jgwc54e5's review against another edition
3.0
This is a fast paced, twisty thriller about a missing girl in suburban Melbourne. Enclosed between the back fences of two rows of houses is a kind of nature reserve known as Wild Place to the locals. The house of the missing girl backs on to one side and Tom Witter’s, a local teacher and family man backs on to the other. The story is set between Christmas 1989 and New Year, and there’s plenty of references to music and other cultural references of the time, in particular an irrational fear of satanic cults. The local goth kid who listens to lots of heavy metal becomes a natural suspect for all the neighbourhood watch types.
While I found this an enjoyable and easy read, I don’t think it’s as good as his first two books. I’m not sure why, it just didn’t surprise me and I found the ending unsatisfying.
While I found this an enjoyable and easy read, I don’t think it’s as good as his first two books. I’m not sure why, it just didn’t surprise me and I found the ending unsatisfying.
Spoiler
The police work was atrocious. The detective, Sharon goes everywhere by herself. I was upset by the death of Sean, which was probably caused by Sharon turning up alone. That could’ve been done a lot better.kmreader's review against another edition
3.0
This took me about half the book to actually start to enjoy the book but in the end I did
stephanie_frankcombe's review
dark
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.5
kimswhims's review
3.0
About the standard that I'm used to now after reading three of Christian White's crime fiction.
It might have been quicker to read it from the page but the narration was quite good.
As with any crime fiction it's important to me not to pick the culprit and the motivation and this one did have me guessing. It's also set in the period between Christmas and New Years 1990, so there's an element of nostalgia.
It might have been quicker to read it from the page but the narration was quite good.
As with any crime fiction it's important to me not to pick the culprit and the motivation and this one did have me guessing. It's also set in the period between Christmas and New Years 1990, so there's an element of nostalgia.
sarah12's review
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
becsbookshelf's review
3.0
“Why do good people do bad things?”
In the quiet suburb of Camp Hill a local teen goes missing. The town leaves no stone unturned to find Tracie and slowly secrets start to be uncovered. Rumours of Satanic rituals has teacher Tom Witter convinced he knows what happened to Tracie, but the police won’t listen so he takes matters into his own hands.
Slowly they begin to piece together Tracie’s last moment and the more that’s uncovered the less people really knew her. A man hunt begins when a troubled teen who is made a person of interest also disappears. Everyone’s a suspect.
I definitely didn’t pick the ending until it was uncovered. This was a slow burn compared to White’s other novels yet still as enjoyable. The nowhere child will remain on the leader board. You can never really trust anyone or underestimate how far someone will go to protect their family.
In the quiet suburb of Camp Hill a local teen goes missing. The town leaves no stone unturned to find Tracie and slowly secrets start to be uncovered. Rumours of Satanic rituals has teacher Tom Witter convinced he knows what happened to Tracie, but the police won’t listen so he takes matters into his own hands.
Slowly they begin to piece together Tracie’s last moment and the more that’s uncovered the less people really knew her. A man hunt begins when a troubled teen who is made a person of interest also disappears. Everyone’s a suspect.
I definitely didn’t pick the ending until it was uncovered. This was a slow burn compared to White’s other novels yet still as enjoyable. The nowhere child will remain on the leader board. You can never really trust anyone or underestimate how far someone will go to protect their family.
kruu_dao's review
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0