Gabe Ahern is a salt-of-the-earth Australian bushman, a reluctant hero with a rich history on the land and an eventful, if at times, dangerous past. Wanting to help a mate, Terry, on an amateur gold prospecting quest, he directs him to the Western Australian town of Cue, Gabe’s hometown. A place of memories, but also a personal tragedy that has taken Gabe years to come to terms with.

Terry does indeed find gold, but broadcasts the news in the packed pub, and sure enough, the wrong ears hear the news. Terry disappears into what appears to be thin air.

The suspect could be one of the locals, any one of the desperate modern-day gold panners camping in the desolate scrub, or one of the hundreds of caravan holidaymakers in town to see the wildflowers. All of whom were in the pub that night.

Gabe feels responsible for sending Terry to Cue. He has a local suspect in mind, but he also has a couple of gold diggers in mind. He is horrified to find out from police that there have been many such disappearances in and around Cue over several years. He is frustrated, getting nowhere, his last-ditch plan is dangerous, but he has no choice.

Blood and Gold is an exciting thriller, every bit as good as Trant’s Wild Dogs. It’s a cleverly constructed thriller and from the first page it kept me guessing. However, it’s a thrilling rush of a read.

Reviewed by Alison Logie

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Michael Trant is a WA country boy turned suburban writer, following a wide range of careers from marine draftsman to farmer, and pastoralist to FIFO pot-washer. Mike grew up on the family farm at Eneabba, before moving to Geraldton then out to Yalgoo before heading to Perth. His debut novel Ridgeview Station was inspired by his time on Gabyon Station, and he highly recommends a visit for those curious about life on a sheep station.

When he’s not writing, Michael can be found plucking away at his guitar in attempts to replicate his idol Tommy Emmanuel, or swearing at his beloved Fremantle Dockers.

He still travels to Three Springs to drive tractors ‘just to keep my hand in,’ but despite the advent of autosteer machines, refrains from taking the laptop to write, as that would not end well for power poles, fences or trees.