Small towns, deadly secrets: Sisters in Crime@St Kilda Library

The crime novels by Bronwyn Hall, Erina Reddan, and Claire Sutherland are all set in small towns in rural Victoria where idyllic surrounds hide shocking secrets and crimes. It’s up to resourceful and smart women to uncover the truth and put things to right. The three authors will be talking to Sisters in Crime’s Ruth Wykes about why the bush is such a compelling ‘scene of the crime’ and what sent them there.

It’s no surprise that Claire Sutherland’s debut novel, The Crag (Affirm Press), is literally a cliff-hanger. Claire, a journalist at the Herald Sun for 20 years, and now a free-lancer, is a keen climber and hiker. The Crag is set in Horsham and much of the action happens in the nearby Arapiles. While walking on an isolated, Skye, a rock climber (and local ambo) discovers the body of a young woman – the injuries suggest a rock-climbing accident, but the body has been found more than 5km from the nearest cliffs. Police ask Skye to help them navigate the perilous world of rock climbing as they try to unravel what happened… More info here.

In Erina Reddan’s fourth book Deep in the Forest (Pantera Press), Charli Trenthan plans to leave her hometown of Stone Lake. But when she receives a cryptic message from a member of the Sanctuary, a conservative closed community nestled in the forest, she is determined to find answers. A gruesome discovery soon lands Charli in hot water with the police, but how is the Sanctuary connected? As she digs deeper, dark secrets are uncovered, and the fight to prove her innocence turns into a fight for her life.

Erina started out as a journalist, working in radio and television, and was awarded the prestigious Walkley Award for her work as a foreign correspondent at the ABC. She has a Master’s Degree in Professional Writing (University of Technology Sydney) and a PhD in Creative Writing (La Trobe University) on girl warriors and ball gowns. More info here.

The opening scenes in The Chasm, Bronwyn Hall’s second thriller, are riveting as the Andy King, a vet locum, puts her hand up the rear ends of 106 cows. Andy knew she should never return to Stonefield. Ten years ago, her boyfriend Will Hoffman disappeared without a trace and most people in the town thought she was to blame. Technically she is not going back there, only to Taplin, a small town in the neighbouring valley. But Andy didn’t bargain on running into those who are still looking for Will, the ones who have the most to lose if he is ever found. Finding the truth – and evading those who want to kill her – culminates in a thrilling pursuit on horseback over the mountains to rival The Man from Snowy River. More info here.

Bronwyn Hall didn’t intend on being a writer. Her career has been spent working in health and community services, spanning aged care, disability, and mental health. Born and bred in Australia, Bronwyn has a love for new cultures and environments, having lived for several years in both Papua New Guinea and Brazil.

Host Ruth Wykes is a convenor of Sisters in Crime Australia, its Review Editor and Davitt Awards judges coordinator. She has co-authored two true crime books and won the Scarlet Stiletto Award for short stories in 2016. And somewhere in there, she is slowly chipping away at the crime novel she has been writing for the last eight months.