Australian Thrillers

Julia Schmidt reckons the suburban library where she works is the most boring place on earth. Then an hobo dies in an armchair. Everyone thinks he died of natural causes. They are wrong, and Julia is soon playing cat-and-mouse with a killer while trying to recover a priceless library book. An Australian comic crime novel with an endearing amateur sleuth.

When Sydney private investigator, Gary Maddox, is hired to recover a stolen painting, he plunges deep into the art world and finds himself battling crooks who are smooth, well-dressed and death in a chilled glass.

Young Sydney defence barrister Brad Norton is desperate to appear in a high-profile murder trial. Then, lighting strikes twice. His first client is a woman charged with murdering a famous television star; the second, a bikie charged with killing a bikie chieftain. Saving his clients will require more than good advocacy. He will have to play detective in the courtroom as well.

Canberra political reporter Paul Ryder gets the sack again, this time for sleeping with the wrong woman. Jobs are scarce and he’s forced to become the national political correspondent for a tiny Tasmanian paper with a dwindling circulation. He needs a big story to save his career. Too bad he lives in the world’s most boring city. All seems lost, until murder comes to town and he plunges into a dark world where his press pass won't protect him..

Molka Must Choose Between Keeping Her Word To The Ones She’s Sworn To Serve Or Keeping Her Promise To The Little Sister She Loves! Her choice sends shockwaves across an entire continent! What Readers Are Saying… "LOVED IT! I SUGGEST YOU START READING THIS SERIES RIGHT NOW!” "Perfect blend of exciting action and twist-filled plot with a strong, complex character you want to follow for many books!” "A GREAT NEW SERIES TO DIVE INTO AND ENJOY!” “Molka is like a female Jack Reacher, Scot Harvath, Jack Noble, etc., only tougher and sexier!” Molka, an elite special forces warrior, ...

***PRE-ORDER now the new Detective Jason Farrells Australian crime thriller by DAVID MENON called DON'T ANSWER THE PHONE - out on January 31, 2025. DESTINED FOR MURDER Detective Jason Farrell of the NSW police is back and the country town of Kingsbrook is rocked by the brutal murder of a retired couple who seemingly had no connection to the criminal world. Or did they? Soon Farrell and his team are drawn into a network involving organised crime and a local Kingsbrook company whose owners cover the darkest of secrets with their business activity. Their family owe their freedom to a time when...

PRE-ORDER now the new Detective Jason Farrell Australian Crime Thriller by DAVID MENON called DON'T ANSWER THE PHONE - out on January 31. 2025. THE FINAL HOURS ONE MAN HAS PROTESTED HIS INNOCENCE FOR OVER FORTY YEARS. ONE BODY HAS NEVER BEEN FOUND. ONE TOWN HAS BEEN HIDING DEADLY SECRETS FOR DECADES. Wayne Portman is released after spending forty years in prison for a double murder in the town of Kingsbrook, New South Wales, back in 1977 and for which he has always maintained his innocence. One of the bodies, that of his girlfriend at the time, Fiona, has never been found. Wayne had been a ...

Four young boys are left alone in a hotel room while their parents dine downstairs. When Sara Farrow checks on the children at midnight, her son is missing. Distrustful of the police, Sara turns to Crimson Lake’s unlikeliest private investigators - disgraced cop Ted Conkaffey and convicted killer Amanda Pharrell. For Ted, the case couldn’t have come at a worse time. Two years ago, a false accusation robbed him of his career, his reputation, and most importantly, his family. But now, Lillian, the daughter he barely knows, is coming to stay in his ramshackle cottage by the lake.

DIAMONDS – EIGHT MILLION DOLLAR’S WORTH. ARE THEY STILL WAITING IN THEIR SECRET PLACE? It was the Japanese Zeroes which brought terror and death and destruction to the peaceful pearling town of Broome in 1942. It was the partners on the pearl lugger Lucinda who found the lone aircraft shot down by the Zeros, and the diamonds. It was the diamonds which viciously dissolved that partnership and allowed themselves to be hidden in the secret place. And now the sons of those partners each race to claim those diamonds, the crying stones. With mistrust fighting hate and with anger curbed by ...

Fourteenth Floor, Barwick Chambers, is the most prestigious floor of commercial barristers in Sydney. A top silk is found dead in his room. It looks like an accident until the police discover he was murdered. The news media pounce. Suspicion and paranoia run rampant. Baby barrister, Benjamin Douglas, starts hunting for the killer. But he has competition. The police and a brilliant young female barrister are also chasing the culprit. Will Benjamin catch the killer first? A fast-paced comic novel about life and death at the Sydney Bar.

Dr. Blair Harbour, once a wealthy, respected pediatric surgeon, is now an ex-con down on her luck. She's determined to keep her nose clean and win back custody of her son. But when her former cellmate begs for help to find her missing daughter, Blair is compelled to put her new-found freedom on the line. Detective Jessica Sanchez has always had a difficult relationship with the LAPD. And her inheritance of a multi-million dollar mansion as a reward for catching a killer has just made her police enemy number one.

Paul Ryder is still a pariah on the Canberra Press Gallery and forced to ghost-write the memoirs of vapid sport stars. However, a chance encounter at a wedding puts him on the trail of a story that will shake federal politics to its core. Chasing that story will test his cunning, courage and faithfulness to his long-suffering partner. Another fast-paced romp through the Canberra political scene and the inconsequential world beyond.

Terry Riley, a leading silk at the Sydney Bar, is murdered half-way through a garden-variety personal injuries hearing. His junior counsel, Ben Kennedy, starts sleuthing. Ben's investigation threatens to rock the legal system and destroy big reputations. A fast-paced Australian legal thriller with comic touches.

A Cabinet Minister is murdered, Parliament House is in uproar and political newshound Paul Ryder is busy trying to sleep with a sexy TV reporter. Soon he’s on the trail of the scoop of a lifetime. All he has to do is survive the media moguls, political fixers, spooks, cops and fellow reporters who stand in his way. A fast-paced comic crime novel.

Ambitious criminal defence barrister Robyn Palmer gets her first big break when she's briefed as junior counsel in a high-profile murder trial. Unfortunately, her leader has lecherous designs and their client looks guilty as hell. However, nothing is going to stop her starring in the biggest trial of her career. A comic legal thriller set in Sydney, Australia

In Broome's tourist-perfect marina, where million-dollar boats promise wilderness adventures to wealthy visitors, Special Investigator Odysseus "Odie" Kalaris is called to examine what appears to be a robbery gone wrong. What begins as a straightforward marina murder evolves into something far more sinister, revealing connections between luxury tourism and a sophisticated fraud network targeting elderly investors. When Odie's tracking skills expose crime scene staging, he must navigate both the predatory undercurrents of seasonal tourism and the complex relationships that bind Broome's ...

In the drought-stricken Kimberley, where water means the difference between survival and ruin, Special Investigator Odysseus "Odie" Kalaris is called to a sacred waterhole where the body of water project engineer Michael Crawford lies half-submerged, surrounded by poorly staged traditional elements. What begins as a murder investigation evolves into something far more sinister, revealing connections between ancient underground water systems and generations of deliberate deception. When a second victim—environmental consultant Rebecca Palmer—is found at another sacred site, Odie must ...

Adelaide Hills, Christmas Eve, 1959. At the end of a scorching hot day, a local deliveryman makes a terrible discovery. A police investigation is called, and the small town of Tambilla becomes embroiled in one of the most shocking and perplexing murder cases in the history of South Australia. Many years later and thousands of miles away, Jess is a journalist in search of a story. Having lived and worked in London for nearly two decades, she now finds herself laid off from her full-time job and struggling to make ends meet. Until a phone call out of nowhere summons her back to Sydney.

In the rugged gorges of the Kimberley, where blackened spinifex and red earth tell stories to those who can read them, Special Investigator Odysseus "Odie" Kalaris is called to investigate a body staged to resemble an animal attack. A wildlife photographer's death in a remote country quickly reveals darker motives. What begins as a suspicious death evolves into something far more sinister, revealing connections between rare goanna breeding grounds, vandalised rock art sites, and powerful interests opposing a new sanctuary. When Odie discovers hidden SD cards documenting systematic wildlife ...

"Ivan Ertlov's first mystery thriller is dark, bloody and unique. Especially the private detective is completely different from what you might expect and has a crude sense of humour. I rate it 5 out of 5 possible stars!" - The Librarian and her Books "Above all, it is an exciting, gripping near-future thriller with a cleverly placed supernatural touch. A brisk read even for those who have nothing to do with games, an explicit recommendation for readers of mystery, action thrillers and revenge thrillers." - Phantastic Reading "Step down, Jack Reacher, here comes Pete O'Brannon!" - VLP ...