New Zealand crime fiction

Carved in Blood by Michael Bennett

22 April, 2025

Carved in Blood is the third book in the Hana Westerman series by Kiwi screenwriter Michael Bennett. As with Better the Blood and Return to Blood, the novel explores the Māori experience and culture in present day New Zealand through crime fiction as Westerman is…

Features

Under southern skies: 13 fresh, exciting antipodean crime writers to try

By crimefictionlover

17 June, 2024

Today we’re joined by Craig Sisterson, CWA Daggers judge and editor of Dark Deeds Down Under 2, a fascinating new anthology of Australian and New Zealand crime and thriller stories. Craig’s HRF Keating Award-shortlisted guidebook, Southern Cross Crime, shone a light on the treasure trove of modern…

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Dark Deeds Down Under 2 edited by Craig Sisterson

By Sonja van der Westhuizen

14 May, 2024

In rugby, Australia and New Zealand are sworn enemies. Off the pitch, they have more in common than they care to admit, whether it’s their shared landscapes, culture, troubled histories or love of the great outdoors. When it comes to crime fiction tastes are similar…

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Return to Blood by Michael Bennett

By Sonja van der Westhuizen

7 May, 2024

In his debut novel, Better the Blood, New Zealand crime author Michael Bennett explored the wounds and after effects of colonialism and picked up the Ngaio Marsh Award for Best First Novel. In this sequel, Hana Westerman, a Māori detective in the Auckland Crime Investigation…

Features

The Gone: Kiwi/Irish crime show comes to BBC Four

By crimefictionlover

11 March, 2024

While the Irish broadcaster RTÉ may not have the resources of the BBC or HBO, it has canny knack for collaborating with producers in other countries to jointly invest in high-quality crime shows. Hidden Assets was surprisingly good, given the unlikely linkup between an Irish…

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Paper Cage by Tom Baragwanath

By Sonja van der Westhuizen

29 February, 2024

There’s truth to the adage write what you know. New Zealand author Tom Baragwanath follows this advice by setting his debut novel in Masterton, where he’s from, resulting in a strong and authentic sense of place. On the other end of the spectrum, he defies…

Kindle Print Reviews

The Pain Tourist by Paul Cleave

By Vicki Weisfeld

22 November, 2022

Taut. Twisty. Propulsive. You can trot out all the cliches regularly used to describe thriller fiction and use them with abandon for Paul Cleave’s new police procedural, The Pain Tourist. In Christchurch, New Zealand, a serial killer named Joe Middleton was caught but somehow escaped…

iBook Kindle Print Reviews

Better The Blood by Michael Bennett

By RoughJustice

31 August, 2022

Better the Blood begins with a prologue set 150 years ago depicting a violent act of colonisation. Six soldiers are celebrating the capture and killing of a Maori chief by having their picture taken alongside his hanging corpse. The picture serves as inspiration for the…

Crime Fiction Lover

Carved in Blood by Michael Bennett

Under southern skies: 13 fresh, exciting antipodean crime writers to try

Dark Deeds Down Under 2 edited by Craig Sisterson

Return to Blood by Michael Bennett

The Gone: Kiwi/Irish crime show comes to BBC Four

Paper Cage by Tom Baragwanath

The Pain Tourist by Paul Cleave

Better The Blood by Michael Bennett

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