Australian Thrillers

Neal Stephenson's sweeping, prescient new novel transports listeners to a near-future world where the greenhouse effect has inexorably resulted in a whirling-dervish troposphere of superstorms, rising sea levels, global flooding, merciless heat waves, and virulent, deadly pandemics.

Under the fierce heat of the Australian outback, the laws of nature serve a rough justice. When a man vanishes deep in the Northern Territory, local police write it off. But his family suspect otherwise—and when the call for help goes out, Ben Hope and Jeff Decker are there to hear it. Ben’s instincts, honed by years of Special Forces missions, soon see the story told by a trail of bullet casings, rumours of a missing map and a lethal cocktail of greed, power and money.

Sydney, 1965: After a chance encounter with a stranger, mild-mannered tea lady Hazel Bates becomes an accidental sleuth, stumbling into a world of ruthless crooks and racketeers in search of a young woman she believes to be in danger. In the meantime, Hazel's job at Empire Fashionwear is in jeopardy. The firm has turned out the same frocks and blouses for the past twenty years and when the mini-skirt bursts onto the scene, it rocks the rag trade to its foundations. War breaks out between departments and it falls to Hazel, the quiet diplomat, to broker peace and save the firm.

Ex-bouncer Dave Bennett is released from prison, determined to go reasonably straight. A drug boss owes him $300,000 and refuses to pay up unless Dave finds his run-away daughter. Bullets are soon flying and Dave discovers that life outside is far more dangerous than it was inside. A humorous Australian crime novel with some special twists.

Sydney private investigator Gary Maddox is asked to find a missing accountant. He doesn't expect any trouble. After all, the guy is just an bean counter. But he's dead wrong. Powerful men have dispatched a posse of thugs to kill the ledger lurker. Gary is soon counting bodies and trying not to become a ugly statistic.

The Central Intelligence Agency is in crisis. Following the collapse of the Soviet Union, Congress is questioning the organisation’s necessity. Interim CIA director Thomas Stansfield must fight for his agency’s survival while explaining why the previous candidate for his job was found murdered in a French hotel – surrounded by booze, cash, and dead men. Worst yet, a brilliantly run sting operation in Moscow has resulted in the arrest of America’s most prized Russian asset and the expulsion of his CIA handler.

As darkness covers the world, a light rises in the West. Ben has lost Shade. Their crew of Light Bringers, despite the arrival of some new faces, has failed. Shadows blanket the land. While Kylie, Gavin and the others have started taking the fight into the heart of the Shadow Eater's territory, Ben has determined to sit back and enjoy the ride and drink himself to death. When their last remaining safe haven is compromised and the Light Bringers find themselves running for their lives, Ben finds himself forced once more to enter into the darkness. Don't miss the epic conclusion to The Shadow...

1967: Hazel's new job at the docks quickly turns perilous when she stumbles into the criminal underworld that lurks beneath the surface. A million in gold coins has vanished from a cargo ship and a dead body washed up. Suddenly, she's in over her head. Disillusioned with her life, Betty is led astray by a charismatic new friend and finds herself exposed in more ways than one - until a crisis drags her back to reality. Living in a high-class brothel, Irene gets wind of a threat that could destroy her livelihood.

Running from heartbreak in Melbourne, James seeks refuge caretaking a farm in the rugged Scottish Highlands, tending sheep, cattle, and bonding with a loyal Border Collie. But just as he finds new hope in the arms of Annie, the strong-willed pub owner, his past comes crashing back when the woman who betrayed him arrives with her dangerous husband in tow. Now, James must fight not only for his heart but for his life in this gripping romantic suspense set against the wild beauty of Scotland. ★★★★★ Another great book from Peter McKelvie with a touch of everything - romance, humour, ...

Jack goes on a second honeymoon and encounters raging floods, a hot air balloon that goes ballistic, and a car that is sinking in quicksand. He goes back to work where it's safe and is accosted by a Bikie with a grudge. There is a fight, Jacks beaten to a pulp, but he's the last man standing. Then he collapses. He undergoes emergency surgery and must contemplate life in a wheelchair! If that isn't enough he has to cope with a high school reunion that goes badly wrong, a gun toting husband and an unhinged scientist with a nuclear bomb. It takes all Jack's resourcefulness, his ability to ...

Kieran Elliott's life changed forever on the day a reckless mistake led to devastating consequences. The guilt that still haunts him resurfaces during a visit with his young family to the small coastal community he once called home. Kieran's parents are struggling in a town where fortunes are forged by the sea. Between them all is his absent brother, Finn. When a body is discovered on the beach, long-held secrets threaten to emerge. A sunken wreck, a missing girl, and questions that have never washed away....

My name's Ernest Cunningham. I used to be a fan of reading Golden Age murder mysteries, until I found myself with a haphazard career getting stuck in the middle of real-life ones. I'd hoped, this Christmas, that any self-respecting murderer would kick their feet up and take it easy over the holidays. I was wrong.

Patterson's greatest crime-solving team since the Women's Murder Club is the Bird Sisters. Rhonda and Barbara "Baby" Bird are half-sisters-and full partners in their Los Angeles detective agency. They agree on nothing.

Jaxie Clackton is a brutalized rural youth who flees from the scene of his father's violent death and strikes out for the vast wilds of Western Australia. All he carries with him is a rifle and a waterjug. All he wants is peace and freedom. But surviving in the harsh saltlands alone is a savage business. And once he discovers he's not alone out there, all Jaxie's plans go awry. He meets a fellow exile, the ruined priest Fintan MacGillis, a man he's never certain he can trust, but on whom his life will soon depend.

Detective Superintendent Jack Hawksworth is seconded by counter-terrorism to investigate a spate of domestic events. First it was needles in strawberries, then tampering with lipstick samplers and baby formula. But when toxic mushrooms enter the market system and a death occurs, a wave of terror is set to sweep the country. Breaking news of a possible serial killer only heightens the alarm. There are no leads, no DNA, no witnesses, no CCTV footage.

When Jenny Williams took a job as the new constable in an outback opal mining town, she thought she’d be hunting down clues to find her missing aunt and cousin. But when a young woman’s body is found at the bottom of a mine shaft, a possible murder forces her personal agenda to take a back seat. Jenny goes head to head with her new commanding officer. He doesn’t want to ruffle feathers in town and rules the case Death By Misadventure. But Jenny is sure the dead woman met with foul play.

Caleb Carmichael's star studded boxing career came to a screeching halt the day he ended up flat on his back in hospital. If he fights again, he risks becoming permanently paralysed from the waist down. Professional Boxing is his whole life and he's lost without it, but he doesn't have a choice. Reluctantly, he cuts his losses and takes a job running the infamous Melbourne boxing studio, Beat. But when a frightened woman turns up at the studio looking for a way to take her life back, Caleb realises there might be something out there for him after all. From Amity Cross comes Quake, a ...

ORIGINAL STORY, WRITTEN BY A HUMAN The irrepressible Detective Ange Watson is back for the gripping second instalment of the Saltwater Crimes Trilogy. Ange’s return to her beat in Byron Bay certainly doesn’t go to plan. Some deep soul searching is needed when her reputation is left in tatters. Her fixation on the criminal syndicate behind the Namba Heads tragedies leads her to adopt the persona of a shady cop and head north to the glittering Gold Coast. All that glitters is definitely not gold! With some newfound surf buddies to keep her company and aided by a surprising and thrilling ...

During a broiling heatwave, the inner circle of a high-profile charity attend a critical meeting at White Ash Ridge, a small hotel nestled in the Australian wilderness. As the temperature rises, a body is found lying in the thick bush, bludgeoned to death. One of the four remaining guests is a murderer - but who, and why, is a mystery. Detective Dana Russo knows the national spotlight will be sharply focused on the case. The charity was formed when the founders' teenage son was killed after intervening in a vicious assault - sparking public outrage and a damning verdict on the investigation.

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.