Crackenback in Aussie Readers

Jan 23, 2021 Brenda rated it it was amazing

Shelves: crime, own-read, thriller, arc, aussie-authors, sent-by-publisher, 2021-release, reviewing-by-request, 5000-2021, romantic-suspense

I’ve just turned the last page on this brilliant book and if I could give it 100 stars I would!!

Eva Bell and her three year old daughter Poppy were preparing the lodge for the influx of tourists, happily working in the environment Eva loved. With three rooms prepared, she only had the other three to do, so had time to keep Poppy amused until her nap. But when a bloodied person by the name of Jack Walker burst into the lodge, taking Eva by surprise, she was terrified. What did he want?

Detective S ...more

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Jan 31, 2021 Helen rated it it was amazing

WOW what a fabulous story, filled with suspense as Detective Sargent Pierce Ryder is back in The Snowy Mountains after notorious killer Gavin Hutton, the fabulous characters from Charlotte Pass are back in this story and we get to meet a new hero in Jack Walker, this is defiantly a book to pick up I found it very hard to put down.

Eva Bell and her three year old daughter Poppy are busy getting the Golden Wattle Lodge in remote Thredbo ready for the ski season things are looking very good for the ...more

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Feb 09, 2021 Shelleyrae at Book'd Out rated it it was amazing

Shelves: arc-are, provided-by-publisher, aussie-author

Crakenback follows Lee Christine’s debut, Charlotte’s Pass, featuring NSW Homicide Squad Detective Sergeant Pierce Ryder. It’s not necessary to have read the former however, as I found this story works very well as a stand-alone.

With the start of the ski season still a few weeks away, Golden Wattle Lodge proprietor Eva Bell is alone with her three year old, Poppy, when Jack Walker, bruised and bleeding, bursts through the door. Eva is terrified as he strips her of her phone and keys, irrationall Crakenback follows Lee Christine’s debut, Charlotte’s Pass, featuring NSW Homicide Squad Detective Sergeant Pierce Ryder. It’s not necessary to have read the former however, as I found this story works very well as a stand-alone.

With the start of the ski season still a few weeks away, Golden Wattle Lodge proprietor Eva Bell is alone with her three year old, Poppy, when Jack Walker, bruised and bleeding, bursts through the door. Eva is terrified as he strips her of her phone and keys, irrationally convinced he has come for his daughter. Learning that Jack has instead come to protect them from a killer bent on revenge gives her only the smallest sense of relief.
Meanwhile DS Ryder and his small task force are searching for a new lead in the hunt for Gavin Hutton who is suspected of beating two men to death. Joined by Detective ‘Daisy’ Flowers, and new team member, Nerida Sterling, the investigation takes them from Sydney, south to Jervis Bay, north to the Central Coast and west to the Snowy Mountains, where their quarry is finally in sight.

Christine immediately captures the reader’s attention in Crackenback with a dramatic prologue, the relevance of which is revealed later in the story, but there’s plenty of action and tension to follow in this tightly plotted, exciting story.

I was as interested in the progress Ryder and his team were making in the search for their fugitive, as I was in Jack and Eva’s nervous wait for their attacker, though it quickly becomes clear they are one and the same. Both perspectives advance the plot and are neatly complimentary while building suspense. I thought the pacing of the story was very good, and I read it easily in one sitting.

Both Eva and Jack were appealing characters. I admired Eva’s determination to protect her daughter and her practical, sensible way of coping with the frightening situation she was thrust into. Jack has an interesting background, and he is obviously capable and resourceful. Though their relationship, which resulted in Poppy, was not much more than a one night stand, it’s obvious the pair are still attracted to each other, though Christine plays down the romance angle in favour of the action.
Unfortunately I hadn’t the opportunity to read Charlotte’s Pass so I’m not terribly familiar with Ryder, but I liked what I saw of him. It was his girlfriend Vanessa, who is also Eva’s sister, who had a larger role in that story. It seems likely to me that the third book will feature one of Ryder’s team.

While the main action takes place at the Lodge in Thredbo, and the deepening snow plays beautifully into the action, one of things I liked was the way in which Christine’s characters moved within the state of NSW. I was particularly delighted that my town of Taree even got a mention (though it wasn’t very flattering and, as far as I know, not true, given the Officer in Charge of our station is a woman).

With an intriguing storyline, fast paced action, and strong characterisation, I thought Crackenback was a great book, and I’ll definitely be reading Christine Lee’s next.
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Jan 31, 2021 Bree T rated it it was amazing

Shelves: arc, mystery, australian, crime, aww2021

This book was a nice surprise – I had lost track of time I think and hadn’t realised it was coming out! I really enjoyed Lee Christine’s last book, Charlotte Pass and this one is connected. We are back with Detective Sergeant Pierce Ryder and his hunt for Gavin Hutton. The trail has gone a bit cold but Ryder still believes that he’s deep somewhere in the Snowy Mountains, holing up in the dense forest. He’s got survivalist skills and even though winter is close, Ryder is confident that he is stil This book was a nice surprise – I had lost track of time I think and hadn’t realised it was coming out! I really enjoyed Lee Christine’s last book, Charlotte Pass and this one is connected. We are back with Detective Sergeant Pierce Ryder and his hunt for Gavin Hutton. The trail has gone a bit cold but Ryder still believes that he’s deep somewhere in the Snowy Mountains, holing up in the dense forest. He’s got survivalist skills and even though winter is close, Ryder is confident that he is still around. Keeping off the radar, using cash, stealing what he needs….waiting for his next opportunity.

Eva is the sister of Ryder’s partner Vanessa. She’s running a lodge in Thredbo on her own, getting prepared for the season with mostly only her young daughter Poppy for company. She has a neighbour that pops in, an older man who also runs a lodge, as well as the local who delivers her firewood but unless there are guests staying, Eva is pretty isolated. She’s stunned by the reappearance of Jack Walker in her life – he’s injured, desperate and ready to make Eva do whatever he says. Desperate to protect Poppy, Eva has no choice….but why is Jack really here? What does he want? And can she trust him with what is the most precious thing in her life?

This is fast paced and builds the suspense so neatly. Lee Christine expertly uses the isolation of her chosen location, especially in regards to Eva and Poppy, who are deeply vulnerable in their lodge when they’re on their own. The snow is starting to fall, blanketing the area, making it feel even more isolated and dangerous. It’s hard to flee anyway, but even harder when the snow is deepening. Eva is going about her life, making rooms ready, cleaning for guests to arrive, completely oblivious to the fact that her life is about to be turned upside down and that she and her daughter are going to end up in grave danger, their lives under threat. When Jack arrives, Eva is shocked and defensive – he looks like a mess, he’s injured and she doesn’t trust him. She has little reason to trust him, considering their past and what Jack made clear to her. She’s confused as to why he’s here now and what he could possibly want. Her only thought is for Poppy and Jack’s early behaviour doesn’t exactly set her at ease. But the more he tells her, the more she’s forced to trust him, especially when he won’t hear of any other options.

It was good to check in with Ryder again – he and Vanessa are still happily loved up and Vanessa is working a new job. Ryder still has Detective Flowers on his team and he’s also added a new team member, a female Detective from up around the Manning Valley. The team works really well together as they gather information on Hutton in an attempt to guess where he is and why. If they can piece together the motive behind his seemingly unconnected murders then they might have a chance of figuring out who he’s targeting next – and get there before he can. But time is running out and Hutton is closing in on who he wants to hurt next for revenge.

I really enjoyed this! The setting is fantastic and the way the story builds in terms of Hutton’s motivation worked really well. Ryder and his team have to really dig deep to find out what happened, to find the relevant people to talk to that can give them the information they need to flesh out the story, to get the final missing pieces. Ryder splits his team up, having some in the office hunting down information whilst he and Flowers often travel to different places to see what they can learn. I like Flowers – he’s a fun offset to Pierce and I hope he might one day become a stronger focus of a book, likewise for the new detective. There’s infinite possibility for the team to keep investigating different situations in different combinations.

This is not a long book – every page advances the plot and builds the suspense incredibly well. The characters are well drawn and interact together well. I found it very difficult to put down and would definitely recommend picking it up when you can get through it in a single sitting. I hope that there are plenty more books featuring Ryder and his team in the future – sometimes I avoid suspenseful books because I can’t deal with the way they make my heart race but I find these ones irresistible. This was excellent again.

***A copy of this book was provided by the publisher for the purpose of an honest review*** ...more

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