EXCERPT: He was standing atop a small rise staring at something when Evan staggered up beside him and gasped softly. A strange yellowish vehicle-cum-dwelling: they couldn't take their eyes off it.

The depleted shell of a truck cabin at one end merged into a decrepit caravan at the other. It was like some bizarre caterpillar with extremities so different they might have belonged to separate species. The truck's bonnet lay on the ground, engine parts flung around it like a mad mechanic's toys. Where once were wheels, tree stumps now propped the apparition up. Skew-whiff sheds and lean-tos lay scattered around it, rotting in the grass. The caravan was covered in peeling tan and yellow paint and above the door a faded sign declared 'Highway Palace'. It was a ruined palace though, with oval windows cracked or broken, glinting like jagged teeth, shreds of lace curtains behind them. There was nothing palatial or grand about it now, and probably never had been. But behind the curtains, mystery seemed to lurk in every corner.

ABOUT THIS BOOK: It’s 1966. Hal and his little brother, newly arrived in Moorabool with their parents, are exploring the creek near their new home when they find the body of a dog.

Not just dead, but recently killed.

Not just killed, but mutilated.

Constable Mick Goodenough, recently demoted from his city job as a detective, is also new in town—and one of his dogs has gone missing. He’s experienced enough to know what it means when someone tortures an animal to death: it means they’re practising. So when Hal’s mother starts getting anonymous calls—a man whistling, then hanging up—Goodenough, alone among the Moorabool cops, takes her seriously.

The question is: will that be enough to keep her safe?

MY THOUGHTS: Atmospheric. Very atmospheric. There is a palpable air of menace in this small rural town where most people are either hiding something, or watching ... and waiting.

Set in the 1960's, there is blatant racism in this book that may upset some people. But that is just the way things were then. While we can't change the past, we can learn from it.

There are multiple layers to this mystery - corrupt police, corrupt town councillors, extra-marital activity, missing and mutilated animals, mystery and murder. But Woodland has also captured the essence of the time, particularly the way kids were allowed to roam about unfettered, the only restriction that they 'be home in time for tea.' Parents weren't at all concerned about where the kids were, who they were playing with or what they were doing, as long as they stayed out of trouble and came home on time. Step out of line, and you'd get a whack around the ear or a slap around the legs for your trouble. People drank and drove. And smoked - everywhere.

Woodland's writing is vivid, both his descriptions and his characters come alive. I could smell the heat, taste the dust, hear the voices. I knew, well before I reached the end of the first chapter, that I was onto a winner.

The plot is enthralling, and takes place in Aussie time. 'Don't worry mate, it'll get done, some time. Crack a stubby while you wait.'

Mick Goodenough (pronounced Good-no, or as his boss likes to quip, no-good) has two strikes against him before he starts. 1. He's an indigenous Australian. 2. He's been demoted from the rank of Detective in Sydney and exiled to Moorabool as a probationary constable. The problem is that Mick still thinks like a detective. And his boss takes great delight in rubbing his nose in the fact that he isn't.

Hal, twelve, has also only recently moved to Moorabool for his father's work. Summer holidays, so he hasn't really had a chance to meet anyone else his own age. Until Allie, an indigenous girl who takes him crawbobbing, and talks to him about the spirits trapped in the Highway Palace, the scene of a murder-suicide years earlier. Hal is more concerned about what happened to the one surviving child. Where did he go, and where is he now? And could it be him that is making the strange and threatening calls his mother is receiving? If not, then who? And why?

I was riveted by this story. Gritty and honest. And I want more.

I have lived in a small town in Australia, a little like this. Some of my happiest years were spent there. Woodland made me homesick. Dust, flies, spiders, snakes and all...

❤❤❤❤.8

#TheNightWhistler #NetGalley

FOR THE ARMCHAIR TRAVELLER: I think that Moorabool is a fictional town in the New England region of New South Wales, Australia.

New England or New England North West is the name given to a generally undefined region in the north of the state of New South Wales, Australia, about 60 kilometres inland, that includes the Northern Tablelands and the North West Slopes regions.

Dubbed the Cathedral City, Armidale in the New England High Country is one of Australia’s most elegant regional cities. With an altitude of a kilometre above sea level, it’s known for vibrant autumn foliage and cool breezes in summer. Wander its streets and find 19th century churches mixed with modern cafes and restaurants.

THE AUTHOR: Greg has been a script developer and consultant for Australian film funding bodies and the Australian Writers Guild for 25 years. He is the founder-director of a leading Australian script service. As writer/director Greg’s award-winning short films and documentaries screened nationally and internationally at over 60 film festivals and many TV channels. His screenplays The Whistler and Pangs won several script competitions including the Fellowship of Australian Writers Best Drama Manuscript, the Inscription Open Script award, and three Varuna Fellowships between them. Greg has lectured in Scriptwriting at Macquarie University, UTS, NIDA, and AFTRS. His script editing credits include feature films ‘Moon Rock for Monday’, ‘Don’t Tell’, ‘Needle’, ‘Cold Turkey’, ‘The Bet’, ‘Broken’, several Project Greenlight and Monte Miller Award finalists, the 2013 Tropfest Best Film Winner, the 2016 AWG John Hinde Science Fiction script award winner and many others. His first crime novel ‘The Night Whistler’ was published by Text Publishing in August 2020, and he’s now writing the sequel, The Carnival is Over.

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Text Publishing via Netgalley for providing a digital ARC of The Night Whistler by Greg Woodland for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.

For an explanation of my rating system please refer to my Goodreads.com profile page or the about page on sandysbookaday.wordpress.com

This review and others are also published on Twitter, Amazon, Instagram and my webpage

Recently busted back down to the rank of Constable, Mick Goodenough is the newest cop in town. Once a detective always a detective though, and it’s impossible for the experienced investigator not to speak up when it appears that his new colleagues are ignoring the sinister signs of an escalating killer. The Night Whistler takes the reader back to 1960’s Moorabool, New South Wales.

Mick soon discovers that the job of policing country Moorabool mostly involves managing domestic disturbances, investigating low level crimes, tolerating a little political argy bargy and attending to the petty grievances of those that live in the town and surrounds. All pretty standard. A pet killer may have largely slid by unnoticed in the past but to Mick who has worked more serious crimes in his recent career, red flags like these should never be ignored.

Hal Humphries and his family are also recent additions to Moorabool. Having upped sticks for a new career opportunity, Hal’s father is doing his best to fit in into the rural community. It’s not as easy for a stay at home mother or two small boys however to assimilate, and Hal isn’t oblivious to the increasing tension between his parents. When Hal’s mother starts getting creepy late night phone calls on the nights that her husband is away, the Humphries only have one person willing to take them seriously – Probationary Constable Mick Goodenough.

The Night Whistler is one of those books that shows promise for future works. If this was to be the first novel in a series, it would be good news. There’s plenty of threading for a continuing series, and the narrative split between an adult (Mick) and child (Hal) gives both a resident’s view and a police view of the crime as it appears to both at their level of understanding.

It’s seems a bit odd to describe a crime novel as nostalgic and charming but in parts The Night Whistler achieves this, doling out the hokey language of 1960’s Australia which would seem contrived and blustering if coming out of the mouths of modern characters. Set in less enlightened times, the novel does duck and weave around other issues such as gender inequality, racial intolerances, adultery and small town corruption. None are delved into too deeply but these elements are all present, as you would expect.

The Night Whistler is an amiable read that in other times would perhaps be described as a good yarn. What it does particularly well is establish itself in a certain era where it is easy enough to imagine that rural policing did not involve a lot of sensitivity in its execution. The bush descriptions evocatively bring forth the dust and the insects, bored local kids and disenchanted wives. The Night Whistler isn’t afraid to go a little gorey in the kills, both human and animal, which does jar a little with how the rest of the novel is gently styled.
Kudos to the cover art designer – what could be creepier than an old vintage caravan abandoned in a country paddock?

*I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review*

Set in Australia in the 1960’s, The Night Whistler is a suspenseful crim thriller that will keep you turning the page despite the late night hour. Hal and his family have recently arrived in Moorabool where he finds the body of a dog that has been mutilated. When Hal’s dad has to travel away for business, Hal’s mother begins to receive calls from an unknown person. At first he whistlers, but then things begin to become menacing.

Enter Constable Mick Goodenough who has been recently demoted from a city homicide detective to a probationary officer in Moorabool. When the mutilated animals appear and Hal’s mother’s calls begin to escalate, Goodenough proceeds to investigate the case despite warnings from his colleagues and country politics. What comes next is a suspenseful read with many complicated secrets to uncover. Can Goodenough catch The Whistler before be begins to do something insidious than make calls?

What I enjoyed most about this book is the authentic Australian vibe in which this book is set. It touches on racism and the difficulties Aboriginals experience, particularly when encountering law enforcement. This continues throughout the novel with Hal’s friend, Al, sharing her knowledge of the town’s dirty secrets.

As a crime thriller, The Night Whistler lives up to the hype. I found the plot to be original and hard to predict. The climax and ending were spot-on in that it is both believable but unexpected. Woodland does an amazing job at creating a suspenseful atmosphere that keeps the plot moving forward, whilst allowing characters to develop their own nuances to the story.

This is a highly recommended read that I thoroughly enjoyed – a well-deserved five star read!

I got 38% through this book and it really wasn't gripping me. It had so many great reviews that made is sounds like it was going to be the kind of thriller I usually gobble up, unfortunately I found myself not connecting with the any of the characters and not intrigued enough to keep reading to find out what happens.

It will be a DNF for me.

Thank you Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this book for an honest review

This book is set in rural small town Australia. There had been a family mass murder in the town many years ago. The story is about a psychopathic killer who has started by killing people’s pets. The local police are inept ,except for a disgraced ex. detective Mike seconded to them from Sydney as a probationer because he was caught fighting a colleague on the job .

The story involves Hal a 12 year old boy his family and especially his mother who is taunted by anonymous threatening telephone calls from the night whistler . Hal’s father is a sales rep. who spends most of his time on the road so the family who is new to the area have to fend for themselves. The characters are both young and old .

The story is creepy and not for the feint hearted with graphic descriptions of mutilated pets and eventually murder victims. There is an underlying underbelly of racial intolerance , extra marital affairs and corrupt town councilors . 4 stars

Greg Woodland has delivered a gritty, dark and nostalgic, small-town crime thriller in his debut, The Night Whistler.
Set in country Australia during the summer of 1966. Twelve year old Hal and his family have recently moved to Moorabool for his father's job as Sales Rep for Prime Foods.
At a time when kids jumped on their bikes and spent their days looking for adventure, Hal and his brother come across the body of a mutilated dog.

Mick Goodenough has also recently arrived in Moorabool. Mick is on probabtion, demoted and sent to this small backwater town as punishment. After finding his pet dog mutilated and then being brushed off by his superior Mick decides to do some investigating of his own. He knows animal mutilation is a predecessor to murdering people. As Mick tries to investigate the killing he is stopped at every turn by his superior.

Hal's mother starts to receive anonymous phone calls from a man whistling a tune. As Hal's father is away with work Hal assumes the role of head of the family and to protect his mother and brother he is determined to expose The Whistler.

The Night Whistler is filled with police cover-ups, bullying, racism, shonky council dealings, lazy policing and red-herrings making this small-town crime thriller a compelling read that is at times nostalgic and at other times spine-chilling.

Book blurb...‘
A haunting, tense, and unforgettable debut.'—Christian White
It’s 1966. Hal and his little brother, newly arrived in Moorabool with their parents, are exploring the creek near their new home when they find the body of a dog.
Not just dead, but recently killed.
Not just killed, but mutilated.
Constable Mick Goodenough, recently demoted from his city job as a detective, is also new in town—and one of his dogs has gone missing. He’s experienced enough to know what it means when someone tortures an animal to death: it means they’re practising. So when Hal’s mother starts getting anonymous calls—a man whistling, then hanging up—Goodenough, alone among the Moorabool cops, takes her seriously.
The question is: will that be enough to keep her safe?
Nostalgic yet clear-eyed, simmering with small-town menace, Greg Woodland’s wildly impressive debut populates the rural Australia of the 1960s with memorable characters and almost unbearable tension.

My thoughts…

PLOT
Comprising two main characters - a police officer banished to a country town and a killer who progresses from animal to human victims - The Night Whistler plot also involves a family wanting the simple life. Love the title and the story flowed but in the end I felt the reasons behind the killings were not as strong or did not justify the horrendousness of the crimes.
PACE
The pace of the story was a little slow and rather than an edge-of-your-seat ending it was a bit meandering and easy to put down.
CHARACTERS
I love a story with characters that intrigue me, or story arcs that show growth or change. I like to journey with the characters and connect emotionally - even in the crime/thriller genre. Unfortunately, this did not happen.
OVERALL FEELINGS ABOUT THE STORY
I understand what a writer goes through and I know publishers are all looking for the next big thing in Australian rural crime, but I can’t say this one was all that impressive. I did not relate to the characters, nor understand the murder’s reasons. I can’t even say the landscape captivated me. Sorry.

*Thanks to NetGalley and Text Publishing for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review.*
Trigger warning: Animal cruelty.
It took me a while to get into the book at first - there seemed to be too many names and connections to get my head around, but once I did, I really enjoyed the book and the way that tensions was built up in the story. The book is set in 1996 in a country town called Moorabool. The protagonist, Hal Humphries has recently moved there with his younger brother, mother and frequently absent father. Something is not right in the town, however. Animals are going missing and then turning up mutilated. Hal's family keeps getting prank calls. Something just isn't right. Enter Constable Mick Goodenough, another new arrival to the town and seemingly an all-round nice guy. Unlike most of the adults in the town, Mick actually listens to Hal when he says that something is not right. An enjoyable, suspenseful read.

If you are looking for genuine Australian, rural Australian novel, crime novel at that, you can’t go pass debut novel by Greg Woodland The Night Whistler.

Yes, I know I am late with my Publication Day review. I had good reasons.

I’ve started this book way before its Publication Day. But I stopped. I read all the other August books in between, working up the courage to continue reading this book.

*** Animal cruelty*** I am both, dogs and cats person and have adopted grey and two cats. I could not read the book beyond first pages without cringing and gasping. I love my pets. I can’t imagine how people can hurt animals… But some people do and then they hit the ‘point of no return’.

The Night Whistler is muggy, dry, hot, hazy, cruel and silent just like a hot day in the middle of Australian summer. If you ever travelled across the country you definitely have come across small towns, dots on the map. You know what they are like. Can you imagine living in one?

Can you imagine dropping people from ‘big smoke’ in the middle of such a small town? What would happen to them? They become helpless and hopeless babies left to fend for themselves.

Ex-Sydney detective and family of four from Sydney end up in the small town of Moorabool. Every one of them has their own story. Every one of them needs to learn live and adapt.

How are they going to do it when there are murders, adultery, new loves, broken marriages, corrupt town officials and policemen to deal with? Add childern running amok doing whatever they can think of and going places they really should not have, playing Sherlock…

I ended up reading this book in a day and a night. It’s guey as melted concrete. It’s smelly as drying river bank. It’s exhausting as summer heat with no airconditioner and cold shower. It is detailed, moody and harsh… As it should be.

Greg Woodland debut novel is a must for the lovers of crime fiction set in small towns.

Readers are taken on a journey that will never leave them. It stucks with you just… yes, just like melted concrete to the bottom of your thongs…

Five stars from me.

I'll admit I was initially somewhat reluctant to read The Night Whistler, based on the references to animal cruelty in the blurb. I'm happy to read about fictional human characters doing just about anything to each other, but baulk at any harm being done to defenceless creatures. However, based upon the early reviews I read, I decided to throw myself into the book anyway, and I'm so glad I did!
12-year-old Hal Humphries and his younger brother Evan have recently moved to the (fictional) town of Moorabool in northern NSW with their parents, and are curiously exploring the local surroundings during their summer holidays. They're shocked one day to discover the brutalised remains of a German Shepherd dog near a creekbed behind their home. Meanwhile, disgraced former Sydney detective, Mick Goodenough ("pronounced Good-no, as in No-Good backwards."), demoted to the rank of Probationary Constable in this rural backwater, realises his juvenile pet dog, Charlie, is missing.
The story unfolds from the alternating perspectives of Hal and Mick as, first separately and then as an unusual team, they investigate a series of strange occurrences in Moorabool. Not only have people's pets been disappearing, only to be found dead and brutally disfigured, for the past 18 months, but there's been a mysterious break-in at the local Council offices and Hal's mother is being harrassed with menacing phone calls while his Dad's away on business. Mick's bemused by his senior officer, Sargeant Jeff Bradley's disinclination to take any of this very seriously, together with his attempts to belittle Mick at every opportunity.
Events take a dramatic turn when Hal stumbles across the body of a local Aboriginal woman inside an abandoned caravan, said by many locals to be haunted by the family who died there decades before.
Greg Woodland's writing evokes what I imagine to be an accurate portrayal of the mood of mid-1960s rural Australia - social conservatism, xenophobia and systemic racism directed towards the local indigenous population. Having grown up in rural NSW myself, albeit a couple of decades later than the setting of this book, I felt transported back to those endless scorching summers, well before the distractions of mobile phones and computer-based games.
The central and supporting characters are all well-developed and convincing, although at times Mick's sargeant's demeanor verges on the absurd. The author's use of a 12-year-old boy's perspective in telling a major part of the"rural noir" narrative is an inspired device, as it brings an innocence of perception, while at the same time placing the character in a position to acquire information which may not have presented itself to an adult observer.
The character of Mick is also complex and intriguing. He's been unfairly scapegoated for the failure of a major investigation in Sydney (a barely-veiled facsimile of the still unsolved Wanda Beach murders of 1965) to identify a perpetrator. He's a conflicted and unhappy man - not only has his career nosedived, but his marriage has failed and he's been unable to maintain sufficient contact with his teenage daughter. Despite the challenges, his friendship with Hal and his tenacity in pursuing the troubling events in Moorabool seem to be the start of a redemptive process for him. I hope he'll be a recurring character in future books by Woodland, as there's an awful lot of potential there to be explored.
This was a well-written and engrossing rural psychological thriller / crime novel - the sometimes languid pace was used cleverly, both to echo the setting and to highlight the creeping atmosphere of malice. The dramatic conclusion, while a little lurid, was fitting and satisfying. There are references to animal cruelty, including two descriptive scenes, however I would encourage all but the most squeamish readers to give The Night Whistler a chance, as it's a cracking new addition to the Australian crime fiction scene.
My thanks to the author, Text Publishing and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review an ARC of this title.

The Night Whistler by Greg Woodland is an absolute ripper Aussie crime thriller, with the heft of history and heart.

The historical country setting of 1960s Moorabool crackles like the dry grass underfoot, with tension and injustice -- racial, gender, domestic and political. Woodland's efficient focus on pertinent details, whether objects reflective of the time or character, non-verbal cues or even telling absences in discussions, engender a powerful sense of intimacy. And, it is this tension and suspense between both The Night Whistler's characters and its reader, that reeled me in hook, line and sinker.

Read full review at Booklover Book Reviews website: https://www.bookloverbookreviews.com/2020/08/the-night-whistler-by-greg-woodland-review-a-ripper-thriller.html

I feel sort of obliged to give a content warning on this – mutilated animals and pretty graphic descriptions thereof.

Hal Humphries and his family – dad, mum, younger brother – are new to the town of Moorabool, where they’ve moved for their father’s job. Their mother is not very happy with the move, even less so when it seems that her husband’s new job will take him on the road for large stretches of time, leaving her isolated in this small town with two young boys. Shortly after they arrive, Hal and his younger brother find the mutilated body of a German Shepherd, which they do their best to bury.

Mick Goodenough (pronounced Good-no) was once a detective in Sydney. However a case went very wrong and he finds himself demoted severely. He’s now a probationary Constable in this town, under the jurisdiction of a less-than-ideal Sergeant boss who has no time for what he deems to be Mick’s whims and fancies. In disgrace, Mick should be making coffee and sucking up, not trying to rock the boat in their small town by asking questions and definitely not poking around in the business of respected local residents.

Mick finds plenty to get involved in – not only is his dog one of the animals that is brutally murdered but he also finds himself tangled up with the Humphries family when he’s the only one who takes seriously the call by Mrs Humphries about a man making frightening phone calls to her, as well as the fact that she’s seen a prowler outside her house at night. The rest of the police staff mostly dismiss this as the pranks of a “harmless pervert” but Mick isn’t so sure. And the more he investigates, the more he thinks the person making the phone calls, nicknamed the Whistler because of the fact that he whistles a song down the line, is connected to other, more sinister happenings in the town.

Set in a small town in New South Wales during a scorching hot summer, this is a stellar debut compromising everything that a lot of people will find familiar about Australian rural life. It’s set before my time (the 1960s) but with a complex history and tension between the white and local Aboriginal population that still seems familiar. When the Humphries family moves to the town, it’s at the behest of Dad John and his wife Corrie isn’t particularly pleased. There’s the boss to impress as well as some subtle indication from his wife about who in the town Corrie should and shouldn’t be directing her attention to. Their young sons, particularly Hal enjoy a freedom that was probably common of the time – out riding bikes and scooters, exploring the local area, particularly a place with a caravan which was the site of a gruesome crime some years before.

There is a lot going on here but without the plot feeling overcomplicated. A lot of the story is seen through Hal’s eyes – he’s about 12, and sometimes this shines through as he watches incidents without really understanding a lot of what he’s seeing. In some cases, he’s probably trying not to as he’s negotiating the adult relationships of people he cares about where he’s set in what he wants to see vs what he is actually seeing. The rest of the story is told from Mick’s perspective as he deals with his humiliating probation, forced to do general dogsbody duties for a bunch of mostly incompetent at best, country cops when he used to be a detective in Sydney. Mick isn’t a snob however – he treats this case in Moorabool, which starts with a mutilated animal, as seriously as he would’ve treated a case in Sydney. He doesn’t seem to consider this demotion beneath him and he develops a real rapport with Hal. He’s the only one that really takes anything seriously and the deeper he digs the more he wonders what secret is being kept in this town. His ‘superior’ officer definitely knows more than he’s letting on and is almost doing backflips to order Mick to leave it alone, which makes Mick even more suspicious. Mick also has quite a few personal demons that plague him throughout the story as well. His dogs are really all he has in Moorabool. To be honest, I’m not sure I’d have been able to get up every day and go to work to be treated like a nuisance who doesn’t know anything, like Mick was but obviously he knows and wants nothing else than to be a cop. He is clever, he listens, he doesn’t let things go.

There’s a lot to his backstory that is yet to be filled in so if this ends up being a series, I’m sure there’s ample opportunity in the future to explore more of Mick’s Sydney career as well as what awaits him. I found him a very intriguing type, one that could easily carry more books. I enjoyed the way that this played out and thought that the author handled various topics such as racism, sexism, rural policing in a way that felt uncomfortably real.

8/10

I loved the setting of this book. Outback Australia, 1966. I also loved that the story was told through the eyes of a young boy.

There were many different things going on in this book, crime, murder, racism, corruption, greed, adultery - you name it!!

The way the book set up the story was awesome and I loved the mystery surrounding everything! Would definitely recommend this book!

I’ve been on a roll lately so many excellent thrillers by, to me, unknown Australian authors and this is no exception. If this is Greg Woodland’s first effort I can’t wait for the next one.

The setting is Australia and even if you didn’t know this before hand, the land, the people, the heat, the flies, the language and the humour will leave you in no doubt.

Set in the mid sixties this is the story of a disgraced, at least in the eyes of his peers, police officer who goes by the name of Goodenough, pronounced Goodeno. This will give you an idea of the kind of tongue in cheek humour to expect. There is also, young Hal, a teenage boy, who has a very enquiring mind that often gets him into trouble. Hal’s dad is on the road a lot and Hal feels it’s his place to look after his mum and little brother.

Dead, mutilated, pets have been turning up of late but the local constabulary couldn’t care less. Except, that is, for Constable Goodenough who can’t help but feel that there is a potential psychopath out there just waiting to step up to the next level, the next level being people.

At the same time Hal’s mother starts getting really freaky phone calls from a male person who, for the most part, doesn’t say much but just whistles ‘Are You Lonesome Tonight’ a popular Elvis Presley tune of the day that just happens to be Hal’s dads favourite song.

Hal’s mum tells the police about the calls but once again the local police are not interested “it’s just a nut case there’s no need to get overly worried about it. Just ignore it and he’ll get bored” is the advice she is given.
Once again constable Goodenough is not so sure, all these dead animals and now this crank caller. Something is seriously wrong in Moorabool.

This is a seriously entertaining reading. The conjured up atmosphere of a small country town in Australia on the brink of mayhem will linger in your head for some time to come.
I’m ready for the next one Greg.

A highly recommended 4 star read
<i>With thanks to Text publishing and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book.</i>

I found the story to be a bit slow in places, but also thought this mystery was fascinating and very much gratuitous in its descriptions of the devolution of behavior that 'The Whistler' ended up engaging in. It was really interesting to read a mystery novel where I was truly surprised by who ended up being the perpetrator and their motivations behind it. It was a fantastic twist, and I thought it was incredibly well done.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this eARC in exchange for an honest review
After moving to country NSW with his family for his fathers work Hal form an unlikely pairing with a local cop Mick Goodenough who was sent there as punishment for an assault on a fellow officer. Hal was trying to find out who was hassling his mum on the phone while Mick was trying to find out who was committing some violent crimes that had started in town.
Although it was a bit slow to start it became more interesting as the story went on. The setting and characters were fairly accurate for that time in Australia. There were a few triggers for me which made my overall rating come down a bit but still a great add to our Australian authors list.

The Night Whistler is an impressive rural crime fiction debut from award-winning screen writer/director Greg Woodland.

Set in the summer of 1996/1967, in a small country town in the New England District of NSW, The Night Whistler begins when newcomer twelve year old Hal and his younger brother, stumble across a dog, with its skull crushed and throat slit, stuffed in a barrel near a derelict caravan. Situated near a creek Hal dubs ‘The Crack in the World’, the caravan is a source of fascination for the boy, particularly when he learns of its macabre history and the evil spirits said to dwell there from new friend Ali. But it’s not ghosts that worry Hal, it’s whoever is prowling around their yard late at night while his father is travelling for work, and making anonymous phone calls to his mother, whistling ‘Are You Lonesome Tonight’. A mystery Hal, who is a fan of Sherlock Holmes, is determined to solve.

Sharing the narrative with Hal is Constable Michael Goodenough (pronounced good-no), a disgraced Sydney homicide detective demoted and exiled to Moorabool, he is the only officer concerned by the violent death of several pets, and the incidents plaguing Hal’s family. His experience tells him the two may be connected but his lazy and venal colleagues seem determined to brush them off as harmless incidents.

Woodland takes his time to set the scene, his experience in film writing coming to the fore in creating a vivid sense of time and place. With broad but precise strokes he brings the town of Moorabool and its residents to life, before delving into its many secrets.

Hal and Goodenough work well as a team, the contrast between the fierce and idealistic boy, and the world weary Mick engaging. I’d like to see Goodenough again, though clearly struggling with the reason for the recent implosion of his career, an impending divorce, and separation from his daughter, he is a good man, and a good police officer, who can’t ignore his instincts.

As the violence escalates and the mysteries deepen, so too does the tension. My heart was in my mouth during the last quarter or so of the book.

Compelling and thrilling, The Night Whistler is a terrific read and I hope for more from Woodland.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC of this book. Great thriller. Kept me on the edge of my seat. Creepy and suspenseful. Highly recommend.

Rating: 5 thrilling debut stars

Author Greg Woodland has struck debut gold with this his first published book! This is a fine example of the recently popular Australian rural noir genre. Set in rural Australia in the 1960’s, Overland has skillfully captured this specific time and place. He is also spot on with his characters, young and old alike. In addition, this is a hum-dinger of a thriller. Fair warning though, there are disturbing scenes of animal mutilation.

In 1966, John and Corrie Humphries along with their children, Hal (12) and Evan (8), move to the small town of Morabool (population 3,500) in rural New South Wales. They have moved there for John’s job as a traveling salesman. Police Constable Mick Goodenough (pronounced ‘good no’) is banished to the boonies of Morabool at about the same time. It is clearly a demotion for him after an incident that occurred while he was working on the Sydney police force.

As they are exploring their new environs, Hal and Evan stumble upon the mutilated remains of a dog. They soon find out that the dog belonged to Mick Goodenough. Not only the fact that his dog was killed, but also the manner of the killing, disturbs Mick. As more animals turn up mutilated, he knows that a killer is honing his skills on animals and may soon move on to human victims. However, Mick’s new boss will not listen to Mick’s concerns.

Hal and his new tomboy pal, Allie start their own investigation. They want to figure out who is calling Hal’s Mom when his Dad is out of town. The caller whistles the tune "Are You Lonesome Tonight' then whispering threats to her. They work to figure this out, and try to find out who is killing the animals.

Hal and Mick each narrate their segments of the story. Neither of them understand that nothing is at it seems in Morabool. Who can be trusted? Can anyone be trusted? What secrets is this small town hiding? The ending was quite a surprise! This was a wonderful combination of a coming-of-age story, and a thrilling murder mystery.

I hope that this is the first in a series. I would love to read more about Mick, and learn his backstory. I would recommend this for enthusiast of gritty thrillers. Again, I just need to state my warning about the animal mutilations. I know that can be a trigger from some readers. If you can get past that, you are in for quite a treat from this new author.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley. These are my honest thoughts.

A very interesting read, set in Moorabool Australia in 1966/67.
Detective Mick Goodenough, pronounced Good no, is sent to Moorabool as a probationary constabulary.
You have read the back page, so dive in and start to read.
Very well written. You could just see everything unfolding in front of you.
Hal’s mum is receiving twisted and hang up phone calls, animals have been killed, are they connected, or Is there something else going on in the small town of Moorabool when kids could be kids and play outside all day till the cows came home.
Highly recommended.