Book Review: Scrublands by Chris Hammer

Scrublands by Chris  Hammer
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This is Chris Hammer's first novel, but not his first book. It's more of a "Why dunnit?" than a "Who Dunnit? but intriguing enough to keep me reading. When his editor sends Martin Scarsden to write about the effects of a mass shooting in a small Australian town, he is more intrigued by the shooter than the aftermath. The shooter was a Catholic priest who seemed to go from sane and lucid to a killer in less than five minutes. He is also deeply intrigued by the owner of the dying town's only bookstore, a lovely and mysterious single mother named Mandalay, or Mandy. The more he investigates the tragedy, the darker the secrets are he uncovers, imperiling his job, his emotional stability and his very life.

There are plots and subplots that take a bit too long to interweave into the fabric of the novel, which is about 40 pages too long, but that is my only quibble. However, when all is revealed, and all the dark secrets brought to light, the ending is the reward for the patient reader.


View all my reviews