The Call, Gavin Strawhan

THE CALL is a debut crime novel from NZ author Gavin Strawhan and I checked that statement more than a few times whilst reading. It won the Allen & Unwin Fiction Prize in 2023, I did not need to check that. THE CALL is such a strong debut it's hard to know where to start, but let's echo the blurb "Gripping and suspenseful with a killer ending, THE CALL propels the reader into the world of a terrifying new kind of gang..."

Gripping - this is a story featuring Auckland cop DS Honey Chalmers, who, after surviving a very nearly deadly attack by members of a ruthless gang of criminals, finds herself having to return to her childhood home to care for her mother. A local entity in her own right, now suffering from early Alzheimer's, it's hard for both Chalmers and her mother to come to terms with the changing dynamic of their relationship. Complicated when Chalmers meets up again with her oldest friend Marshall, a man who now has a history of his own.

Suspenseful - on a whole lot of fronts. Chalmers is dealing with some complicated feelings about Marshall, now finding herself very attracted to him, much to her mother's disgust. Honey's sister Scarlett committed suicide many years ago and Marshall was the last person to see her alive, Allegedly Scarlett's love interest, he'd supposedly broken her heart, but there's a lot more to that story that neither Chalmers or Marshall are fully aware of. Meanwhile, there's a car lurking around that most definitely shouldn't be there, and two men Chalmers recognises all too well. Looks like the situation in Auckland has come with her.

Killer ending - in a nutshell. It turns out that the informant who lead Chalmers into a very dangerous gang's proximity, Kloe Kovich, had run from the same members that stabbed Chalmers. She'd left her three kids in the care of her sister, who is married to a gangland entity, staying out of touch and under the radar. But now she's lobbed into the orbit of Marshall and Chalmers, bringing a lot of dangerous trouble down on their collective heads.

Terrifying new gang - made up of 501 deportees with pasts and not a lot to lose. 501 deportees are New Zealanders sent home from Australia on "character grounds". This includes completion of prison sentences served in Australia, and the worst of the worst have no grounds for appeal. Arriving home in NZ, they have territory to claim, criminal activities like importing massive amounts of illegal drugs to get sorted, and an unexpected mastermind driving their activities.

There's a lot going on in THE CALL, all of which slots together seamlessly, creating a tense, fast-paced and very engaging storyline full of action, drama, a bit of romance, some clarification of the past, and doubt about the future. Chalmers is a great character, fleshed out well in this novel. She's brave, complicated and conflicted about a lot of things. Her future as a cop after the stabbing attack that very nearly killed her; her sister's death and the events that lead up to it; her mother's medical condition and what the future holds for a very independent and forthright woman; an increasing attraction to the man who was a friend, then became a family enemy, and is now very much a love interest; and her sense of obligation to Kloe. Wrapped up in a very keen desire to see a gang of dangerous, vicious criminals stopped in their tracks. 

In other words, THE CALL's got it all in spades. But there's nothing formulaic or expected about where this novel heads. Great characters, great action, killer ending. More please.