Old loyalties and decades-long feuds rise to the surface in this stunning crime novel, set in a spectacular Australian landscape known for its jagged cliffs and hidden caves.Detective Sergeant Mark Ariti has taken a few days' holiday in Broken Bay at precisely the wrong time. The small fishing town on South Australia's Limestone Coast is now the scene of a terrible tragedy.Renowned cave diver Mya Rennik has drowned while exploring a sinkhole on the land of wealthy farmer Frank Doyle. As the press descends, Mark's boss orders him to stay put and assist the police operation.But when they retrieve Mya's body, a whole new mystery is opened up, around the disappearance of a young local woman twenty years before . . .Suddenly Mark is diving deep into the town's history - and in particular the simmering rivalry between its two most prominent families, the Doyles and Sinclairs.Then a murder takes place at the Sinclairs' old home – and Mark is left...

'Past and the present collide to create a gripping tale of murder and intrigue.' Chris HammerA desert highway. A remote town. A murder that won't stay hidden.New Year's Eve, 1989. Eighteen-year-old Ingrid Mathers is hitchhiking her way to Alice Springs. Bored, hungover and separated from her friend Joanne, she accepts a lift to the remote town of Cutters End.July 2021. Detective Sergeant Mark Ariti is seconded to a recently reopened case, one in which he has a personal connection. Three decades ago, a burnt and broken body was discovered in scrub off the Stuart Highway, 300km south of Cutters End. Though ultimately ruled an accidental death, many people - including a high-profile celebrity - are convinced it was murder.When Mark's interviews with the witnesses in the old case files go nowhere, he has no choice but to make the long journey up the highway to Cutters End.And with the help of local Senior Constable Jagdeep Kaur, he soon...

Funny, heartbreaking and true; the characters in Rural Dreams are the people we know and grew up with. Some of them might even be us.A girl finds strength in poetry, a football coach ponders obsession, a woman grapples with the fall out of an affair and a mother can't and won't stop swearing. In 'Binky', the character asks, 'who gets the farm?' and in 'Rescue', a backpacker is pulled out of a crocodile swamp. Written through the lens of landscape, Rural Dreams highlights the richness of life on the land and showcases the beauty of lives lived outside city walls.'Rural Australia is a dangerously neglected part of our national consciousness — Margaret Hickey populates it with stories that are lively, entertaining and authentic.' — Martin Flanagan