Let’s talk page turners; those 'whodunnits' that keep your eyes glued to the pages as you frantically flick from one to the next, your heart pounding. We’ve all been there.
I have read many thrillers and mysteries throughout my reading life. Most of which are long forgotten, some perhaps even instantly. What has stayed with me, though, are detective or spy novels such as Daniel Silva’s books: Moscow Rules and The English Girl – international espionage at its best. And then there is of course our own South African thriller writer of international fame, Deon Meyer. Who could ever forget Thirteen Hours? Scottish detective novel writer Phillip Kerr’s books also intrigued me, perhaps because of my interest in WWII, as some of his most popular – the Noir Trilogy, for instance – are set in pre- and post-war Berlin.
I know, I know. There are countless others that I am not mentioning, and everyone has their favourites. Among them, American detective master, Gregg Hurwitz, John le Carre, Jonathan Kellerman, Patricia Cornwell, Dennis Lehane ... the list goes on. And despite having read most of the big murder-mystery authors, and being able to vaguely recall some of their works, it is certainly not my go-to.
I did, however, recently pick up The Dry by Jane Harper after all the glowing recommendations and rave reviews of its ‘unputdownability’. The Dry is Jane Harper’s debut thriller, and a good read. It proved every bit as 'unputdownable' as the reviews suggested. In fact, I devoured it in one short sitting.
It’s set in a farming community in the Australian outback in the midst of a severe two-year drought. Rivers have dried up and farmers are having to shoot their cattle. Morale is low, tensions are high, and the small community is overflowing with aggression and hostility.
I happened to be reading the book whilst we were driving through the arid South African Karoo and its many one-horse towns. Looking around me, the imagery in the book flashed before my eyes as we drove, the desperation that follows intense heat and prolonged drought now utterly visible in the Karoo towns we passed. Add to that the typical parochialism that characterises a remote small town, and the book might as well have been set right here in my own home country – the Karoo, the Free State or the North West Province – take your pick of the many drought-stricken areas of South Africa.
As with Deon Meyer’s Bennie Griesel and Phillip Kerr’s Bernie Gunther, Harper’s detective hero, Aaron Falk, comes chockfull of baggage, with a tainted and storied history in the outback. His childhood best friend, Luke Hadler, has allegedly killed his wife and young son before turning his shotgun on himself. Falk returns for the funeral.
Harper spins a gripping and tangled yarn and takes you back to their childhood and the mysteries surrounding a murder at that time which might or might not be connected to the family tragedy faced by Luke’s parents.
Falk teams up with a local cop and together they undertake a challenging investigation, the direction of which constantly changes and which keeps one thoroughly glued.
Is it memorable? I’ll let you know in a year. But it’s undeniably enjoyable, and she has undoubtedly overachieved with her first novel. She is a polished, highly talented and exceptionally gripping writer, and I wasn’t surprised to learn that Hollywood is already planning a movie based on her novel.
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