Author: Margaret Hickey
Publisher: Penguin Australia
Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Crime, Outback Noir
Year of Release: 2023
Release date: 13/06/23
Rating 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Book #2 of #3 not required to be read in order.
Synopsis
With its gold-rush history long in the past, Stone Town has seen better days. And it’s now in the headlines for all the wrong reasons . . .
When three teenagers stumble upon a body in dense bushland one rainy Friday night, Senior Sergeant Mark Ariti’s hopes for a quiet posting in his old hometown are shattered. The victim is Aidan Sleeth, a property developer, whose controversial plan to buy up local land means few are surprised he ended up dead.
However, his gruesome murder is overshadowed by a mystery consuming the entire nation- the disappearance of Detective Sergeant Natalie Whitsed.
Natalie had been investigating the celebrity wife of crime boss Tony ‘The Hook’ Scopelliti when she vanished. What did she uncover? Has it cost her life? And why are the two Homicide detectives, sent from the city to run the Sleeth case, so obsessed with Natalie’s fate?
Following a late-night call from his former boss, Mark is sure of one thing- he’s now in the middle of a deadly game . . .
Review
Investigating a body in dense bushland whilst it rains by three teenagers isn’t how Senior Sargent Mark Ariti envisaged spending his Friday night, he was rather hoping for a quiet night in after recently returned to his hometown of Booralama a small town in outback South Australia. However, it looks like a quiet posting is out of the question.
The unidentified body is that of is Aidan Sleeth local property developer not everyone in town is pleased that he had plains to buy up local land when news spreads about the discovery of his now deceased body almost no-one in town is surprised nor do they seem to be mourning his death.
Even though the murder is gruesome the nation is still in the grips of a conspiracy for missing policewoman, Detective Sergeant Natalie Whitsed. At the time of her disappearance Natalie was investigating the famous crime boss Tony ‘The Hook’ Scopelliti or more specifically Tony’s wife, questions remain for Mark and the policemen and woman left to investigate the disappearance of one of their own. What did she uncover? And has it cost Natalie Whitsed her life?
Two detectives arrive in town to assist with the investigation of the murder of Aidan Sleeth however the pair seem more interested in the Whitsed investigation.
The further Senior Sergeant Mark Ariti investigates this case the further he is to find himself in the middle of a deadly game.
This reader was quite late to this series, I had seen a lot of social media attention surrounding the previous book for Cutters End so when the time came to purchase Stone Town and Broken Bay, I was more than willing to do so.
Margaret Hickey returns with my personal favourite policeman Senior Sargent Mark Ariti whose job it is once again to get to the bottom of a gruesome murder, this time in an old gold rush town. Where land is the new gold and people will kill for it, author Margaret Hickey has once again put her skilled writing to excellent use when bringing the small-town visitors and residents to life in the mind of this reader.
As a reader I’m very rarely drawn to series especially after the first book just in case the subsequent books (A) don’t live up to the hype or (B) spend the majority of their time reminding the reader of all the things that came before. So, when I discovered Mark Ariti had returned with what I can only imagine is his rugged handsomeness and brooding masculinity, I couldn’t wait to find out what happened to him after finishing Cutters End. I wasn’t disappointed Margaret has made sure to keep developing Mark and his detailed backstory ensuring the attachment I had for this character only deepened.
If you’re looking for a slow read to pass the time Stone Town is not that book, it could completely absorb me but without giving too much of this novel away there is a period when the reader discovers someone is being held captive, it was easy for my mind to feel as if I was the one being held captive, this particular development in the story had me on the edge of my seat.
Having now read the sequel I feel it is safe to say Stone Town has turned the suspense meter to high voltage the whodunnit factor is ever-present with just the right amount of plot twists and emotion the reader feels they just must keep devouring the book at the same time not finishing this instalment far too soon.
Sub plots included in Stone Town:
- Disability representation
- Detective team up
- Small country town
- Dual timeline
- Light Bulb moment
- Police corruption-leaking information to the press
- The local cop returns home
- Single parent
- Trustworthy policeman
- Outback/Rural South Australia
Tropes include in Stone Town:
- Detective team up
- Small town
- Dual timeline
- The twist ending
- The big reveal
There are some books where although you enjoyed your time with the characters you wish them well, and you even enjoyed the location you found yourself in when reading the book, however, you’re happy that your time with the story has come to an end, Stone Town and any future Detective Sergeant Mark Ariti novels will never leave this reader feeling happy that a book has finally come to an end, I am happy with the way in which Stone Town ended but I will always want more time with this character.
I highly recommend Stone Town to a mature audience readers of the Mystery Thriller genre should investigate this series by Margaret Hickey and anything else the author writes, as soon as possible! She has become an auto-buy author for this reader reviewer. The reason behind my 5-star rating I was able to not only connect with Mark further but I also felt like the story had the ability to truly shock this reader even now long after the book has been closed.