Review: TELL THE TRUTH, Katherine Howell

• this edition published by PanMacmillan Australia 2015
• ISBN 978-1-74353-290-4
• 324 pages
• #8 in the Ella Marconi series
• Source: my local library
• Also available on Kindle

Synopsis (Publisher)

Paramedic Stacey Durham has an idyllic life; her dream job, a beautiful house, and a devoted husband. Until her car is found abandoned and covered in her blood.

Detective Ella Marconi knows information is key in the first twenty-four hours, questioning the frantic husband, Marie, the jealous sister, and Rowan, the colleague who keeps turning up in all the wrong places.
Just as Ella starts to piece together the clues, a shocking message arrives for James: You won't see her again if you don't tell the truth.

As she sifts through the lies, Ella's relationship with Dr Callum McLennan is under siege, and she doesn't know if it can survive the overenthusiasm of her family, or the blind hatred of his mother.
With the investigation hitting dead ends and new threats being made, Ella must uncover the truths buried beneath the perfect façade before the case goes from missing person to murder.

My take

TELL THE TRUTH just confirms what an excellent story teller Katherine Howell is, and what a wonderful journey she has taken us on with Ella Marconi in the last eight years.

In each of the titles different paramedics interact with crime and an investigation conducted by Detective Ella Marconi. The setting is Sydney and, while each could be seen as police procedurals, they also attest to the Australian lifestyle and the multicultural nature of Australian society.

I'm not sure that I felt that the plot, as it panned out, was entirely credible, but it made good raeding.

My Rating: 4.9

I've also reviewed
5.0, FRANTIC - #1 (mini review) - 2007
4.6, THE DARKEST HOUR - #2 - 2008
4.8, COLD JUSTICE - #3 -2010
4.8, VIOLENT EXPOSURE -#4 - 2010
4.8, SILENT FEAR -#5 - 2012
4.7, WEB OF DECEIT  #6 -2013 

Review: WEB OF DECEIT, Katherine Howell

• first published by Pan Macmillan Australia 2013
• #6 in the Ella Marconi series
• ISBN 978-1-7426-1030-6
• source: my TBR

Synopsis (Pan Macmillan Australia)

When paramedics Jane and Alex encounter a man refusing to get out of his crashed car with bystanders saying he deliberately drove into a pole, it looks like a desperate cry for help. His frantic claim that someone is out to get him adds to their thinking that he is delusional.

Later that day he is found dead under a train in what might be a suicide, but Jane is no longer so sure: she remembers the raw terror in his eyes.

Detective Ella Marconi shares Jane's doubts, which are only compounded when the case becomes increasingly tangled. The victim's boss tries to commit suicide when being questioned, a witness flees their attempt to interview her, and then to confuse matters further, a woman is beaten unconscious in front of Jane's house and Alex's daughter goes missing.

Ella is at a loss to know how all these clues add up, and feels the investigation is being held back by her budget-focused boss. Then, just when she thinks she's closing in on the right person, a shocking turn of events puts more people in danger and might just see the killer slip through her hands.

My Take

WEB OF DECEIT follows the same structure as Howell's earlier novels in the series: police investigations running in parallel with paramedics whose callout allows the reader to see another side of a victim. The result is four strong characters who are dedicated to the work that they are doing. But they all have more personal relationships on their minds as well, and I think that is what makes them seem so real. None of us operates in a vacuum. Our personal lives impinge on our work and vice versa.

Here is a well plotted novel written by an accomplished and established Australian author, the first to win two Davitt awards.

I have two novels in this series to catch up on: DESERVING DEATH published in 2014, and TELL THE TRUTH due out Feb 2015. I am looking forward to reading both of them!

My rating: 4.7

I've also reviewed
5.0, FRANTIC - #1 (mini review) - 2007
4.6, THE DARKEST HOUR - #2 - 2008
4.8, COLD JUSTICE - #3 -2010
4.8, VIOLENT EXPOSURE -#4 - 2010
4.8, SILENT FEAR -#5 - 2012

2013 Ned Kelly Shortlists announced

http://austcrimewriters.com/content/2013-ned-kelly-awards

The following links are to the reviews created on Fair Dinkum Crime.

Best First Fiction

Steve Lewis & Chris Uhlmann ­ THE MARMALADE FILES
Zane Lovitt - THE MIDNIGHT PROMISE
Paul Anderson - THE ROBBERS
Sue Williams - MURDER WITH THE LOT
Andrew Grimes - THE RICHMOND CONSPIRACY

Best Fiction

Robert Gott - THE HOLIDAY MURDERS
Katherine Howell - WEB OF DECEIT
Geoffrey McGeachin - BLACKWATTLE CREEK
Adrian McKinty - I HEAR THE SIRENS IN THE STREET
Malla Nunn - SILENT VALLEY

The links below take you to various reviews

True Crime

Robin De Crespigny - THE PEOPLE SMUGGLER
Belinda Hawkins - EVERY PARENTS NIGHTMARE
Steve Lillebuen - THE DEVIL'S CINEMA
Derek Pedley - DEAD BY FRIDAY
Mark Tedeschi QC ­ EUGENIA

review: SILENT FEAR, Katherine Howell

• Published Pan Macmillan Australia Feb 2912
• ISBN 978-1-7426- 072-6
• 402 pages
• source: review copy supplied by the publisher
• #5 in the Ella Marconi series
• Available on Kindle but expensive.

Synopsis (author site)

On a searing summer's day paramedic Holly Garland rushes to an emergency to find a man collapsed with a bullet wound in the back of his head, CPR being performed by two bystanders, and her long-estranged brother Seth watching it all unfold.

Seth claims to be the dying man's best friend, but Holly knows better than to believe anything he says and fears that his re-appearance will reveal the bleak secrets of her past – secrets which both her fiance Norris and her colleagues have no idea exist, and which if exposed could cause her to lose everything.

Detective Ella Marconi suspects Seth too, but she's also sure the dead man's wife is lying, and the deceased's boss seems just too helpful. But then a shocking double homicide related to the case makes Ella realise that her investigations are getting closer to the killer, but also increasing the risk of an even higher body count.

My Take

Katherine Howell has really cemented herself as an Australian crime fiction author of international note.

SILENT FEAR follows the pattern set in earlier novels: the main plot involves a paramedic working in the ambulance service in Sydney. In this case a young man collapses in the parklands and is then discovered to have been shot. The investigating officer is Detective Ella Marconi. Ella is the thread that connects the series.

As in the other novels, there is also a thread that connects the paramedic Holly Garland and Detective Ella Marconi. In this case there is something in Holly's past that gives a colleague a hold over her, while a new detective is making Ella's life a little unpleasant.

Howell strikes a nice balance between descriptive detail, and an authoritative view of both paramedic and police procedures.  In the five novels in the series so far she has established an interesting character for Detective Ella Marconi, and yet it doesn't feel like the reader can't break into the series at any point. The result is a tightly constructed, fast paced thriller.

My rating: 4.8

Other reviews to check:

• Aust Crime
• Karen Brooks
• The Eclectic Reader
• Book'd Out

My other reviews of books in the series
THE DARKEST HOUR
4.8, COLD JUSTICE 
- includes a mini review of debut novel FRANTIC
4.8, VIOLENT EXPOSURE

Katherine Howell's website

About Katherine Howell
Katherine Howell worked as a paramedic for fifteen years while completing her Bachelor and Masters degrees in creative writing. Her first novel, Frantic, was published in 2007 by Pan Macmillan and set a paramedic alongside Sydney police detective Ella Marconi in 'an adrenaline rush of a thriller' (Sydney Morning Herald). It won the 2008 Davitt award for best crime fiction. Her second book, The Darkest Hour, continued the pattern with Ella and another paramedic in 'a finely paced and engrossing novel' (Guardian UK). The third in the series, Cold Justice, made the Australian bestseller list, saw Katherine travelling on a P&O cruise as guest author, and was described by NYT bestselling author Tess Gerritsen as 'one of my favourite books of the year'. It also won the 2011 Davitt award for best crime fiction, making Katherine the only author to have won twice. more

Win a copy of VIOLENT EXPOSURE

Earlier this week I reviewed VIOLENT EXPOSURE by Katherine Howell.
Now you have a chance to win a copy wherever you are in the world

To find out what to do, visit this page at Fair Dinkum Crime.

While you are there, check out the other links to Katherine Howell.

Review: VIOLENT EXPOSURE, Katherine Howell

• Format: Kindle Edition
• File Size: 620 KB
• Publisher: Macmillan Australia (December 1, 2010)
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services
• Language: English
• ASIN: B004EEOWHU
• Source: I bought the e-book but was also supplied with a hard copy for review by Macmillan Australia.

Publisher's Blurb

When Suzanne Crawford is found stabbed to death and her husband Connor is discovered to be missing, it looks like just another tragic case of domestic violence to Detective Ella Marconi. But as the investigation progresses, it becomes clear that all is not as it seems. Why is there no record of Connor Crawford beyond a few years ago? Why has a teenager who worked for the pair gone missing too? And above all, what was the secret Suzanne knew Connor was keeping at all costs – even from her?

As Ella begins to build a picture of the Crawfords' fractured lives, things around her are deteriorating. Her relationship with a fellow officer is hanging by a thread and her parents seem to be keeping secrets of their own. But Ella only has time for the job she loves, and she knows she has to see her way through the tangled web of deceit and lies to get at the truth – before it's too late.

My take

The structure of VIOLENT EXPOSURE is similar to earlier novels in this series (this is #4): parallel plots that advance in tandem, each generating their own sense of suspense. The link between the main  plots is Detective Ella Marconi. This time, in addition to Marconi providing links to plots of previous novels, there is a continuing thread linking VIOLENT EXPOSURE to the first novel FRANTIC in which the baby son of a police officer and a paramedic was kidnapped. The links reinforce the close nature of the paramedic community.

There is plenty in VIOLENT EXPOSURE to keep the reader engaged: believable characters and scenarios, as well as a building tension as the Marconi and her team race to find Connor Crawford.
Marconi has moved from Sydney's Cold Case Unit, where she was taking this easy after a bullet wound, into the "real world" of severe crimes. Other strands of the novel involve the paramedics where a trainee does not seem to have the sense of commitment required, and the struggle one of the paramedics and his wife are having to bring a baby to full term.
There is a further crossover between the police and the ambos (paramedics) where one of the latter is running a drama class that is part of a "street kid" project. One of the drama class participants works for the victim in her garden centre. Again this sense of coincidence reinforces how small the worlds are that we move in.

The title also makes the reader contemplate the effects on both police officers and paramedics of constant exposure to violent crimes. Do they become inured to bloodshed, less sensitive emotionally, or undermined morally?

For me VIOLENT EXPOSURE was further affirmation that Katherine Howell's novels are both unique and of world-class.

My rating: 4.8

Other titles reviewed:
THE DARKEST HOUR (contains mini-review of FRANTIC)
4.8, COLD JUSTICE

Katherine Howell's website

Win a copy of VIOLENT EXPOSURE from Fair Dinkum Crime - competition closes October 3, 2011

Other reviews to check:

• Fair Dinkum Crime
• Australian Crime Fiction
• Karen Brooks 

Review: COLD JUSTICE, Katherine Howell

Published by Pan Macmillan Australia in 2010
ISBN 978-1-4050-3927-7
329 pages
Source: my TBR

Publisher's blurb

A teenage girl stumbles across the body of her classmate, Tim Pieters, hidden amongst the bushes. His family is devastated, the killer is never found.
Eighteen years later, political pressure sees the murder investigation reopened. Detective Ella Marconi tracks down Georgie Riley, the student who found the body, and who is now a paramedic. Georgie seems to be telling the truth, so then why does Ella receive an anonymous phone call insisting that Georgie knows more? And is it mere coincidence that her ambulance partner, Freya, also went to the same high school?

My take

Paramedic Georgie Riley and Detective Ella Marconi are travelling similar paths, returning to work after traumatic incidents that resulted in hospitalisation and being off work for some months. As a result both are under scrutiny. Georgie has been transferred from the country to the ambulance station at The Rocks in Sydney. She will undergo assessment to see if she can manage the job. She is staggered to see that her assessing partner is Freya, her best friend from high school. Georgie hopes she has left some of the problems she had at the country station behind her, and it seems she has, until she sees a familiar face in the crowd.

Ella Marconi is returning to work after a gunshot wound, and has been assigned to the Unsolved Cases unit. Technology has advanced since Tim Pieters was murdered in 1990 and items from his file have been sent off for DNA testing.  Ella too is hoping that some of the demons of her past don't surface, but both her parents and her boyfriend Wayne are anxious that she may have returned to work too soo. Ella is determined to prove she has what it takes.

In COLD JUSTICE Australian author Katherine Howell has used a formula similar to the one she used successfully in both THE DARKEST HOUR, and her debut novel FRANTIC (see mini-review below): parallel plots that advance in tandem, each generating their own sense of suspense. The link between the two plots is Detective Ella Marconi. Again the paramedic characters are new, while Marconi provides the common thread from one novel to the next.

My rating: 4.8

I am very much looking forward to reading the next in the series: VIOLENT EXPOSURE - it is already on my TBR shelves.

Mini-review of FRANTIC (rating 5.0)

FRANTIC is Katherine Howell's debut in writing and well worth your attention. Set in Sydney. Sophie Phillips is a paramedic whose husband Chris is a police officer who was assaulted recently. Their son Lachlan is still a baby. Their lives are very busy because Sophie often works nights. Marriage-wise things have not been going so well lately and Chris and Sophie don't seem to be talking much. And then Chris is shot in the head on the doorstep of their house and Lachlan is abducted. The action ramps up quickly and events spiral to a catharsis that I didn't even see coming. I found myself holding my breath and thinking "she's not really doing that!".

Katherine Howell's website

I am listing COLD JUSTICE in the Aussie Author Challenge

BBAW Giveaway #2

I am celebrating BBAW with 5 giveaways this week, one each day, 4 books by Australian authors, and one related to Agatha Christie.

Today's giveaway is FRANTIC by Katherine Howell

Publisher's Blurb

In one terrible moment, paramedic Sophie Phillips life is torn apart - her police officer husband, Chris, is shot on their doorstep and their ten-month-old son, Lachlan, is stolen from his bed. The police suspect Chris is involved with a number of armed hold-ups and that the attack is revenge for his desire to distance himself from the robberies, but Sophie believes the attack is much more personal - and the perpetrator far more dangerous... While Chris is in hospital and the police, led by Detective Ella Marconi, are moving heaven and earth to find their colleague's child, Sophie's desperation to make amends compels her to search for Lachlan herself. She enlists her husband's partner, Angus Arendson, in her hunt for her son, but will the history they share prove harmful to Sophie's ability to complete her mission? And could one dangerous decision cause Sophie to ultimately lose everything important in her life? .

To go into the draw for this book, you need to leave a comment and tell me something important about Katherine Howell. Your information should not repeat anything from this blog post, or from comments left prior to yours.

Click to check other BBAW giveaways

The competition is open world-wide, the only proviso being that if the winner comes from outside Australia postage cost will determine whether the book is delivered by surface mail or air mail.

The competition for all my BBAW giveaways will close on Friday 24 September, and the winners for all the BBAW giveaways will be announced on this blog on Saturday 25 September.

REVIEW: THE DARKEST HOUR, Katherine Howell

Pan Macmillan Australia, 2008, ISBN: 978-1-4050-3832-4, 380 pages

Lauren Yates and Joe Vandermeer are paramedics, a team working in Sydney’s ambulance service. They are generally, but not always, on night duty. Joe has called in sick and so Lauren is on her own. An ambulance officer is always vulnerable in these circumstances. It’s a winter’s night and Lauren has just attended a horrific car crash where the driver died, and is now on her way back to the station. Two men rush out of an alleyway and one collapses into the gutter just in front of her car. When Lauren investigates the alleyway she sees a body. She locates another person in the alleyway, this time very much alive. To her horror it is someone she knows, someone she had hoped she would never see again. Thomas Werner is her niece’s father, and when he sees that Lauren recognises him, Thomas threatens to harm Lauren’s family if she reveals she has seen him. Lauren’s decision not to reveal this information when she later makes her statement to the police about the body in the alleyway has far-reaching repercussions.

In a sense THE DARKEST HOUR is a sequel to Howell’s debut novel FRANTIC because, although the central paramedic character is different, the investigating police officer is again Detective Ella Marconi. Ella realises that Lauren has not revealed all. THE DARKEST HOUR uses a structure of two parallel plots, rather like the structure of FRANTIC. Ella’s determination to succeed in her investigation and to cement her position in the homicide squad at times makes her obsessive and seemingly hard-bitten. The investigation brings very real danger for her as it is realised there is a “mole” in the homicide squad.

The personalised stories of the main characters breathe life into THE DARKEST HOUR. Lauren Yates at times makes some pretty poor decisions. Her partner Joe’s fiancé is venomous in her hatred for her, ready to bring her into disrepute at every turn. Ella Marconi is struggling to maintain a life independent of her doting Italian mother and extended family. The result is well-fleshed characters that seem real.

THE DARKEST HOUR is not so much a mystery as a thriller. The reader always knows who the quarry is. The book gets its pace from the net closing around him. This book confirms that Katherine Howell is an Australian author to watch. In an Author’s Note Howell is candid in her explanation of how she came to be a writer, how she has used her previous job as a paramedic as background for her novels, but also how she had to distance herself from that life in order to write. There’s more on her website at http://www.katherinehowell.com. Katherine Howell lives on the New South Wales north coast and is currently working on her third novel. Her debut novel FRANTIC has been longlisted for the 2008 Ned Kelly Best First Novel awards.

My rating: 4.6

Australian Crime Fiction Snapshots - Batch 2

The second batch of these interviews, the result of a collaboration between Karen Chisholm (of the Aust Crime Fiction weblog), Damien Gay (of Crime DownUnder) and Perry Middlemiss (of Matilda).

• Katherine Howell - on Crime Down Under
• Kirsty Brooks - on Matilda
• Leah Giarratano - on Aust Crime Fiction
• Geoff McGeachin - on Crime Down Under
• Jason Nahrung - on Aust Crime Fiction
  
• Peter Temple - on Crime Down Under
• Goldie Alexander - on Aust Crime Fiction

From yesterday

• Matthew Freeman on Aust Crime Fiction
• Lucy Sussex on Matilda
• P. D. Martin on Aust Crime Fiction
• Adrian Hyland on Crime Down Under
• Marshall Browne on Matilda