In 2022, Australian author Patricia Wolf introduced us to DS Lucas Walker in her debut crime novel, Outback. He’s a detective who has returned to his hometown in Northern Queensland for various reasons but being in the countryside is anything but quiet, as he discovers both in Outback and in its follow-up, Paradise. He’s in Northern Queensland again for the third in the series, Opal, which takes place deep in the state’s famous opal fields.
Previously, Lucas worked undercover fighting gang-related crime and made an enemy of Stefan Markovich, head of the Vandals Motorcycle Club. Now Markovich is on the run and Walker’s cover is blown.
Lucas is taking a road trip with Grace, his half sister from Boston, and they’re getting to know each other better. They head to the small opal mining town of Kanpara to collect their cousin Blair who’s working there but wants away. Miners are a particular breed and outsiders don’t fit in well. Tensions in the town are evident almost everywhere, tempers fray in the bar and things are made worse by the rumours of a giant opal being discovered, fuelling both jealousy and greed.
A thousand miles away the rains have come, the rivers are flooding and the deluge is gathering pace and heading toward Kanpara. Climate change is the existential issue that haunts the new wave of Australian crime fiction, with drought and wildfires often the focus. In Queensland, biblical flooding is more the issue, taking us away from the dust and desiccation of other Aussie crime settings.
Here the flood creates a claustrophobic atmosphere and it’s not long before Kanpara is cut off from the outside world. Lucas experiences for himself the violence beneath the surface in the local pub when they arrive. By the morning they can’t leave, all roads out are impassable due to the flooding and they gradually feel more isolated as events take a nasty turn.
Todd Mullins reports that he’s found his wife, Karen, and local man, Mark, dead in their family bedroom. It falls to Lucas as the policeman on the ground to open an investigation into these brutal murders. Mullins is the obvious suspect but is it that simple? Lucas just doesn’t think so. Detective Senior Sergeant Jim Stones arrives by helicopter with SOCOs and soon realises he needs Lucas’ help on the case.
One of the punters in the pub the night before pulled a knife on Mark, which is a staring point. But when Stones finds out Blair worked for Mark things shift. Blair is in the frame for the killing and Lucas has to prove his cousin is innocent. Fear and suspicion spread as there’s a killer on the loose. What Lucas doesn’t know yet is that not only is he in danger but so is Grace.
This is a claustrophobic thriller with a menacing mood that makes the most of the closed circle scenario with a killer in the midst. Climate change is woven seamlessly into the plot. The feel of the battered mining town, a febrile community and the flood pervading everything works very well. Lucas, the accidentally present policeman, is an engaging character and his sister adds to the sense of jeopardy in the story, as well as rounding out the family man.
The story is a little slow to get going but once moving the pace is strong. The mystery itself is solid, not particularly original but stylishly written and with a satisfying denouement. That said, it’s the characters and the suspense that carry the novel.
Also see Chris Hammer’s Opal Country, and read our interview with the author here.
Embla Books
Print/Kindle/iBook
£3.99
CFL Rating: 4 Stars
