Dead Man's Creek: A darkly atmospheric, simmering crime thriller spanning generations (Detective Nell Buchanan)

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Although this is a complex storyline, it is a compelling read. I did feel that the terrorist thread was probably a step too far. The plot would have been perfectly fine without it. In present-day Dubbo, Detective Nell Buchanan and DS Ivan Lucic are summoned to headquarters. They concluded a successful criminal investigation in the previous book, and Ivan gave her major credit. To Nell, who learns she has been promoted to Homicide Detective, this is the fulfillment of her dreams. Ivan is suspected of leaking information to a Sydney reporter but is considered too valuable and skillful to be fired. He is assigned to head a rural homicide unit based in Dubbo. He considers this a demotion as he longed to return to the Sydney police force.

I must be getting used to narrator, Dorje Swallow, as I found his narration much smoother than previously. I wish to thank the author for including a splendidly illustrated map of the main locations at the book's beginning and a family tree at the end. I was drawn to both while reading. Although the case begins with the appearance of being the coldest of cold cases, it turns out that there is far more at play here. One murder, as is so often the case, is intertwined with other crimes and as the divergent tales draw together, we find ourselves suddenly facing a far more complex story. audiobook #australianfiction #contemporaryfiction #crime #detectivefiction #murdermystery #smalltownfiction #thriller The Tilt is an intricately plotted and exceptional novel. I think Chris Hammer is not only the prime author of Aussie mysteries but ranks with the top thriller writers anywhere. His plots are tightly woven and complex, with well-defined and memorable characters. In Tilt, there are deeply buried secrets involving complicated and tangled family connections and crimes long covered up. Cold case crimes are being investigated in modern times. These crimes still reverberate in the present day.Tulong may be a small town where everyone knows each other but small town secrets can be buried for decades. A commanding, consuming and outright thrilling mystery. Chris Hammer's first-class series goes from strength to strength.' - Chris Whitaker, bestselling author of We Begin at the End Gripping and atmospheric, Dead Man’s Creek is a stunning multi-layered thriller from Chris Hammer, the award-winning author of Sunday Times Crime Book of the Year Scrublands (2019) and Times Crime Book of the Month Opal Country (January 2022).

Dead Man’s Creek is a brilliant read full of twists, turns and red herrings, and I was gripped from start to finish. Chris Hammer is, for me, the epitome of a thoughtful, measured author. No word, description, or conversation, is excessive or unnecessary. Seen through three first person timelines, the story unfolds effortlessly and even though it is a complex tale is never confusing. Nell's timeline shows how she and Ivan are still exploring their strained working relationship, and although neither of them want to be in her home town there are positives for both as the case progresses to an eminently satisfying conclusion.

Chris has a bachelor's degree in journalism from Charles Sturt University and a master's degree in international relations from the Australian National University. He lives in Canberra with his wife, Dr Tomoko Akami. The couple have two children. The opening chapter of The Tilt by Chris Hammer is prefaced by a map and a family tree. Now, I know many people LOVE a good map but I'm spatially challenged so tend to avoid them at all costs. And the family tree had me worried that there were so many players we'd need help remembering who was who. But thankfully it's not the case at all. Instead it gives us context and a reminder how complex lives can be in small communities.

A commanding, consuming and outright thrilling mystery. Chris Hammer's first-class series goes from strength to strength.' - Chris WhitakerHammer interweaves environment issues with great dexterity into the body of this thriller set on the shores of the once great Murray River. The action takes place variously in an Italian POW camp, a car dismantling yard, and a small town currently inhabited by Twitchers, crazy right wingers and Neo-Nazis. This is a multi-layered crime novel from three different time periods. The threads are cleverly woven together, revealing hidden family secrets. In 1943, we meet a young boy, Jimmy. He herds cattle near the forests. His father is fighting in New Guinea. Jimmy and a friend plan to gather crawfish (yabbies). Each of the three storylines make up crucial parts of the mysteries contained within the town and its surroundings. The process of skipping from one timeline to the other works very effectively and has the effect of speeding the story along rather than slowing it down. It has taken me much too long to have finally read a book by this author, and what a writer he is. Recommended highly by my father who loves good quality Aussie fiction, I knew I needed to get to it. I found the audio, grabbed the physical book to assist with the map which he mentioned as a must, and off I went. Nell is uncovering secrets from her family’s past the more she digs the deeper it goes, add to that the fact that there is something else going on in the town and forest that puts her in real danger, will she uncover the truth about the past and how her family is implicated? And will she uncover what is happening now before her and anymore lose their lives?

Interestingly I also realised that you sometimes assume there can be no secrets in small towns of intertwined communities and families, but instead it can mean they're often so well hidden or buried they're left to fester for years. As well as the present day narrative that follows Nell’s investigation, we are treated to a couple of storylines from the past. Jimmy Waters retells the story of the summer of 1943 while we also follow the events in 15 year old Tessa Waters’ life in 1973. But this is no ordinary cold case, as the discovery of more bodies triggers a chain of escalating events in the present day. As Nell starts to join the pieces together, she begins to question how well she truly knows those closest to her. Could her own family be implicated in the crimes?The nearer Nell comes to uncovering the secrets of the past, the more treacherous her path becomes. Can she survive to root out the truth, and what price will she have to pay for it? Chris Hammer is at the height of his power here. Dead Man's Creek is a superb piece of storytelling' - William Shaw Though the investigation plays out over only a week, the story spans decades. Hammer touches on historical events of note such as the diversion of the Murray River, and the POW labour camps established during WWII.