My Review: Chain Of Evidence by Garry Disher

My Review

This is the fourth of Garry Disher's crime fiction series featuring Police Officers, Detective Inspector Hal Challis and Detective Ellen Destry. Previously Challis has been the keynote character, but in this novel he has a more passive role. Challis is miles away at his father's deathbed in dry, dusty South Australia. Whilst there he investigates the sudden disappearance of his brother-in-law.

Meanwhile, back in the Victorian peninsula town of Waterloo, Ellen Destry is thrust into the limelight. Despite some sexist resentment, Ellen is acting as both jobsitter and housesitter for Challis whilst he is away. With this as the backdrop, a young girl is abducted and then found alive, and an active pedophile ring on the Mornington Peninsula is uncovered. Interwoven into the story are small town tensions, hidden alliances and police corruption.

Throughout the novel the two main plotlines run parallel to each other as the reader switches between South Australia and Victoria. Ultimately as both cases break open the despairing secrets of two small towns in two different states are revealed.

Overall a very enjoyable read. The plotlines were multi-layered, sophisticated, but slick and full of the kind of intrigue and tension that keeps the pages turning. I also really enjoyed the character development of Ellen Destry in this novel. She is going through a vulnerable stage of life both personally, and professionally. Her marriage is over, her relationship with her daughter is rocky, the police force is cutting corners and compromising forensics, and she doesn't know who she can trust. And bubbling away in the background is the romantic tension between herself and Challis that becomes apparent during their interstate phone conversations.

I would thoroughly recommend this title to all devotees of crime and police procedural fiction. With two more titles subsequently published making a total of six Challis and Destry novels (at the time of writing this), it is an enjoyable series of Australian crime fiction to get your teeth into and one which I will continue to read with interest.

What's In A Name #4 - Book Reading Challenge 2011

Today I stumbled across another book challenge which I am going to have a crack at. It is called the What's In A Name #4 challenge and involves reading a book from each category (listed below) during 2011.

With my penchant for Australian Crime Fiction, I am going to attempt the challenge choosing books only from this genre.

My proposed titles and links to the completed reviews are as follows:

• A book with a number in the title: The Night Has A Thousand Eyes by Mandy Sayer  My Review
• A book with jewelry or a gem in the title: Diamond Dove by Adrian Hyland  My Review
• A book with a size in the title: Davo's Little Something by Robert G. Barrett  Brief Thoughts
• A book with travel or movement in the title: The Night Ferry by Michael Robotham  My Review
• A book with evil in the title: In The Evil Day by Peter Temple  My Review
• A book with a life stage in the title: Death Mask by Kathryn Fox  My Review

My Review: The Diggers Rest Hotel by Geoffrey McGeachin

The Plot

In 1947, two years after witnessing the death of a young Jewish woman in Poland, Charlie Berlin has rejoined the police force a different man. Sent to investigate a spate of robberies in rural Victoria, he soon discovers that World War II has changed even the most ordinary of places and people.


Taking a room at the Diggers Rest Hotel in Wodonga, he sets about solving a case that no one else can – with the help of feisty, ambitious journalist Rebecca Green and rookie constable Rob Roberts, the only cop in town he can trust.


Then the decapitated body of a young girl turns up in a back alley, and Berlin's investigations lead him ever further through layers of small-town fears, secrets and despair.


My Review
I have to admit that I started reading this novel with some trepidation. Historical crime fiction has never been a favourite of mine. I always found the genre a bit like Enid Blyton for grown-ups, with lashings of sentimentality and moral fibre. However, somewhere amongst the pages of this book I was turned. This book became my very own time machine. Each evening as I read, I was transported back to post-war 1940s rural Australia.


The two world wars had scarred Australia. Rationing lead to thriftyness and the front bar drinking culture was in full force. Small towns had secrets, graft, and alliances and a universal distrust of foreigners. Amidst this backdrop, the Charlie Berlin literary character is introduced to us. He too is scarred by the war, with the horror of being a fighter pilot and POW gently teased out of him throughout the novel. Charlie is a complex character, and his vulnerability and self-destructive streak coupled with obvious intelligence endear him almost immediately to the reader. You are on board with Charlie. A very private man, where only you, the reader, are privy to Charlie's inner pain.


Following the war, Charlie Berlin re-joins the police force, and is sent to rural Victoria to investigate a series of armed hold-ups. The plot thickens when a young Chinese girl is found dead and decapitated. Charlie's crime-solving meanders along as he bumbles around the countryside with his assigned local sidekick, rookie constable Rob Roberts and the ambitious and beautiful journalist Rebecca Green. Seemingly inocuous visits to various crime scenes, ultimately lead Charlie to piece together the puzzle, and solve the crimes.


Overall a wonderfully researched historical crime fiction novel. The mood of the time was fully captured. There was no rose-coloured reminiscing involved. People made mistakes. Men drank, fought and had drug addictions. Police were corrupt, women flirted and teenage girls became pregnant.


I feel Geoffrey McGeachin has hit a winner with Charlie Berlin. A complex and enigmatic lead character, a captivating plot and as a sideline, a wonderfully enjoyable social commentary of Australia in the late 1940s. I can't wait for the next installment so that I can travel back in my time machine and rejoin Charlie Berlin for a 'frothy' in another rustic Australian front bar! It's my shout Charlie!

My Review: Death Mask by Kathryn Fox

The Plot

Forensic physician Dr Anya Crichton is presented with a patient who has returned from her honeymoon with sexually transmitted infections.

Her husband is clean. She tearfully denies having had any other partners and Anya believes her. Is this a medical phenomenon or has something more sinister taken place?

Anya’s investigations attracts an invitation to New York to address over three hundred football American football players.

Assigned to assist Anya is enigmatic private investigator Ethan Rye. When an alleged rape involving five football players takes place, Anya is commissioned to investigate.

Anya soon discovers a devastating truth about the players that threatens to shut down the eight billion dollar football industry. Now lives, including her own, are in danger….

My Review

This is the 5th Anya Crichton novel by Australian author Kathryn Fox, and is a captivating crime fiction novel set against the backdrop of sexual assault and drug abuse in professional sport. Forensic physician Dr. Anya Crichton is the likeable, but sometimes aloof main character who finds herself lecturing American footballers in New York and ultimately investigating the sex, drugs and rap and roll culture of the sport. 

The plotline is slick and the American location no doubt lends itself to future big screen possibilities, not to mention expanding Kathryn Fox's global appeal. To this end however, I was a little disappointed with the American setting. While I understand the foibles of professional sport are universal, the Australian angle is what I believe sets Kathryn Fox apart from the Cornwell and Reichs type forensic thrillers. I have no doubt that an equally enthralling storyline could have been based around an Australian Rugby League, Union, AFL or soccer club scenario. I also feel, based on past books, that Anya Crichton is a more interesting and rounded character in her own environment, where she is surrounded by her son, ex-husband and the routines of life at home.

Putting sportsmen on a pedestal and having their shortcomings and misdemeanours ignored by the media and the public is another interwoven and topical theme throughout the novel. Herein lies my only other criticism of the novel. Particularly early in the novel I felt a little badgered by Crichton as she expressed her somewhat moralistic views. At some point I though the line was crossed between a crime fiction novel and a social commentary on professional sport subculture.

Thankfully the lecturing didn't last long and once past the sexual health discussions, the book becomes unputdownable. The cast of characters ties together on a number of levels and Anya loses her blandness with the romantic tension between herself and American investigator Ethan Rye bubbling away in the background. Some surprising twists along the way build the tension and suspense until eventually all becomes clear. And you just can't stop reading until you get there. 

Overall a very enjoyable crime thriller with a tight, topical and captivating plot that builds throughout the book. It is not necessary to have read the earlier Anya Crichton novels and I would recommend Death Mask to all devotees of crime fiction, particularly those that enjoy the forensics angle and/or exposing the dark side of professional sports. Kathryn Fox is a shining light in Australian fiction and I can't wait to read the future Dr Anya Crichton novels (hopefully set in Australia) of which I hope there are many, many more.

My Review: The Fallout by Garry Disher

The Plot

For Wyatt, The Fallout takes off where Port Vila Blues left him. On a boat with policewoman Liz Redding, and a fortune in stolen gems. He escapes, triggering a manhunt, but who exactly is hunting him?While others search for sunken treasure in ocean off Australia and a stone-cold killer is sprung from goal, Wyatt joins forces with his nephew to pull off one of his trickiest robberies. In doing so he faces his most dangerous task yet.

My Review

This is the 6th Wyatt novel, published in 1997 and the last one before a 13 year hiatus. Despite some reviews, I have to say right off that I really enjoyed this book. In fact, I read it in a single sitting. To read a crime fiction novel through the eyes of the 'perp' is a refreshing angle for me. Wyatt is crusty tough, but has some endearing qualities and old school loyalties that make him a likeable rogue. As a reader, you feel good when Wyatt gets away with a crime. You are on-side with the 'baddie' and it feels good!


Wyatt by chance runs into his deceased brother's son, who is an established bank robber in his own right. This book highlights the generation gap between Wyatt's young, cocksure nephew and the older, wiser, more experienced Wyatt. Wyatt would make a great poker player, and is never going to indulge in pillow talk. Despite the ending being somewhat inevitable, with experience always going to prevail over youthful exuberance, I thoroughly enjoyed the contrasting methods of nephew and uncle. 


I also enjoyed the locations that Disher chose. In this book Wyatt visits the Peninsula region of Victoria, through to Melbourne. Battery Point (Hobart), traverses Tasmania and sets up base again in a quiet region of north-west of Tasmania. All places that I am familiar with and could easily associate with. I love being privy to Wyatt's inner feelings as he travels around.


As is the way with the Wyatt novels, the ending is left open. However, throughout this book there were hints dropped that Wyatt was ready to settle down on his boat or in a quiet corner of Tassie and head down the 'straight and narrow'. His age and weariness were constantly highlighted by the contrast with his much younger nephew. Perhaps Disher was preparing the reader for the retirement of Wyatt. This being the case, I'm glad he had a re-think.


A thoroughly enjoyable Australian crime fiction novel, and I am relieved/overjoyed to know there is another recently written installment (Wyatt, 2010) which I cannot wait to read.

2011 Aussie Author Challenge

UPDATE: Challenge completed 4th September, 2011


I have always enjoyed crime fiction novels, having read all the mainstream James Patterson, Kathy Reichs, Sue Grafton, Lee Child, Andrew Gross, Ruth Rendell and Tess Gerritsen type books that I could get get my hands on. As much as I enjoyed these books, there was always something missing. They were always set in England, America, Canada, France or some other exotic location that I have never been to. The storylines were fantastic, the authors brilliant, but on some level I just didn't get the humour or missed the nuances of the location.

Then I discovered Peter Corris and eventually many, many other Australian crime fiction authors. It was a revelation to read crime fiction books that were set in places I had been to and towns I had even lived in. It provided me with a whole new imaginary layer over and above the plotline. I could relate to the characters and enjoy their humour. I could place myself in a dusty outback South Australian roadhouse, or the back of a Melbourne taxi, or even in a Launceston front bar.

My bookshelves are now stacked with Peter Corris, David Owen, Katherine Howell, Katherine Fox, Geoffrey McGeachin, Garry Disher, Shane Maloney, Robert G. Barrett, Kerry Greenwood and many more. So many books to read, so little spare time...

Nevertheless, with this mind, I have decided to participate in the 2011 Aussie Author Challenge (follow the link above). Essentially the plan is to read 12 Aussie books (at least 9 separate authors). My planned reading list at this stage (which may change) is as follows:
  1. Torn Apart (Peter Corris)  My Review
  2. The Fallout (Garry Disher)  My Review
  3. Chain of Evidence (Garry Disher)  My Review
  4. Death Mask (Kathryn Fox)  My Review
  5. Diamond Dove (Adrian Hyland)  My Review
  6. No Weather For A Burial (David Owen)  My Review
  7. The Diggers Rest Hotel (Geoffrey McGeachin)  My Review
  8. Shatter (Michael Robotham)  My Review
  9. Gunshot Road (Adrian Hyland)  My Review
10. The Tesla Legacy (Robert G. Barrett)  My Review
11. Frantic (Katherine Howell)  My Review
12. D.E.D. Dead! (Geoffrey McGeachin)  My Review

My Review: Torn Apart by Peter Corris

Semi-retired. De-licensed. But Cliff Hardy is once again fighting for justice and tracking down evil when his cousin is brutally murdered - did the shotgun blast find its target, or was it meant for Hardy?

Description
Hardy has never been much of a family man, so when he meets his second cousin Patrick Malloy it's like being hit with a left hook to the solar plexus - Malloy is his double. Cliff and his cousin become friends and travel to attend a gathering of the Irish Travell - the gypsy-like folk from whom they are descended. On their return, Malloy is brutally murdered - but was the shotgun blast intended for him or for Hardy? Hardy is de-licensed, semi-retired ... but this investigation is personal.
The plot becomes still more personal when Malloy's ex-wife, Sheila, comes onto the scene. Hardy has his own enemies and Malloy's to consider as he searches for the killer. Clues point in many directions - to Sheila's motives, to Malloy's suspect business dealings, to his time as a mercenary in Angola.
The search takes Hardy north to a para-military training camp and south to a meeting of Traveller descendants in Kangaroo Valley. Other players have other interests and their playing style is ruthless.

My Review
Cliff Hardy has mellowed over the years. He has become gentrified, much like the Sydney environment in which he lives. No longer is he the hard drinking, fast living detective with boundless energy from the earlier novels. He's had heart-bypass surgery, lost his soulmate to murder, surrendered his PI license and is showing the wear and tear of his tough life - but the grit and intrigue remains. Peter Corris has constantly added layers to Cliff Hardy throughout the 30+ novels. Cliff has never been fashionable with his older cars and rough edges and general layer of shoddiness. With each new book he continues to evolve as a character. All of which creates an added dimension for the reader that goes beyond the plot line of the book.

I initially thought that Corris had made a rod for his own back when Cliff Hardy surrendered his PI license. How was Cliff going to continue his investigations from the sidelines without a license? How was he going to support himself? Cleverly Corris provided the solutions. A large inheritance left by Cliff's former partner solves Hardy's money problems, and Cliff manages to get to the core of the investigation into the death of his Irish cousin through family tie-ins and by using information provided by his old police and investigative sources.

Not my faourite all-time Cliff Hardy novel by any means (plenty to choose from), but nevertheless a very enjoyable read for all devotees of crime fiction. Is this kind of unlicensed Cliff Hardy investigation sustainable? I am not so sure. I feel that Cliff's powers are a little benign since his de-licensing and I wonder how long he can keep 'sponging' on former sources for assistance. Secretly I am hoping that Cliff may have his PI license re-instated. Or perhaps the emergence of Cliff's daughter as a PI may provide the avenue for the series to continue. Possibly Corris is preparing Cliff Hardy for a Glebe retirement village. I hope not! I'm a loyal Cliff Hardy devotee and I want more, more, more and more Cliff Hardy novels!