Blackwattle Creek

Charlie Berlin #2

by Geoffrey McGeachin

From the winner of the 2011 Ned Kelly Award for Best Crime Novel comes a cracking new Charlie Berlin mystery

It's September 1957, two days before the VFL grand final, and Detective Sergeant Charlie Berlin, former bomber pilot and ex-POW, finally has some time off. But there's no rest for Charlie, a decent but damaged man still troubled by his wartime experiences. A recently widowed friend asks a favour and he's dropped into something a hell of a lot bigger than he bargained for when he discovers a Melbourne funeral parlour has been burying bodies with parts missing. A Hungarian émigré hearse driver points Berlin in the right direction but it quickly becomes obvious anyone asking the wrong questions is in real danger.

With his offsider beaten and left for dead, witnesses warned off, Special Branch on his case, and people he doesn't know watching his every move, Berlin realises even his young family may be in danger.

His pursuit of the truth leads him to Blackwattle Creek, once an asylum for the criminally insane and now a foreboding home to even darker evils. And if Berlin thought government machinations during World War II were devious, those of the Cold War leave them for dead.

Richly evocative of the period , Blackwattle Creek is a rattling good tale with a dry wit and a sobering core.

Genres: Crime, Mystery, Australia, Historical, Historical Fiction, Audiobook, Detective

282 pages, Paperback

First published July 27, 2012

About the author

After a career as a world-travelling photographer and then photo-educator, Melbourne born Geoffrey McGeachin eventually settled in Sydney’s Bondi Beach where he decided one day to sit down and see if he had a book in him.

His first novel, the award winning Fat, Fifty and Fu*ked! (definitely not an autobiography) was published by Penguin and followed by three tongue-in-check spy novels featuring photographer/secret agent Alby Murdoch: D-E-D Dead, Sensitive New Age Spy, and Dead & Kicking.

In 2010 Geoffrey wrote the first of the Charlie Berlin trilogy, The Diggers Rest Hotel; followed by Blackwattle Creek and St Kilda Blues. The series, set in 1947, 1957 and 1967, earned him two prestigious Ned Kelly Awards (2011 and 2013) for Best Australian Crime Fiction.

In 2023 Clan Destine republished Fat, Fifty and Fu*ked!, praised by iconic author Kerri Greenwood as, ‘hilariously funny,’ adding, ‘this wonderful book . . . is a hymn of joyful praise for this Big, Brown Land. If you love Australia as it actually is, warts and all, then you will love this book.’

In 2025 McGeachin’s laconic larrikin photographer/spy Alby Murdoch is back in action with Clan Destine’s republication of D-E-D Dead, Sensitive New Age Spy, and Dead & Kicking.

Geoffrey now lives on the gorgeous NSW central coast.

Reviews

[Phrynne · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am giving this one star less than I gave The Diggers Rest Hotel because I did not enjoy it quite so much. Despite the number of people who died in horrible ways the book was actually rather slow and plodding, and the references to post war Australiana became a little overdone. However I still enjoyed Charlie and Rebecca and their little family and the story was interesting. And I will read the third in the series in due course.

[Brenda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Detective Sergeant Charlie Berlin had been feeling battered by life – a bomber pilot in the war who had lost his whole crew and miraculously survived to become a POW – but now it was 1957, he was married to a wonderful woman Rebecca, who had literally saved him, who understood him; he had two beautiful children Peter and Sarah and the VFL Grand Final was to be played in a couple of days with his team a good chance to win the flag. Plus his boss had just given him a week’s leave..

When Rebecca asked him to visit a friend of hers who had just buried her husband, he went willingly – but had no idea this innocent request of Rebecca’s would put his life, and the lives of others around him, at great risk – even the risk of death. As Charlie’s quiet investigation took him deeper into a mystery he couldn’t understand, he eventually found himself at a place called Blackwattle Creek – when he discovered it was a mental asylum for the criminally insane run by a Dr Jessop, his unerringly accurate instinct told him there was more to this place than showed on the surface.

As the danger escalated, Charlie realized he was up against a force much higher than any he had faced before. Would he be able to solve the baffling mystery, find some answers and stop the horrors continuing?

I really enjoyed this light mystery. Charlie Berlin is an enigmatic character, a stickler for what is right, and won’t take crap from anyone. His family is his life, and he would do anything for them, so heaven help the person who attempted to hurt even their dog Pip. This is my second by Geoffrey McGeachin, with me having read #3 first. Definitely recommended.

[Jenny · Rating 5 out of 5]

Blackwattle Creek is book 2 of the Charlie Berlin series by Geoffrey McGeeachin. Detective Sergeant Charlie Berlin was looking forward to some time off with his family. However, Detective Sergeant Charlie Berlin did not achieve his wish of a break due to a friend asking him to look into the going on in a local funeral home and got more than he bargains for with the investigation. The readers of Blackwattle Creek will continue to follow Detective Sergeant Charlie Berlin investigation into the funeral home.

Blackwattle Creek was the second book I have read of Geoffrey McGeachin, and I like his writing style and the way he describes his settings and plots. I love Geoffrey McGeaching portrayal of his characters and the way they intertwine with each other throughout Blackwattle Creek.

The readers of Blackwattle Creek will learn about living in Melbourne in 1957. Also, readers of Blackwattle Creek will understand the problems members of the armed forces have who were a prisoner of war during World War 11.

I recommend this book

[Marianne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Blackwattle Creek is the second Charlie Berlin Mystery by Australian author, Geoffrey McGeachin. It is some ten years after the events of The Diggers Rest Hotel, and Detective Sergeant Charlie Berlin, while still a misfit, is now very happily married to the smart and beautiful Rebecca, and father of two: he has only rare flashbacks to the war, even if he still holds quite a bit of anger inside him. On a ten-day enforced break from work, he looks into an irregularity in an ex-soldier’s funeral, at Rebecca’s request. But things don’t add up, people are telling him lies, and when Senior Constable Rob Roberts does some research as a favour, a severe beating lands the young man in the hospital.

Berlin’s investigations lead him from a funeral parlour to Blackwattle Creek, an asylum for the criminally insane, to a St Kilda café, to the library and even to a brothel. Disturbingly, people who talk to him seem to suffer intimidation, injury and worse. Just who is watching him from the dark green Ford Zephyr? What have Special Branch got to do with it all? An arson attack at his home has Berlin fearing for his family, and what he eventually discovers is so shocking, he breaks his ten-year sobriety AND resorts to violence.

Once again, McGeachin gives the reader an excellent plot with the odd red herring, a slow reveal of the facts and an exciting climax. Charlie is, of course, restricted by having only basic resources like index cards and the library: computers, the internet and mobile phones are all far into the future. McGeachin expertly captures the feel of late 1950s Melbourne and the moods and attitudes of the people; his characters are believable and their dialogue is natural. Berlin is a character with depth and appeal, so readers will be pleased to know that he appears in at least one further book, St Kilda Blues. Excellent crime fiction.

[Dale Harcombe · Rating 3 out of 5]

This novel opens in September 1957, two days before the VFL grand final. Detective Sergeant Charlie Berlin has time off but when he is asked to check into events concerning a widowed friend, he finds more than he bargained for. I liked the way Melbourne of the time and its attitudes towards football but also towards other nationalities is portrayed. While not politically correct to use some of the derogatory terms for those from other countries these days, I have no doubt it is reflective of attitudes of the times. Anyone who remembers the 1950s will appreciate some of the small titbits like the Holden with venetian blinds in the back window, and jam jars that then were then washed out and used as drinking glasses and other small pieces of information that set the scenes of the times.
I liked Charlie Berlin as a character, his love for his wife and family but also the way the past and his World War 2 experience as a bomber pilot and POW haunts him. One thing that absolutely jarred was when the author mentions the 1957 grand final. The author mentions Barassi playing for Melbourne. No problem there, but when he mentions ‘Hird on the paddock’ for Essendon, alarm bells started ringing for this footy supporter. There was no Hird playing then. If the author is going to use facts and factual events, then they need to be right. Maybe he meant Birt? An elementary mistake that should have been picked up. It made me wonder then how many other supposed facts were wrong
I’m not a big crime reader and I found some of it a bit graphic. Neither was I convinced about the ending. So while I enjoyed aspects of the novel and it kept my interest, I don’t think I will rush to read any more crime novels by this author. But if you like crime novels and a complex main character you may appreciate it more than I did.

[Jülie ☼♄  · Rating 4 out of 5]

Blackwattle Creek by Geoffrey McGeachin

In this second book of the Charlie Berlin series we are once again taken on a well constructed, page turning investigation as Detective Sergeant Charlie Berlin's holiday plans are interrupted when his now wife, Rebecca, asks a favour of him out of her concern for a friend.

The story takes place in Melbourne in 1957 and Charlie is now happily married to the woman he met in a previous case, Photographer Journalist Rebecca Green.
Married life seems to agree with Charlie and although he still struggles with the demons of his time in the war, he has found a healing comfort and a measure of solace with domestic life and his young family.
They now have two young children and whist things are tight and money is short, they have settled fairly comfortably into suburban life.

DS Berlin finds that his tentative enquiries into the cause of a grieving widow's verbal outburst, directed at the funeral director during the funeral of her late husband, has unwittingly shed an unwelcome light on some very shady and covert activities involving the Funeral Director.
Now Charlie suddenly finds himself deeply embroiled in a very dangerous and complex set of circumstances that put himself and his loved ones in very real danger.

Full of intrigue and suspense, the story is woven in such a way as to have you all the time second guessing what is really going on.

This is another great detective story from Geoffrey McGeachin that doesn't disappoint, and just long enough to promote page turning intrigue without overcooking the plot.
I look forward to reading his next book in this series.
A well deserved 4★s

[Carolyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Charlie Berlin, ex WWII pilot, is happily married with two kids and is a Detective Sergeant in Melbourne. Honest and uncorruptable he is not well liked by his superiors and is given the jobs no one else wants. Life is mostly peaceful as the country recovers from war and ex-servicemen settle back back into regular society but there are anti-communist rumblings from the cold war reaching Australian shores and Eastern European settlers find themselves under suspicion. Charlie is all set to enjoy a well earned week’s leave when a recently widowed friend asks him to look into an irregularity to do with her husband’s corpse. This leads Charlie to discover a sinister, complex plot and life becomes very dangerous indeed.

This is the second book in the Charlie Berlin series, following on from The Diggers Rest Hotel where Charlie first met his wife. The author has written a fast paced mystery with sinister undertones that keeps us guessing for most of the novel. The period detail is good and recalls a simpler Australia where families sat around the radio to listen to the football grand final and a bag of lollies from the corner shop was the highlight of kid’s week. Looking forward to reading more in this series.

[Marianne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Blackwattle Creek is the second Charlie Berlin Mystery by Australian author, Geoffrey McGeachin. The audio version is read by Peter Hosking. It is some ten years after the events of The Diggers Rest Hotel, and Detective Sergeant Charlie Berlin, while still a misfit, is now very happily married to the smart and beautiful Rebecca, and father of two: he has only rare flashbacks to the war, even if he still holds quite a bit of anger inside him. On a ten-day enforced break from work, he looks into an irregularity in an ex-soldier’s funeral, at Rebecca’s request. But things don’t add up, people are telling him lies, and when Senior Constable Rob Roberts does some research as a favour, a severe beating lands the young man in the hospital.

Berlin’s investigations lead him from a funeral parlour to Blackwattle Creek, an asylum for the criminally insane, to a St Kilda café, to the library and even to a brothel. Disturbingly, people who talk to him seem to suffer intimidation, injury and worse. Just who is watching him from the dark green Ford Zephyr? What have Special Branch got to do with it all? An arson attack at his home has Berlin fearing for his family, and what he eventually discovers is so shocking, he breaks his ten-year sobriety AND resorts to violence.

Once again, McGeachin gives the reader an excellent plot with the odd red herring, a slow reveal of the facts and an exciting climax. Charlie is, of course, restricted by having only basic resources like index cards and the library: computers, the internet and mobile phones are all far into the future. McGeachin expertly captures the feel of late 1950s Melbourne and the moods and attitudes of the people; his characters are believable and their dialogue is natural. Berlin is a character with depth and appeal, so readers will be pleased to know that he appears in at least one further book, St Kilda Blues. Excellent crime fiction.

[MaryG2E · Rating 4 out of 5]

I greatly enjoyed McGeachin's earlier Charlie Berlin mystery, The Diggers Rest Hotel, but this new book, the second in the Charlie Berlin series, is a far superior piece of writing. I'm a sucker for a good conspiracy theory, and the one at the core of Black Wattle Creek is a doozy!

For readers who have not met Charlie Berlin previously, his back story is explained little by little throughout the narrative. It is a helpful refresher for those of us who've read the earlier book. We learn, or are reminded, that Charlie is a survivor of all sorts of horrors, first as an ace WW2 pilot flying missions over Europe, then as a POW in a German prisoner camp. Like so many returned servicemen living with their demons, Charlie does daily mental battle with past memories of the truly terrible sights and experiences he endured. In today's terms he would be classified as suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Returning to his old job as a policeman, Detective Sergeant Berlin finds refuge and peace in the bosom of his young family, and in particular in the remarkable, compassionate, intuitive woman he married, Rebecca Green.

A seemingly simple request to look into an issue while on a week's leave from work launches Charlie into a dark, mysterious world of intrigue and wrong-doing, and before long the bodies start to pile up. That this secret stretches all the way to the heart of government becomes quickly apparent, as senior officers warn Charlie off. His visit to the former insane asylum at Black Wattle Creek provides evidence that the dirty deeds being performed there in the name of The Greater Good are profoundly evil.

The time of this story is 1957, when the Cold War against the Soviet Union is beginning to peak. Governments in many parts of the world undertake all sorts of strange covert operations, supposedly to protect their civilian populations. Scientists become involved, and thus implicated in the secret activities of spies and wrong-doers.

We eventually learn that the conspiracy of silence has closed around a nuclear test in the Australian outback that apparently went wrong, resulting in civilian deaths, and that a major cover-up is in place. As Charlie peels back the layers of the mystery, like onion skins, we learn that the truth is far more sinister.

I was reminded of the British nuclear tests carried out in the Australian outback, with the full co-operation and encouragement of the Menzies government of the time. Although it has never been proven definitively, it is widely accepted now that the scientists and government overseers were negligent, possibly deliberately so, in not ensuring that all Aboriginal people living in the vicinity of the fall-out zones were removed to safety. So McGeachin's fictional story carries a certain weight of credibility about it which impressed me. Very courageous of him to tackle such a terrible story in a masterful way.

This is a good read, which left me full of deep thoughts about the truths our governments supposedly tell us. Hmm, what might they be covering up, for the sake of the so-called "Greater Good"??? 4 &39733

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

I did have moments in this where I wondered where is this going? but on the whole I thoroughly enjoyed it. It is a quite dark story and not for those who like their detective stories to be neatly tied up at the end nor for those who like the good guys to be clearly in charge. Not everyone is going to like the hero but I think Geoffrey McGeachin does a great job of explaining exactly how Charlie Berlin has developed into the character he is, what his ethical boundaries are and why, and how they apply to the situation he is in. And I think the explanations are consistent and convincing which means that that I didn't get jarring spots where I thought that just wouldn't have happened that way.

The characterisation of men with post war Post Traumatic Stress Disorder is flawless as is that of the women who live with them. Also the abuses of power in Australia in the 50s and the gendered nature of society are brought to life very well. The 50s seem well brought to life. I wasn't around then but many things (like kapok pillows) were still around in my childhood and I had many oh yeah moments such as remembering smaller roads being sealed, kerbed and guttered in our suburb. Actually sometimes these things actually got in the way of the story so maybe a bit less description would have been useful at times.

As this is the second of a series I'll definitely read more of the series and look forward to the development of this writer.

[FrenzieMcKenzie · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Diggers Rest Hotel
Black Wattle Creek
St Kilda Blues

I feel a little stunned after reading the three current Charlie Berlin novels one after the other.

They were all fantastic books, very well written, each book darker than the previous one. I live in Melbourne, and it was great to have local scenes lovingly described. There is a cast of well fleshed out secondary characters.

But it was Rebecca talking to her husband who summed up these books for me when she said "And if there's one thing we both know about you, Detective Sergeant Berlin, it's that if you don't do the right thing you'll be hell to live with."

Charlie is a good guy. In all the most positive meanings of good.

I hope there are more in the series, but I have to read something light for a little while now.

[Angela Savage · Rating 5 out of 5]

There's an embarrassment of riches on my reading pile at the moment, but when Geoffrey McGeachin's new novel Blackwattle Creek arrived in the mail, it went straight to the top. I had to know what had happened to Charlie Berlin, the damaged hero of McGeachin's 2011 Ned Kelly Award winner The Diggers Rest Hotel since I'd last left him on the outskirts of Albury in 1947.

Reading McGeachin's new novel was like being reunited with an old friend. Within moments I was reminded of what I love about this author's work: his wit and warmth; his capacity to create complex, often endearing characters; and his talent for a cracking good yarn.

It's 10 years later and Charlie has married Rebecca, the spunky ex-WRAAF photographer turned journalist he'd clung to like a drowning man when they met in Albury-Wodonga. Charlie has trodden on too many toes to rise above the rank of Detective Sergeant, but he is happy in his weatherboard home in the suburbs with Rebecca, their two children and a small terrier who turns out to have a heroic streak.

Charlie's plans to spend his week of leave working on the darkroom he's building in the backyard get sidetracked when Rebecca asks him to investigate the claims of a widowed friend that her husband's corpse had a leg amputated prior to burial. The funeral director lies but Hungarian hearse driver Lazlo Horvay proves helpful, setting Berlin on the road to Blackwattle Creek, a remote bluestone former asylum for the criminally insane.

I don't know about you but those words 'remote', 'bluestone' and 'asylum' in close proximity send shivers down my spine. You might as well put a neon sign over the entrance saying 'Bad Shit Going Down'.

Berlin doggedly continues his inquiries despite being warned off, endangering those around him and bringing him head to head with the Special Branch.

While The Diggers Rest Hotel is about the legacy of the Second World War and its impact on men who saw active service, spent time as POWs, then tried to rebuild their lives, in Blackwattle Creek McGeachin shifts his focus to the Cold War, where the atrocities are no less horrific for being clandestine.

While I was relieved to find Charlie Berlin happily married to the gorgeous Rebecca, he has lost none of his vulnerability, and the ever-present risk of him becoming unhinged by the ghosts of his past adds to the tension of a thrilling plot, creating genuinely frightening moments in the story.

Though a dark tale, Blackwattle Creek is not without humour, such as this moment in an otherwise a tense exchange between Berlin and a couple of menacing Special Branch operatives:

The pressure of his grip on the water pipe had turned Berlin's knuckles white. 'Jesus Christ,' he said, 'is everyone in Special Branch a prick like you?'
Merv smiled. 'That's right, Charlie. That's what makes us special.'

McGeachin is skilled at delivering enough nuances to immerse the reader in Melbourne in the late-1950s -- via references to Bex Powders, Bakelite handsets and Graeme Kennedy, 'the young host, a little crude at times' of a popular new variety show -- without letting the details distract from the action. His observations about now outmoded beliefs are often wry but never smarmy:

'And as for putting people at risk, you made it sound like strontium-90 was nothing to fret about, no more harmful than DDT or one of those fuel additives they put in petrol.'

Asked about the themes of Blackwattle Creek, McGeachin says,

I’m totally cynical and a hopeless romantic and these two aspects always seem to collide in my life and my writing. None of my heroes ever change the world but they do attempt to at least improve their own little corner of it.

For me this explains how McGeachin manages to write dark crime fiction that also sparkles with wit and warmth.

It's not only Charlie Berlin among McGeachin's characters who attempt to improve their own little corner of the world. The same can be said of Rebecca Berlin née Green, not to mention the eloquent Hungarian refugee Lazlo Horvay, who in addition to driving hearses may or may not be a Soviet spy:

Lazlo smiled. 'It is an interesting fact that in totalitarian regimes the secret police are very well known to the public, and in open, so-called free societies they are very much in fact secret and often unknown.'
'Australia doesn't have a secret police, Lazlo.'
Lazlo drank the last of the wine in his glass. 'But really, Charlie, if they are truly secret, how would you know?'

The Diggers Rest Hotel was one of my favourite reads of 2011. I expect to say the same of Blackwattle Creek in 2012.

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

l liked this book. No spoilers from me.

[David Owen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Charlie Berlin is slowly becoming my favourite character in Australian literature.

[Shelleyrae at Book'd Out · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first book in this historical crime series, The Diggers Rest Hotel, won the 2011 Ned Kelly Award for Best Crime Fiction but it completely slipped by me. Part police procedural/part noir mystery featuring ex-World War II bomber pilot and POW, Victorian police detective Charlie Berlin, Blackwattle Creek picks up around a decade after the events of The Diggers Rest Hotel. It's 1957, Charlie is married to photo journalist Rebecca Green, a father of two and a police detective in Melbourne who has just been granted a weeks leave. His plans for his brief holiday includes watching the VFL grand final, spending time with his family and building a dark room for Rebecca in their backyard, until a newly widowed friend asks for a favour and suddenly Charlie is caught in the middle of a twisted nightmare.

McGeachin establishes an intriguing political and social background for Blackwattle Creek. Police in Melbourne in the late 1950's still do not carry guns, justice is often meted out with a fist or well placed kick, and corruption in the ranks is rife. The ramifications of World War II still linger, money is tight for most and those that served, including Charlie, continue to suffer the effects of what we would now term PTSD. In reaction to the perceived threat by the 'commies', the Cold War is heating up and suspicion of foreigners is rife. The newly formed ASIO are flexing their powers on home soil and the British have convinced Australia to allow them to secretly test nuclear weapons in South Australia at Maralinga. The historical detail the author weaves into the story is fascinating without being overwhelming, Blackwattle Creek is firmly grounded in time and place. I do find it strange that McGeachin has let a decade elapse between the first and second book and wonder if perhaps the third will be set in the 1960's.
Charlie is a complex character, haunted by memories of his wartime experiences including the moment he lost his entire bomber crew and the forced POW march through freezing snow escorted by the SS. He has battled with alcoholism on his return and though now Rebecca and his children have proved to be a steadying force, his anger and fear is never far below the surface. Despite the warnings to drop the case that leads him to the Blackwattle Creek facility, Charlie can't let it go until he has answers and even some sort of justice. When his family is threatened, Charlie doesn't hesitate to do all he can to protect them. My only quibble with Charlie is in fact his name, he is often referred to by his last name 'Berlin' which I find oddly distracting because of the associations.

I found Blackwattle Creek a quick and easy read that kept me turning the pages and though I think it's likely to have a stronger appeal to a masculine audience, Blackwattle Creek is an intelligent and entertaining piece of crime fiction.

[Karin Cox · Rating 5 out of 5]

“One lie is all you need. One lie that you know is a lie, aye, that’s all you need to start everything on a path to unravelling.” —Charlie Berlin, Blackwattle Creek

When former bomber pilot and POW Charlie Berlin takes a much-needed vacation from his role as a detective sergeant in 1950s Melbourne, just after the ’56 Olympics, the last thing he needs is another case to solve. But when he grants his long-suffering wife and redeemer, Rebecca, a favour and interviews an elderly friend, who alerts him to body parts going missing at a funeral home, that is exactly what he gets—and more! When a colleague who helps him dig out evidence is beaten to a bloody pulp, witnesses are threatened, and a thug attempts to set fire to his house, Berlin’s investigations lead him to Blackwattle Creek, a former insane asylum where it seems the lunatics are now firmly in charge.

I had been wanting to read some of McGeachin’s work since he won the 2011 Ned Kelly Award for Crime Writing for The Diggers Rest Hotel—which also features this charming and distinctly Australian copper—and I was not disappointed. McGeachin has created a credible, likeable character in Charlie Berlin: a family man and all round sentimental bloke who has put the alcoholic, guilt-ridden, angry, self-abusive lifestyle (so stereotypical to crime novels) behind him (well, mostly!). The result is a gripping crime novel that is as much about suburban and family life in Australia in that decade as it is about the sinister politics and policies of the Cold War, which lead to the mystery’s chilling culmination.

McGeachin’s characters are commendably well-drawn, particularly charmingly erratic Hungarian immigrant Lazlo Horvay, and patient, decidedly non-Stepford Rebecca (who has a career as well as a vibrant wit and sex drive, even if she can bake a mean steak and kidney pie). While the mystery is embroiling, McGeachin also effectively conjures up nostalgic scenes of milk bars and jumping jacks, bodgies and widgies, bags of lollies, tombola marbles, fish and chips wrapped in newspaper, and sturdy, prized Studebakers—all in a Melbourne that seems more like a sprawling suburb than the modern metropolis it is today. It’s a Melbourne where people say, “You’ll do it because I’m a policeman, sunshine, and because I say so,” or “Thank you, squire.” And it is all the richer for that trip down memory lane. Of course, juxtaposing the cozy, almost parochial setting, is one of the gravest abuses of government and military power ever known. Together these elements combine to make Blackwattle Creek as touching as it is terrifying.

[Rob Kitchin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Black Wattle Creek has two strong elements: the character of Charlie Berlin and his family, and the reason behind his investigation. Berlin is interesting company, a caring family man who’s haunted by his past, and is tenacious in his pursuit of a solving a case. When he looks into the suspicions of one of his wife’s friends about a local funeral home he has no idea what he getting himself into. It soon becomes obvious that maybe he’d be better off keeping his nose out of other peoples’ business. Where the story seems to become a little unstuck, however, is in its unfolding. There were two aspects that I had a hard time buying which worked to undermine the fidelity of the tale somewhat. The first was the strategy of those he’s investigating, who inflict savage violence on those Berlin consults rather than the man himself. The second was Berlin being enlightened by the same people when there was really no need and then let wander free. Nevertheless, the tale is enjoyable, mainly because Berlin is a compelling, wounded character and the pacing and prose are nicely done. The third book in the series is due out next year and I’m looking forward to reading it in due course.

[Sandi · Rating 3 out of 5]

This had all the elements I enjoy in a historical mystery. The Australian setting was well described and interesting, the characters were well drawn, and the plot used the Cold War era to good effect. Maybe not quite as good as the first book in the series The Diggers Rest Hotel but still entertaining. Listened to the audio version which was narrated by Peter Hosking who did a nice job.

[Janine · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good read but overly descriptive at times.

[Catsalive · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this Aussie historical crime novel. The details from the 1950s were brilliant. Poor DS Charlie Berlin is suffering PTSD from being a RAAF pilot & POW in WWII. He has a brilliant wife & two kids to keep him grounded. Having annoyed his superiors & colleagues, he has no expectation of promotion & spends his time doing grunt work on low profile missing persons cases.

When his wife, Rebecca, asks him to look into a friend's problem while Charlie is on holiday,he opens a can of worms that has surprising & far-reaching repercussions, not least of which is the threat to his family's safety.

I wasn't happy with the resolution, or irresolution, really, although I think it is entirely realistic given the times & nature of the secrets Charlie uncovers. I wanted all those corrupt bastards to get their comeuppance, including Special Branch - I know it's unlikely but I still want it.

I really enjoyed the supporting character, Laszlo, too. Now I have to find the first book, The Diggers Rest Hotel.

[Nicola · Rating 5 out of 5]

McGeachin has done it again, in his second book featuring Charlie Berlin, returned bomber pilot and policeman. We're 10 years on from the first book, and much has altered for Charlie. I can't tell you what because it would be a spoiler. Suffice to say, the life course changes are believable and charmingly described. What hasn't changed, though, is Charlie's commitment, despite himself, to truth and justice. Some interesting sub-characters join him in his latest investigations - Lazlo being the highlight of them all.

Again, the sense of the time and place are crafted with precision and care; knowing that Charlie is waiting for asbestos sheeting to finish a building project caused a frisson of sadness, knowing as we all do the dreadful health problems that have arisen from using that product. No political correctness mars the writing set in a particular period; no commentary about sexual politics or what have you intrudes from the author.

I continue to recommend McGeachin's Berlin series - at least, 1 and 2 since I'm only about to read number 3. Universal in its concerns, it remains true to its Australianness and that's a delight.

[Midwest Geek · Rating 4 out of 5]

Is anything as it appears to be? Although the plot seems to stretch credibility at times, this is a pretty good Cold War mystery. The story is well-told, although, even as police procedural, it unfolded more slowly than I would have liked. The action takes place in Australia during the days of H-bomb testing and the hysteria about the spread of communism (as if it were a virus.) I liked the way the craziness was brought down to a personal level. The parallels between the Nazis and Detective Sergeant Berlin's antagonists are all too obvious. Nevertheless, I wonder whether zealots ever had quite as much influence over Western governments as this story suggests. In any case, whether by design or by luck, the world has somehow managed to survive another 60 years.

I found the reader, Peter Hoskings, to be very good and easy to listen to.

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

I listened to an audiobook from the library, as I enjoy the slower pace and the way this makes me take the time to actually chew over what is happening. My tendency with a whodunnit is to rush through as quickly as possible. The narrator varied the tones and accents just enough to distinguish between characters and has a pleasant melodious voice.

I enjoyed the plot of this, just as I did the first one, and probably feel an affinity as I recognise many of the places and streets that are mentioned. The depiction of family life, food and society is realistically depicted, but not over bearing, and the gradual reveal was just right.

[Peter · Rating 3 out of 5]

This doesn’t work quite as well as the first in the series but is still an engaging Australian story as DC Berlin, given leave in 1957 Melbourne, ends up in a private investigation finally linked to A Bomb tests and the Cold War with a few beatings and vicious murders along the way. The realism of the suburban background and 1950s relationships sets this apart from similar efforts but it does become too vigilante with a thriller ending. A Hungarian immigrant plus Berlin’s wife are the best characters; Berlin himself a little too clichéd

[Nancy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Intriguing premise -- what were authorities trying to hide from us in the 1950s? What does an insane asylum have to do with Strontium 90? Are the effects of World War 11 lingering? But a lot of the fun of reading this book (written in 2012) is in the 1950s signs of the times -- Police sergeant Berlin makes his calls from those red phone booths on street corners; guests bring cakes from that fabulous shop in Acland St; a librarian takes ages to find the right encyclopaedias for him to research Strontium 90 (no Google in those days) and can only find a three year edition of Who's Who to investigate a suspicious doctor. I now have to catch up on everything McGeachin has written.

[Bethan Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

A detective but a mystery with a difference

Well written sequel with Charlie Berlin now married to Rebecca and a father. The story of duplicity and government cover ups is scary because you can so easily believe it happening.The idea that life is so cheap and the way that secret bodies can control and hide the truth is a big part of the story that starts with an apparent stealing of body parts.

[Jane · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really like this character Charlie Berlin and the setting 1950s/60s Melbourne. This second story takes place 10 years after the first and I'm not sure why such a large gap between the books as I felt there was lot that occurred in the 10 years that could have been used in other stories. Charlie gets wrapped up in his own investigation and falls foul of quite a few people. The ending was lacking hence only 3 stars.

[Marcia · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was very enjoyable. I liked the fact that it was very believable. It makes you think did this really happen at that time when people were paranoid about a nuclear detonation somewhere near Australia.

It was well written most of the time. I like writers that give detail but not unnecessary detail. This book wasn't too bad.

[Dead John Williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the second of the Charlie Berlin trilogy and lacks nothing in quality, style, or pace.

Another poignant cameo of Oz, awash with growing pains and very white. I like the progression of the main character as he tries to move on from his wartime experiences.

Full of brutality but managed in a very Australian way.

Gripping, can'y wait fo the next one.

[Sharondblk · Rating 4 out of 5]

A really solid second instalment of the Charlie Berlin series. Even though the topics are heavy, it's an easy read, I'm not sure why. It was so nice to see Charlie again, and to feel like I was visiting Melbourne in the 1950s. I was excited about his visit to St Kilda (where I live now) and am looking forward to reading the third instalment - St Kilda Blues.