Garry Disher

Australian cop Alan Auhl came back from retirement to work cold cases. Some he has been working for years. One case involved a man whose wives suspiciously keep dying but no solid proof against him has been found. His newest case was assigned when a man was found buried beneath a concrete slab in a backyard.

He lives in a large house that he inherited. Since his wife comes in and out of his life and his young adult daughter is so busy, he rents out rooms. One renter is a young mother and her elementary age daughter who are in a custody battle with the ex-husband. Auhl even briefly houses a co-worker after she finds out her husband is cheating.

Auhl is at the end of his career, and it seems like he has begun to take some of these cold cases into his own hands rather than stick strictly to protocol. While he is uncomfortable with his own misdeeds, he does find solace in knowing that justice has been done.

When the custody battle of the young mother and her daughter turns from bad to worse, the mother kidnaps her daughter. During their flee, they are in a car accident, leaving the mother in a coma. The girl’s teacher comes forward and lets the authorities know that she believes the father has sexually abused the daughter.

At the end, we see the father in Bali, seemingly having fled Australia. We also see Auhl trailing him, seeking justice in less than legal ways.

This was not my typical type of novel. I did find some of it slow with too many unimportant characters that didn’t move the story forward. There were also too many plots. For example, the man found buried beneath the concrete had an entire side cult story. This felt too sporadic and lacked cohesion.… (altro)

This entry in the Constable Hirschausen series has Paul running all over hell's half acre trying to hunt down a father and son gone rogue, as well as the man they are presumably hunting, who owes money to everyone in the district, and may have been responsible for a couple deaths as well. The usual good story-telling, but I do think the antipathy of the CIB and its agents, and their disdain for local policing is a bit overdone. It may be totally accurate, for all I know...it just gets monotonous and doesn't help the narrative. I have praised Disher in the past for replacing Hirsch's original dimwit mean-spirited Sergeant with an intelligent woman who appreciates his abilities and treats him with respect. Time for him to do the same with the CIB people, methinks.… (altro)