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Retribution
A rural-crime novel about finding out how to survive and surviving what you find.
In a small country town, an act of revenge causes five lives to collide. Early one Christmas morning, Graeme Sweetapple, a man down on his luck, is heading home with a truck full of stolen steers when he comes across an upended ute that has hit a tree. He is about to get involved with Luke, an environmental protestor who isn’t what he seems; a washed-up local politician, Caroline Statham, who is searching for a sense of purpose, but whose businessman husband seems to be sliding into corruption; and Carson, who is wild, bound to no one, and determined to escape her circumstances.
Into their midst comes Retribution, a legendary horse worth a fortune. Her disappearance triggers a cycle of violence and retaliation that threatens the whole community. As tensions build, they must answer one question: is true retribution ever possible — or even desirable?
In a small country town, an act of revenge causes five lives to collide. Early one Christmas morning, Graeme Sweetapple, a man down on his luck, is heading home with a truck full of stolen steers when he comes across an upended ute that has hit a tree. He is about to get involved with Luke, an environmental protestor who isn’t what he seems; a washed-up local politician, Caroline Statham, who is searching for a sense of purpose, but whose businessman husband seems to be sliding into corruption; and Carson, who is wild, bound to no one, and determined to escape her circumstances.
Into their midst comes Retribution, a legendary horse worth a fortune. Her disappearance triggers a cycle of violence and retaliation that threatens the whole community. As tensions build, they must answer one question: is true retribution ever possible — or even desirable?
336 pages, Paperback
Published July 2, 2018
7 people are currently reading
75 people want to read
About the author
Richard Anderson
4 books16 followersSee also R.M. Anderson
Richard Anderson is a second-generation farmer from northern New South Wales. He has been running a beef-cattle farm for twenty-five years, but has also worked as a miner and had a stint on the local council.
Richard is the author of one previous novel, The Good Teacher. He lives with his wife, four dogs, and a new cat.
Richard Anderson is a second-generation farmer from northern New South Wales. He has been running a beef-cattle farm for twenty-five years, but has also worked as a miner and had a stint on the local council.
Richard is the author of one previous novel, The Good Teacher. He lives with his wife, four dogs, and a new cat.
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
July 14, 2019
3.5 stars rounded up to 4 stars for a slow starting story of crime in a small town in rural New South Wales, Australia.
The blurb summarizes the opening: Graeme Sweetapple, a man down on his luck, is heading home with a truck full of stolen steers when he comes across an upended ute {Jeep for Americans}that has hit a tree.
Because he stops to help, he becomes involved with protesters who have stolen a bomb from a mine.
Some of the other characters: Anna--protester who stole the bomb and gives it to Graeme
Luke--ostensibly another protester, but in reality a company spy
Carson--a young woman at loose ends and determined to escape the small town. She has a wild streak.
Caroline Statham--a local politician who recently lost the last election.
Bob Statham --Caroline's husband, and a ruthless, amoral businessman.
In the beginning I thought that this was a poor imitation of Elmore Leonard's books about crime among low life criminals, but it blossomed into more than that, with a bit of romance thrown in.
How these people interact makes for a satisfying mystery/thriller with an ending that will make animal lovers happy. You have to keep reading past the part where an animal is killed that moves the plot along.
The author bio states that he is a second generation farmer in northern New South Wales.
Thanks to Scribe/Richard Anderson/LibraryThing for sending me this book.
The blurb summarizes the opening: Graeme Sweetapple, a man down on his luck, is heading home with a truck full of stolen steers when he comes across an upended ute {Jeep for Americans}that has hit a tree.
Because he stops to help, he becomes involved with protesters who have stolen a bomb from a mine.
Some of the other characters: Anna--protester who stole the bomb and gives it to Graeme
Luke--ostensibly another protester, but in reality a company spy
Carson--a young woman at loose ends and determined to escape the small town. She has a wild streak.
Caroline Statham--a local politician who recently lost the last election.
Bob Statham --Caroline's husband, and a ruthless, amoral businessman.
In the beginning I thought that this was a poor imitation of Elmore Leonard's books about crime among low life criminals, but it blossomed into more than that, with a bit of romance thrown in.
How these people interact makes for a satisfying mystery/thriller with an ending that will make animal lovers happy. You have to keep reading past the part where an animal is killed that moves the plot along.
The author bio states that he is a second generation farmer in northern New South Wales.
Thanks to Scribe/Richard Anderson/LibraryThing for sending me this book.
July 18, 2018
Retribution is a blue-blooded rural crime novel which envelopes the reader in a dust encrusted film of Australia's outback dirt, complete with all the crime-caused-grit you'd expect from the genre.
Graeme Sweetapple is a farmer who makes his living by stealing cattle and on-selling them. He also puts in some honest labor at the Stratham farm, tending their to horses and later, teaching Caroline, a former politician and wife to mining magnate Bob, how to ride. Who would've thought it would be Sweetapple's law abiding occupation which leads him down a pitch black hole he's unable to climb out of?
Retribution is a well balanced and entertaining crime novel set in the vast outback where horses, water and cattle, are among the most valuable community commodities. Coupled with greed, power, and a thirst for vengeance, the novel turns an unlikely anti-hero into a voice of power and reason through a feel-good narrative and a prolonged form of justice.
My rating: 5/5 stars. Great characters, a distinct Australian rural feel and a compelling plot makes Retribution one of my favorite crime fiction novels of the year. Highly recommend.
Graeme Sweetapple is a farmer who makes his living by stealing cattle and on-selling them. He also puts in some honest labor at the Stratham farm, tending their to horses and later, teaching Caroline, a former politician and wife to mining magnate Bob, how to ride. Who would've thought it would be Sweetapple's law abiding occupation which leads him down a pitch black hole he's unable to climb out of?
Retribution is a well balanced and entertaining crime novel set in the vast outback where horses, water and cattle, are among the most valuable community commodities. Coupled with greed, power, and a thirst for vengeance, the novel turns an unlikely anti-hero into a voice of power and reason through a feel-good narrative and a prolonged form of justice.
My rating: 5/5 stars. Great characters, a distinct Australian rural feel and a compelling plot makes Retribution one of my favorite crime fiction novels of the year. Highly recommend.
September 6, 2018
Graeme Sweetapple, with his heart in his throat, was moving the truck forward, lights off, as quietly as possible – why? He had stolen cattle in the rear and was heading back to his property. It was Christmas Eve/morning when the last of the revelers had taken themselves home (he hoped) and the best time to do a little cattle duffing. But it was as he was driving home, finally relaxing a little, that he came across the overturned car which had hit a large gum tree. He stopped to render assistance – the balance of his life shifted in that small act of kindness…
The proposal from Sweetapple’s neighbour, Bob Stratham was one that Sweetapple was unsure of. Could it be that his decision that day would cause violence, revenge and tension throughout the small community? The horse that was Retribution was a beautiful mare, and she was at the centre of it all…
Retribution by Aussie author Richard Anderson is set in a rural landscape of dust and survival; of cattle, horses and people. It’s a crime novel of vast proportions which works on men’s emotions, a love of animals, and the greed and power that come with money. Recommended.
The proposal from Sweetapple’s neighbour, Bob Stratham was one that Sweetapple was unsure of. Could it be that his decision that day would cause violence, revenge and tension throughout the small community? The horse that was Retribution was a beautiful mare, and she was at the centre of it all…
Retribution by Aussie author Richard Anderson is set in a rural landscape of dust and survival; of cattle, horses and people. It’s a crime novel of vast proportions which works on men’s emotions, a love of animals, and the greed and power that come with money. Recommended.
October 17, 2021
This book didn't quite do it for me. I can see that others really enjoyed it, so I think authors like Garry Disher have set the bar quite high for me.
The book is set in regional Australia and centres on some characters I just couldn't relate to. It opens with Sweetapple stealing cattle, then coming across a car crash. From there is travels to a protest at a mine and a small regional town.
Retribution is the name of a horse that Sweetapple's wealthy neighbour asks him to steal. The point of this was somewhat lost on me. But it does not end well.
The story is well written, but just not the right book for me.
The book is set in regional Australia and centres on some characters I just couldn't relate to. It opens with Sweetapple stealing cattle, then coming across a car crash. From there is travels to a protest at a mine and a small regional town.
Retribution is the name of a horse that Sweetapple's wealthy neighbour asks him to steal. The point of this was somewhat lost on me. But it does not end well.
The story is well written, but just not the right book for me.
July 28, 2018
“It would be reasonable to ask: could he live with more self-hatred? He’d already survived with plenty of it. Eventually, it faded like everything else. You got used to being the person you hoped you wouldn’t be. You adjusted your goalposts and moved on. It was only on those unexpected moments when you looked back at what you had intended to be that it really hurt.”
Retribution is the second novel by Australian farmer and author, Richard Anderson. It’s a typical small town in country NSW. Former Federal MP for Lindon, Caroline Statham is there because her developer husband, Bob has a property (with a showpiece garden) on the outskirts; Graeme Sweetapple lives on a small holding next door, running some livestock and agisting horses; Carson Wright grew up there but has tried unsuccessfully to leave; and after a stint at the mine protest site, Luke Griffiths is doing a bit of fencing while he works out where to go next.
Very early on Christmas Day, Graeme is just bringing home a few steers, the result of a late-night duffing foray, when he comes upon an overturned ute with an injured driver. He stops to help but, because of his cargo, is eager to be on his way before the authorities arrive, when the passenger hands him a potentially dangerous parcel.
Later in the day, Bob Statham visits Graeme’s farm with a proposal. The prospect of clearing a long-standing inherited debt sees Graeme ignoring his conscience and agreeing to steal a horse. And what a horse Retribution is! Graeme has her hidden on his farm: it’s meant to be a temporary situation, but then he falls in love.
As Graeme, Carson and Luke dream up schemes for switching horses, the unthinkable happens. If they each had reasons for their simmering anger before, they now have a real reason to act.
Anderson gives the reader a great story: an original plot with an exciting climax (or two) and a truly wonderful ending, one that will put a smile on most faces. His characters are familiar, appealing and more than one-dimensional; his setting is expertly depicted and bears ample evidence of his first-hand experience; he also touches on a few topical issues like PTSD, assistance to struggling farmers, environmental protests, the plight of old and injured horses and sexual harassment.
“She knew he had already looked her over again; it was his accepted right, so deeply ingrained that he didn’t even know it existed. He had no idea what a prick he was.”
Carson tells us a bit about Sweetapple: “He was like so many other guys she knew: quiet, certain about what he thought was important and what wasn’t, and annoyed by fuss. But he burned inside: an unexplained brightness that made him interesting, attractive, and worth being around. She wondered if the fire didn’t come from something like hate, but she never saw any actions arise from an emotion like that: he didn’t ever direct anger or violence at her or anyone he knew, and certainly not at one of his animals. Carson had the feeling that he did wild, unexpected things that he didn’t tell her about. Sometimes she wondered if she wasn’t just hanging around to find out what would happen.”
Anderson has a deft hand at descriptive prose: “They drove in silence, but the energy in the car was enough to make the windows bulge” and manages to delight with the banter between characters and some laugh-out-loud moments involving email scams and cross-dressing. It is rumoured that Anderson has more of Stony Creek (The Good Teacher) in store for readers; meanwhile, this second novel will keep his fans abundantly satisfied. Brilliant Aussie fiction.
This unbiased review is from a copy provided by Scribe Publishing Australia.
Retribution is the second novel by Australian farmer and author, Richard Anderson. It’s a typical small town in country NSW. Former Federal MP for Lindon, Caroline Statham is there because her developer husband, Bob has a property (with a showpiece garden) on the outskirts; Graeme Sweetapple lives on a small holding next door, running some livestock and agisting horses; Carson Wright grew up there but has tried unsuccessfully to leave; and after a stint at the mine protest site, Luke Griffiths is doing a bit of fencing while he works out where to go next.
Very early on Christmas Day, Graeme is just bringing home a few steers, the result of a late-night duffing foray, when he comes upon an overturned ute with an injured driver. He stops to help but, because of his cargo, is eager to be on his way before the authorities arrive, when the passenger hands him a potentially dangerous parcel.
Later in the day, Bob Statham visits Graeme’s farm with a proposal. The prospect of clearing a long-standing inherited debt sees Graeme ignoring his conscience and agreeing to steal a horse. And what a horse Retribution is! Graeme has her hidden on his farm: it’s meant to be a temporary situation, but then he falls in love.
As Graeme, Carson and Luke dream up schemes for switching horses, the unthinkable happens. If they each had reasons for their simmering anger before, they now have a real reason to act.
Anderson gives the reader a great story: an original plot with an exciting climax (or two) and a truly wonderful ending, one that will put a smile on most faces. His characters are familiar, appealing and more than one-dimensional; his setting is expertly depicted and bears ample evidence of his first-hand experience; he also touches on a few topical issues like PTSD, assistance to struggling farmers, environmental protests, the plight of old and injured horses and sexual harassment.
“She knew he had already looked her over again; it was his accepted right, so deeply ingrained that he didn’t even know it existed. He had no idea what a prick he was.”
Carson tells us a bit about Sweetapple: “He was like so many other guys she knew: quiet, certain about what he thought was important and what wasn’t, and annoyed by fuss. But he burned inside: an unexplained brightness that made him interesting, attractive, and worth being around. She wondered if the fire didn’t come from something like hate, but she never saw any actions arise from an emotion like that: he didn’t ever direct anger or violence at her or anyone he knew, and certainly not at one of his animals. Carson had the feeling that he did wild, unexpected things that he didn’t tell her about. Sometimes she wondered if she wasn’t just hanging around to find out what would happen.”
Anderson has a deft hand at descriptive prose: “They drove in silence, but the energy in the car was enough to make the windows bulge” and manages to delight with the banter between characters and some laugh-out-loud moments involving email scams and cross-dressing. It is rumoured that Anderson has more of Stony Creek (The Good Teacher) in store for readers; meanwhile, this second novel will keep his fans abundantly satisfied. Brilliant Aussie fiction.
This unbiased review is from a copy provided by Scribe Publishing Australia.
February 8, 2020
The heat had its own weight, squashing the smell of eucalyptus out into the air as the sweat ran down his ribs under his shirt…
Around midnight on Christmas Eve, outside a country town in northern New South Wales, a struggling farmer steals a few steers to supplement his income and pay bills, when he comes across a crashed ute, freeing the young couple from the wreck. Before help can arrive the girl entrusts him with a parcel, asking him to stash it.
Not far away, a young man leaves a group of environmentalists picketing a coal mine owned by a multinational company, unaware that he was planted there. When the company reneges on paying the full amount due to him, his thoughts turn to revenge.
(Luke) walked up the main street , and turned into the first pub that advertised accommodation and meals. It had just opened, and was dark, sticky-carpeted, and thick with sporting memorabilia. The pokies twinkled and glowed from an adjoining room, adding to the colours provided by the card machines and the jukebox. It was just how he liked it.
A politician who lost her seat at the last election learns the hard way about her husband’s business dealings, while a young woman working at the rural supplies store receives the unwanted attentions of the husband – a key customer of the agri-business – knowing that if she complains she will lose her job.
In every fully voiced rage, she knew she was giving in to something she shouldn’t. It was energy wasted, precious life thrown away…
I found myself quickly drawn into author Richard Anderson’s story of rural crime, revenge and redemption: five people down on their luck, brought together by circumstance and a quarter-horse mare named “Retribution”. The pages brim with an unspoken anger that gradually spills over, amid rich descriptions of a country town and its surrounds, as a man channels his own mixed emotions through his livestock and love of a horse.
Sweetapple smoothed a flat, shaking palm down her shimmering neck. She quivered under it, her eyes round and shining but yielding, maybe terrified, in the yellow light of the fat moon. Then, as if to dispute his conceit, she snorted and stamped a foot, holding her position as she’d been trained to do, but whispering rebellion…
Verdict: beautifully written, with an uplifting ending.
Around midnight on Christmas Eve, outside a country town in northern New South Wales, a struggling farmer steals a few steers to supplement his income and pay bills, when he comes across a crashed ute, freeing the young couple from the wreck. Before help can arrive the girl entrusts him with a parcel, asking him to stash it.
Not far away, a young man leaves a group of environmentalists picketing a coal mine owned by a multinational company, unaware that he was planted there. When the company reneges on paying the full amount due to him, his thoughts turn to revenge.
(Luke) walked up the main street , and turned into the first pub that advertised accommodation and meals. It had just opened, and was dark, sticky-carpeted, and thick with sporting memorabilia. The pokies twinkled and glowed from an adjoining room, adding to the colours provided by the card machines and the jukebox. It was just how he liked it.
A politician who lost her seat at the last election learns the hard way about her husband’s business dealings, while a young woman working at the rural supplies store receives the unwanted attentions of the husband – a key customer of the agri-business – knowing that if she complains she will lose her job.
In every fully voiced rage, she knew she was giving in to something she shouldn’t. It was energy wasted, precious life thrown away…
I found myself quickly drawn into author Richard Anderson’s story of rural crime, revenge and redemption: five people down on their luck, brought together by circumstance and a quarter-horse mare named “Retribution”. The pages brim with an unspoken anger that gradually spills over, amid rich descriptions of a country town and its surrounds, as a man channels his own mixed emotions through his livestock and love of a horse.
Sweetapple smoothed a flat, shaking palm down her shimmering neck. She quivered under it, her eyes round and shining but yielding, maybe terrified, in the yellow light of the fat moon. Then, as if to dispute his conceit, she snorted and stamped a foot, holding her position as she’d been trained to do, but whispering rebellion…
Verdict: beautifully written, with an uplifting ending.
December 23, 2021
“It would be reasonable to ask: could he live with more self-hatred? He’d already survived with plenty of it. Eventually, it faded like everything else. You got used to being the person you hoped you wouldn’t be. You adjusted your goalposts and moved on. It was only on those unexpected moments when you looked back at what you had intended to be that it really hurt.”
Retribution is the second novel by Australian farmer and author, Richard Anderson. The audio version is narrated by Todd Boyce. It’s a typical small town in country NSW. Former Federal MP for Lindon, Caroline Statham is there because her developer husband, Bob has a property (with a showpiece garden) on the outskirts; Graeme Sweetapple lives on a small holding next door, running some livestock and agisting horses; Carson Wright grew up there but has tried unsuccessfully to leave; and after a stint at the mine protest site, Luke Griffiths is doing a bit of fencing while he works out where to go next.
Very early on Christmas Day, Graeme is just bringing home a few steers, the result of a late-night duffing foray, when he comes upon an overturned ute with an injured driver. He stops to help but, because of his cargo, is eager to be on his way before the authorities arrive, when the passenger hands him a potentially dangerous parcel.
Later in the day, Bob Statham visits Graeme’s farm with a proposal. The prospect of clearing a long-standing inherited debt sees Graeme ignoring his conscience and agreeing to steal a horse. And what a horse Retribution is! Graeme has her hidden on his farm: it’s meant to be a temporary situation, but then he falls in love.
As Graeme, Carson and Luke dream up schemes for switching horses, the unthinkable happens. If they each had reasons for their simmering anger before, they now have a real reason to act.
Anderson gives the reader a great story: an original plot with an exciting climax (or two) and a truly wonderful ending, one that will put a smile on most faces. His characters are familiar, appealing and more than one-dimensional; his setting is expertly depicted and bears ample evidence of his first-hand experience; he also touches on a few topical issues like PTSD, assistance to struggling farmers, environmental protests, the plight of old and injured horses and sexual harassment.
“She knew he had already looked her over again; it was his accepted right, so deeply ingrained that he didn’t even know it existed. He had no idea what a prick he was.”
Carson tells us a bit about Sweetapple: “He was like so many other guys she knew: quiet, certain about what he thought was important and what wasn’t, and annoyed by fuss. But he burned inside: an unexplained brightness that made him interesting, attractive, and worth being around. She wondered if the fire didn’t come from something like hate, but she never saw any actions arise from an emotion like that: he didn’t ever direct anger or violence at her or anyone he knew, and certainly not at one of his animals. Carson had the feeling that he did wild, unexpected things that he didn’t tell her about. Sometimes she wondered if she wasn’t just hanging around to find out what would happen.”
Anderson has a deft hand at descriptive prose: “They drove in silence, but the energy in the car was enough to make the windows bulge” and manages to delight with the banter between characters and some laugh-out-loud moments involving email scams and cross-dressing. It is rumoured that Anderson has more of Stony Creek (The Good Teacher) in store for readers; meanwhile, this second novel will keep his fans abundantly satisfied. Brilliant Aussie fiction
Retribution is the second novel by Australian farmer and author, Richard Anderson. The audio version is narrated by Todd Boyce. It’s a typical small town in country NSW. Former Federal MP for Lindon, Caroline Statham is there because her developer husband, Bob has a property (with a showpiece garden) on the outskirts; Graeme Sweetapple lives on a small holding next door, running some livestock and agisting horses; Carson Wright grew up there but has tried unsuccessfully to leave; and after a stint at the mine protest site, Luke Griffiths is doing a bit of fencing while he works out where to go next.
Very early on Christmas Day, Graeme is just bringing home a few steers, the result of a late-night duffing foray, when he comes upon an overturned ute with an injured driver. He stops to help but, because of his cargo, is eager to be on his way before the authorities arrive, when the passenger hands him a potentially dangerous parcel.
Later in the day, Bob Statham visits Graeme’s farm with a proposal. The prospect of clearing a long-standing inherited debt sees Graeme ignoring his conscience and agreeing to steal a horse. And what a horse Retribution is! Graeme has her hidden on his farm: it’s meant to be a temporary situation, but then he falls in love.
As Graeme, Carson and Luke dream up schemes for switching horses, the unthinkable happens. If they each had reasons for their simmering anger before, they now have a real reason to act.
Anderson gives the reader a great story: an original plot with an exciting climax (or two) and a truly wonderful ending, one that will put a smile on most faces. His characters are familiar, appealing and more than one-dimensional; his setting is expertly depicted and bears ample evidence of his first-hand experience; he also touches on a few topical issues like PTSD, assistance to struggling farmers, environmental protests, the plight of old and injured horses and sexual harassment.
“She knew he had already looked her over again; it was his accepted right, so deeply ingrained that he didn’t even know it existed. He had no idea what a prick he was.”
Carson tells us a bit about Sweetapple: “He was like so many other guys she knew: quiet, certain about what he thought was important and what wasn’t, and annoyed by fuss. But he burned inside: an unexplained brightness that made him interesting, attractive, and worth being around. She wondered if the fire didn’t come from something like hate, but she never saw any actions arise from an emotion like that: he didn’t ever direct anger or violence at her or anyone he knew, and certainly not at one of his animals. Carson had the feeling that he did wild, unexpected things that he didn’t tell her about. Sometimes she wondered if she wasn’t just hanging around to find out what would happen.”
Anderson has a deft hand at descriptive prose: “They drove in silence, but the energy in the car was enough to make the windows bulge” and manages to delight with the banter between characters and some laugh-out-loud moments involving email scams and cross-dressing. It is rumoured that Anderson has more of Stony Creek (The Good Teacher) in store for readers; meanwhile, this second novel will keep his fans abundantly satisfied. Brilliant Aussie fiction
July 13, 2018
Brilliant!!! You will find yourself cheering!!!!
My View:
A gripping page turner that will make you gasp at the injustice (there are a few but one really, really nasty and evil one that will have you groaning in despair, no spoilers here) and then there is triumph! You will cheer on the protagonists and celebrate their victories when “something worthwhile and more than an act of simple vengeance” p.311 leaves a smile on your face as you pump your fist in the air. YES!!!!
I did enjoy this read!
Another author to add to your must read list.
My View:
A gripping page turner that will make you gasp at the injustice (there are a few but one really, really nasty and evil one that will have you groaning in despair, no spoilers here) and then there is triumph! You will cheer on the protagonists and celebrate their victories when “something worthwhile and more than an act of simple vengeance” p.311 leaves a smile on your face as you pump your fist in the air. YES!!!!
I did enjoy this read!
Another author to add to your must read list.
September 10, 2018
Another entry in the expanding Rural Noir category, it's sometimes hard not to come to these novels with a slight sense of foreboding. The "new big thing" is all too often a marketing ploy - more experienced in the hype than the actuality. Fear not however, RETRIBUTION is a good one, different, unusual and a refreshing twist on crime fiction as a whole. Up front - there's not a human murder to be seen here, although the fate of one animal in particular will not impress those readers from the "don't care what you do to the people, but touch one hair on that animal's head and..." camp. A category I will admit a leaning towards, particularly if there's the slightest sense that animal deaths are gratuitous, for shock value. In this case there's a sinking inevitability about it, but to be honest, the reaction of central character Graeme Sweetapple made up for that in many many ways.
But the book itself. RETRIBUTION is as laid back, disaffected and disarming as they come. The central character is an interesting choice in that you can almost see him flinching from the limelight. He's one of those blokes, last in a long line of farmers where the trickle down effect of kicking small farmers in the head over many generations has finally achieved something. His family farm shrunk to a small holding, his small place in the world supported by a bit of cattle rustling, a bit of horse handling for wealthier "townie" farmers, and a bit of whatever it takes to get you through the day. He's a resourceful, quiet, purposeful sort of a bloke, imbued with ingrained sadness and regret, possessed of enormous ingenuity when it comes, in particular, to the cattle rustling game. There were tricks of the trade revealed in this book that impressed - bald tyres, night time drives without headlights, and best of all a stunt to get around the DNA police that had never ever occurred. A slightly distant character, Sweetapple is a real and very appealing human being.
You can certainly see why he would appeal to young Carson - another local with little desire to move away, and yet an underlying yearning for something that she can't quite describe, but knows damn well is there. The attraction between these two is beautifully understated, underplayed and realistic. There is much here that is bittersweet - content in a way with their lot, never indulging in wool over eyes pretence, it kind of makes sense that when eventually jolted from a sort of life on auto-pilot scenario, there's something slightly haphazard about their response - as determined and utterly understandable as it is.
Add to this mix an incomer with agenda's in all directions, and you've got a catalyst, a nuisance, an explainer, a potential rival, part of a revenge plot and an instigator of one of his own and you've got a firey mix, destined to go pear-shaped no matter how you look at it.
Elegantly written, beautifully evocative of the sense of place, and people in it, Richard Anderson knows that of which he writes. The subtle interplay between incomer and long-time local, the tension between "amateur" farmer with money versus lifelong farmers with affinity for the land and the livestock is nicely done - never preachy, never overt. There's also heaps of social issues from the bush that are drawn out, from those local problems right through to the coal mine activists and the mixed feelings about their activities.
All in all this is good rural-noir. It comes from the place and the people that it's written about and it's got the authority, and the touch that comes from living in the world that it's describing.
https://www.austcrimefiction.org/revi...
But the book itself. RETRIBUTION is as laid back, disaffected and disarming as they come. The central character is an interesting choice in that you can almost see him flinching from the limelight. He's one of those blokes, last in a long line of farmers where the trickle down effect of kicking small farmers in the head over many generations has finally achieved something. His family farm shrunk to a small holding, his small place in the world supported by a bit of cattle rustling, a bit of horse handling for wealthier "townie" farmers, and a bit of whatever it takes to get you through the day. He's a resourceful, quiet, purposeful sort of a bloke, imbued with ingrained sadness and regret, possessed of enormous ingenuity when it comes, in particular, to the cattle rustling game. There were tricks of the trade revealed in this book that impressed - bald tyres, night time drives without headlights, and best of all a stunt to get around the DNA police that had never ever occurred. A slightly distant character, Sweetapple is a real and very appealing human being.
You can certainly see why he would appeal to young Carson - another local with little desire to move away, and yet an underlying yearning for something that she can't quite describe, but knows damn well is there. The attraction between these two is beautifully understated, underplayed and realistic. There is much here that is bittersweet - content in a way with their lot, never indulging in wool over eyes pretence, it kind of makes sense that when eventually jolted from a sort of life on auto-pilot scenario, there's something slightly haphazard about their response - as determined and utterly understandable as it is.
Add to this mix an incomer with agenda's in all directions, and you've got a catalyst, a nuisance, an explainer, a potential rival, part of a revenge plot and an instigator of one of his own and you've got a firey mix, destined to go pear-shaped no matter how you look at it.
Elegantly written, beautifully evocative of the sense of place, and people in it, Richard Anderson knows that of which he writes. The subtle interplay between incomer and long-time local, the tension between "amateur" farmer with money versus lifelong farmers with affinity for the land and the livestock is nicely done - never preachy, never overt. There's also heaps of social issues from the bush that are drawn out, from those local problems right through to the coal mine activists and the mixed feelings about their activities.
All in all this is good rural-noir. It comes from the place and the people that it's written about and it's got the authority, and the touch that comes from living in the world that it's describing.
https://www.austcrimefiction.org/revi...
September 15, 2018
Given the location, it's probably more of a dusty gust than a big wave, but there's certainly a fair few really terrific crime novels set in rural Australia that have come out in recent years. This recent release was mentioned to me by one of the best antipodean reviewers in the business, Karen Chisholm, when we were chatting about the rise of Southern Cross Crime (Australian and New Zealand crime writing) and the fresh blood that was coming through and bolstering the ranks.
Unsurprisingly, given he's a second-generation cattle farmer himself, Anderson brings a real sense of authenticity to the small-town characters and setting of RETRIBUTION. There are some really interesting characters, a good mix of personalities and viewpoints on various farmland and rural issues, and just little touches here and there which add texture. Whether it be about crops or horsemanship other things, Anderson weaves information in without overwhelming with details.
RETRIBUTION is also interesting in that it's not centred on a murder mystery (sorry, belated spoiler alert) but kicked into gear by a variety of other tensions and nefarious deeds. All very fitting for the characters and place. The quartet of characters at the heart of the tale are an interesting grouping: a farming thief with close ties to the land, a protestor-for-hire who enjoys creating chaos, a middle-aged woman who's gone from political powerhouse to pariah, and a young woman who wants more - though she's just not quite sure what. Each feels very real and rounded, growing in depth over the course of the novel, and the interactions between them and others aren't typical or cliched.
Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed reading Anderson's take on a rural crime tale. RETRIBUTION is full of interesting texture, fresh characters, authentic rural issues, and an absorbing storyline.
Well worth a look.
Unsurprisingly, given he's a second-generation cattle farmer himself, Anderson brings a real sense of authenticity to the small-town characters and setting of RETRIBUTION. There are some really interesting characters, a good mix of personalities and viewpoints on various farmland and rural issues, and just little touches here and there which add texture. Whether it be about crops or horsemanship other things, Anderson weaves information in without overwhelming with details.
RETRIBUTION is also interesting in that it's not centred on a murder mystery (sorry, belated spoiler alert) but kicked into gear by a variety of other tensions and nefarious deeds. All very fitting for the characters and place. The quartet of characters at the heart of the tale are an interesting grouping: a farming thief with close ties to the land, a protestor-for-hire who enjoys creating chaos, a middle-aged woman who's gone from political powerhouse to pariah, and a young woman who wants more - though she's just not quite sure what. Each feels very real and rounded, growing in depth over the course of the novel, and the interactions between them and others aren't typical or cliched.
Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed reading Anderson's take on a rural crime tale. RETRIBUTION is full of interesting texture, fresh characters, authentic rural issues, and an absorbing storyline.
Well worth a look.
October 28, 2023
Retribution is about how far someone will go for revenge. One morning, Graeme Sweetapple was travelling home with a truck full of cattle he had rustled from a farm up North when he found a motor vehicle accident. Graeme stopped and assisted the passengers. This show of kindness and the disappearance of racehorse Retribution would change Graeme's life forever. On the way, Graeme meets some characters that, due to corruption, will threaten a local community with violence. The readers of Retribution will continue to follow Graeme to discover what happens.
Retribution is the first book I have read by Richard Anderson, and is enjoyable. Richard Anderson did ensure that I engaged with the characters and the story. I love Richard Anderson's portrayal of his characters and the way they interact with each other throughout this book. Retribution is well-written and researched by Richard Anderson. I like Richard Anderson's description of the settings of Retribution, which complemented the book's plot.
The readers of Retribution will understand the consequences of animal cruelty on society. Also, the readers of Retribution will learn that you can get a second chance at happiness and forgiveness; you only need to accept love and friendship.
I recommend this book.
Retribution is the first book I have read by Richard Anderson, and is enjoyable. Richard Anderson did ensure that I engaged with the characters and the story. I love Richard Anderson's portrayal of his characters and the way they interact with each other throughout this book. Retribution is well-written and researched by Richard Anderson. I like Richard Anderson's description of the settings of Retribution, which complemented the book's plot.
The readers of Retribution will understand the consequences of animal cruelty on society. Also, the readers of Retribution will learn that you can get a second chance at happiness and forgiveness; you only need to accept love and friendship.
I recommend this book.
Read
October 22, 2018This book is fluently written around a story that is set squarely in the world that Anderson knows so well … Richard Anderson is a good writer and a good observer of human behaviour.
Dominion Post Weekend, Wellington
A captivating, incredibly well-written rural crime novel … At its core, Retribution is about punishment and vengeance – the dark things that people do to get what they want. But it’s also a book about the frailty of humans – our emotional vulnerability, and our innate desire to be loved and accepted … Retribution is a ripping thriller, deeply Australian, and an absolute must-read for all crime fans.
Better Reading
This powerful novel has thrills and emotions to spare … the evocation of dust and heat all come together for a tense tale of human emotions at their rawest. A genuine discovery and a unique voice.
Maxim Jakubowski, Crime Time
If you like your crime hot, gritty and dusty then this gem, set in rural Australia, is for you … A fine tale that’ll have you sweating with its heat and intensity.
Jon Wise, Weekend Sport
[A] slow-burning thriller that reads like a neo-Western … vividly captures the vast, rugged landscape and the brutal intensity of the heat in the back country.
Declan Burke, The Irish Times
Richard Anderson is … a fine writer … In lucid, unflashy prose, he relates how the theft of a priceless mare, retribution, results in a human pile-up for five utterly believable characters, good, bad and ugly.
Saga
Retribution is a good one, different, unusual and a refreshing twist on crime fiction as a whole … Elegantly written, beautifully evocative of the sense of place, and people in it, Richard Anderson knows that of which he writes.
Aust Crime Fiction
Retribution is full of interesting texture, fresh characters, authentic rural issues, and an absorbing storyline.
Craig Sisterson, Crime Watch
A lovely elegiac book about a horse and an unlikely love affair between a couple of lonely misfits … the book is a triumph of the very best kind of gritty Aussie writing.
Listener
Dominion Post Weekend, Wellington
A captivating, incredibly well-written rural crime novel … At its core, Retribution is about punishment and vengeance – the dark things that people do to get what they want. But it’s also a book about the frailty of humans – our emotional vulnerability, and our innate desire to be loved and accepted … Retribution is a ripping thriller, deeply Australian, and an absolute must-read for all crime fans.
Better Reading
This powerful novel has thrills and emotions to spare … the evocation of dust and heat all come together for a tense tale of human emotions at their rawest. A genuine discovery and a unique voice.
Maxim Jakubowski, Crime Time
If you like your crime hot, gritty and dusty then this gem, set in rural Australia, is for you … A fine tale that’ll have you sweating with its heat and intensity.
Jon Wise, Weekend Sport
[A] slow-burning thriller that reads like a neo-Western … vividly captures the vast, rugged landscape and the brutal intensity of the heat in the back country.
Declan Burke, The Irish Times
Richard Anderson is … a fine writer … In lucid, unflashy prose, he relates how the theft of a priceless mare, retribution, results in a human pile-up for five utterly believable characters, good, bad and ugly.
Saga
Retribution is a good one, different, unusual and a refreshing twist on crime fiction as a whole … Elegantly written, beautifully evocative of the sense of place, and people in it, Richard Anderson knows that of which he writes.
Aust Crime Fiction
Retribution is full of interesting texture, fresh characters, authentic rural issues, and an absorbing storyline.
Craig Sisterson, Crime Watch
A lovely elegiac book about a horse and an unlikely love affair between a couple of lonely misfits … the book is a triumph of the very best kind of gritty Aussie writing.
Listener
May 20, 2020
This was a quiet, meandering, gentle, in an odd sort of way, story. The complexities of the plot, whose aim seemed to waver much of the time, kept me reading, and the changing reactions and interactions of the four main protagonists as they plotted and failed, several times, made it all seem very real, human and believable.
August 14, 2018
This was an interesting story, it unwound slowly to start with, each character being introduced and eventually coming together to interact with the other characters. When you have several emotionally messed up people anything could happen when they get together to right wrongs, even the unthinkable. This had a nice lot of suspense, I was constantly wondering how everything was going to turn out. A new rural crime drama from an author to look out for.
May 27, 2021
A beautifully written tale of lust, vengeance, betrayal, love & ultimately humanity. The author leads the reader on a gentle stroll through the lives of 5 characters all effected by 1 horse. What happens when the characters meet/interact with each other sets the tone for the remainder of the story. Stunning storytelling in a beautifully haunting setting.
September 23, 2018
Enjoyed this
June 20, 2019
Received free ARC from publisher. This was quite good, each flawed character and setting well described, and the title says it all.
September 25, 2020
Yet another smash hit from Richard Anderson!!!
Absolute ripper. Thoroughly enjoyed it and again, another unique storyline!!
Thanks Richard!!
Absolute ripper. Thoroughly enjoyed it and again, another unique storyline!!
Thanks Richard!!
March 6, 2021
I’m a fan of Aussie thrillers and this didn’t disappoint. A slow burner, but as gritty and dusty and enthralling as the landscape it describes.
April 24, 2020
".. it was midnight on Christmas Eve, the best night of the year for stealing..."
Graeme Sweetapple is driving some stolen steers back to his property late on Christmas Eve when he comes across an accident. The young people have been participating in a protest at a local picketed coal mine belonging to millionaire Bob Statham. He organises an ambulance for them, but as he leaves he is given some explosives that the young people have with them.
We also meet Luke who has been participating in the protest, but is actually working undercover for the mine's management.
The third main character is Carson who has been working at the local supermarket, and has actually met the mine owner, whose wife is an ex-politician.
These five characters are central to the main action of the story and provide the links between the plot lines.
The author successfully brings these characters together in a couple of unlikely themes: the theft of a thoroughbred horse, and the disruption of activities at the coal mine.
This was the debut title by this author and well worth the read.
Graeme Sweetapple is driving some stolen steers back to his property late on Christmas Eve when he comes across an accident. The young people have been participating in a protest at a local picketed coal mine belonging to millionaire Bob Statham. He organises an ambulance for them, but as he leaves he is given some explosives that the young people have with them.
We also meet Luke who has been participating in the protest, but is actually working undercover for the mine's management.
The third main character is Carson who has been working at the local supermarket, and has actually met the mine owner, whose wife is an ex-politician.
These five characters are central to the main action of the story and provide the links between the plot lines.
The author successfully brings these characters together in a couple of unlikely themes: the theft of a thoroughbred horse, and the disruption of activities at the coal mine.
This was the debut title by this author and well worth the read.
August 18, 2018
Perhaps if Sweetapple hadn’t stopped to help the idiots who had just near run him off the road in their ute, things may have gone entirely differently.
Times are tough for everybody and Graeme Sweetapple is making the best of what land he has left. Once the Sweetapple family owned a working farm but now the holding is small, and Sweetapple is not producing enough of an income to support his dog, let alone fund his own needs. A little work for a neighbour sometimes brings in the coin, as does Sweetapple’s occasional side hustle of stealing cattle. It is the latter activity that Sweetapple is engaged in one night when he stops to helps two people out of a car wreck. Both are activists from the site of a nearby coal mine, carrying some dangerous stolen goods in their vehicle. Before the cops get there, Sweetapple finds himself agreeing to take the dismantled parts of a bomb away in his truck, without the slightest clue of what it is he will do with them.
Sweetapple’s flighty young love interest Carson is not sure that Sweetapple should be doing any work at all for super shady Bob from next door, and that includes teaching Bob’s ex politician wife how to ride. Tasked to steal a gorgeous horse named Retribution for Bob, Sweetapple falls for the mare and soon realizes he hasn’t been paying enough attention to Carson who has struck up a friendship with Luke, another town drifter with his own secrets and struggles to hide. The three of them come together to form a plan of revenge when Bob reclaims Retribution from Sweetapple’s care. The purity of hate sweeps across Sweetapple to meet destruction with destruction.
The people in RETRIBUTION come across as quite desultory and disaffected so it’s a relief when they are given a purpose, doomed as it is. Sweetapple, Carson and Luke are struggling to stay focused and it’s a diversion from their own mess when they band together to do some harm and make a stand. Really hesitant to jump on the bandwagon of labeling this work ‘bush noir’ as whilst there’s illegal acts detailed within, RETRIBUTION is not what you might consider a work of crime fiction. This is a drama novel set in the outback and as with most novels with a rural setting, the described environment is all important in framing not just the physical threats and boundaries, but also the potential mental isolation experienced by its characters.
RETRIBUTION drifts along with a sense of quiet desperation, showing how easy it can be to become trapped, either by economic circumstances or as a result of your own lassitude. As with all small towns the residents have that toxic awareness that everyone else knows what they are up to at any given time, and that helps to craft the necessary close and tense atmosphere in this read. There does spring the wish to cattle prod our three leads into being a little more proactive about the mess they’ve found themselves in. Make no mistake, these people are suffocating and floundering for air.
RETRIBUTION is an elegantly written novel that convincingly takes the reader to a place of both great beauty and deep ugliness. The acute observations of Sweetapple about his position in life are piercingly bittersweet, interspersed as they are in a work about what it means to feel trapped and powerless to control your own future. Can see that this book would be a fantastic choice for the all the book clubbers as there is an immense wealth of social issues contained within RETRIBUTION that would make great discussion topics.
RETRIBUTION is the second novel of author and New South Wales cattle farmer Richard Anderson.
Times are tough for everybody and Graeme Sweetapple is making the best of what land he has left. Once the Sweetapple family owned a working farm but now the holding is small, and Sweetapple is not producing enough of an income to support his dog, let alone fund his own needs. A little work for a neighbour sometimes brings in the coin, as does Sweetapple’s occasional side hustle of stealing cattle. It is the latter activity that Sweetapple is engaged in one night when he stops to helps two people out of a car wreck. Both are activists from the site of a nearby coal mine, carrying some dangerous stolen goods in their vehicle. Before the cops get there, Sweetapple finds himself agreeing to take the dismantled parts of a bomb away in his truck, without the slightest clue of what it is he will do with them.
Sweetapple’s flighty young love interest Carson is not sure that Sweetapple should be doing any work at all for super shady Bob from next door, and that includes teaching Bob’s ex politician wife how to ride. Tasked to steal a gorgeous horse named Retribution for Bob, Sweetapple falls for the mare and soon realizes he hasn’t been paying enough attention to Carson who has struck up a friendship with Luke, another town drifter with his own secrets and struggles to hide. The three of them come together to form a plan of revenge when Bob reclaims Retribution from Sweetapple’s care. The purity of hate sweeps across Sweetapple to meet destruction with destruction.
The people in RETRIBUTION come across as quite desultory and disaffected so it’s a relief when they are given a purpose, doomed as it is. Sweetapple, Carson and Luke are struggling to stay focused and it’s a diversion from their own mess when they band together to do some harm and make a stand. Really hesitant to jump on the bandwagon of labeling this work ‘bush noir’ as whilst there’s illegal acts detailed within, RETRIBUTION is not what you might consider a work of crime fiction. This is a drama novel set in the outback and as with most novels with a rural setting, the described environment is all important in framing not just the physical threats and boundaries, but also the potential mental isolation experienced by its characters.
RETRIBUTION drifts along with a sense of quiet desperation, showing how easy it can be to become trapped, either by economic circumstances or as a result of your own lassitude. As with all small towns the residents have that toxic awareness that everyone else knows what they are up to at any given time, and that helps to craft the necessary close and tense atmosphere in this read. There does spring the wish to cattle prod our three leads into being a little more proactive about the mess they’ve found themselves in. Make no mistake, these people are suffocating and floundering for air.
RETRIBUTION is an elegantly written novel that convincingly takes the reader to a place of both great beauty and deep ugliness. The acute observations of Sweetapple about his position in life are piercingly bittersweet, interspersed as they are in a work about what it means to feel trapped and powerless to control your own future. Can see that this book would be a fantastic choice for the all the book clubbers as there is an immense wealth of social issues contained within RETRIBUTION that would make great discussion topics.
RETRIBUTION is the second novel of author and New South Wales cattle farmer Richard Anderson.
March 3, 2020
Excellent quirky australian novel.
January 18, 2023
I’m really not sure if there was retribution or not… I think I’d still be expecting a knock on the door.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 26, 2019
Richard Anderson’s novel, Retribution, seesawed with me. One moment, I planned to stop reading and then pushing a little further, the story sparked an interest. The story centers on the lower dregs of society who cheat, fight, steal, and many other low brow activities. Sweetapple steals a valuable mare, Retribution, for his employer, Bob. But the story encompasses ecology, mining, loyalty in marriage, and kindness to man and animal. New Wales, Australia, stands as the setting, but Anderson spends little time on the setting, his story presents mostly dialogue. The characters remain flat and present little dimension. The horrible killing within the story shows no explicit and graphic violence. The last chapters of the novel reveal that kindness and forgiveness still glimpse through all the harshness of the world.
July 13, 2019
3.5 stars
This was one of those stories that when it was good it was really, really good, but otherwise seemed to fall a bit flat. I wanted to know more about the characters, even Sweetapple who was the most fleshed-out of the lot. I mean, after 300+ pages, I still don't know anything about Luke, Caroline was a shadow, and Carson was, well, Carson. And sorry, but the ending was anything but "retribution."
But damn, Mr Anderson can write. What kept me going was the prose, those literary hooks that kept me turning the pages. The writing is pure "rural noir" and is dark and unflinching. I just wish the overall story was a bit more cohesive.
I look forward to reading more of Richard Anderson's works, and I thank Scribe Publications for the copy of Retribution.
This review was originally posted on librarything
This was one of those stories that when it was good it was really, really good, but otherwise seemed to fall a bit flat. I wanted to know more about the characters, even Sweetapple who was the most fleshed-out of the lot. I mean, after 300+ pages, I still don't know anything about Luke, Caroline was a shadow, and Carson was, well, Carson. And sorry, but the ending was anything but "retribution."
But damn, Mr Anderson can write. What kept me going was the prose, those literary hooks that kept me turning the pages. The writing is pure "rural noir" and is dark and unflinching. I just wish the overall story was a bit more cohesive.
I look forward to reading more of Richard Anderson's works, and I thank Scribe Publications for the copy of Retribution.
This review was originally posted on librarything
July 17, 2019
Although I quite enjoyed this book, some parts of it just didn’t seem to gel for me. Why was Luke spying for the company? How did everything spiral so badly out of control? I liked the Sweetapple character and I also liked the ending. The rural setting and the women’s issues were good.
gave-up-on
November 9, 2018Abandoned 42%
Just not interested
Just not interested
Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews