Another New Zealander writing crime fiction - this time set in Turangi, featuring the beautiful Tongariro River and fly fishing. Honestly!
From the Blurb:
Hand pressed over her mouth. Covers stripped back. Punch to the kidneys. ‘Shut up. Don’t tell, or it’ll be bad for you. We can make things real bad, bitch.’ Lisa, staring down at her, eyes gleaming in the dim light. Another girl rummaging in her locker. Shit. The chocolate her mother had sent, had been hoarding it, eking it out, one piece at a time. Another punch, to her guts. Groaned beneath the clammy hand. Then they were gone. Released, Jess rolled onto her side, clutching her stomach.
What really happened all those years ago at Aranui?
Jessica Pollard has moved to Turangi to be near her son Reuben who is in prison there. While working at a trout-fishing lodge on the Tongariro River, Jessica slips into a relationship with a handsome, charming Maori lawyer. When the body of his troubled niece Chantelle is found in the Children's Pond, Jessica's own past as a teenager in prison comes back to haunt her. What really happened to her all those years ago? And what is the connection with Chantelle's death?