Moonlight
Downs
An Emily Tempest
Mystery
Adrian Hyland
Soho Crime (Hardcover)
ISBN-10: 1-56947-483-4 (1569474834)
ISBN-13: 978-1-56947-483-9 (9781569474839)
Publication Date: February 2008
List Price: $24.00
Synopsis
(from
the publisher): Emily Tempest has been away from Australia for a long
time—university, travel, dead-end jobs. Finding trouble all
over the
world. Now she is back at Moonlight Downs, the community where she grew
up, half in the Aboriginal world, half in the white. And true to form,
she soon finds trouble.
An old friend, the leader of the Moonlight Downs mob, has been brutally
murdered and multilated. An old enemy, a renegade aboriginal sorceror,
is the obvious suspect. Then Emily starts asking questions. He may be a
loner who clings to traditional ways; he may have disagreed about
assimilation; but in her opinion, that doesn't make Blakie Japanangka a
murderer.
But if Blakie is not guilt of the crime, who is? And where does Emily
belong? Can she stay on with the friends of her childhood? Or must she
become part of the "whitefellers" world now?
Review:
Adrian Hyland's debut mystery set in the Australian Outback, Moonlight Downs,
introduces Emily Tempest, a most original and appealing amateur sleuth.
Originally published in Australia under the title Diamond
Dove, it was the winner of the 2007 Ned Kelly Award for Best First Novel.
Emily Tempest left Moonlight Downs at a young age to see the world.
Now, a bit older but not sure she is any wiser, she returns to the
community where she grew up. Moonlight Downs is little more than a
camp, a station in the wilderness, and when its leader, Lincoln
Flinders, is murdered in what appears to be ritualistic killing, the
residents quickly scatter leaving little behind. The obvious suspect is
Blakie Japanangka, an outsider with a violent temper, who promptly
disappears confirming his guilt in the eyes of the authorities. Emily
moves to the nearest town, Bluebush, from which she begins to wonder
what actually happened in Moonlight Downs. When Hazel, her best friend
from childhood and Lincoln's daughter, goes missing, Emily thinks there
may be a connection and uncovers a conspiracy that threatens the entire
region she once again calls home.
Moonlight Downs
is an
intricately plotted, at times mesmerizing, almost mystical, novel that
takes place in a part of the world few have visited, and even fewer
know anything about. Hyland's detailed descriptions of the area's
beauty and its vast expanse border on the surreal. But it is character
of Emily that is most noteworthy. Wonderfully complex and fully
developed, she initially pursues her investigation not out of any
obligation to her community, and certainly not because she was being
paid for her time and effort, but out of curiosity. Who could possibly
have wanted to kill Lincoln and why? It isn't until it becomes personal
that she's drawn much further into the case.
To be sure, this isn't the easiest book to read. The dialog and even
much of the narrative (written in first person) are replete with
Australian and Aboriginal words and slang. A glossary for both is
provided at the beginning, but it takes more than a few chapters
(which, incidentally, are oddly titled) before a rhythm can be
developed. And, though it isn't much of a mystery in terms of whodunit
or whydunit, readers will, like Emily, be drawn into searching for
answers as to what really happened in Moonlight Downs.
Special thanks to Soho Press for providing a copy of Moonlight Downs for this review.
Review Copyright © 2008 — Hidden Staircase Mystery Books — All Rights Reserved.
Mysteries in this series ...
Moonlight Downs
(Diamond Dove)
Soho Crime (Hardcover), February 2008
ISBN-10: 1-56947-483-4 (1569474834)
ISBN-13: 978-1-56947-483-9 (9781569474839)
Omnimystery keywords for Moonlight Downs ...
Location(s) referenced: Australia.