Author: Matthew Spencer
Publisher: Allen & Unwin
Genre: Crime, Mystery & Thriller, Fiction
Year of Release: 2022
Release Date: 31st May 2022
Rating🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
TW Death of an animal, Death of a child.
Synopsis
A long, burning summer in Sydney. A young woman found murdered in the deserted grounds of an elite boarding school. A serial killer preying on victims along the banks of the Parramatta River. A city on edge.
Adam Bowman, a battling journalist who grew up as the son of a teacher at Prince Albert College, might be the only person who can uncover the links between the school murder and the ‘Blue Moon Killer’. But he will have to go into the darkest places of his childhood to piece together the clues. Detective Sergeant Rose Riley, meanwhile, is part of the taskforce desperately trying to find the killer before he strikes again. Adam Bowman’s excavation of his past might turn out to be Rose’s biggest trump card or it may bring the whole investigation crashing down and put her own life in danger.
Review
Sydney, Australia, a scorching day surrounding the banks of the Parramatta River an empty boarding school for boys; located in North Paramatta in Sydney’s West it’s the end of December and the school stands waiting for majority of its staff and students to return from the Christmas holidays, a few residents and staff remain at Prince Albert College. The prestigious school comes under fire when one day the body of a young woman is discovered just how she got there is not a surprise to most in the community not with BMK lurking in the shadows.
Former student at the school and now a journalist Adam Bowman might be the only one who is able to provide the missing link between the BMK and the most recent tragedy at the school, can he revisit the place where his life changed forever to help the family of the recent victim find the answers they desperately deserve or will his memories prove to much to bare allowing his story and the fresh lead the police now have on BMK to run stone cold and back out into the night to strike again?
Black River opens and the reader hits the ground running and, on the hunt the more books I read the more I appreciate a book that has a fast paced plot; I cannot remember the last time I read a book that was so descriptive whilst keeping the plot in continuous motion and at high speed at the same time; based on previous novels I’ve read in the genre some authors might take their time introducing the location to their audience first before adding more layers to the plot as the reader progresses in the book.
It’ s clear the author has done plenty of research into the world of policing and one of the reasons why Black River has become one of my favourites reads of 2022. It’s’ hard to believe that this book is author Matthew Spencer’s debut novel I’ll be adding his future works to my shelf for sure.
I was drawn to all these characters by the time I reached the end of this book, I felt like I had known them for years I would like to know more about them the characters of Adam Bowman and Rose Riley felt as if they had a lot of back stories to explore here and if the author ever felt like expanding on that this reviewer certainly wouldn’t complain.
Not being a Sydney local nor having ever visited the capital of New South Wales I will say I felt like some of the names of locations mentioned throughout this book were lost on this reader; It was not until I finished reading this novel that I discovered Gladesville was actually a suburb; in the Lower North Shore of Sydney and not a person, but having now finished this book the I realise this attention to detail was completely necessary for the plotline to work.
One of the many reasons why I loved this book was every time I thought I had another piece of the mystery solved I was thrown off course and sent back to the drawing board once again I loved the idea a book in this genre can still surprise the reader right up until the end.
A mystery Thriller that has plenty of twists to keep you reading well into the night, Black River will have you feeling like you are racing against the clock whilst sitting on the edge of your seat. An ending you won’t be able to piece together until the closing pages.
I highly recommend this book to a mature audience, fans of the crime thriller genre will be delighted to add Black River to their bookshelves, even if you’re like me and don’t read a lot of this genre you’ll be pleased you read this book. A definite Highlight highlight of 2022.
With continued thanks to Allen and Unwin for sending a physical copy of the book to read and review in exchange for my honest opinion.