Broken Bay (Detective Sergeant Mark Ariti #3)
Author: Margaret Hickey
Publisher: Penguin Australia
Genre: Crime, Mystery, Thriller, Fiction
Year of release: 2023
Release Date: 13/06/23
Rating 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Book #3 of #3 not required to be read in order.
Synopsis
Detective Sergeant Mark Ariti has taken a few days’ holiday in Broken Bay at precisely the wrong time. The small fishing town on South Australia’s Limestone Coast is now the scene of a terrible tragedy.
Renowned cave-diver Mya Rennik has drowned while exploring a sinkhole on the land of wealthy farmer Frank Doyle. As the press descends, Mark’s boss orders him to stay put and assist the police operation.
But when they retrieve Mya’s body, a whole new mystery is opened up, around the disappearance of a young local woman twenty years before . . .
Suddenly Mark is diving deep into the town’s history – and in particular the simmering rivalry between its two most prominent families, the Doyles and Sinclairs.
Then Cherie Swinson, a former actress, is murdered in the Sinclairs’ old home – and Mark is left wondering which is more dangerous- Broken Bay’s hidden subterranean world or the secretive town above it . . .
Review
Detective Sergeant Mark Ariti has taken a few days off in the picturesque town of Broken Bay situated on the Limestone Coast of South Australia, unfortunately for Mark, his timing couldn’t be worse as the small finishing town suffered a tragedy, Mark probably should’ve just stayed home but in typical Detective Sergeant Mark Ariti style his curiosity gets the better of him, as he looks deeper as not all is as it seems.
Prominent cave-diver Mya Rennik was exploring a sinkhole on farmer Frank Doyle’s property when things took an unexpected turn for the worse, when sadly the woman drowned. Mark who was hoping to be heading back home gets a call from his boss Angelo Conti Assistant Commissioner advising Mark that the press were descending on the area and that he should stay and provide assistance to the police investigation reluctantly Mark agrees.
Upon recovering Mya’s remains a new mystery unravels, this time it surrounds a young local woman who disappeared 20 years ago. Mark finds himself taking a closer look into the town’s history and it doesn’t take long for the Detective Sergeant to discover the rivalry between two of the most well-known families the Doyles and Sinclair’s. Mark’s curiosity is piqued.
Then Cherie Swinson, a former actress, is murdered in the Sinclairs’ old home – Mark is left speculating which is more dangerous- Broken Bay’s hidden subterranean world or the secretive town above it . . .
Detective Sergeant Mark Ariti is back, and he’s gone on holiday what more could you ask for! If you’ve read Cutters End or Stone Town or both I won’t need to explain myself. This steadfast detective has returned and this reader and many others like me aren’t complaining.
Margaret Hickey returns with another offering of everybody’s favourite detective and although you might think not much has changed for our leading man, I can assure you there are more twists and turns, suspense and multiple mysteries to be solved.
Margaret Hickey has delivered another page-turner that is almost impossible to put down, each scenario that our trustworthy detective finds himself in has an element of suspense and potential danger, and because of these elements the book has the reader racing towards the end.
Even as an avid reader I usually shy away from series due to fear of them possibly becoming predictable, with unrealistic character development or worse a stagnant plotline but alas the Detective Sergeant Mark Ariti series suffers from none of those shortcomings, which is why I will return to this author and this series time and time again.
If I had to describe Broken Bay, I would say that it’s a pressure cooker of suspense, high-stakes drama with a sharp undertone of grief and unanswered questions from long ago, all set in a small coastal town.
Subplots included in Broken Bay:
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- Multiple Murders
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- Historic Disappearance
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- Coastal rural/ South Australia
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- Small town
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- Secrets
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- Lies
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- Lightbulb moments
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- The big reveal
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- Family rivalry
Tropes included in Broken Bay:
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- Multiple Murders
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- Historic Disappearance
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- Everyone seems to be hiding something
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- Small town
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- Detective team up
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- Coastal /rural South Australia
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- Secrets
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- Lies
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- Lightbulb moment
This reviewer was again satisfied with the conclusion of this instalment of the series, however since finishing this book I have learned that the much-loved and highly sought-after Detective Sergeant Mark Ariti is having much-needed leisure time, I personally hope this doesn’t last for long.
Broken Bay has left me with a feeling of grief, loss and my enduring feelings of admiration for our hero detective.
I highly recommend this book to mature audiences, readers of the Crime Mystery Thriller genre, who I am sure already have this author and this series on their radar. The reason behind my 5-star review is that although this book is part of a series thanks to the author’s skilled writing it remained fresh, gripping and edge-of-your-seat reading, I look forward to reading The Creeper and any other titles from this author in the future.
