Debut fiction to read this month
Australian authors feature strongly in our debut fiction blog this month, including four exciting crime novels to sink your teeth into as you patiently (or impatiently) wait for the warmer months to arrive.
Australian and International fiction
Two Daughters by Alison Edwards
For Ava, heading to university in Sydney is her escape from a poverty-stricken upbringing. Her mother is long gone, her father able to provide love but little else. On the other side of the world, Laurie tolerates university only at the insistence of her father, a Marxist professor. Her mother died in childbirth, and Laurie dreams of freedom, far from the Cambridge cloisters.It is within these college grounds that Ava and Laurie cross paths. They could not be more different, and yet as each grapples with the lasting effects of losing a mother, their lives become entwined in ways neither could have anticipated.
All the Missing Children by Zahid Gamieldien
Ilene is struggling to survive and desperate to reconnect with her children, Jack and Lonnie, after a near-fatal tragedy. But her children vanish, setting off a chain reaction within the community. Suspended detective Omar helps with the investigation but keeps getting pulled away by a cold case. Benji, a recovering addict has his life upended by a menacing threat, and Nera wants to find who killed one of her animals.
In this gripping tale of human frailty each character must confront what really happened to Jack and Lonnie.
The Days I Loved You Most by Amy Neff
Joseph and Evelyn's New England beach homes have been side by side for generations. And in the summer of 1941, on the shores where they were raised, these two childhood friends fell in love. Now, more than sixty years later, Joseph and Evelyn gather their three grown children to share the staggering news – in one year's time, they will end their lives on their own terms. She has received a terminal diagnosis and he cannot, and will not, live without her.
As the couple comes to grips with their fate, they reckon with the joys and regrets, the laughter and the sorrow that brought them to this moment. And they create new memories to cherish with each of their children before they're gone. But as their final days draw closer, they must confront the stark reality of everything they have put in motion. Can they go through with their plan?
Winter of the Wolf by Amanda Willimott
Eastern France. Winter. 1572: When Sidonie’s guardian dies, she flees Paris seeking sanctuary in the home of her estranged aunt, Apolline, in Dole. Apolline left behind a violent and troubled past, hoping for a new life with her husband, where she can sell her herbs and assist women from the privacy of her forest home. But it is dangerous to be different. As Sidonie and Apolline’s lives become intertwined, they are soon being hunted, fanned by a priest’s flames of fear and hatred and a witch hunter desperate for respect and power.
Due for release on 13 August
Crime fiction
The Crag by Claire Sutherland
While walking on an isolated track in the windswept Wimmera, rock-climber Skye discovers the body of a young woman. The body has injuries that suggest a rock-climbing accident, but it's been found more than 5km from the nearest cliffs at Mount Arapiles.
Police ask Skye to help them navigate the perilous world of rock climbing as they try to unravel what happened. Skye is secretly thrilled to be part of the investigation, but as it becomes clear that a killer is on the loose, all thrill turns to fear. In the isolated crags of the mountain, stark beauty can conceal horrific truths.
Read our staff review here.
A Town Called Treachery by Mitch Jennings
A brutal murder in a town called Treachery? It’s a story most journos would kill for, but for Stuart Dryden, it’s a major inconvenience. He didn’t take the gig at the local rag for its bustling crime beat. But not even he can let a grisly murder through to the keeper, especially when he keeps getting scooped by 11-year-old Matty Finnerty with a disposable Kodak.
When Matty’s favourite teacher turns up dead, it puts his deadbeat dad Robbie in the crosshairs. Matty needs a hero and Dryden will have to do.
All You Took From Me by Lisa Kenway
Anaesthetist Clare Carpenter has just lost her husband and her memory in a single-vehicle accident. So why is a stranger following her? After questioning patients about their dreams, she becomes convinced that an anaesthetic drug might help her access missing memories. But there's no way to be certain without jeopardising her career or her life.
As unexplained threats escalate, Clare realises she must take matters into her own hands to learn the uncomfortable truth about her secretive husband, his connection to a mysterious club and what she did to trigger a stranger's crusade for vengeance. But how far will she go?
Catherine Wheel by Liz Evans
Five years ago, Kate’s partner, Max, abandoned her for his pregnant lover. The affair has long since crumbled, but Kate has become fixated with Vee, her ‘replacement’. In a bid to find out what compelled Max to leave, she moves to Bridgewell, which stands in the shadow of St Catherine's Chapel, where Vee is now raising her four-year-old daughter, Iona. Warm and trusting, Vee is juggling work, single parenthood and a controlling ex-partner, Max, with whom she is still sexually involved. Glad of Kate’s friendship, she nevertheless wonders what has brought this glamorous but brittle woman to such a quiet corner of middle England.
When Vee meets charismatic artist Tom, she is hopeful of establishing her first meaningful attachment since Max. But Kate has her own plans . . .
Read our staff review here.
