Author Archives: alysonebaker

The Quiet Spectacular by Laurence Fearnley – 2016

Posted on August 15, 2016 by alysonebaker

A character in The Quiet Spectacular declares that the literary establishment considers men to be the north on the compass and “…it’s only by sending the whole compass completely haywire that anyone other than Western men get a look-in.”  And … Continue reading →

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Something is Rotten by Adam Sarafis – 2015

Posted on August 13, 2016 by alysonebaker

I loved this book from when one of the wheeler dealer characters arrives back from London and as he makes his way towards the Beehive muses how he is now “Smack in the centre of power”.  This New Zealand is … Continue reading →

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The Mistake by Grant Nicol – 2015

Posted on July 31, 2016 by alysonebaker

Nordic noir with a kiwi twang!  The Mistake is a great jigsaw puzzle of a murder mystery.  A terrible car crash on a snow-covered lava field; nine years later in Reykjavík a man blacks out and when he comes to, … Continue reading →

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Made to Kill by Adam Christopher – 2015

Posted on July 22, 2016 by alysonebaker

A mash-up of sci-fi and noir, Made to Kill is set in a stereotypical US where the Hollywood star system rules, Kennedy is in office, the enemy is ‘the Reds’, guy wear tight white t-shirts and gals hang out in … Continue reading →

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Dad Art by Damien Wilkins – 2016

Posted on July 15, 2016 by alysonebaker

I have been reading a lot about narrative arc lately – and against the tide of my reading have been picking up novels that don’t really have one.  Dad Art is such a novel, it follows Wellington based sound engineer … Continue reading →

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First Names Only by Elaine Blick – 2015

Posted on July 3, 2016 by alysonebaker

This novel claims to provide ‘insight into the very sensitive issues surrounding the unmarried mother and adoption’.  The main character, Janice, falls pregnant at 18 and ends up in Sunnyvale, a home for unmarried mothers in Auckland.  It is the … Continue reading →

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Cold Hard Murder by Trish McCormack – 2015

Posted on June 19, 2016 by alysonebaker

Philippa Barnes, glacier guide and amateur sleuth is back – but global warming means glacier guiding is no longer a promising career, so she is maintaining tourist tracks for DOC in Paparoa National Park.  She isn’t too worried about the … Continue reading →

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Inside the Black Horse by Ray Berard – 2015

Posted on June 18, 2016 by alysonebaker

“What had changed so abruptly to discard logic and calculation?”, Brian Duncan, an ex US undercover cop and now a NZ PI, asks this of himself as he heads off into the bush alone at one point in this fast … Continue reading →

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Whispers of the Past by Owen Clough – 2016

Posted on June 12, 2016 by alysonebaker

Whispers of the past is a good old Boys’ Own style yarn about three blokes, Bob (‘Brill’), Shane (‘Grunt’) and Sam, all decorated heroes and best mates, who go off on a DOC pig-culling trip in the Tongariro National Park … Continue reading →

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Blood and Ink by Adam Christopher – 2016

Posted on June 11, 2016 by alysonebaker

I was thrilled I was going to be able to review a Sherlock Holmes novel on my blog – as Adam Christopher is a Kiwi.  And Blood and ink started off well enough – but this Sherlock Holmes is the … Continue reading →

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