For a little while now, I’ve been tracking a particular phenomenon in the book industry: journos and broadcasters pivoting to become highly successful crime novelists. There have been some cracking great reads among the police procedurals, and investigative and psychological thrillers from this group. James O’Loghlin is one of this cohort, and his new book is a knotty thriller that layers crime upon crime, much like a club sandwich or a lasagne.

Liars is centred on a small, fictional New South Wales coastal township in a beleaguered state. In spite of its charming vernacular buildings, Bullford Point’s young people are moving away, local employment is down, and ‘property development’ is on the council meeting agenda. But, like in all great townships in crime novels, nothing is what it seems, and everyone has something to hide.

Central to the cast of Liars is Joe, a bloke with some inner demons and a heart of gold. Since being released into the not-so-welcome bosom of the community, he’s been busy with a podcast investigating the disappearance of his ex-girlfriend seven years earlier, an event that kicks off this book. When Sally disappeared, Joe quickly became the prime suspect and a pariah within the community and among his closest friends. Now back at Bullford Point after all this time, Joe is again suspected following the death of another resident – though the capable and resourceful handywoman Barb, Joe’s friend and employer, remains thoroughly unconvinced. Not content to let sleeping dogs lie in the face of obfuscation, she works to gradually uncover the truth amid growing tension. O’Loghlin’s use of emails, letters and other exchanges throughout the narrative contribute to making this story a terrific whodunnit. Read this if you like some cosiness to your crime books but also a chance to flex your deductive skills!