Emily is searching for her beautiful, wayward cousin, Aspen, who hasn’t been heard from in months. Travelling to Alice Springs, then on to Darwin, the trail goes cold, no-one admits to having seen her.

What starts out as a simple search for a troubled young woman suddenly turns sinister. There is a serial killer on the loose. It turns out it’s not just the deadly wildlife that Emily must watch out for, as now someone is trying very hard to kill her. To complicate things, her ex then turns up.

Emily will have to dig deep to find out what happened to her cousin before it’s too late, for her and for Aspen.

Bouncing from the small settlement of Bloodwood Creek and its secretive survivalist commune, to the town of Katherine and the colourful nightlife of Darwin, the story encompasses the unique landscape and historic aspects of the Top End. Particularly poignant is the tranquility of a visit to the World War II cemetery in Adelaide River, which reminds the reader of the real dangers Australia faced during the war.

Kerry McGinnis takes the stunning backdrop of all that the Northern Territory outback has to offer and weaves in an engaging crime mystery that is wrapped up satisfactorily at the end. Bloodwood Creek is an easy to read, well-paced story.

Reviewed by Joanne Brewer

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Kerry McGinnis was born in Adelaide and at the age of twelve took up a life of droving with her father and four siblings. The family travelled extensively across the Northern Territory and Queensland before settling on a station in the Gulf Country. Kerry has worked as a shepherd, droving hand, gardener and stock-camp and station cook on the family property, Bowthorn, north-west of Mount Isa.

She is the author of two volumes of memoir, Pieces of Blue and Heart Country, and the bestselling novels The Waddi Tree, Wildhorse Creek, Mallee Sky, Tracking North, Out of Alice, Secrets of the Springs, The Heartwood Hotel, The Roadhouse, Croc Country, The Missing Girl and Gathering Storms.

Kerry now lives in Bundaberg and was awarded the Order of the Outback in 2022 for her work in promoting the bush.