Welcome to my weekly segment, Waiting on Wednesday, where I look at upcoming books that I am planning to order and review in the next few months and which I think I will really enjoy.  Stay tuned to see reviews of these books when I get a copy of them.  In this week’s Waiting on Wednesday post, I check out an intriguing and intense upcoming Australian thriller with The Shark by Emma Styles.

Amazon

Back in 2022 I had the pleasure of reading the exciting and entertaining thriller, No Country For Girls, which was the debut novel of new Australian author Emma Styles. Set in the harsh Western Australian outback, No Country For Girls was an outstanding read, featuring two great protagonists on a gritty and deeply personal journey. Fun and compelling, No Country For Girls ended up being one of my top debut novels of 2022, and I was curious at the time to see what Styles would write next.

Well, it looks like I will finally be able to find out soon as Styles has her second novel coming out in early 2026, and it sounds pretty epic. This new novel, The Shark, is set for release in March 2026, and features a powerful plot about a deadly Australian serial killer and two teenage girls who attempt to stop him.

Plot Synopsis:

A killer is stalking the suburbs of Western Australia. Two teenage girls hell-bent on revenge take matters into their own hands, with deadly results. Another dark, uniquely voice-led crime thriller from Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing Prize-winner Emma Styles.

Every monster has a weakness.

At the height of Australian summer, a serial killer dubbed The Shark stalks a beachside suburb, targeting young female swimmers whose bodies are later found on the shoreline.

Disempowered and angry at the failures of the police to protect them, two young women are hell-bent on revenge. Raych has lost someone and will go to any length to discover what happened to her, while Carmen suspects a disturbing connection to the killer.

Together they form an uneasy alliance and, in a moment that changes the trajectory of their lives, Carmen and Raych abduct and imprison the prime suspect. Do they think they can save the day, or are their intentions darker? Can they trust one another’s agenda? And when another young woman goes missing, what stops them from going to the police?

A dark and voice-led serial killer thriller that subverts the tropes of crime fiction at every turn, The Shark is an unforgettably propulsive novel about victimhood, power and autonomy.

Now this is a very interesting book by Styles.  I love the awesome scenario above, which promises to turn The Shark into a particularly intense read.  Pitting two teenage protagonists against a potential serial killer, while other deaths and disappearances are occurring outside their prison has so much potential, and this thriller has one of the more distinctive and exciting plot synopses of novels coming out in early 2026. 

While I would probably have grabbed The Shark no matter what in 2026, especially after really enjoying No Country For Girls, I must admit that I’m already a little obsessed with the above plot.  Emma Styles has come up with an extremely interesting idea for her second novel and I am extremely curious to see how it comes together.  If Styles backs up this great plot with some amazing characters and dark moments of dread and uncertainty, then The Shark will likely be one of the top pieces of Australian fiction in 2026.  I cannot wait to see how this book comes together, and I have a strong feeling that I am going to love it.