Karen Chisholm
Reading this for review at Newtown Review of Books - you can read Robert's review of the book in the meantime.
From the Blurb:
I close my eyes and feel my heart begin racing
Someone is coming
They're going to find me
Karen Chisholm
Acclaimed author, journalist and screenwriter Helen Garner has won the 2015 Ned Kelly Award for Australia’s Best True Crime book for ‘This House of Grief – the Story of a Murder Trial’.
It is the second Ned Kelly Award for Garner, who picked up her previous award ten years ago with ‘Joe Cinque’s Consolation’ – another account of a murder that involved revenge, jealousy and betrayal.
Karen Chisholm
A first for me from this author, written in a very engaging manner.
From the Blurb:
For Keiko Nishisato, leaving Tokyo is a rare adventure, but it’s living in the quiet little town of Painchton, Scotland, that shows her how far she is from home.
Karen Chisholm
Read this over the weekend - one of those stories that sort of sit in the back of your mind, but the details were sketchy.
From the Blurb:
Karen Chisholm
From the "no idea why but let's read it anyway pile".
From the Blurb:
If it had another name, I never knew, but the locals called it the Loney - that strange nowhere between the Wyre and the Lune where Hanny and I went every Easter time with Mummer, Farther, Mr and Mrs Belderboss and Father Wilfred, the parish priest.
Karen Chisholm
Flagged as a number 1 bestseller in Sweden, this is a very unusual book featuring a most unexpected protagonist.
From the Blurb:
A naked and bloody seven-year-old girl walks into a bank, clutching a grubby teddy bear. She plays a threatening recording, demanding money. No one dares intervene.
The child leaves the bank and disappears, without leaving a trace of evidence.
Karen Chisholm
Craig Sisterson interviewed on Radio NZ: Kiwi Crime Writing and the 2015 Ngaio Marsh Awards http://kiwicrime.blogspot.co.uk/2015/08/radio-nz-crime-writing-and-2015-...
Karen Chisholm
Another series I'm slow off the mark with, unfortunately.
From the Blurb:
A Greek gangster arrives in Stockholm, only to be murdered in a macabre fashion at Skansen zoo, his body consumed by animals.
As the Intercrime Unit – a team dedicated to solving international violent crime – investigate what brought him to Sweden, eight Eastern European women vanish from a refugee centre outside of the city while an elderly professor, the tattooed numbers on his arm hinting at his terrible past, is executed at the Jewish cemetery.
Karen Chisholm
One of Australia’s most well-known authors, Helen Garner is among a strong list of writers competing for this year’s Ned Kelly Award for Best True Crime. The shortlist, announced by the Australian Crime Writers Association (ACWA) on Saturday August 8 at the Byron Bay Writers Festival includes journalists Debi Marshall, Kate McClymont, Linton Besser, David Murray, Amy Dale and freelance writer Liam Pieper.
Karen Chisholm
Reading for this for f2f bookclub this weekend.
From the Blurb:
Karen Chisholm
Slight change of pace before heading back into the stacks of crime fiction around here.
From the Blurb:
BEHIND THE WALLS OF GOULBURN JAIL
An unprecedented spate of murders in the 1990s – seven in just three years – earned Goulburn Jail the ominous name of ‘The Killing Fields'. Inmates who were sentenced or transferred to the 130-year-old towering sandstone menace declared they had been given a death sentence.
Karen Chisholm
It was cold this weekend, dry because ... you know non-existent drought in Victoria ... but reading weather because frankly too cold to battle it out the vague pointlessness of the garden.
From the Blurb:
Joel Fitch used to be a con artist.
That is, until his scam paid off but his life went belly up. Now, two years later, at the ripe old age of 22, Joel has a mattress full of cash and no idea what comes next. The movies never tell you what to do after you’ve walked into the sunset.
Karen Chisholm
Right - subject matter of this one's been a bit of an issue in getting started, but big girl's pants on and reading underway.
From the Blurb:
The hunt is on
A GRUESOME GAME
A madman is kidnapping women to hunt them for sport.
A FRANTIC SEARCH
Detective Janine Postlewaite leads the investigation into the disappearance of Samantha Willis, determined not to let another innocent die on her watch.
A SHOCKING TWIST
The killer's newest prey isn't like the others. Sammi is a cop. And she refuses to be his victim.
Karen Chisholm
To be honest I was leery about another Darian Richards book being so completely over the utterly mad serial killer thing. But this is different and I'm finding it very hard to put down.
From the Blurb:
Darian Richards is an ex-cop, a good one. He did whatever it took to solve a crime and stop the bad guy. Whatever it took! But after sixteen years as the head of Victoria's Homicide Squad, he'd had enough of promising victims' families he'd find the answers they needed. He had to walk away to save his sanity.
Karen Chisholm
One from a cold weekend's reading
From the Blurb:
Set in Queensland, this debut crime novel Double Madness by Caroline de Costa, takes us into a sordid underbelly of psycho-sexual depravity.
As local residents and authorities in Far North Queensland assess the damage in the aftermath of Cyclone Yasi, a woman's body is found in bizarre circumstances deep in the rainforest.
Karen Chisholm
Soji Shimada, author of over 100 mystery novels, is a designer, musician, and astrology writer. Let's hope this isn't the only one of his books translated because it is wonderful.
From the Blurb:
Karen Chisholm
A debut novel from Melbourne based author - to be reviewed at http://newtownreviewofbooks.com.au(link is external)
From the Blurb:
Kurt Cobain stands at the top of the stairs, wearing the brown sweater. ‘Please don’t leave me,’ she yells up at him. But it’s too late; he’s turning away as the tram slows for the stop out on the street.
Then she’s lying on the road. Car tyres are going past, slowly. Somebody is screaming. A siren howls.
Karen Chisholm
The first of last weekend's reading.
From the Blurb:
Rebecca Wilding, an archaeology professor, traces the past for a living.
But suddenly, truth and certainty is turning against her. Rebecca is accused of serious fraud, and worse, she suspects – she knows – that her husband, Stephen, is having an affair.
Karen Chisholm
Sneaking in a "want to read" rather than a "have to read" as a bit of a reward for good behaviour. When I say good behaviour of course I mean sticking to the must read piles, as opposed to actual good behaviour. Don't want anybody to get the wrong idea. I'm ridiculously behind / out of order with this series which has been frustrating to say the least.
From the Blurb:
Karen Chisholm
An unusual cross genre book - to be reviewed at http://newtownreviewofbooks.com.au/(link is external)
From the Blurb:
When washed up journalist Harry Hendrick wakes with a hangover and a strange symbol tattooed on his neck, he shrugs it off as a bad night out.
When more tattoos appear — accompanied by visions of war-torn Afghanistan, bikies, boat people, murder, bar fights and a mysterious woman — he begins to dig a little deeper.
Karen Chisholm
In a weekend where reading was somewhat brief and fleeting, this was such a lucky choice. Fascinating little book.
From the Blurb:
Karen Chisholm
Second from this weekend, this author says his influences are John Mortimer, PG Wodehouse and William Boyd and you can definitely see that :)
From the Blurb:
Karen Chisholm
A new book from Crickey correspondent, set in the world of corporate / government cyber-terrorism.
From the Blurb:
Karen Chisholm
This year I've promised myself a red hot go at reading the entire submissions list for all 3 of the Ned Kelly Categories. Preferably before the 2016 Submissions List is released although there are days when I think I might have bitten off more than I can possibly chew. Still - getting there :)
Next up Best Crime - kept the best to last :)
Karen Chisholm
Been looking forward to this one immensely. Readers who haven't discovered this series yet - can't recommend it highly enough. For review at http://newtownreviewofbooks.com.au(link is external)
From the Blurb:
The fourth engrossing mystery in the acclaimed Dr Dody McCleland series, featuring Britain's first female autopsy surgeon.
Karen Chisholm
Nothing more annoying than knowing you've loved the first book in a series, and despite promises, haven't read the 2nd until there's now 3 and 4 out. Sheesh.
From the Blurb:
DI Helen Grace returns in Pop Goes the Weasel, the electrifying new thriller from M. J. Arlidge.
The body of a middle-aged man is discovered in Southampton's red-light district - horrifically mutilated, with his heart removed.
Hours later - and barely cold - the heart arrives with his wife and children by courier.
Karen Chisholm
This year I've promised myself a red hot go at reading the entire submissions list for all 3 of the Ned Kelly Categories. Preferably before the 2016 Submissions List is released although there are days when I think I might have bitten off more than I can possibly chew. Still - getting there :)
Next up Best First Crime - which is looking better in terms of keeping up with the submitted books.
Karen Chisholm
This book was sitting on one of the hillocks in front of Mt TBR around the place when last weekend my partner happened to pick it up (the hillock was close the couch and he was somewhat movement hampered by 3 dogs demanding nurses). From the first chapter he was extolling its virtues so I thought I should take a look :)
From the Blurb:
At a remote military base in the Indian Ocean, the CIA is trying to get a prisoner to confess. But the detainee, a suspect in an Islamist-inspired terror attack in the United States, refuses to talk.
Karen Chisholm
For our f2f bookclub, this won the 2013 Ned Kelly True Crime Award.
From the Blurb:
Karen Chisholm
FIVE OUTSTANDING novels full of mystery and intrigue have been announced as the shortlist for the 2015 Ngaio Marsh Award for Best Crime Novel, which will be presented at a WORD Christchurch(link is external) event in late September.
Karen Chisholm
Another from the Ned Kelly nomination - this time the Best First category.
From the Blurb:
One dark secret. Two troubled souls. The lie that brings them together could tear them apart.
Karen Chisholm
Another from the 2015 Neddies Best First category read over the weekend.
From the Blurb:
When a battered wife disappears from a women's crisis shelter after her husband's murder, guilt-driven journo Lexie Reed, has to push the already besieged DSS Wil Saddington to help as she uncovers human trafficking of Melbourne's most vulnerable.
If her husband hadn't been murdered - would anyone have noticed she was missing?
Karen Chisholm
Sometimes the world is a kind place and a new book from a favoured author appears, and it is very very good into the bargain.
From the Blurb:
Detective Daniel Clement is back in Broome, licking his wounds from a busted marriage and struggling to be impressed by his new team of small-town cops. Here, in the oasis on the edge of the desert, life is as stagnant as Clement’s latest career move.
But when a body is discovered a local fishing spot, it is clearly not the result of a crocodile attack. Somewhere in Broome is a hunter of a different kind.
Karen Chisholm
This weekend we did the unexpected (and appreciated) thing of taking a day off from everything but the bare essentials "on the farm" and read. A whole day reading. Bliss.
From the Blurb:
It’s 1932, and the Venus Island fetish, a ceremonial mask surrounded by thirty-two human skulls, now resides in the museum in Sydney. But young anthropologist Archie Meek, recently returned from an extended field trip to Venus Island, has noticed something amiss.
Karen Chisholm
We've all been waiting a very long time for this and boy does it not disappoint. To be reviewed at http://www.newtownreviewofbooks.com.au/(link is external)
From the Blurb:
Karen Chisholm
Another from the 2015 Neddies Submission List - this time the True Crime section.
From the Blurb:
How did a father with no criminal history come to be on trial for the brutal murder of his wife? All marriages have their secrets. Things started to unravel for Gerard Baden-Clay the night his wife Allison vanished. Within days everything private would become public.
Karen Chisholm
From Crime Factory Publications, started this last night and it's dark, brutal and fascinating, with just a hint of something odd going on :)
From the Blurb:
1948 Portvieux City. A scandal photographer shoots a brutally murdered woman through his lens.
But only he can see her.
As the Photographer uncovers the truth about the invisible woman, he delves into the seedy city, where a missing photographer leaves a legacy of lust, and the border between dreams and reality slowly dissolves like a negative in acid.
Karen Chisholm
Another from my quest to read all nominees this year :)
From the Blurb:
Once an artist and teacher, Jen now spends her time watching the birds around her house and tending her lush sub-tropical garden near the small town where she grew up. The only person she sees regularly is Henry, who comes after school for drawing lessons.
Karen Chisholm
Because I'm a glutton for punishment, let's add the 2015 Davitt's Award to the upcoming TBR Mountain Range - this time Adult Fiction.
First up - ADULT FICTION :)
Karen Chisholm
Felt like a bit of a change of pace and style, and an excuse to crave a glass or two of wine.
From the Blurb:
Karen Chisholm
First from a bitterly cold weekend's reading. This is another entry from the Ned Kelly submissions to be reviewed at http://www.reviewingtheevidence.com(link is external)
From the Blurb:
Karen Chisholm
Look I don't know why these books appeal but they make me laugh!
From the Blurb:
Rainbow's got the blues. His girlfriend's dumped him; his assassin mate Rory's found God; his Aunt Rube's as sick as a bad joke; and his ex-wife's thrown up a barricade - all right, a cordon bleu - around his daughter Imogene.
So when a snake's let loose in a laboratory, his ballet teacher's under siege and a nasty little joker by the name of Cock Robin cops it, Rainbow climbs into the ring because it's his job - but also because he needs the distraction.
Karen Chisholm
Second from SA based author, Reece Pocock.
From the Blurb:
Karen Chisholm
A young adult book, written from the viewpoint of Luca, a young man found guilty of murdering his mother and stepfather when he was 13 years old.
From the Blurb:
Based on a real-life story where a 24-year-old Tennessee man was executed for murdering his mother and stepfather when he was 13.
He had been on drugs and had access to a gun.
Karen Chisholm
A debut book that people have been talking up very loudly.
From the Blurb:
Karen Chisholm
Another picked up because of this year's Ned Kelly Awards submissions list, I've got to get to the Davitt's list next!
http://www.sistersincrime.org.au/content/davitt-readers-choice-voting-2015(link is external)
From the Blurb:
National Parks ranger Erin Taylor loves her job, is falling for her colleague, Simon, and is finally leaving her past behind . . .
Karen Chisholm
The last from my currently reading pile - the latest from Karin Fossum.
From the Blurb:
The new Inspector Sejer novel
‘He'd just learnt to walk,’ she said. ‘He was sitting playing on his blanket, then all of a sudden he was gone.’
A 16-month-old boy is found drowned in a pond right by his home. Chief Inspector Sejer is called to the scene as there is something troubling about the mother’s story. As even her own family turns against her, Sejer is determined to get to the truth.
Karen Chisholm
Another book from both the Davitt's and Ned Kelly listings.
From the Blurb:
Still hurting after a painful divorce, Joanna leaves the city, moving with her six-year-old daughter Mia to a country town. She’s looking for a better, happier life, and when she meets farmer Chris Youngman, she discovers the possibility of a future as a farmer’s wife.
Karen Chisholm
Something for our f2f bookclub gathering on Sunday. Looking forward to the discussion of this one very much.
From the Blurb:
Karen Chisholm
The latest Jack Emery book this officially brings to an end my current binge of these three :)
From the Blurb:
What is the true cost of security?
Karen Chisholm
"The true story of Australia's first female serial killer" as it says on the cover, is absolutely fascinating.
From the Blurb:
'Never before in the hundred year history of Australia has a female prisoner become so notorious as Louisa Collins.' - Evening News.
Karen Chisholm
4 days away from the day jobs (so will catch up with some emails etc next week) so I'm treating myself to something I've been wanting to read since it arrived.
From the Blurb:
On the night of 22 December 1980, a plane crashes on the Franco-Swiss border and is engulfed in flames. 168 out of 169 passengers are killed instantly. The miraculous sole survivor is a three-month-old baby girl. Two families, one rich, the other poor, step forward to claim her, sparking an investigation that will last for almost two decades. Is she Lyse-Rose or Emilie?
Karen Chisholm
The third in the DS Allie Shenton series this the second for me.
From the Blurb:
When one of the notorious Johnson brothers is murdered and a bag of money goes missing, a deadly game of cat and mouse is set in motion.
DS Allie Shenton and her team are called in to catch the killer, but the suspects are double-crossing each other and Allie has little time to untangle the web of lies.
Karen Chisholm
Set in Africa, this is a series that I've been very remiss in keeping up to date with.
From the Blurb:
Safari guide and private investigator Hudson Brand hunts people, not animals. He's on the trail of Linley Brown who's been named as the beneficiary of a life insurance policy.
Linley's friend, Kate, supposedly died in a fiery car accident in Zimbabwe, but Kate's sister wants to believe it is an elaborate fraud.