DS Lucas Walker is on compassionate leave in his hometown in outback Caloodie. He is home to care for his dying grandmother. When two young German backpackers vanish from the area on their way to a cattle station, he finds himself unofficially assigned to the case by the Federal Police. DS Walker is joined by the girl’s sister, Barbara, a detective from Berlin.

She is frustrated by the local police and begins conducting her own investigation. Walker remains convinced there is more at play, working in the organised crime unit in Sydney has opened his eyes to the growing drug trade in Australia’s remote interior. Could this be connected? As temperatures soar, the search intensifies.

Patricia Wolf sets the scene and atmosphere wonderfully in the opening chapters, describing the searing heat, the flat, straight roads that stretch to the horizon, the isolation, the bleached grass, the red dirt, the dust. I could feel it, smell it, visualise it. This is a classic Australian crime noir and doesn’t disappoint. The story is well paced, the characters are well rounded and individual.

It is told in multiple voices which adds to the suspense and deepens the storytelling. There are lots of story threads which keep you wondering what is connected and what will be a red herring. Although it isn’t a mystery to solve – it is a very suspenseful plot and I became full immersed in seeing the story play out. The ending is quite open so I suspect DS Walker will be back.

Outback is recommended to those that enjoy police thrillers and regional crime novels.

Reviewed by Nicola Skinstad

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Patricia Wolf grew up in Queensland, Australia, and now lives in Berlin. She likes whisky and strong coffee, busy cities, surf beaches and wild places. Patricia has been a journalist for almost twenty years.

She is a regular contributor to newspapers including the Guardian, the Financial Times and the Daily Telegraph, among others, and was formerly a design columnist at the Independent and the Lisbon correspondent for Monocle magazine.