Category Archives: New Zealand

Review: HUNTING BLIND by Paddy Richardson

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HuntingBlindRichardsonPa20150_fFourteen year old Stephanie is at the annual school picnic in her small New Zealand town. She’d rather be off with her friends but she’s been forced to come along with her mum, Minna, so she can help look after her two younger brothers and the baby of the family, four year old Gemma, while their dad is at work even though it’s a Saturday. The atmosphere is lazy and relaxed as the day is filled with kids’ races, a barbecue lunch for all, the arrival of an amphibious plane on the lake, a game of cricket and ice cream. But when it’s time to go home Gemma is missing. There is initial optimism that she has just wandered off and will be quickly found but hours…then days of searching and months of investigation fail to find a trace of her. Nearly 20 years later when Stephanie is in the last period of her training as a psychiatrist she meets someone who leads her to believe she might finally be able to find the answer to what happened to Gemma.

Some novels grab you from the opening lines and don’t let go until the last page has been turned. HUNTING BLIND is one of them. Partly it’s due to the use of the present tense to tell the story which is the kind of literary device I often don’t like because it feels forced but Richardson is clearly a talented writer who wields this particular tool with perfection, ensuring we endure the emotions of the characters as they move from unease to urgency then despair  Being immediately drawn into the novel is helped along by the (falsely) comforting familiarity of the opening scene. Who hasn’t been to some big event where everyone keeps a loose eye on everyone else’s kids but no one really worries because you all know each other and it’s a beautiful day and the thought of something bad happening doesn’t even cross your mind? Somewhere in the middle of the novel it becomes clear what probably happened to Gemma but even this doesn’t diminish the suspense of the book at all.

Stephanie is the person we grow to know best and she is a well drawn and compelling character. We feel her anguish and guilt at losing her little sister and see the long term impacts it has on her personality. This is contrasted by the impact of the disappearance on others in the family, particularly Minna who does not react in the ways society – or her other children – expect which makes her a less sympathetic character, though not a less compelling one.

In addition to being a fantastically written novel of psychological suspense and tension HUNTING BLIND even offers a terrific sense of its South Island setting and some genuine insight into the problems inherent in modern mental health systems. It’s a very accomplished book which has made me extremely keen to read more by Paddy Richardson.

♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦
Publisher Penguin [2011]
ISBN 9780143203643
Length 305 pages
Format paperback
Book Series standalone

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Review: Surrender by Donna Malane

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Diane Rowe finds people for a living. Whether it be for family members, PI firms, lawyers looking for witnesses, insurance companies, television shows or the cops Diane’s job is to find people who have gone missing. In the case that threads through SURRENDER some decades-old remains are found in a remote part of the Rimutakas, a mountain range on New Zealand’s North Island, and Diane is tasked with discovering who the person was.

But Diane has something else on her mind as the book opens. Her ex-husband Sean, a Wellington policeman, arrives at her house with the news that a fresh body has been found. It is the body of a lowlife called Snow, the man everyone thinks (but can’t prove) responsible for the murder of Diane’s younger sister Niki a year ago. As Snow has been murdered in the same way that Niki was it seems likely there is a connection but Diane seems unwilling, unable even, to allow the police investigation to take its course without getting involved herself.

Both stories open strongly and though they remain unconnected except by Diane’s involvement for the length of the book, Malane manages to switch back and forth between threads with ease; combining them into a snappily paced book with much to offer readers. The missing persons case proves to have several false starts and though the methods used to start narrowing down the possibilities are a little more mundane than depicted in TV shows like Without a Trace I found this aspect of the book fascinating. Diane’s dabbling in the investigation of Snow’s death, or to be more precise Snow’s life as it pertained to her sister, is equally absorbing. Again there are several points at which it seems things are resolved only to find that there is yet another twist in this satisfyingly complex tale.

Another strong element of the book is the character of Diane who narrates her story with an attractive mixture of humour, self-deprecation and introspection. She’s quite straight forward in taking responsibility for her marriage breakup, fully admitting that she was impossible to live with in the aftermath of her sister’s death, and this frankness lulls the reader into thinking that Diane is as self-aware as she will ever be. But as the book progresses and she learns more about her sister’s life Diane also learns more about herself and the ways in which her own behaviour might have failed her sister. The reflection that we often don’t know people as well as we think we do, even those closest to us, is a tough lesson but one most of us have to grapple with at some stage. Malane teased this aspect of the story out sensitively but without straying into maudlin territory and it’s all the more compelling for the restraint shown.

I always worry when I mention that a book has humour that people will think the whole thing a barrel of laughs so I’ll be clear and say this book has dark moments too. I don’t want to give spoilers but I can say that at one point Diane is personally endangered and attacked. The way she deals with the aftermath of this, though perhaps surprising for a procedural-y kind of story, had an air of authenticity and helped make the book a memorable one for me.

SURRENDER was the winner of the inaugural NZ Society of Authors award for best unpublished manuscript in 2010 and (for once!) I can see exactly what the judges were thinking in bestowing the prize. This is a very assured piece of writing that offers intelligence, humour and suspense in equal measure and there’s a strong sense of physical place, a hint of romance and a wonderful canine character. I look forward to more of all of this from Donna Malane.

♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦

SURRENDER has been In The Spotlight at Confessions of a Mystery Novelist and has been reviewed at Crime Watch

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My rating 4/5
Publisher NZ Society of Authors [2010]
ISBN 9780473174149
Length 300 pages
Format paperback
Book Series #1 in the Diane Rowe series (hopefully there are more to come)
Source I received it as a gift from a fellow book lover in San Diego - thanks Margot, I’ll be sure to pass it on to another book lover
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http://reactionstoreading.com
 is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

Review: Bound by Vanda Symon

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A man is shot through the head in his Dunedin home while his wife, bound to a chair and struggling to breathe through the gag in her mouth, watches helplessly. The couple’s son returns home to an unthinkably awful scene. Local police, including newly promoted Detective Sam Shephard, soon realise that there must be more to this home invasion than first appearances might suggest.

This is the third book in the four-book series that I’ve read, and while the others haven’t been any slouches this is the best one so far. As she did with Overkill Symon has created the kind of dramatic and memorable opening to a novel that draws you in immediately.  Fortunately the plot which follows does not disappoint; it’s a ripper. There are several unpredictable twists and a swag of threads that flow nicely, with Sam Shephard as the unifying element tying it all together. Sam is initially given the job of liaising with the surviving victims of the home invasion, a job she finds increasingly difficult as she is forced to keep going back and intruding on people’s recovery and grief. I thought this was depicted very credibly, with Sam’s boss finding it easy to demand more as he’s not the one having to intrude while Sam has an internal battle, knowing they need more information but also feeling empathy for the family. When Sam’s role expands to other duties she notices some discrepancies in the case that Police are building against their suspects and her working life becomes even more awkward than it usually is given that she doesn’t get along too well with her boss.

Sam is a terrific character, a basically good person and cop who sometimes lets her big mouth get her into trouble (perhaps I like this as it’s a trait I can definitely identify with). She’s also funny and pretty-much devoid of the demons that haunt many fictional detectives (though she is only young and perhaps has time to develop some psychoses of her own). In this outing I thought Symon got the balance of time spent focusing on the case and Sam’s personal life just right, especially as there are a couple of significant personal issues playing out behind the scenes, both of which were handled credibly. There are other good characters too, including Sam’s troubled colleague Smithy and the wives of two of the suspects in the case are both sensitively depicted and a kind of character you don’t see a lot of in crime fiction.

I read this book in two sittings and it was a real joy to read: a fast-paced, engaging and credible story and even the ending did not disappoint (a rarer thing than it should be). I can’t think of too many people who would not get a kick out of meeting Sam and getting lost in a top quality story like this one. I think it would be easy enough to pick the series up with this book (Symon provides enough back story details for you to get a flavour of Sam’s past trials and tribulations) but you could always go back and start at the beginning. The books are even available electronically to people outside Australasia!

♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦

Bound has been reviewed at Mysteries in Paradise

I’ve reviewed two of the three earlier novels in this series: Overkill and Containment

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My rating 4/5
Author website
http://www.vandasymon.com/

Publisher Penguin [2011]
ISBN 9780143565277
Length 314 pages
Format Paperback
Book Series #4 in the Sam Shephard series
Source I borrowed it from Kerrie (thanks)

Crime Fiction Alphabet: N is for New Zealand

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I was prompted to highlight New Zealand after stumbling across this rather sad little collection of four entries in the New Zealand location index at Stop You’re Killing Me. Now I’m not blaming the fine people at Stop…, it’s a great website and resource for crime fiction fans, but I’m guessing they rely heavily on information from publishers to populate their various lists and I suspect they simply don’t get a lot of material from New Zealand publishers to work with.

Although we’re always at odds in the sporting arena, Aussies and Kiwis do tend to feel quite kindly towards each other on other matters (promise). Both countries are down here at the bottom of the world where it can feel like we are a bit forgotten by that part of the publishing world dealing in the English language which is heavily focussed on US and UK products and markets. So I thought I’d do my bit to promote cross-Tasman crime fiction.

Sadly my own reading of New Zealand crime fiction can’t offer much better than the meagre offerings at Stop… as I have only reviewed 4 books set in New Zealand myself (though I have read a few more in my pre-blogging days):

  • Bold Blood by Lindy Kelly, which is an amateur sleuth tale set in the world of international horse eventing. It’s a light, fun tale with a dash of romance and strongly recommended for all the animal lovers.
  • Murder in the Second Row by Bev Robitai is a cosy mystery set in a historic theatre in a small New Zealand town. An amateur theatre group’s production of an Agatha Christie play is thrown into disarray when one of the stars is killed in this terrific little cosy mystery.
  • Overkill and Containment by Vanda Symon. These are the first and third books in the Sam Shephard series and are very entertaining police procedurals. I have the fourth book in the series, 2011′s Bound. on my TBR pile to read in the next couple of weeks.

Fortunately for you though you don’t have to rely on the meagre offerings of either me or Stop You’re Killing Me. There’s a marvellous resource at your fingertips in the form of Crime Watch, a great blog by Kiwi crime fiction fan Craig Sisterson. Craig discusses crime fiction from all over the world but he does a great job of highlighting New Zealand crime writers in particular. In fact his own contributions to this round of the Crime Fiction Alphabet meme have all highlighted books by New Zealand crime writers (not all of these are set in New Zealand but many are).

Have you read any crime fiction set in New Zealand? Got any recommendations to make?

Kerrie at Mysteries in Paradise is hosting the crime fiction alphabet meme which requires the posting of an article relating to the letter of the week. Do join in the fun by reading the posts and/or contributing one of your own. You don’t have to write every week.

Review: Murder in the Second Row by Bev Robitai

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My second book for the Global Challlenge this year takes me to New Zealand and a book I learned about from Kiwi crime fiction blogger Craig Sisterson. I’ve no clue how the digital age is going to impact writers and publishing in the long term but this is one of those books I would never have read if it hadn’t been available to me electronically. It cost me $4US at Smashwords and would have cost $30 + shipping to import it here in physical format if I could get the sole New Zealand store stocking it to ship it to me which appears unlikely from their website.

At the Regent Theatre in the small town of Whetford, New Zealand the resident amateur dramatic society are preparing for their next show which, they’ve decided, will be Agatha Christie’s Appointment With Death. They can just about afford well-known Director Adam Bryant and have soon held auditions are are in early rehearsals when one of the cast members is gruesomely murdered. This comes on top of the news that local developers want to build a shopping mall that would require the bulldozing of the theatre and the local Council, which owns 40% of the theatre, is keen to support the move. Jessica Jones, the theatre’s manager, heads up the campaign to save the theatre and takes on an amateur sleuthing role in her zeal to protect her beloved theatre.

Robitai has done a tremendous job with her setting here, really bringing to life a historic theatre with all its creaks and ghosts and the amateur dramatic society dedicated to keeping the building and its purpose alive. By the end of the novel I was feeling terribly guilty for not supporting my own local theatres more in recent years as I too have spent many happy hours at such places in the past and I liked the way the novel demonstrated the cultural value of such buildings.

There’s also a delightful cast of characters in this classic whodunnit. Refreshingly our leading heroine is not considered a suspect (well only for a moment) and becomes a conduit of sorts to the police investigation, which she doesn’t mind at all given that Jack Matherson, the detective in charge of the case, is attractive and funny. The pool of possible culprits is extensive and their personal stories are nicely varied. None are really explored in great depth but there is enough to get a sense of them as people and as a collective of ‘average’, community-spirited people they are very credible.

The mystery element itself is reasonably straight forward and would need a couple more twists and turns for seasoned readers of the genre, but the plot is logical and the big reveal at the end manages not to go too far overboard. The humorous tone of the writing, especially the dialogue between Jessica and Jack, suits the light, fun tone of the novel and there really is a lovely, genuine feel to the story. I will be keeping an eye out for more from this talented debut author.

♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦

My rating 3.5/5
Author website
http://bevrobitai.co.nz/aboutme.htm

 Publisher Smashwords [2010]
ISBN N/A
Length 209 pages
Format eBook (ePub)
Book Series #1 (perhaps?) in a series featuring the theatre?
Source I bought it

Review: Containment by Vanda Symon

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The third story to feature detective constable Sam Shephard opens memorably as a container ship runs aground near Dunedin on New Zealand’s South Island and the contents of several of its containers are strewn across the beach. Sam wakes up to  witness locals descending en masse to make off with the spoils and when she tries to break up a dispute between two men arguing over the same box she is knocked unconscious by one of them. The bizarre Sunday morning incident turns out to cause more problems than this for Dunedin police as a skull is among the detritus and later a body is found in deep water nearby.

Sam Shephard is definitely the star of this series, fairly universally described as feisty and not someone who always does the smart thing, though her motives are pure and her heart is definitely in the right place. I like her a lot, being able to relate to someone who doesn’t always shut up even when she knows it would be the sensible thing to do. As well as her complicated work life, where she is in a constant battle with her DI, she has some trials in her personal life and I thought the depiction of her reaction to her Dad’s problems was particularly touching. In this novel some of the supporting cast of characters were more well-drawn than in the first book in the series (2007′s Overkill) especially Sam’s partner Smithy who is struggling with a family crisis at the same time as he works on the complicated cases arising from the container ship’s accident. There are also several minor characters who offer some lightness and humour including Sam’s housemate Maggie and a new friend/suspect Spaz.

The story in Containment is another one of those that at first seems like it will follow a predictable path but then veers off in several surprising ways and I really liked the way the different threads unfolded here. There is the deceptively simple case of the assault on Sam, the attempts to locate all the items ‘salvaged’ from the beach that were part of a wealthy (and apparently extremely gorgeous) immigrant’s household items which were being shipped to his new home and of course the investigation into the murder that resulted in a body being found at sea. In each case the police have several false endings where they think they have found the solution then uncover yet another half-truth being told by one of the players which leads them off into another direction which is very satisfying as a reader (though undoubtedly annoying if you were an actual police officer).

Although I enjoyed the first book in this series I think Containment is a better novel, requiring less credibility stretching and displaying more humour which seems to be in keeping with Sam’s character and the team of Dunedin detectives. I really enjoy Symon’s novel openings which are full of great imagery and are very memorable and her storytelling is engaging (I read this book in one sitting). I could do with a little less concentration on Sam’s relationship woes but this is a minor grizzle about an otherwise thoroughly enjoyable read.

♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦

Containment is one of three novels on the shortlist for New Zealand’s inaugural Ngaio Marsh Award for Best Crime Novel, the winner of which will be announced on November 30

So far I’ve only reviewed the first book in the series, Overkill. Containment has also been reviewed at Mysteries in Paradise

The fourth novel in this series is called Bound and is due out next February and the author showed us its cover on her blog earlier this week

♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦

My rating 3.5/5
Publisher Penguin [2009]
ISBN 9780143202295
Length 309 pages
Format paperback
Source I bought it

Review: Bold Blood by Lindy Kelly

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For my sixth book in the 2010 Global Challenge I chose the debut adult novel by New Zealand author Lindy Kelly. I first read about the book on the excellent Crime Watch blog from Kiwi crime fiction fan and journalist Craig Sisterson.

Caitlin Summerfield rushes home to Nelson on New Zealand’s South Island when she hears her mother is in a coma. Despite being a doctor there’s not much she can do for her mother’s health but she can take care of her farm. Shirley Summerfield, along with five other businesses, is in competition for a lucrative contract to provide eventing horses to an American outfit so Caitlin, helped by the farm’s neighbour Dom and a young girl who loves horses, Kasey, attempts to keep things afloat until her mother is back on her feet. Unfortunately it seems one of the competitors is using dirty tricks to get rid of the competition and a series of ‘accidents’ and near misses befall Caitlin and the horses.

I thoroughly enjoyed meeting the characters in Bold Blood who, apart from the killer(s), all seem like people you wouldn’t mind meeting in real life which is not always the case in crime fiction, even with the good guys. Caitlin’s homecoming is traumatic as she doesn’t have a good relationship with her mother and she is reminded everywhere she turns of her father and younger brother who both died years earlier. Despite this though she gets stuck into the work that needs to be done and is very practical and appears to be just the sort of woman you’d want in a crisis. Dom and Kasey share similar troublesome issues with at least one parent each yet are both optimistic people who display a good dose of humour in the face of adversity which is one of my favourite things about the book. Jean is a wise older woman who has been like a mother to Caitlin and she adds a nice dimension to the book though it annoyed me that she kept trying to mend the rift between Caitlin and her mother when common sense would suggest letting sleeping dogs lie.

The main story is well crafted and, especially towards the end, very exciting. However as a mystery it’s not terribly complex (a simple process of elimination really) and while I wouldn’t quite call it a ‘cosy’ there’s not much of a procedural element to speak of either. However the people were interesting enough and events unfolded at such a pace that I was always keen to find out what would happen next to all the characters, including the poor horses. I like to see worlds different to my own depicted in fiction so enjoyed learning about the different aspects of eventing, which I assume were shown realistically as Kelly is a former participant in the sport. Very occasionally the book goes overboard with insider jargon and for me there’s a bit too much time devoted to pairing all the players off neatly in a romantic sense but these are minor quibbles with an otherwise solid story.

The book had something of a sense of its New Zealand setting including some glimpses into elements of Maori culture and some mentions of local wildlife but in the main I thought we could have been in any farming or ‘horsey’ community in the world. Though perhaps I am not familiar enough* with the place to have picked up on other things with are particularly New Zealand-ish.

Bold Blood is a fast-paced and entertaining tale with many likable characters and a humourous feel. I’d especially recommend it for animal loving readers and those who like a dash of romance with their crime.

♦ ♦ ♦ ♦ ♦

My rating 3.5/5

Publisher: Harper Collins [2009]; ISBN: 9781869507336; Length 288  pages; Setting: New Zealand, present-day.

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*Yes I know it’s the closest country to me but, due entirely to my own appalling choice of boyfriends and having nothing to do with the beautiful country or its friendly people, I once spent a perfectly horrid holiday in New Zealand and tend towards panic attacks if anyone ever suggests me going back.

Review: Overkill by Vanda Symon

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Title: Overkill

Author: Vanda Symon

Publisher: Penguin [2007]

ISBN: 978-0-14-300665-7

No. of pages: 320

The book opens with young mother Gaby Knowes being murdered: the killer threatening Gaby’s baby daughter to ensure the murder goes smoothly. Although Gaby does what she can to leave clues that her death is not the suicide it is supposed to look like, the lone Police Constable in town, Sam Shephard, at first assumes Gaby did take her own life. However discrepancies soon appear and and Sam calls in the assistance of a full investigative team from a nearby city. Shortly afterwards Sam is thrown of the case but continues to investigate matters on her own.

Sam Shepherd is a likable and quite engaging character. She reminds me of Sue Grafton’s Kinsey Millhone in many ways. She shares the doggedness and disregard for her own safety in the pursuit of answers and can also be a little childish to her own detriment. Sam had a personal connection to this particular case and the way she dealt with her feelings over the course of the book was very thoughtful. There were a lot of other characters glimpsed but not many were terribly well fleshed out and I thought the book would have benefited from another ‘major’ character to participate in the action and help develop the plot. For me Symon did a better job of depicting the small farming and manufacturing town of Mataurain New Zealand. There’s a nice combination of local flavour and shared traits with isolated communities the world over: people look after their own, are distrustful of strangers and love a good gossip about their neighbours.

In the end the plot held together although I found myself struggling with elements of it during the middle of the story. There were things that didn’t ring true, such as the ferocity with which Sam was removed from the case and the interactions between Sam and the murdered woman’s husband who is Sam’s own ex lover. Possibly due to everything being told from Sam’s perspective there were parts of the story that were undeveloped. Why, for example, were Sam’s colleagues so willing to accept the possibility of her own guilt when, normally, Police are slow to accept the guilt of ‘one of their own’? However the last third of the book was quite a page turner and the ultimate resolution was both well crafted and very credible.

Overall this was an entertaining debut novel and I will certainly look for the next in the series which looks to move Sam to a bigger city which is a smart move on the part of Symon as there’s a limit to how many interesting crimes can take place in a small town (Cabot Cove excluded of course).

My rating 3.5/5

Other Stuff

Reviewed by Kerrie at Mysteries in Paradise