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3.69 AVERAGE
3.69 AVERAGE
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I love a good crime thriller set in country Australia. I am falling in love with this genre every day because of how the authors present the whole setting in such a beautiful manner.
The Way It Is Now involves a pattern of investigations with police involvement. Charlie is obsessed with the fact that twenty years ago, his mother Rose vanished without a trace. His father was always the suspect, a member of the Memlo Beach crowd of policemen then were different. He tries to solve the mystery, while along the way loses his marriage due to his constant obsession.
Charlie is on forced leave due to a complex case he was dealing with. Using this time, he goes through everything that went through his mother’s life decades ago. When two bodies are found closer to where his mum lived, Charlie starts to question his own way of interrogation.
What I loved the most about this book is that, while reading, I didn’t suspect anyone and I suspected everyone. The plot was slow but interesting and presented facts along the way. As always I get a bit distracted with too many characters in such books and this was no exception. Also, I felt that the ending was a bit abrupt and I had to turn the pages to see whether there is more.
An interesting thriller that will hook you into it from the beginning.
The Way It Is Now involves a pattern of investigations with police involvement. Charlie is obsessed with the fact that twenty years ago, his mother Rose vanished without a trace. His father was always the suspect, a member of the Memlo Beach crowd of policemen then were different. He tries to solve the mystery, while along the way loses his marriage due to his constant obsession.
Charlie is on forced leave due to a complex case he was dealing with. Using this time, he goes through everything that went through his mother’s life decades ago. When two bodies are found closer to where his mum lived, Charlie starts to question his own way of interrogation.
What I loved the most about this book is that, while reading, I didn’t suspect anyone and I suspected everyone. The plot was slow but interesting and presented facts along the way. As always I get a bit distracted with too many characters in such books and this was no exception. Also, I felt that the ending was a bit abrupt and I had to turn the pages to see whether there is more.
An interesting thriller that will hook you into it from the beginning.
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Bit pants that the main protagonist had mild tunnel vision for most of the book, but it was pacy and neatly done. Unlike some reviewers, I found that the setting, Dec-Feb 2020, as covid started to rear its head, was well done, accurate, and added to the sense of tension. It happened- can't deny it!
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This is Garry Disher at his best. I don’t always like his books that are part of series, but I loved this stand-alone novel. Set on the peninsula south of Melbourne and set in the present, but referring to events of the past. Great story which keeps you guessing and excellent character development.
adventurous
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
The following book reviews have been shared by Text Publishing – publisher of The Way it is Now
'A new crime novel from the prolific old master is always a treat, and this one is no different. The past intrudes into the present as Charlie Deravin, banished from his job in the police sex-crimes unit, still puzzles over his mother’s disappearance 20 years earlier that had his father fingered as a possible murderer. You will be intrigued, very intrigued.’
SMH/Age
'Ned Kelly Award winner Garry Disher has been producing high quality Australian crime novels for over 30 years and his latest, The Way It Is Now, is another terrific read…A well written and gripping mystery.’
Canberra Weekly
‘Garry Disher is arguably Australia’s greatest living crime writer.’
Canberra Times
‘Take this to the beach when you can – and don’t leave it unattended.’
Readings
'Plenty for readers to sink their teeth into…more evocative, topical and well-constructed than most crime fiction out there.’
Robert Goodman, Pile by the Bed
'This is another assured and modest crime novel by Australian grandmaster Garry Disher, whose books are so enjoyable precisely because they lack even the slightest glimmer or pretension. In a genre that increasingly demands a killer hook boiled down to a single sentence, Disher’s focus is on character, and scalpel-sharp dissections of his selected themes.’
Simon McDonald
‘Disher’s output is soaked in quality: crisp prose, fascinating characters, rich settings. Maybe his quiet, unflashy nature and consistent excellence mean he gets a little overlooked in some quarters, but those cognisant of the global boom of Australian crime writing know he is a giant on whose shoulders many of the hottest new stars are standing.’
NZ Listener
‘The prolific master of Australian rural noir returns to his home turf...a subtle, slow-burning standalone mystery.’
West Australian
'Examining the insular culture of the police force has been another staple of Disher’s fiction, and it is deployed here to great effect...Each summer I see people lying by public swimming pools, or in the sand on beaches, sometimes along the Mornington Peninsula, reading crime fiction. Readers often tell me they enjoy the genre as ‘light relief’, a puzzling response considering the endlessly macabre ways that crime fiction writers concoct new ways to torture, murder, and dismember characters. A Garry Disher novel is never an exercise in light reading. He respects the genre and his readers. His novels can also disturb a reader, for his characters are quite ordinary people, in the best sense. They are men and women like you and me – characters capable of good and bad, courage and murder.’
Tony Birch, Australian Book Review
‘Lyrical and haunting…Read The Way It Is Now for its big heart and the way in which it lyrically captures a moment in time.’
Age/SMH
'Disher is, as always, a deft and compelling crime novelist, and he has crafted a provocative whodunnit that is grounded firmly in the current moment.’
Guardian
'This is a story with a slo-mo climax that is both funny and terrifying.’
Jane Sullivan, Age/SMH
'The best of Australian crime [in 2021] was definitely Garry Disher's The Way It Is Now, cleverly combining a tragic cold case with social commentary.’
Canberra Times
‘Once again, Disher nails place, the atmosphere of a changing area and the tension and frustration of continuing a private investigation without resources. This book confirms just what a rare writer Disher is.’
Barry Reynolds, Herald Sun
'Disher's crime writing is a masterclass in that understated, underwritten, exploration of the every day. Of what people pushed to the edges of tolerances will, can and won't do. He writes determination and dedication just as well as he writes evil and dalliance. He writes bitter and twisted as well as he writes hope and longing. His books are mesmerising, extremely readable, and atmospheric, and he's as assured in the settings of beach, surf and Peninsula as in THE WAY IT IS NOW, as he is in the hot, dry dust of the farming regions of the Mallee and beyond.’
AustCrimeFiction
'Intriguing...a whydunnit more than a whodunnit; the motivation for the main crime is at the heart of the matter.’
ArtsHub
’The Way It Is Now will have you, as it did me, guessing until the very end of this superbly written and quintessentially Australian story. I highly recommend this book for an absorbing and mesmerising holiday read.’
She Society
‘This is storytelling at its best...Another sophisticated and compelling offer from an author at the peak of his powers.’
Good Reading
‘Disher's novel is a compelling noir whodunnit examining contemporary Australia, its semi-rural life and attitudes. Provocative and deftly written, the pages almost turn themselves.’
2022 Margaret and Colin Roderick Literary Award judge’s comments
‘Garry Disher knows how to spin a great story. This terrific tale…confirms the impression that some of the best crime fiction today is Antipodean.’
Independent (Ireland)
‘This was a crime novel that I was unable to put down…Highly recommended for lovers of quality Australian crime.’
SAETA
'A new crime novel from the prolific old master is always a treat, and this one is no different. The past intrudes into the present as Charlie Deravin, banished from his job in the police sex-crimes unit, still puzzles over his mother’s disappearance 20 years earlier that had his father fingered as a possible murderer. You will be intrigued, very intrigued.’
SMH/Age
'Ned Kelly Award winner Garry Disher has been producing high quality Australian crime novels for over 30 years and his latest, The Way It Is Now, is another terrific read…A well written and gripping mystery.’
Canberra Weekly
‘Garry Disher is arguably Australia’s greatest living crime writer.’
Canberra Times
‘Take this to the beach when you can – and don’t leave it unattended.’
Readings
'Plenty for readers to sink their teeth into…more evocative, topical and well-constructed than most crime fiction out there.’
Robert Goodman, Pile by the Bed
'This is another assured and modest crime novel by Australian grandmaster Garry Disher, whose books are so enjoyable precisely because they lack even the slightest glimmer or pretension. In a genre that increasingly demands a killer hook boiled down to a single sentence, Disher’s focus is on character, and scalpel-sharp dissections of his selected themes.’
Simon McDonald
‘Disher’s output is soaked in quality: crisp prose, fascinating characters, rich settings. Maybe his quiet, unflashy nature and consistent excellence mean he gets a little overlooked in some quarters, but those cognisant of the global boom of Australian crime writing know he is a giant on whose shoulders many of the hottest new stars are standing.’
NZ Listener
‘The prolific master of Australian rural noir returns to his home turf...a subtle, slow-burning standalone mystery.’
West Australian
'Examining the insular culture of the police force has been another staple of Disher’s fiction, and it is deployed here to great effect...Each summer I see people lying by public swimming pools, or in the sand on beaches, sometimes along the Mornington Peninsula, reading crime fiction. Readers often tell me they enjoy the genre as ‘light relief’, a puzzling response considering the endlessly macabre ways that crime fiction writers concoct new ways to torture, murder, and dismember characters. A Garry Disher novel is never an exercise in light reading. He respects the genre and his readers. His novels can also disturb a reader, for his characters are quite ordinary people, in the best sense. They are men and women like you and me – characters capable of good and bad, courage and murder.’
Tony Birch, Australian Book Review
‘Lyrical and haunting…Read The Way It Is Now for its big heart and the way in which it lyrically captures a moment in time.’
Age/SMH
'Disher is, as always, a deft and compelling crime novelist, and he has crafted a provocative whodunnit that is grounded firmly in the current moment.’
Guardian
'This is a story with a slo-mo climax that is both funny and terrifying.’
Jane Sullivan, Age/SMH
'The best of Australian crime [in 2021] was definitely Garry Disher's The Way It Is Now, cleverly combining a tragic cold case with social commentary.’
Canberra Times
‘Once again, Disher nails place, the atmosphere of a changing area and the tension and frustration of continuing a private investigation without resources. This book confirms just what a rare writer Disher is.’
Barry Reynolds, Herald Sun
'Disher's crime writing is a masterclass in that understated, underwritten, exploration of the every day. Of what people pushed to the edges of tolerances will, can and won't do. He writes determination and dedication just as well as he writes evil and dalliance. He writes bitter and twisted as well as he writes hope and longing. His books are mesmerising, extremely readable, and atmospheric, and he's as assured in the settings of beach, surf and Peninsula as in THE WAY IT IS NOW, as he is in the hot, dry dust of the farming regions of the Mallee and beyond.’
AustCrimeFiction
'Intriguing...a whydunnit more than a whodunnit; the motivation for the main crime is at the heart of the matter.’
ArtsHub
’The Way It Is Now will have you, as it did me, guessing until the very end of this superbly written and quintessentially Australian story. I highly recommend this book for an absorbing and mesmerising holiday read.’
She Society
‘This is storytelling at its best...Another sophisticated and compelling offer from an author at the peak of his powers.’
Good Reading
‘Disher's novel is a compelling noir whodunnit examining contemporary Australia, its semi-rural life and attitudes. Provocative and deftly written, the pages almost turn themselves.’
2022 Margaret and Colin Roderick Literary Award judge’s comments
‘Garry Disher knows how to spin a great story. This terrific tale…confirms the impression that some of the best crime fiction today is Antipodean.’
Independent (Ireland)
‘This was a crime novel that I was unable to put down…Highly recommended for lovers of quality Australian crime.’
SAETA
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes