CANBERRA WEEKLY 3 OCTOBER 2024: NEW AUSSIE CRIME BY DAVE WARNER, NATALIE CONYER, AND ALAN CARTER
This week in the Canberra Weekly I reviewed three outstanding new Australian crime novels by Dave Warner, Natalie Conyer and Alan Carter.
Dave Warner’s series about Broome detective Dan Clement is in the top tier of Australian outback noir, especially in terms of its ability to capture the sense of the local community and mix it with good, interesting plots. The latest, When It Rains (Fremantle Press, 1 October 2024), is another high quality tale about crime and murder in one of the most isolated places in Australia.
In the Canberra Weekly I said:
“Assaults, murder, desert chases and crocodiles all feature in the latest novel by veteran author Dave Warner.
When It Rains finds Broome detective Dan Clement trying to cope with a new younger love interest and a deluge of crime. When one of his team is beaten up, and a girl brutally assaulted, it seems like the same two suspects are behind both incidents, but the discovery of a woman’s hand tied to a post in crocodile-infested waters complicates matters. Soon he is on the trail of a killer who is working their way through an intended list of victims. First class outback noir!”
I also did a longer review a few weeks back: https://murdermayhemandlongdogs.com/australian-outback-noir-2024-new-books-by-candice-fox-dave-warner-and-alan-carter/
Natalie Conyer drew considerable praise, and a Ned Kelly Award, for her excellent first novel, Present Tense, which dived convincingly into the maelstrom of modern South Africa. Now with her second novel, Shadow City, (Echo Publishing, 3 September 2024), she continues her examination of the complexity of politics and policing in that country, while also looking at crime in Australia.
In the Canberra Weekly I said:
“Moving seamlessly between Cape Town and Sydney, Natalie Conyer’s Shadow City, is an outstanding piece of crime fiction.
The discovery of the battered body of a young woman in Sydney’s Chinatown sets Homicide Detective, Jackie Rose off on an investigation with international implications, until she is ordered to hand the case over to the AFP. Meanwhile disgraced Cape Town detective, Schalk Lourens, is sent to Australia to help find a missing girl who came here to study. Together Rosie and Lourens find themselves chasing a deadly gang of international crooks. Thought provoking and entertaining, Shadow City is a must read.”
I also did a longer review here: https://murdermayhemandlongdogs.com/australian-crime-fiction-2024-new-books-by-natalie-conyer-and-david-whish-wilson/
Alan Carter’s Crocodile Tears was one of my favourite crime novels of 2021. Now with Prize Catch, (Fremantle Press, 1 October 2024), he has produced another strong novel that combines important contemporary issues around dodgy farming practices, war crimes and the routine abuse of power, with a good local thriller plot.
In the Canberra Weekly I said:
“Alan Carter is very skilled at mixing topical themes with good thriller plots, and his latest, Prize Catch, is another fine novel.
Set in Tasmania, it combines recent revelations about war crimes in Afghanistan with corruption and the dirty secrets of big business salmon farming. When Roz Chen’s wife, Niamh, is killed in a hit-and-run incident on a lonely road, the grieving widow wonders if it really was an accident. Meanwhile, SAS veteran, and reluctant corporate enforcer, Sam Willard forms an unlikely alliance with Roz, and both soon come under threat. This is a gripping, well written thriller that canvasses important current issues. Recommended.”
I also did a longer review a few weeks back: https://murdermayhemandlongdogs.com/australian-outback-noir-2024-new-books-by-candice-fox-dave-warner-and-alan-carter/
So three really good Australian crime novels for your spring reading or as early Christmas presents!