will they-won’t they URST between the two principals has become tediously self indulgent, ending the novel with a cliffhanger it’s hard to care about.

Beautiful Lies, by Lisa Unger

Freelance writer Ridley Jones has lived a charmed life in New York, with loving parents and a promising career. That starts to change after a heroic act puts her in the spotlight and she receives a message that makes her question her whole identity. A sexy new neighbour helps her out, but what are his true motives and who can she trust? The opening preamble, set in 1972, is suspenseful and ominously sets up the story. The opening chapter jumps forward 30 years, reverting to first person in an expository mess. This improves as the action heats up and the tale of corruption and violent exploitation unfolds, but the characters are just not credible and the epilogue is as dully expository as chapter one.

The Unquiet Grave, by Dervla McTiernan

A career crossroads looms for Detective Cormac Reilly in this fourth tale of policing in Galway. Tourists have found a body in a peat bog, not an historic relic but a missing local head teacher. Ex girlfriend Emma’s husband has gone missing in France and she needs Cormac’s support in getting his disappearance properly investigated, which dredges up old feelings and old hurts. Protégé Peter Fisher is emigrating to Australia for better pay and lifestyle, but will he finds policing any more satisfying in another country? The detective must decide whether to take a promotion that will put him even more on the outer within the Garda. The twisty-turny murder investigation feeds satisfyingly into the cops’ choices on their futures, but while the Emma storyline serves as a vehicle for moving on it was clearly only that and is anticlimactic.

Treasure and Dirt, by Chris Hammer

When an opal miner is found crucified Sydney homicide cop Ivan Lucic heads outback to Finnegans Gap to investigate. He is joined by a new junior partner, Nell Buchanan, who has history in the town. Ratters, battling billionaires, a religious cult and corruption at many levels make this anything but cosy crime. The characters are well drawn, with breadth and depth, although rather too many elements tend to blur the picture at the conclusion. This is the first novel in a series featuring this unlikely pair of detectives, whose personal demons have minimal impact on their investigative skills.

We Solve Murders, by Richard Osman

A private close protection officer has been set up for a series of murders linked to her work and she brings in her ex-cop father-in-law to help protect her reputation and life, along with that of her latest client – a famous writer. It’s all pretty far-fetched, with a new set of characters, but a similar tone to the Thursday Murder gang. When you’re on a good thing…

Echo Lake, by Joan Sauers

Recently divorced, 40-something Rose has moved from Sydney to a cottage in the NSW southern highlands. There she finds herself entangled in two chilling mysteries, the cold case disappearance of a young woman and the murder of the former owner of Rose’s house – who was a friend of the missing woman. Rose herself is under threat; but is it from the obvious suspect – a local violent crim? Or could it be the charming local real estate agent, or even the attractive and married cop? The writing is very vivid and visual, if somewhat overly descriptive, so it is not surprising to discover the author is a screenwriter. The climax of the plot is wildly improbable and the supernatural elements add little to the story. But it is fast-paced and entertaining and features a very good dog.

I have some questions for you, by Rebecca Makkai

Almost 25 years after graduating, film academic and podcaster Bodie Kane has returned to her East Coast boarding school Granby. With her troubled and tragic background in Indiana , she was a misfit at the preppy school but used it as a step to a better life. Ostensibly there to teach a couple of short courses, Bodie finds herself digging into a tragedy that happened in her Senior year. A student was murdered, but was the right man convicted? The ‘you’ Bodie has questions for is a former teacher, whom she has come to realise had an inappropriate relationship with the dead girl. This second person narrative is an odd device, which jars at times but becomes clearer as the book concludes. While stirring up a hornet’s nest at the school Bodie also has to deal with dramas that affect her failed marriage, current ambiguous relationship and her work. It turns out she needs to reassess a lot of what she thought she understood about her time and her peers at Granby. There is a lot going on in this book, which weaves together a twisty whodunnit with themes of memory and loss, true crime podcasting as entertainment and alternative policing and the frustration of trying to achieve justice. Throughout the whole is a thrumming anger at the constant and seemingly acceptable levels of violence against women that permeates the whole of society. Bodie is a deeply flawed and compelling everywoman, who has some very important questions for everyone, including herself.

The Ink-Black Heart, by Robert Galbraith

The latest Cormoran Strike and Robin Ellacott murder mystery delves into the murky world of online trolling, toxic gamers and incitement to hatred. Thrown in for good measure is a far right terrorism cell, a paedophilia angle and a large dose of misogyny. That is is a lot. An interesting topic and two appealing detectives should provide a meaty story, but there is so much flab on the meat it gets exhausting. The structure of online messages between a huge range of suspects and hangers on is very small print and therefore difficult to read, and difficult to follow when three threads run at once. Although it does give a clear picture of the tone of online interactions and how they can be manipulated and get out of hand. At the same time there are so many characters with so much going on that it becomes really confusing as to who exactly knew what and when. The actual mystery is underpinned by the URST between the business partners, which after five years is getting kind of tedious. While the state of their feelings is progressed by the end of this book, there is clearly still a long way to go and the progress is achieved through an array of flabby subplots that pad out the action. The result is a novel of more than a thousand pages, which is just ridiculous. By the time you finally get to the end and discover the killer, you almost don’t care, it’s just a relief to finally finish.

The Murder Rule, by Dervla McTiernan

Law student Hannah Rokeby transfers university from Maine to Virginia to join the Innocence Project, defending prisoners apparently wrongly convicted. She has a hidden agenda, with an interest in a particular case linked to her mother’s troubled history. But is her alcoholic mother a reliable witness and will Hannah have to re-evaluate her quest for vengeance? This tale is quite a departure from McTiernan’s Irish detective trilogy, although equally dark. It lacks the authenticity of the earlier books, straining credulity at every turn. Timing, characters, motivation, procedure – nothing quite adds up, despite some convenient later justifications.

The Man Who Died Twice, by Richard Osman

The second outing of the Thursday Murder Club sees the gang of four seniors looking into threats against an old MI5 colleague of Elizabeth’s and some valuable missing diamonds. Meanwhile, local coppers Chris and Donna need some help dealing with a local thug and a dangerously ambitious drug dealer. The action never stops, but it is the fully rounded characters who provide the real focus of the story. The intrepid and resilient septuagenarians bring their diverse backgrounds and experiences to great effect, solving mysteries large and small and building solid and satisfying relationships. The story gets rather far-fetched, with several unanswered questions, but most ends are neatly tied and there is plenty of room for another go around.

Dark Pines, by Will Dean

Journalist Tuva Moodyson works at the newspaper of a very small Swedish country town. She moved there from London a couple of years before to be near her ailing mother, but she doesn’t plan to be there forever and needs a big story to boost career options. This sees Tuva turn investigative reporter when a local man is found murdered in the woods; a case with disturbing similarities to unsolved serial killings two decades earlier. This has all the elements of a cracking crime thriller but somehow it doesn’t quite hang together. The stilted style is reminiscent of a poor translation, which is ironic as Dean is an English writer living in Sweden. He has an interesting take on Tuva’s deafness, touching on its advantages as well as disadvantages to her life and work. Unlikely plot elements stretch credulity and although Tuva is an interesting character, she is not a credible one. Her motivations, actions and decisions are often baffling, serving the plot rather than the overall story.

The Spiral, by Iain Ryan

Erma Bridges is an overachieving young academic with a ruthless nature. Dragged back from an international conference to face a harassment inquiry, she discovers that her research assistant is her violent enemy. After recovering from a traumatic attack, Erma becomes obsessed with finding out why she was targeted. Meanwhile her dreams take her into a fantasy world where she is a character who battles obstacles and slays enemies, based on the choose your own adventure books she loved as a child. These books are the basis of her academic research, their author an elusive interview subject. Through her investigations Erma stumbles into Brisbane’s dark underbelly, where dark secrets from her past emerge as a link to an ongoing misogynist conspiracy. Erma is a complex character, attractive but unlikeable, who becomes more comprehensible as her past emerges. Ryan pulls together the disparate strands of the story into a logical, if horrifying climax where Erma becomes her own avatar. It’s unfortunate that the consequences are just not believable, especially given Erma’s past. Something of a cliffhanger ending opens the way for a sequel or perhaps just indicates uncertainty about the path Erma will choose next.

Death in Daylesford, by Kerry Greenwood

While the TV series is fun, the Phryne Fisher of the books is a much more interesting and competent character. So it is a pleasure to find her back in the saddle in Hepburn Springs. The novel offers two stories in one; the first examines Phryne and Dot’s pursuit of a serial killer in Daylesford; the second sees Phryne’s adopted children assist copper Hugh Collins investigate the drowning death of the girls’ schoolmate. Switching back and forth between the narratives makes both disjointed, especially as they sometimes run into each other’s chapters. The focus on food and fashion is always enjoyable and the historical detail is fascinating, but the plot of the Daylesford story is more than usually fantastical and quite convoluted. Miss Fisher triumphs, as ever, in every aspect and it appears she has several detectives in training to join her in solving future mysteries.

Troubled Blood, By Robert Galbraith

The latest Cormoran Strike novel by JK Rowling’s alter ego is more than 900 pages long. It’s not a difficult read, but it is so fucking long it’s hard to keep track of the multitude of characters and plot twists. There is an awful lot going on. Cormoran and Robin continue to navigate their tricky personal and professional relationship while managing their expanding business. Robin is trying to finalise her divorce and deal with her anxious family. Cormoran’s aunt in Cornwall is dying of cancer and his estranged father is trying to establish a relationship, much to Cormoran’s fury. His ex, Charlotte, is still sending provocative texts and trying to inveigle him. And that’s before we even get started on the convoluted murder mystery – the cold case of young doctor Margot Bamborough’s disappearance in 1975. Was she an undisclosed victim of a notorious serial killer? Did she run away from a cold and uncaring husband? Was her ex boyfriend involved? And what about the complicated relationships in her GP practice? Galbraith canvasses all this and more in minute detail, which is for the most part interesting but occasionally excruciating. Several storylines and one whole section (concerning a visit from Robin’s brother) could have been omitted without losing anything relevant to the main plot. A good editor would have done so to the book’s benefit and would also have corrected a few grammatical errors, but who would edit JK Rowling? She draws together most of the various threads pretty well in a satisfying conclusion, but it takes so long to get there it’s kind of anti-climactic.

The Survivors, by Jane Harper

A small coastal town in Tasmania hosts the action in Jane Harper’s latest murder mystery. Three young people died when a catastrophic storm hit Evelyn Bay more than a decade ago. Kieran Elliot moved to Sydney for Uni not long after and returning to his home town has always been bittersweet. Along with reunions with family and friends come memories, regrets, questions and long-held survivor guilt. Kieran’s father has dementia and this visit, with his partner and baby, is to help his parents pack up their house. The death of a young woman on the beach is shocking and painful for everyone, triggering a wave of suspicion and fear and dredging up old secrets, lies and resentments. Harper once again perfectly captures the light and shade of an insular Australian country town. Evelyn Bay’s population triples in the tourist season, bringing its own pressures, with insecure seasonal employment and inadequate infrastructure. Many satisfying layers reveal damaging family dynamics, convoluted dysfunctional relationships and an underlying culture of toxic masculinity that literally kills. This allows lots of fat and juicy red herrings as the novel rushes to a slightly anti-climactic ending that is tied up rather neatly for Kieran and his family.

Keeper, by Jessica Moor

Katie’s story alternates between Then and Now; Then details her relationship with controlling boyfriend Jamie from its very beginning to its very end, Now looks into its aftermath. Then shows how Katie’s family background and lack of self-esteem contributes to her submission to Jamie’s control. Now includes the stories of women living in the refuge where Katie works, each affected by male violence in various ways. They are totally diverse in age, class, education, socio economic background, religion, everything. This can happen to anyone and societal institutions – the police, the justice system, even families – are set up to fail women and children at every turn. This is deeply uncomfortable and confronting reading, but also compelling in its truth. A twist at the end is unsurprising as it explains all, including a few small elements that don’t quite gel during the tale. All is indeed revealed, but the small nugget of hope that the truth may eventually out is counteracted by a deeply depressing suspicion that there will be no justice for Katie, or anyone else in her situation.

The Good Turn, by Dervla McTiernan

Detective Sergeant Cormac Reilly is almost a secondary character at the start of McTiernan’s third novel about crime and policing in Galway. His offsider Peter Fisher is front and centre in a problematic investigation into a child abduction that winds up with Reilly suspended and Fisher banished. The two officers face losing their careers and everything that matters to them, so do they give up or do they fight? McTiernan’s depiction of the breadth and depth of corruption in the police force is detailed and depressing as she examines very different approaches to policing and the implications of shades of grey. She maintains suspense until the end, her strong character development overcoming the improbable coincidence the plot hinges on. As usual, she leaves the reader wanting more and it would be very interesting to discover what lies ahead for Reilly and Fisher.