Top Ten Tuesday – My Favourite Australian Books of 2025

On January 31, 2026 By The Unseen LibraryIn Australian, List1 Comment

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly task that currently resides at The Artsy Reader Girl and features bloggers sharing lists on various book topics. For this week’s Top Ten Tuesday participants were supposed to list the top new-to-them authors they read in 2025. However, as this was a topic I did a few weeks ago, I’m instead going to put together an alternate list today. The reason for this is because earlier this week, 26 January, was Australia’s national holiday, Australia Day. While Australia Day is getting controversial due to its historical implications, I like to look beyond that and instead focus on some of the amazing and varied writing talents Australia produces. As such, I once again took this opportunity to highlight some of the top pieces of fiction written by Australian authors in 2025.

Each year, a ton of talented Australian authors produce an impressive and exciting range of fiction from across the genres, many of which I am lucky enough to get copies of from my local publishers. Due to this, I tend to read and review a lot of novels by Australian authors, most of which turn out to be some outstanding reads that I deeply enjoy. As such, for the last few years I have taken to highlighting my favourite pieces of Australian fiction, which is something I really look forward to each Australia Day (check out my 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2024 lists).

I really love how much awesome Australian fiction there is each year, and this list is the perfect way to highlight some of the best Australian authors. Now I tend to take a bit of a different approach to Australian fiction than some other bloggers, as I highlight all books written by Australian authors rather than novels purely set in Australia or featuring Australian characters. To qualify for this list, a novel had to be released in 2025 and be written by an Australian author, which I am defining as anyone born in Australia or who currently lives here (Australia is very good at adopting talented people as our own). This resulted in a long list, and I was eventually able to whittle this novel down to the absolute cream of the crop and came up with a fantastic top ten list (with my typical generous honourable mentions). I really enjoyed how this list turned out, especially as it features novels from a range of different genres, all of which were very awesome Australian books.

Honourable Mentions:

Gunnawah by Ronni Salt

A compelling historical fiction novel and debut from the talented Ronnie Salt that makes great use of its 1970’s, small-town Australian setting.

2 Sisters Murder Investigations by James Patterson and Candice Fox

The fun new novel that one of Australia’s leading thriller authors, Candice Fox, wrote with James Patterson. This one was a great sequel to their previous novel, 2 Sisters Detective Agency, and is well worth a read.

The Bolthole by Peter Papathanasiou

A great, slow-paced Australian crime fiction novel that features a unique Australian setting in the iconic Kangaroo Island.

Vanish by Shelley Burr

A particularly intense and creative crime fiction novel, from a brilliant rising Australian author.

Top Ten Tuesday:

The Strength of the Few by James Islington

I’m starting this Top Ten List off strong with The Strength of the Few by James Islington, a book that appeared on pretty much all my best of 2025 lists, including best book, audiobook and sequels. The deeply impressive sequel to Islington’s The Will of the Many (one of my favourite book, audiobook and Australian fiction novels of 2023), The Strength of the Few continues the epic story of rebellion and magic from the first book, however this time separate versions of the protagonist are simultaneously split across three different parallel words, resulting in an especially elaborate narrative. I deeply enjoyed how this incredible and complex novel came about, and I honestly could not get enough of this impressive novel from one of Australia’s most inventive authors.

Everyone in this Bank is a Thief by Benjamin Stevenson

From amazing fantasy to hilarious crime fiction, the second book on this list is the highly amusing and awesome Everyone in this Bank is a Thief by Benjamin Stevenson. An outrageous and self-referential novel that once again follows Stevenson’s unlucky protagonist as he gets caught up in another locked-room murder mystery. This time trapped in a bank during an armed robbery, the protagonist needs to discover who amongst a suspicious group of staff and customers, is a deadly killer. A highly clever read from the always entertaining Stevenson, Everyone in this Bank is a Thief was an exceptional read that had me chuckling the entire way through.

The Bluff by Joanna Jenkins

Rising author Joanna Jenkins impressed this year with her second crime fiction novel, The Bluff. A sequel to her debut legal thriller novel, How to Kill a Client, The Bluff was an outstanding novel that took Jenkins’ initial protagonist into a new small-town Australian setting. Featuring a great story that showcased the events that led up to the murder of the town’s local hero, The Bluff was a clever and addictive novel that I really enjoyed reading.

Whisper in the Wind by Luke Arnold

Actor turned author Luke Arnold continued to provide his amazing contributions to the fantasy genre this year with his new Fetch Phillips novel, Whisper in the Wind. Forcing his highly damaged protagonist to investigate a deadly conspiracy amongst a city devastated by the world’s loss of magic, Whisper in the Wind featured an outstanding plot loaded with twists, betrayals and impressive character moments. Easily Arnold’s best novel yet, Whisper in the Wind was so damn good, and there was no way it wasn’t going to be featured on this list.

High Rise by Gabriel Bergmoser

Probably the most intense, action-packed books I read in 2025 was the amazing Australian thriller High Rise by Gabriel Bergmoser. Essentially a reverse version of The Raid set in a Melbourne housing tower, High Rise forced one of Bergmoser’s dangerous protagonists to fight their way through a building of thugs all looking to collect a bounty on his head, while also trying to protect his estranged daughter. A particularly fun and addictive read, High Rise is well worth a read, especially if you are a fan of over-the-top action.

Broke Road by Matthew Spencer

One of the best Australian crime fiction novels of 2025 was the amazing Broke Road by Matthew Spencer. The sequel to Spencer’s debut novel, Black River, Broke Road featured a gritty and particularly intense murder mystery as a damaged detective travels to the Hunter Valley to investigate bloody murder. Featuring an excellent plot and a particularly complex mystery, Broke Road was an exceptional read that I couldn’t turn away from.

The Stolen by Vikki Petratis

One of the more intense and realistic pieces of Australian crime fiction in 2025 was the outstanding novel, The Stolen by Vikki Petratis. Serving as a sequel to Petratis’ hard-hitting first book, The Unbelieved, The Stolen continued to explore a small Victorian town riven by gender conflict and dissent, which only worsens when a baby is kidnapped by its father. An excellent and compelling read, The Stolen was a great sequel and an impressive piece of Australian writing.

Pacific Heights by S. R. White

British expat turned Australian crime fiction author, S. R. White, continued to impress in 2025 with his complex murder mystery Pacific Heights. A spinoff from his main series (which features books like Prisoner, Red Dirt Road and White Ash Ridge), Pacific Heights sees two detectives investigate a complex murder case where a young women is murdered in the middle of several overlooking apartment buildings. However, all the witnesses to the case are telling a different story about how events unfolded, and nothing is truly what it seems. I had an incredible time with this novel and White made full use of this book’s focus on perception and truth to tell and amazing story.

Kill Your Boss by Jack Heath

One of the easiest inclusions on this list was the incredible new novel from Canberra author Jack Heath, Kill Your Boss. Following on from two of Heath’s previous novels, Kill Your Brother and Kill Your Husbands, Kill Your Boss had a very entertaining story behind it, as a police detective attempts to uncover who killed the boss of a small-town library. However, everyone the victim knew had a motive to kill him, and the resulting complex investigation becomes a highly entertaining exploration of who actually succeeded in murdering him. An outstanding novel from one of Australia’s best and most outrageous crime fiction authors.

The Reunion by Bronwyn Rivers

The final book I want to highlight on this list is also one of my favourite 2025 debuts, The Reunion by Bronwyn Rivers. Following a group of friends who reunite years after a tragic event, The Reunion takes an interesting twist when they find themselves trapped in an isolated property in Australia’s Blue Mountains by someone desperate to find out what really happened in the past. This ended up being an amazing first book from Rivers and I cannot wait to see what she writes next.

Well, that is the end of this latest list, and I am really happy that I got a chance to highlight some of the best Australian releases of 2025. The above books represent an outstanding collection of fiction from talented Australian authors, and each of them comes highly recommended by me. I had a lot of fun coming up with this list and I cannot wait to find out what the best Australian books of 2026 are going to be. Until then, stay tuned for more epic reviews and lists, and make sure you let me know who your favourite Australian authors are in the comments below.

Kill Your Boss by Jack Heath

On January 31, 2026 By The Unseen LibraryIn Australian, Murder Mystery1 Comment

Publisher: Allen & Unwin Australia (Trade Paperback – 4 November 2025)

Series: Kill Your Brother – Book Three

Length: 368 pages

My Rating: 4.75 out of 5 stars

The most relatable new Australian crime book for all office drones is the awesome and addictive Kill Your Boss by the always impressive Jack Heath, an exceptional read that proves very hard to put down.

There are a lot of talented and entertaining Australian authors writing outstanding novels these days, but one of my favourites due to his consistently clever and entertaining reads is the wonderful Jack Heath. Hailing from my home city of Canberra, Heath has been entertaining Australian readers for years with his interesting combination of complex works. I am a massive fan of his amazing crime fiction novels, which includes his spectacularly over-the-top Hangman series (including Hideout and Headcase).

In recent years, some of Heath’s best work has been some amazing and twisted murder mysteries set in small-town Australia. The series started with Kill Your Brother (one of my favourite Australian novels of 2021), a clever read that saw a damaged protagonist imprisoned and forced to choose between killing her guilty brother or dying alongside him. I had an outstanding time with Kill Your Brother, and I eagerly dove into the loosely connected sequel, Kill Your Husbands. Featuring two of the protagonists from Kill Your Brother as they get drawn into a devastating case involving a series of murders after some ill-advised partner-swapping. I deeply enjoyed this fantastic sequel, and it ended up being one of my favourite Australian books of 2023. Naturally I was very keen when I saw that Heath had a third book in this series coming out in late 2025 with the awesome title of Kill Your Boss. I dove into Kill Your Boss as soon as I could, and it proved to be another great read with a very fun plot behind it.

Plot Synopsis:

What would it take to turn you into a killer?

Detective Sergeant Kiara Lui has just broken up a loud brawl between two blokes in front of the Warrigal Public Library. But just as she’s about to leave the scene, a man inexplicably plummets from the sky and slams into the bike rack right in front of her, dead.

Neville Adams was the head of library services, hated by staff, borrowers, or in fact anybody who had ever met him. Kiara quickly seals the building, trapping everyone who might have pushed him off the roof. She expects to have someone in custody within minutes.

Instead, the investigation becomes the most challenging and dangerous of her career as it spirals outward, ensnaring half the town. It seems that Neville was connected to the disappearance of Emmylou Chisholm – a case that Kiara could never solve, and that has haunted her ever since.

If the killer isn’t found fast, the first two victims won’t be the last . . .

Compelling, propulsive and darkly funny, this is a perfect follow-up to Jack Heath’s bestselling Kill Your Husbands.

Kill Your Boss was a particularly amazing novel from Jack Heath and one of the better pieces of Australian fiction I had the pleasure of reading in 2025. Featuring an extremely compelling crime fiction narrative with some fantastic dark humour behind it, Kill Your Boss was extremely fun to get through, and I had a brilliant time with this latest twisted offering from Heath.

Heath cleverly builds around the fantastic and entertaining concept of a villainous and wildly disliked boss getting murdered. Once again set in the small Australian town of Warrigal, Kill Your Boss has an instantly great opening with the victim, Neville Adams, plummeting to the ground from the library roof, right in front of main police protagonist Detective Sergeant Kiara Lui. Kiara, who previously served as a supporting character in Kill Your Brother and the main investigator of Kill Your Husbands, quickly takes charge of the case, locking down the library and hoping to identify the killer amongst the people trapped inside. However, Kiara soon hits a wall with her investigation when it becomes apparent that everyone in the library, especially Adams’s employees, hated him. With multiple motives and no witnesses, Kiara starts diving into the crime, assisted by rookie cop Ben Higgens.

This first part of Kill Your Boss sets the story up nicely, and you are soon quite hooked on the case, especially as the novel breaks apart to follow either the police or one of the suspects. Thanks to this split, you get a good insight into the compelling investigation, while also examining the combined motives of the potential suspects, each of whom are covering something up, including involvement in an alternate case that the protagonist is familiar with. Heath keeps the story moving quickly and effectively, and there is some additional grim humour as it becomes apparent that multiple characters tried to kill Adams, but only one succeeded. This perfectly leads up to the final third of Kill Your Boss, as all the various motives come to light, and the various suspects are whittled down thanks to some additional gruesome killings before the big conclusion. I think that Heath set up this entire mystery extremely well, and the various red herrings ensured you were guessing right up to the end.

Heath once again manages to pull together a brilliant book that is somehow fun and twisted at the same time. Featuring a series of murders that starts with a very relatable sentiment around bad bosses, Kill Your Boss effectively builds up a complex mystery that has a lot of fantastic layers to it. This mystery is then well supported by the author’s great use of multiple different perspectives, especially as you get invested in all the complex suspects and their lives. This tight and entertaining story hits hard while also presenting the reader with dark humour, especially when it comes to motives for murder, and the result is a particularly addictive book that you can’t turn away from. Heath also successfully endeavours to make Kill Your Boss a particularly open book to all sorts of readers, from those looking for an amusing Australian mystery with a great small-town setting, to those readers already familiar with the author’s wicked humour and aptitude for murder.

While part of a larger series that started with Kill Your Brother, Kill Your Boss is primarily a standalone read, which I honestly think enhances the story, as the various new characters, as well as the existing protagonist, get a lot more prominence without tying the narrative down to previous events. Detective Sergeant Kiara Lui once again works extremely well as the book’s primary investigator, and it was interesting to see her take more of a leading role in this novel. While Kiara was an excellent primary protagonist, as well as a mentor to a new police character, it is the other larger-than-life supporting characters who make Kill Your Boss very impressive. This includes a truly despicable murder victim whom you honestly don’t feel too sympathetic to, especially after the flashbacks. This excellent use of a villainous victim adds some great complexity to the plot, especially when it’s revealed that multiple people tried to kill him simultaneously. This victim is well matched by the various suspects, who serve as supporting perspective characters in the plot. Without giving too much away, each of the suspects in this novel is very entertaining, and the range of complex interactions and grudges they held made for a very entertaining read. I particularly enjoyed the final revelation about why the main killer committed the first murder, which fits the overall entertaining mood of Kill Your Boss perfectly, and was a perfect endcap on these outstanding characters.

Jack Heath continues to showcase why he is one of Australia’s most entertaining crime fiction authors. Featuring a brilliant plot loaded with outrageous revelations and supporting characters, Kill Your Boss was a wonderfully addictive novel from start to finish. Compelling, twisted and just so much fun, Kill Your Boss is a very impressive read, and it was easily one of the top Australian novels of 2025.

Whisper in the Wind by Luke Arnold

On January 31, 2026 By The Unseen LibraryIn Australian, Fantasy, Five-Star Books, Murder Mystery1 Comment

Publisher: Orbit (Trade Paperback – 29 April 2025)

Series: Fetch Phillips – Book Four

Length: 381 pages

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Australian author Luke Arnold delivers another incredible fantasy hit with his deeply impressive fourth novel, Whisper in the Wind.

In recent years, one of my favourite fantasy series has been the underrated but always amazing Fetch Phillips Archive. Written by Australian actor Luke Arnold, who has very successfully transferred to a whole new career, the Fetch Phillips series is a clever and memorable urban fantasy series with an amazing, if dark, twist to it. Primarily set around the fantasy metropolis of Sunder City, the Fetch Phillips books showcase the aftermath of a worldwide catastrophe that destroyed all magic and permanently warped the various magical citizens of the city into disfigured mortal beings. Following titular investigator and odd-job man Fetch Phillips, a human partially responsible for the disaster, the books see Fetch attempt to solve unique crimes in the ruined city, while also looking to bring back magic in the face of human technological progress. All three previous books in the series have been very impressive, including The Last Smile in Sunder City (one of my favourite debuts and Australian novels of 2020), Dead Man in a Ditch and One Foot in the Fade (one of my favourite Australian novels of 2022). I have been eagerly awaiting this fourth book for a while, and Whisper in the Wind really did not disappoint.

Plot Synopsis

The fourth instalment of Luke Arnold’s Fetch Phillips series, Whisper in the Wind, takes readers to a very different Sunder City. One where government corruption is rampant and tensions are rising.

Fetch is done being a hero. Once a detective, all he wants now is to run his cafe in peace. Sunder City is still recovering from the sudden and violent end of magic, and if one man can’t solve all its problems, he can at least stop some people going hungry. But when a kid on the run shelters in Fetch’s cafe, and a chain of gruesome murders begins among Sunder’s high and mighty, trouble is brought to Fetch’s door.

There’s a word whispered on the wind, and that word is revolution…

Whisper in the Wind was another exceptional novel from Luke Arnold, who is very clearly getting better as an author with each new book he writes. Bringing his damaged protagonist back into action, Whisper in the Wind was another extremely clever and impressive fantasy crime novel that makes full use of the author’s exceptional imagination and world-building.

I really enjoyed the new story that Arnold came up with for Whisper in the Wind, which, thanks to its great combination of a complex mystery, compelling characters and some ongoing storylines about changes to a former magical land, is probably the author’s best work yet. Arnold starts the story off very effectively by showcasing returning protagonist Fetch Phillips as a changed man, no longer obsessed with trying to return the magic he helped destroy. Managing his friend’s café in peace, Fetch is dragged back into the chaotic life when one of the city’s police officers is murdered after talking to him. Initially trying to stay out of it, Fetch is blackmailed into investigating some additional killings plaguing the city, seemingly caused by acts of magic.

Arnold sets up this early part of the story extremely well, and you are once again dragged into Fetch’s often unsuccessful attempts to make his city a better place. Things get very intense as the story continues, especially as it becomes apparent that the murderer has started targeting the city’s elite who are responsible for handing effective control of Sunder City over to a ruthless corporation that Fetch has long opposed. Caught between various big players, Fetch tries to find the killer and uncover the latest corruption besetting his city from those in charge. There is a great mixture of compelling investigation which dives into some outstanding character arcs and some fantastic action as the protagonist gets closer to his goal. Arnold throws in some amazing and powerful twists as the reader gets towards the end of Whisper in the Wind, and the dark revelations play into the author’s long-term storytelling extremely well. I loved the complex revelation about who the killer was and why they were doing their crime, as well as final big moments of the plot as Fetch shows the reader what kind of hero he really is. Ending the book on a fantastic cliffhanger that brings back some interesting moments from the very first book, the entirety of Whisper in the Wind’s narrative was extremely awesome, and I honestly could not get enough of it.

As I have mentioned above, Luke Anrold has really gotten better as an author since starting the Fetch Phillips series, and I think that Whisper in the Wind showcased how good an author he really is. Perfectly continuing the series from the turbulent conclusion of One Foot in the Fade, Arnold once again paints a compelling picture around a despondent former hero who is only now finding his way again. This book’s mystery is probably one of Arnold’s best, as he presents an excellent conspiracy laden plot that presents as much tragedy as possible. The author also once again expertly utilises his chaotic setting to really enhance his narrative, forcing the protagonist to deal with his past mistakes as well as the pliable nature of people. A lot of the story revolves around a focus on how the wealthy and powerful manipulate the working classes through lies, fear and promises of safety and comfort, which has a certain real-world resonance to it, especially after the last year. Arnold handled these elements extremely well, especially as it provided extra despair to his already damaged protagonist in a particularly relatable way. The result is a particularly powerful read, that provides an exceptional balance of mystery, character growth, and a focus on the author’s unique fantasy elements.

While Whisper in the Wind would likely work well as a standalone novel for new readers, especially as Arnold is able to provide useful in-text recaps of the relevant prior books, this book is probably best read by those who have enjoyed the previous Fetch Phillips novels. The author brings back a lot of ongoing storylines from these books, especially those involving the human corporate takeover and modernisation of a formerly magical city, which is quite fascinating. In addition, reading the other Fetch Phillips books allows readers to get a lot more emotional impact from Whisper in the Wind, especially as you get some much better insights into the protagonist’s growth as well as his ongoing trauma and despair. I personally also loved seeing more of the world that the Fetch Phillips books are set in, especially the changes around the main setting of Sunder City. It has been fascinating to watch Arnold’s continued world-building since the first book, and he has turned this setting into some unique and distinctive. I honestly cannot wait to see what changes come to this world next, and Arnold has some interesting avenues when it comes to continuing his current storylines.

A lot of Whisper in the Wind’s strength, and indeed that of the whole series, lies in the excellent portrayal of the titular protagonist Fetch Phillips. Arnold has done an exceptional job turning Fetch into a highly tragic and repentant figure who was manipulated into betraying the magical races and taking away their power. Fetch’s growth from the first book has been very impressive, especially as he spent much of that time trying to undo the damage he did, before he was worn down by hopelessness and the machinations of the powerful who like the new status quo. This new book sees a somewhat healed Fetch who has managed to find a more peaceful life and has become an impromptu mentor to several younger characters. However, the spectre of his past and his frustrations with the world around him keep coming back to haunt him, and he finds himself in the fight again, although this time in a more thoughtful and less emotional way. I enjoyed the compelling and understandable changes to Fetch’s personality in this novel, playing off his prior failures extremely well, and his genuine attempts to stay out of trouble this time allowed for a refreshing change in narrative focus. Despite his best efforts, Fetch once again has his life unravelled, and his attempts at being a hero backfire on him again. Still, there was some genuine growth here, and I really appreciate the compelling way Arnold explores and enhances this great protagonist as the series continues. Throw in an excellent collection of supporting characters, as well as some wonderfully despicable corporate adversaries, and the cast of this book was extremely awesome, and added a lot to both the story, and the emotional impacts of Whisper in the Wind.

Luke Arnold continues to impress as one of Australia’s more captivating current authors of fantasy fiction. His fourth Fetch Phillips novel, Whisper in the Wind, was so damn good, and I honestly could not get enough of his elaborate and addictive plot, loaded with clever mystery and complex characters, all set in a unique fantasy world. I must give Whisper in the Wind a full five-star review, and this ended up being one of my favourite books of 2025. A highly recommended read, if you are a fantasy fan and you haven’t tried the Fetch Phillips series yet, you are missing out.

Broke Road by Matthew Spencer

On January 28, 2026 By The Unseen LibraryIn Australian, Five-Star Books, Murder Mystery, Thriller1 Comment

Publisher: Allen & Unwin (Trade Paperback – 1 July 2025)

Series: Rose Riley – Book Two

Length: 389 pages

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Australian author Matthew Spencer presented one of the best Australian crime fiction reads of 2025 with his outstanding and deeply impressive sequel novel, Broke Road.

Back in 2022, I had the great pleasure of reading the fantastic debut novel of Australian journalist turned author Matthew Spencer, Black River. Featuring a compelling crime fiction narrative about a mysterious series of deaths around the Sydney river system, Black River was a wonderful novel that ended up being one of my favourite debuts of 2022. I had a lot of fun with Spencer’s first book, and I was very curious when I saw that he had a sequel coming out this year, Broke Road. I made sure to grab a copy as soon as I could, and I ended up being blown away by how good this sequel was.

Plot Synopsis:

A late-night phone call is never good news for Homicide Detective Sergeant Rose Riley. This time she’s being sent up to the Hunter Valley, where a woman has been found dead in her home.

Rose grew up further along the valley. She knows that for every vineyard and golf course resort visited by tourists to the ‘wine country’ there are as many dilapidated fibro houses and drug dens, in the shadow of one of the state’s largest prisons.

A media hound points the finger at the husband, angering Rose but capturing the attention of journalist turned true crime author Adam Bowman. His book on the ‘Blue Moon Killer’ made him famous but the case nearly cost Rose her life, and she’s not sure how she feels about seeing him again.

Suspects abound, from the grieving husband to sinister business interests and suspicious locals. But when new evidence connects the crime to an old case, Rose realises they have no time to lose. The murderer is ready to strike again.

Broke Road was an amazing new novel from Matthew Spencer, who really impresses with this second outing, producing a complex and gritty Australian crime fiction narrative that really draws you in. Intense, clever and featuring some likeable characters, Broke Road ended up being an incredible sequel to the author’s first book, and it was one that I deeply enjoyed.

Spencer made some very interesting narrative choices that worked extremely well to tell an elaborate and deeply personal crime fiction story. Set after the climatic events of Black River, the novel initially follows main protagonist, Detective Sergeant Rose Bailey, as she travels to investigate a brutal murder of a married woman with connections to a successful local winery. Transferring this book from the urban streets of Sydney to the iconic Hunter Valley in rural New South Wales, Spencer provides a whole new feel to this sequel, which allows Broke Road to do its own thing. Initially set up as a typical small-town Australian murder mystery, with Rose investigating first the victim’s husband and other members of the nearby town, things take an interesting twist when Black River’s other protagonist, reporter Adam Bowman, arrives in town to investigate the case.

What follows is a complex and deeply captivating mixture of story elements as the protagonists are forced to deal with their complicated feelings towards each other. Simultaneously exploring the traumatic aftermath of the events of Black River while also seeing both main characters investigate the case in their own way, the plot of Broke Road becomes extremely addictive. A lot of this is due to how the author expertly raises the stakes as the plot continues, with the several related murders across the country coming to light, hinting at a deadly and notably chilling predator stalking the Hunter Valley. I really appreciated how the book’s story threads came together, and Spencer throws in various alternative motives, clever red herring and some great personal interactions in the lead-up to the conclusion. The eventual big reveal in Broke Road’s finale was extremely well handled, with an exciting confrontation well mixed with all the author’s clever clues coming together. Spencer ends everything on a great personal note, which ties everything up quite nicely and resulted in particularly outstanding narrative.

I felt that Broke Road was an outstanding novel in many ways, especially as it worked well as both a complex standalone crime novel and as a sequel to Spencer’s first book. While any new reader can easily jump into Broke Road, Spencer works the fallout of Black River’s plot into both the plot and the protagonist’s character arcs, with both main characters still dealing with their trauma and leftover feelings. This allows for a much more emotionally rich narrative, especially when tied into other character elements, such as Rose’s past connections to the area surrounding the murder scene. Spencer cleverly chose to focus more on Rose in this sequel, allowing her to develop more as a character after spending much of the first book in Adam’s shadow.

Spencer also provides a very compelling change of scenery from his previous novel, taking the protagonists and readers into a much more rural setting. Australia’s iconic Hunter Valley worked perfectly as a background to Spencer’s complex mystery, and the beautiful landscape, as well as its interesting mixture of inhabitants, added a lot to Broke Road’s impact and distinctive feel. I also personally felt that Spencer provided a much more well-written novel with this sequel, which showcases his growth from the first book. While the author does maintain his series’ grim tone, especially when it comes to the very disturbing killer, the story in this sequel was a lot sharper and the character arcs managed to hit a little harder. I also think that the author brought all the story elements together a bit more concisely in the finale, allowing for a much more enjoyable journey to the end of the book. All this really highlighted Spencer’s great development as a writer, and it will be interesting to see how he continues to improve going forward.

With some outstanding writing, clever storytelling and many grim murders, Broke Road was an exceptional book from Matthew Spencer, who really showcased his writing ability with this book. An amazing sequel that also stands on its own feet, Broke Road is guaranteed to hook you early, and it was easily one of the best Australian crime fiction novels of 2025.

Waiting on Wednesday – Redbelly Crossing by Candice Fox

On January 10, 2026 By The Unseen LibraryIn Australian, Murder Mystery, Thriller, Waiting on Wednesday1 Comment

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 latest Waiting on Wednesday post, I check out an outstanding upcoming Australian crime fiction read with Redbelly Crossing by the always awesome Candice Fox.

I’m always down for an epic crime fiction read from a talented local author, and few Australian authors have been as consistently impressive with their thrillers and murder mysteries then Candice Fox. Currently one of Australia’s top authors of the genre, Fox has been on a roll in recent years, providing a range of excellent novels, from complex American thrillers like The Chase, Devil’s Kitchen and Fire With Fire, to unique Australian outback thrillers such as High Wire. She has also continued her exciting partnership with the legendary James Patterson, with some recent releases including 2 Sisters Detective Agency, 2 Sisters Murder Investigations and The Murder Inn. All these books have been a ton of fun to get through, and I always make sure to keep an eye out for anything new from Fox, especially as it’s likely to be a guaranteed hit.

For 2026 it looks like Fox will be returning to Australian outback thriller fiction, with Redbelly Crossing, an intriguing, character-focused novel with a lot of interesting potential behind it. Set for release in late March 2026, Redbelly Crossing will follow two estranged cop brothers who are assigned to the same murder case in small-town, outback Australia. Fox looks set to combine a compelling mystery with some intense character moments, as these two damaged police protagonists are forced to work together. I cannot wait to see what dark family secrets and historical wounds are reopened as the story continues, and it should provide a particularly dramatic backdrop to an intriguing outback mystery. Combine that with Fox’s exciting and fast-paced writing style and Redbelly Crossing looks set to be a particularly awesome piece of Australian fiction coming out in early 2026, and it’s one I cannot wait to check out.

Plot Synopsis:

Blood is thicker than water. But too much leaves a trail . . .

Russell and Evan Powder are cops.

The brothers haven’t spoken for five years, since a violent confrontation tore their family apart.

Now they are both assigned to the murder of a young journalist, Chloe Lutz, in the small town of Redbelly Crossing (population 205).

It’s the last thing Russell wants. This is supposed to be the week he repairs things with his teenage daughter Bridie. Now he’s had to drag her on a murderous ride-along to the middle of snake-infested nowhere.

But a big case like this is just what Evan needs after a terrible mistake nearly tanked his career.

Then a dark discovery leaves Evan with only one way out; to bury the truth Russell is so determined to uncover …

Waiting on Wednesday – Dark Sanctuary by Sarah Barrie

On December 27, 2025 By The Unseen LibraryIn Australian, Murder Mystery, Thriller3 Comments

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. For this latest Waiting on Wednesday, I check out an outstanding upcoming piece of Australian crime fiction with the intriguing thriller Dark Sanctuary by Sarah Barrie.

Over the past through years, one of my favourite Australian authors has been the impressive Sarah Barrie. An author of excellent and compelling crime fiction with some truly dark twists to them, Barrie successfully enthralled me through her Lexi Winter series. An excellent series, the Lexi Winter books followed a former vigilante hacker turned police officer as she attempts to bring down the worst criminals in Sydney, including the leader of a murderous paedophile ring who has a sinister connection to her. This great series started with the amazing read, Unforgiven (one of my favourite Australian books of 2021), and continued with the excellent follow-ups Retribution (one of my favourite Australian books of 2022), Vendetta (one of my favourite Australian books of 2023), and Endgame one of my favourite Australian books of 2024). All four books were quite exceptional, and it has made me very curious to see what sort of intense novel Barrie would write next.

Well, it looks like I’ll once again be able to enjoy the powerful and exciting writing of Barrie soon, as she has a new novel coming out in April 2026. This new novel, Dark Sanctuary, looks set to be a particularly compelling read, as Barrie will balance several complex and dark character arcs as part of an intriguing crime fiction read. I’m very curious to see how this awesome piece of Australian crime fiction comes together, especially as the awesome combination of storylines below has so much potential. I have no doubt that Dark Sanctuary is going to be a particularly gripping read, and it is one of the Australian books I am most keen to read in 2026.

Plot Synopsis:

A mother’s worst fear, a killer on the loose, a darkness visible… A gripping page-turner for readers of Candice Fox and Karen Slaughter from an award-winning author.

Sergeant ‘Hex’ Rexford is the detective who caught the infamous serial killer Dr. Witcherton. Now, with a series of gruesome murders unfolding inside Coast Sanctuary – a hospital for the criminally insane – Witcherton claims to know who’s behind them. Hex takes the case, determined to uncover the truth, even as his own body is failing him.

Beth Thompson is desperate to keep her children safe. Her violent ex is stalking her, her son’s behaviour is growing strange, and his beloved teddy bear, Theo, might be more than just a toy. When an elderly woman offers Beth a remote cottage, it feels like a chance to breathe – but safety is an illusion.

Meanwhile, true crime podcasters Eve and Zane are chasing the story of the murders. But as Eve edges closer to the truth, the danger closes in.

As past and present collide, and the body count rises, the threads connecting them all begin to tighten – and something terrifying is watching from the dark.

High Rise by Gabriel Bergmoser

On November 30, 2025 By The Unseen LibraryIn Australian, Thriller2 Comments

Publisher: Harper Collins (Trade Paperback – 1 August 2025)

Series: Standalone/The Hunted spin-off

Length: 309 pages

My Rating: 4.5 out 5 stars

Prepare for carnage as rising Australian author Gabriel Bergmoser presents a high-octane and beautifully brutal thriller, High Rise, an outstanding and deeply entertaining novel with some real intensity behind it.

Gabriel Bergmoser is an intriguing author who has written some compelling and exciting pieces of Australian fiction over the last few years. Originally known more for his work as a playwright, Bergmoser has been more active as a thriller author in recent years with his Hunted books, as well as the standalone novel The Caretaker. High Rise serves as continuation of Bergmoser’s previous Hunted books, The Hunted and The Inheritance, as well as some of the author’s separately released Audible Originals, and follows a supporting character from The Inheritance on his own brutal adventure.

Plot Synopsis:

After a year of searching, rogue ex-cop Jack Carlin has finally found his estranged daughter, Morgan, holed up in the top floor of a rundown, grimy high-rise building. The trouble is, Jack’s unconventional policing and information-gathering methods in the past has made him some serious enemies. And what Jack doesn’t know as he heads into the building, intent on saving his daughter, is firstly, that Morgan doesn’t want to be saved – particularly not by him – and secondly, that the entire criminal underworld in the city are on their way too… There’s a bounty on his head, and they’re after his blood – and they don’t mind if Morgan is collateral damage.

As bounty hunters and gang members converge on the building, father and daughter are thrown into a desperate fight for survival through fifteen storeys of deadly enemies – with only each other to rely on. Die Hard meets The Raid, but the funnier, grittier Australian version. Fast, furious and ferocious, this is thriller writing at its nail-biting, unputdownable best.

Now that was a load of fun. High Rise was a highly entertaining and relentlessly exciting Australian novel, as Bergmoser unleashes one of his dangerous protagonists on a horde of criminals. Featuring a continuous blast of action, violence and family drama, High Rise was an amazing and addictive novel that I absolutely powered through.

I had a great time reading the ultra-exciting narrative featured within High Rise, especially as Bergmoser eagerly created an Australian thriller in the same vein as some classic over-the-top action films. Starting off fast with an effective reintroduction to protagonist Jack Carlin, Bergmoser sets up the main points of the narrative extremely well, and you soon get stuck into the main part of the book, with Jack finding himself trapped on the top floor of a high-rise building filled with petty criminals, bikies, thugs and even some professional hitmen. What follows is an entertaining blitz of outrageous and brutal action as Jack, and his daughter Morgan, attempt to fight their way downstairs.

Unsurprisingly for an action-packed brawl against criminals and killers, the plot of High Rise moves at a very quick pace. Bergmoser does a good job splitting the narrative between the two main protagonists, Jack and Morgan, which allows the author to dive into their strained relationship, as well as their own complicated pasts. Thanks to some creative splitting up, both characters have some interesting solo moments in the middle part of the novel, which also features some unlikely allies. The climax of the story comes on fast, and there are a couple of good twists there, as well as the appearance of a figure fans of Bergmoser will be very familiar with. While the identity of the main antagonist of the novel isn’t too surprising, some of the supporting villains were quite fun, especially as the author made good use of the character history he introduced in this novel. Everything leads up to an intense and emotionally charged finale, which features even more over-the-top action for the reader to enjoy, including some very unique weaponry for an urban Australian setting. The conclusion of the High Rise was quite poignant and served as a good wrap up to the character development Bergmoser had been exploring throughout the book. This was an overall exciting and intense narrative that has a lot of great moments for action fans.

Bergmoser did a great job of showcasing his action-packed story throughout High Rise, and this proved to be a very entertaining and addictive read as a result. The many, many fight sequences I have already gushed about are well-written, and readers can easily visualise these brutal battles and over-the-top sequences thanks to Bergmoser’s descriptive style. The author also successfully kept up his frenetic pace the entire way through, which allowed me to easy power through this book quickly. There is a certain level of humour to High Rise, especially with a range of clueless goons and other entertaining characters, and things do get a little ridiculous at times. This bit of comedic charm is well balanced by the deeper personal issues of the two protagonists, whose dysfunction is further showcased by various flashback sequence, which Bergmoser works into the plot without slowing the pace of the book down. As such, there are no impediments to powering through this book quickly, and I guarantee most readers will knock this off in only a few sessions.

As I mentioned at the start of the novel, High Rise serves as an extension to the author’s Hunted series. The protagonist has previously appeared in some of Bergmoser’s previous novels and audiobook releases, most prominently The Inheritance, while another of the author’s protagonists is reintroduced later in the novel. Despite being part of a larger series, any reader interested in checking out High Rise should be able to follow the plot of this novel without any issues. Indeed, I personally haven’t had the chance to read Bergmoser’s previous books, and I was able to enjoy High Rise quite easily. While there are references to previous events from the series, and the author is a little cagey at first about the protagonist’s connections to Maggie, the main character of The Hunted and The Inheritance, Bergmoser quickly fills in any necessary gaps with his accessible writing, and new readers should be able to follow along easily. As such, High Rise is a great book for any thriller reader, and indeed it works quite well as an introduction to Bergmoser and his writing style.

While I did decide to read High Rise mainly because of its fun-sounding plot and the excessive violence it promised, I came away appreciating the great character work that Bergmoser featured. Most of the book follows main protagonist Jack Carlin and his daughter Morgan, both of whom have a troubled past and a tense relationship with each other. The author does an excellent job diving into their complex personal history, especially with the novel’s regular split in perspective, and you get some intriguing insights into their pasts, much of which impacts their current motivations and reactions. This includes Carlin’s regretful history as a corrupt cop, much of which impacted his relationship with Morgan, who herself suffered a dark childhood due to her mother, as well as her own alcohol induced mistakes. These character elements become cleverly entwined with the main narrative, and the antagonism and mistrust between the two added to the drama of the plot. I think that Bergmoser handled this troubled relationship very well, and it was a great highlight of High Rise’s plot, especially attempt to address it in their own troubled way.

While High Rise is primarily focused on Jack and Morgan, several other characters do get their moment to shine. This includes Maggie, the protagonist of several of the author’s previous books, who has a more supporting role in this novel after appearing later in the plot. Due to her lack of perspective chapters, Maggie does have less of an impact than the author’s previous novels, but her intense personality and unique friendship with Jack ensure she stands out. Other key figures, including a Swedish assassin and the violent former member of a bikie club that Jack and Maggie previously destroyed, add some interesting flair to the plot, especially when some unlikely alliances form, and both had some memorable histories and appearances here. Throw in an army of low-level thugs and criminals who also attempt to claim the bounty on Jack, including some who have history with him, and High Rise features a very entertaining cast of characters, and it was very fun to see them try to kill each other.

Gabriel Bergmoser continues to produce extremely thrilling and entertaining Australian crime fiction content with his latest novel High Rise. A relentlessly brutal novel, loaded with action, bloodshed and some fantastic emotional depth, High Rise was a great read that I had an amazing time getting through. Highly recommended!

Waiting on Wednesday – Dead Fall Lake by S. R. White

On November 22, 2025 By The Unseen LibraryIn Australian, Murder Mystery, Waiting on WednesdayLeave a comment

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. For this latest Waiting on Wednesday post, I check out an excellent upcoming Australian crime fiction novel from an author who has really impressed me in recent year with Dead Fall Lake by S. R. White.

S. R. White is an outstanding author who has been making an intriguing impact on the Australian crime fiction scene in recent years. Primarily known for his Detective Dana Russo series, White has written some deeply complex, character-driven crime fiction novels, that provides some fresh new takes on the classic crime fiction narrative. This includes the first book of White’s that I had the pleasure of reading, Prisoner, which contained a fantastic murder mystery solved through a series of complex interrogations. The next novel in the series, Red Dirt Road, was another impressive read, with the protagonist forced to uncover the truth amid a closed pool of suspects in a remote Australian town. His fourth Dana Russo novel, White Ash Ridge, featured another clever story, as the protagonist needed to solve a murder likely committed by a board member of a charity formed after a previous failed police investigation. All of these, as well as the 2025 spin-off novel Pacific Heights, have been extremely impressive, and I like the elaborate and memorable cases they contain.

As such, I am always keen to see what White will be writing next, and it looks like he has another very interesting novel coming out in March 2026 with Dead Fall Lake. Featuring another compelling case, this time involving an extreme sports enthusiast found dead in a wilderness sinkhole, Dead Fall Lake sounds pretty damn awesome, and I am curious to see how this new novel unfolds. Based on my experiences with White’s other novels, I already know I’m going to love Dead Fall Lake, and it is already one of the top Australian releases I am looking forward to in the new year.

Plot Synopsis:
Deep in the Australian wilderness, a famed sinkhole renowned as a stunning freediving spot attracts people from all over the world. But there’s a dark, puzzling mystery when a local sports hero – and the glamorous face of a high-adrenaline video channel – is found dead far beneath the surface.

Despite diving the sinkhole hundreds of times, his lifeless body is discovered dressed in normal clothes, handcuffed to a supply line. With no witnesses – and evidence submerged 30 metres underwater – how can Detective Dana Russo unravel such a shocking case?

Waiting on Wednesday – The Shark by Emma Styles

On November 8, 2025 By The Unseen LibraryIn Australian, Thriller, Waiting on Wednesday4 Comments

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.

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.

Everyone in this Bank is a Thief by Benjamin Stevenson

On November 6, 2025 By The Unseen LibraryIn Australian, Comedy/Satire, Five-Star Books, Murder Mystery1 Comment

Publisher: Penguin (Trade Paperback – 30 September 2025)

Series: Erenest Cunningham – Book Four

Length: 355 pages

My Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

The over-the-top investigations of Ernest Cunningham resume in the outstanding and highly entertaining Australian crime fiction novel, Everyone in this Bank is a Thief by Benjamin Stevenson.

For the last few years, the Australian crime fiction scene has been the playground of Benjamin Stevenson. A comedian and performer with his brother, Stevenson started writing back in 2018 when he debuted his first crime fiction novel Greenlight (also released as Trust Me When I Lie and She Lies in the Vines), which Stevenson expertly followed up a year later with the great sequel Either Side of Midnight. While these initial books were really good, for me Stevenson’s best work has been his Ernest Cunningham novels.

The Ernest Cunningham series follows the titular character, a crime fiction expert from a notorious family, who finds himself caught up in some real-life whodunit situations. The first book in the series, Everyone in My Family has Killed Someone (one of my favourite Australian novels of 2022), was particularly impressive, and it cleverly combined the author’s great sense of humour with a compelling mystery. Stevenson continued to impress the following year, with Everyone on this Train is a Suspect (one of my favourite books and pieces of Australian fiction of 2023) a worthy sequel that further parodied various crime fiction subgenres. Stevenson even released a short, but impactful, Christmas entry in the Ernest Cunningham series last year with Everyone this Christmas has a Secret, which saw a Christmas variety show get very bloody, and which ended up being one of my favourite pieces of Australian fiction in 2024. Due to how wildly entertaining these books were, I just had to get the fourth book in the series, Everyone in this Bank is a Thief, when it came out this year, and it was one of my most anticipated reads for the second half of 2025, especially with its fun title and awesome plot concept.

Ernest Cunningham, murder mystery expert and Australia’s least likely detective, has so far solved three murders, each in its own outrageous scenarios. But even he is unprepared to solve a case in the middle of a bank robbery.

Trapped in a small-town bank while trying to get a loan for their new detective agency, Ernest and his fiancé Juliette find themselves at the mercy of a masked armed bandit, who has locked down the bank and demanding access to the vault. The only problem, the bank’s chief of security who knows the code is missing, and Ernest was just in the process of being hired to find him.

Besieged by the police and with no chance of escape, Ernest is determined to get his fellow hostages out alive by discovering out the vault’s code. However, as he begins his enquiries, he quickly discovers that the armed man holding them hostage isn’t the only criminal he’s dealing with. There are many different things that can be stolen in this bank, and all the trapped hostages have their own plots in motion. However, only one person is there to steal a life, and when bodies start turning up, Ernest once again finds himself in the middle of a murder investigation.

With all the suspects trapped in the bank with him, Ernest works quickly to solve the murders before the police end the siege. All the people in the bank are suspicious, but is the killer the bank robber, the silent priest, the greedy film producer, the teen gaming prodigy, the dying teenage girl and her mother, or a member of bank’s staff? To find the truth, Ernest will have to uncover everyone’s secrets and work them into his established rules for a murder mystery. But can he solve the crime before the killer takes him out, or is this one crazy investigation that even Ernest Cunningham cannot survive?

Benjamin Stevenson once again deeply impresses as Everyone in this Bank is a Thief was a brilliant and highly addictive novel that perfectly combines over-the-top mystery with the author’s distinctive humour. Clever, wildly entertaining, and just a little silly, Everyone in this Bank is a Thief was so much fun to read, and it gets a full five-star rating from me.

What another brilliant and hilarious story. Everyone in this Bank is a Thief was such an entertaining read, and I loved how crazy and exciting Stevenson made it. Starting off with an interesting introductory note from the protagonist that sets the scene and foreshadows some of the events to come, you are quickly taken to the bank setting in small-town Australia, where Ernest and returning character Juliette are tasked with investigating the missing head of security, who has changed the code to the vault. Stevenson does an effective job of introducing the locked room scenario, as well as the various suspects in these opening chapters, before the bank is taken over by the masked armed robber. With everyone gathered as hostages and the bank surrounded by police, Ernest finds himself taking on the task of finding the combination to the vault to fulfil the robber’s unusual request of a single dollar from the bank’s vault. This initial investigation provides a lot of hints about events for the future, before the story takes an enticing turn when someone dies in a spectacularly unusual situation. This inspires Ernest to take on an unadvised secondary role in the case, which moves the story into an entertaining new direction.

The second half of the book is even more compelling, and you power through it fast as you can to get to the conclusion. It quickly becomes apparent that there are multiple murders associated with this case, in addition to the other simultaneous heists taking place throughout the bank, all of which Ernest needs to uncover to solve the entire case. The author selectively reveals some of these secondary crimes earlier in the plot, which allow the story to move forward, while also moving the suspicion away from some of the potential suspects. While Stevenson continues to work in even more details about the suspects and the circumstances of their heists, there is also a certain amount of personal drama added into the mix, especially once Juliette realises the lengths Ernest has gone to solve the case, with some excellent moments leading up to it. The interplay between the main plot and the author’s notes that hint at the future become even more entangled and urgent as the book continues, especially as the events of the two start to catch up, and Stevenson works in the usual concern about the protagonist’s survival a little earlier than usual. Everything leads up to the classic summation gathering, where all the remaining secrets are revealed in hilarious and over-the-top fashion. Featuring a big and deadly climax that all of Ernest’s investigations seem to require, the book ends on an entertaining note, with the series still having the potential to go forward.

I really enjoyed this new novel from Stevenson, which was an excellent continuation of the Ernest Cunningham series. Working well as either the fourth book in the series, or an excellent standalone novel, Everyone in this Bank is a Thief was a lot of fun, with the concept of a crime fiction expert using the tropes of the genre to identify the killer in a humorous situation still as effective as ever. Told in the form of a true-crime book by the protagonist as he recounts the events of the bank heist, the narrative features a classic closed circle of suspects as Ernest investigates several murders, including an actual locked-room mystery, as well as several adjacent thefts, all while trapped in the murder scene. The result is an over-the-top mess of an investigation, as the various big personalities trapped in the bank clash with Ernest’s unusual methods and style, much to the audience’s glee. While there is a lot of focus on the book’s humour, Stevenson also does a great job pulling together a complex mystery with a lot of compelling suspects. There are a lot of intricate details and clues loaded into the story, often hidden by the more comedic interactions, and all these elements are well used later in the book, whether in solving the murders or examining the various hidden motivations of the other characters. The eventual reveal of the killer also proves to be quite clever, and there is some fantastic build-up to the discovery, even if the methods the protagonist uses to uncover them, as well as the crimes itself, are a tad ridiculous.

As with the previous books in the series, Everyone in this Bank is a Thief is a great satirical take on classic crime fiction novels, with the author and the protagonist both keen to utilise and honour the well-known tropes of the genre. While Stevenson once again features a fun takedown of old-school detective fiction murder mysteries, he also takes his protagonist outside of his crime fiction wheelhouse with the murder taking place amid a heist. Forcing the protagonist to apply heist tropes alongside his established rules for classic murder mysteries results in a great hybrid case, with a lot of jokes and references about both subgenres of crime fiction. Stevenson naturally goes overboard with the heist elements, with several concurrent thefts happening in the bank, all of which could serve as a potential motive for murder. I loved the outrageous variety of thefts that were worked into the plot, especially as most weren’t typical fictional robberies, and it was quite impressive to see Stevenson work them into the novel’s larger murder mystery. The series’ usual pre-narrative hints of events and murders to come, with accompanying page numbers, were missing in this latest novel, instead replaced by the alternate focus on the protagonist’s plight, as he instead uses the introduction to reveal that he is trapped in a safe and slowly running out of air. The humour of this situation, as well as build-up of suspense to when Ernest gets locked in the safe, added some extra fun and drama to the plot, and it was an interesting twist on the usual Ernest Cunningham book. I really enjoyed how Stevenson continues to experiment and alter the initial story and writing concepts he introduced in Everyone in my Family has Killed Someone, and this book was a worthy addition to this series, especially with the new focus on heist fiction in addition to other comedic differences.

As with the previous books in the series, Everyone in this Bank is a Thief features a memorable and over-the-top cast of characters. This includes series protagonist Ernest Cunningham, a writer and crime fiction expert who has accidently found himself in the middle of several murder investigations. Attempting to continue his unlikely career as a professional detective, Ernest proves to be an intriguing and entertaining protagonist, especially with his cynical outlook on the world. Much of the book’s humour comes from Ernest’s entertaining observations of the people around him, and he has a unique way of solving crimes that mocks traditional murder mysteries in all the best ways. There is a compelling addictive element to Ernest’s need to solve crime in this latest novel, which often forces him to make some stupid decisions, and the author adds in some interesting and entertaining self-reflective moments that I quite enjoyed. There is also and quite entertaining look at Ernest’s notoriety and semi-fame in wider society, which plays into the story in several fun ways, including making him a potential target for murder. I loved how much Ernest has developed over the series, and this proved to be a great extra inclusion to his story.

The rest of the cast of Everyone in this Bank is a Thief is also quite impressive, with my favourite being Ernest’s patient fiancé, Juliette. A strong-willed, intelligent supporting character who has been Ernest’s love interest since the first book, Juliette often finds herself trapped in these elaborate murder investigations alongside her partner. Her latest outing in Everyone in this Bank is a Thief was particularly fun, as Stevenson used some interesting shenanigans to showcase Juliette’s feelings about Ernest’s antics, especially when he gets caught up in an investigation. The real brains and emotional heart of this novel, Juliette was extremely awesome, and I love how well she complements Ernest as the protagonist. The rest of the cast, the majority of whom are fellow hostages in the bank, also prove to be a ton of fun, especially as all of them are thieves in one way or another. While I’m going to limit my discussion about these supporting characters to avoid spoilers, I will say that Stevenson came up with an awesomely eclectic group of suspects, red herrings and rogues here, and uncovering their associated ploys and schemes made for some great reading.

Overall, Everyone in this Bank is a Thief was outstanding fourth entry in the Ernest Cunningham series, and I had such an epic time getting through it. Benjamin Stevenson has perfected his formula for highly entertaining murder mysteries, and the intricate blend of complex mystery, excellent humour and outrageous characters makes for quite an impressive read. One of the best Australian crime fiction novels of 2025, Everyone in this Bank is a Thief comes very highly recommended, and I cannot wait to see what Stevenson writes next.