A review by ljm57
The Torrent by Dinuka McKenzie

4.0

Aussie crime story which refreshingly isn’t set in the dry, parched outback but in the northern rivers region of NSW. I enjoyed the characters in this, especially the lead investigator, Detective Sergeant Kate Miles, who also breaks the mould of the typical cop stereotype in that she has a happy, loving family life. Although, she does have enough background to make her an interesting character - she is deep into her third trimester of pregnancy and is about to finish up to take maternity leave; she is of mixed race, father Australian, mother Sri Lankan; of course, she’s a woman in a man’s world; and, her father was the previous chief inspector in her town and he has a few shadowy secrets in his past. The last case in her final week at work involves finding the culprits in a violent hold-up at a fast-food restaurant which has left the daughter of a prominent local citizen severely beaten and stabbed. But then, she is handed a file about a cold case in which a popular local sportsman tragically drowned in recent floods. Asked to run her eyes over what was ruled as an accidental death in an effort to appease disgruntled relatives, Kate’s determined digging throws up a few unanswered questions.