February Reading Challenge Discussion

February’s Reading Challenge was to read a book set in Australia.

A funny thing happened with February’s challenge. I did complete the challenge (I actually read three books), but NONE of them were the books I selected!!!

While we were waiting to board our flight to Cairns, I walked through some of the airport shops looking for books by Australian authors. (because of course the best place to discover Australian authors is IN Australia lol). I did find a few “new to me” authors and ordered a handful of books on Kindle.

One of the books I was immediately intrigued by Scrublands which is a fiction debut by Chris Hammer. Journalist Martin Scarsden has not been the same since an horrible ordeal happened to him on a previous assignment. So his editor forces him out of the newsroom and back into the field to cover the one year anniversary of a mass shooting in a rural community. The shooter was the priest of their church and not everyone believes the reason that has been given for his inexplicable actions. Martin is not there to take another look at the crime but the inconsistencies are troubling. When the bodies of two backpackers who went missing just days before the mass shooting are discovered, Martin cannot shake his certainty these two things might be connected. Will he uncover the truth about who killed the backpackers? And will he solve the mystery about the murderous priest??? I highly recommend you read this intriguing mystery to discover the answer to these questions (and more)!

Please click HERE to find out more information about Scrublands.

Late last year, I watched a British mini series called The Cry which is based on the novel by Helen FitzGerald. This engrossing mystery is set in Melbourne and follows the disappearance of a couple’s baby who went missing almost immediately after they arrived in Australia. The series closely follows the novel and despite knowing how the story ends, I was completely riveted to this riveting mystery. (and I was completely delighted that I had just been at a lot of the locations that were mentioned in the novel)

Please click HERE to find out more information about The Cry.

Right before I went on vacation, I was finishing N.R. Walker’s Red Dirt Heart series. This four book series takes place on the fictional Sutton Cattle Station which is in the middle of the Outback. I needed to read Red Dirt Heart 4 to complete the series. This installment was different than the first three since it is written from American citizen Travis Craig’s perspective instead of his Australian boyfriend Charlie Sutton’s. It was a little disconcerting but interesting to see Travis’s point of view of their relationship. I also liked that the two men went on holiday to see Travis’s family back in Texas-it was entertaining to watch Charlie try to understand life in America. As the final novel in the series, Ms. Walker provided some very nice peeks of the two men well into the future.

One of my first vacation stops is near where the series is set and it was pretty exciting seeing the area in person. I also spent a little bit of time in “The Alice”! My husband and I also enjoyed a wonderful day exploring Uluru which is also mentioned in a few books in the series (it is breathtaking).

Please click HERE for more information about Red Dirt Heart 4.

I hope you had better luck reading the book you selected for the challenge! Did you enjoy spending a little slice of your time in Australia?

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Check out March’s challenge HERE.