Australian noir is my current favourite genre and this did not disappoint
Fantastic sense of place and atmosphere
Will certainly be looking for others by this author

Great imagery, a tense plot, and solid storytelling made this a quick read for me! Hard to put down, and I'm looking forward to reading more in this series!

Thank you! A suspense novel with no double time line, no big hidden twist, just a darned good yarn told in a solid, confident voice. I enjoyed this rather straightforward mystery set in the Queensland Outback which was portrayed in a gritty, realistic manner.

Young German backpackers Berndt and Rita are on their way to a station job in the Outback when they disappear. It takes a few days for their families in Germany to realize they are missing, but when they do, Rita's sister, Barbara, who just happens to be a police detective in Berlin, comes to try and locate her missing little sister. She is assisted by DS Lucas Walker, a Sydney policeman who has come home to the Outback to spend the last days with his Grandmother before she dies. I make this sound like Barbara is the main character, and she does share the spotlight, but this is really DS Walker's story.

This is a good old fashioned style mystery in that we know from the start what has happened to the two missing backpackers. We also have a pretty clear idea who the perpetrator is. The tension is in the race against time for Barbara to find her sister.

The characters of Lucas and Barbara are well drawn out, and both are likeable and admirable. What really makes this story shine for me is the detailed description of the Outback setting which makes one feel as if they've been plopped down in the town. The writer is skilled at setting the scene and making it feel real. This is not surprising considering the writer grew up in this area.

I found this book refreshing after reading several mysteries with convuluted and complicated plots. This is just a strong story with strong characters and a strong setting. Well done! I can't wait for the second installment in this new series.

The desolation and searing heat of the outback is so beautifully depicted in these pages. The description of the landscape becomes such a central part of the story and lends itself perfectly to the Australian Noir genre. The prologue immediately draws us in with the protagonists isolated miles from anywhere, the relentless heat bearing down on them, and then disaster strikes. They are at the mercy of the elements.

The couple had chosen this location to purposely give them a true experience of the outback, so when they fail to check in at their intended workplace and no word is sent back home to Germany, worry sets in. It seems the concern is warranted after a spate of missing women in the area, thought to be the work of a serial killer.

The middle section is devoted to police procedural, building the search for the missing backpackers, with the brilliant DS Walker. The tension and danger in the final climatic ending is gripping. A real page turner. Perfect for fans of The Dry by Jane Harper.

#outback #patriciawolf #embla #dswalkerthriller #netgalley #Australiannoir #policeprocedural #crimethriller #psychologicalthriller

DS Lucas Walker is on leave taking care of his dying grandmother when two hitchhikers go missing. Joined by one of the hikers detective sister he tries and solves the case. Good mystery

Outback is the debut novel for Patricia Wolf and fits within the Australian Noir genre. It is the first in what will be the DS Walker series. DS Walker takes some leave from his job in Sydney and returns to his hometown to look after his Grandmother. Coincidentally at the same time as 2 German backpackers go missing in the outback. If you can suspend your disbelief about state and international jurisidictional boundaries as DS Walker starts investigating, it’s a great tale. Wolf paints the picture of small town outback Australia beautifully, you can almost smell the dust. The story ties in contemporary issues of rural and remote living. Lucas Walker is an intriguing character and I found myself imagining who would play him in the movie, and it was easy to picture the drama playing out on the big screen. Revisiting DS Walker in the anticipated second book will not be a hardship.

Fantastic book, and a great author. I look forward to reading more by this author, and in this series. Will recommend to others definitely!!

Thanks to Embla Books and NetGalley for ARC.

Two German backpackers/fruit pickers disappear on their way to a new job in the harsh Australian outback.
When Berndt and Rita are reported missing, DS Lucas Walker is nearby, visiting his elderly grandmother in his home town of Caloodie. He's seconded from leave to assist with the case and liaise with the families - but the local police don't seem to appreciate the help. When Rita's sister, a detective in Berlin, flies over to amplify the search for her sister, things get messy pretty fast. Wolf's description of outback Queensland and the realities of drug use and the Australian equivalent of 'county lines' drug distribution seems authentically grim. The denouement is well worth the suspense. I will look out for more from this accomplished writer.

A new Australian release featuring DS Lucas Walker on leave from the Federal Police and back in his hometown looking after his dying grandmother.

When 2 backpackers go missing Lucas puts it down to breaking down and getting lost. The environment and heat are harsh in the outback. That is until he gets a call from his boss who quietly asks him to look into the case. Joined by the missing girl's sister who is a detective in Berlin they both start investigating and realise something more sinister may have happened!

Such an amazing atmospheric backdrop of the QLD outback and a good solid mystery that had me intrigued throughout the book. While slow to begin with it speeds up towards the end with non-stop action that has me wondering who was going to survive.

Thank you to @emblabooks for my eARC. Outback is available to purchase now.

The ending of the book was a bit exciting but very predictable and the book lagged in the middle. The characters were well fleshed out. This was a good debut with strong character development but patchy pacing.

I was drawn to this book by the front cover and it didn't disappont. It is well written with a compelling storyline and well developed characters that I loved. I really enjoyed it. The storyline was engaging and really pulls you in, with the suspense level increasing as the story progresses.
The characters are realistic and believable, and you can certainly feel yourself sharing in their emotions throughout. Four stars!

“… this country – it’s huge and empty. The police station is in a tiny old wooden house, there’s just one cop out here, and the others are thousands of miles away and I don’t know if they really are taking it seriously.”

Outback is first book in the DS Walker Thriller series by Australian journalist and author, Patricia Wolf. It’s handy that AFP Detective Sergeant Lucas Walker is back home in far north-west Queensland on compassionate leave (his grandmother probably doesn’t have long). A German back-packing couple has been reported missing and his boss asks him to act as liaison between families and Queensland Police.

Berndt Meyer and Rita Guerra were last seen leaving Caloodie on a November Saturday morning, heading for work on a station past Smithton. Their lack of contact is completely out of character but the local cop, Senior Constable Dave Grogan suggests they might have seen the sort of country they were headed to and changed their minds.

Walker rates this as quite possible, and Grogan seems to be going through all the right motions, but his commitment feels a little lacking. Then Rita’s sister turns up, determined to help find the couple. DS Barbara Guerra is with the Berlin CID, and feels sure she can contribute to the search. Lucas is a little reluctant to allow her direct involvement, but knows how he would feel if it was his younger sister. Grogan less than pleased to have his actions scrutinised, and Lucas worries that the constable is too chummy with the locals to do any proper policing.

Barbara is a gutsy protagonist and while she is (somewhat) fettered by having no jurisdiction in Australia, Lucas is hampered by his own erroneous assumption, from his undercover role, that everything is about drugs; Dave, the reader quickly learns, has a personal agenda that splits his loyalties.

The reader knows the backpackers’ fate from the start through the anonymous perpetrator’s narrative, although informed guesses as to his identity will likely be correct. Meanwhile, Lucas and Barbara are thwarted by some characters with ulterior motives, and distracted by what the reader knows are red herrings.

Wolf’s depiction of outback Queensland feels truly authentic, not surprising as it comes from personal experience. The description of the heat, dust and flies, the mindset of the locals, all are a realistic representation. Barbara’s narrative offers the perspective of a foreigner thrust into a landscape that doesn’t tend to appear in promotional material.

Wolf gives the reader a wholly credible tale with that requires virtually no suspension of disbelief, and builds up to a nail-biting climax. The dialogue is convincing: Wolf doesn’t stint on Aussie slang and includes gems like “He’s got muscles like a chook’s instep.” More of this protagonist is most welcome, and it will be interesting to see what Wolf throws at him in the second book, Paradise. Gripping outback noir.
This unbiased review is from an uncorrected proof copy provided by NetGalley and Embla Books.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

I can't tell you how exciting it was to discover #Outback by #PatriciaWolf is set in #Queensland and uses #Brisbane and #Toowoomba as geographic landmarks. As well as #MtIsa, the #GoldCoast, and #Barcaldine. It was wonderful to be transported back to country I know so well.

Wolf is a great new addition to the Australian literary canon. Wolf sits comfortably with the likes of #JaneHarper and #ChrisHammer. Her characters are credible, the storytelling visual, and the writing style instantly engaging. I will definitely be reading the next installment featuring DS Walker.

TW: detailed descriptions of meth use

This was a good book, the setting is just as much a part of the story as the characters. Two backpackers from Germany, Rita and Berndt, are on their way to a cattle station in a very remote area of Queensland Australia. They are driving an old vehicle which breaks down along the way, a fellow traveler stops to help them and they accept his offer to stop at his house to cool the car off. Detective Sargent Lucas is in Caloodie, not far from where the backpackers went missing, on compassionate leave, his grandmother is slowly passing away. He's assigned to be a family liaison officer to the families of the missing backpackers. Rita's sister, Barbara, comes to Australia to look for her sister, she has no official capacity despite being a police officer in Berlin, her and Lucas eventually work together to investigate. They soon discover that there are more missing women in the area and begin to ask questions that people don't want to answer. You can almost feel the heat from the weather coming off the pages, getting stranded out in the heat can be fatal, the story alternates between the detectives, the bad guy and the missing backpackers. It moves along at a good pace though it was fairly easy to figure out what was going to happen next, this did not distract from the book, it is quite well written. I would recommend. Thanks to #Netgalley and #Embla Books for the ARC.

Outback is a Australian crime fiction that follows the disappearance of two German backpackers. On their way to a new job on a outback cattle station something happens to them but no one seems to know what happened.
Detective Lucas Walker is a undercover police officer based in Sydney. He is visiting his grandmother in his hometown of Caloodie as she is not doing very well in her health. When his boss unexpectedly calls him and asks him to look into the two backpackers disappearance, he takes on the task even though he is on vacation.
As Lucas starts his investigation, he joined by the sister of one of the backpackers who is a forensic expert in the German police.
The vibrant and intense descriptions of the Australian Outback made me think I was right there with the characters.
Though the story was slow at times, it did pick up and kept me engaged. I would like to see where the author takes the next book.
Many thanks too NetGalley, the author and publisher for the opportunity to read this book for my honest review. All opinions expressed are my own.

I really like Australian crime fiction on the whole and I enjoyed this one. It’s a gritty tale and the unrelenting heat of the bush and the hard, monotonous life in the outback are vividly described. I felt that after a great start there was some flatness in the story in the middle but the pace picked up again and the conclusion was gripping. Lots of questions, will there be a sequel?

Set in the Australian outback, this is an excellent introduction to DS Lucas Walker and his hunt for 2 German backpackers, seemingly lost in this huge expanse of country. When one of the backpacker's sisters arrives from Berlin, much is discovered and the hunt is on for the missing couple. Well written and I await the next installment...

EXCERPT: It's taken them longer than they'd expected to make it this far, three full days, and the drive has been unremitting. The roads are bad. Single lanes in each direction, bumpy and with gravel verges that spit lethal pebbles when large trucks hauling three or four trailers roar past. The windscreen is already sporting a spider web of cracks on the passenger side after they'd gotten too close behind one and its tyres had flicked a stone onto the glass.

She misses Sydney already. In their six months living at the hostel they'd made a good group of friends, all young and free and up for a good time. No boring discussions about the future, no stress about careers or life plans. That could all come later - for now, this was her dream life. She'd had a decent job at the Sportsgirl fashion chain, and got great discounts on the clothes. They'd partied hard, lots of late nights in the bars and nightclubs in the city, and hanging out in the hostel, drinking, talking and laughing. Even in winter, Sydney was balmy compared with Berlin and she'd spent long sunny days by the beach, weekends in the Blue Mountains, even a couple of trips to New Zealand and Fiji.

Then a few weeks ago Berndt had met a crusty older German who'd been at the hostel for a few days. She remembers him sneering at their version of backpacking. 'You are all sitting here, drinking your flat whites and cocktails, taking your Instagram pictures. You have seen nothing real. This is not travelling - this is just posing.'

Maybe I like posing, she'd thought, and brushed it off for the self-righteous posturing it was, but Berndt had been stung. He wants to be a traveller, have a real adventure. In order to extend their visas and spend another year enjoying the easy-going beach life in Sydney, they'd always known they'd need to spend three months working in rural Australia. It's part of the deal and she'd almost been looking forward to it. But there was no hurry and everyone had told them to wait for the Australian winter because summer in the outback is an inferno of heat and dust.

But after the contemptuous remarks Berndt thought of nothing but heading inland. They loved the heat, he said. Hadn't they both spent every summer they could on the beaches of Portugal and Spain? They even turned down the chance to work on a vineyard outside of Sydney. That was too familiar, he said. He wanted to work in the real Australia, the outback, and he spent days convincing her it was a good idea. It would be something to sustain them when they were back in boring jobs at home - memories of their three months as Australian cowboys. So here they are, in this shitty little car, miles and miles from anywhere. No Sportsgirl, no margaritas, no beach.

ABOUT 'OUTBACK': Two missing backpackers. One vast outback.

DS Lucas Walker is on leave in his hometown, Caloodie, looking after his dying grandmother. When two young German backpackers vanish from the area on their way to a ranch, he finds himself unofficially on the case. But why all the interest from the Federal Police, when they have probably just ditched the heat and dust of the outback for the coast?

As the number of days the couple are missing climbs, DS Walker is joined by the girl's sister. A detective herself from Berlin, she is desperate to find her before it's too late.

Walker remains convinced there is more at play. Working in the organised crime unit has opened his eyes to the growing drug trade in Australia's remote interior. Could this be connected?

As temperatures soar, the search intensifies to a thrilling crescendo against the unforgiving backdrop of the scorching Australian summer.

MY THOUGHTS: Patricia Wolf sets the scene and atmosphere wonderfully in the opening chapters, describing the searing heat, the flat, straight roads that stretch to the horizon, the isolation, the bleached grass, the red dirt, the dust. I could feel it, smell it, visualise it. One moment Berndt and Rita are broken down on the side of the road; the next they have vanished. There is no word from them again. It's like they've been sucked up in a willy-willy.

The pace of the book slows down at this point. The couple are reported missing but, other than their families back in Germany, no one is really too concerned. They were probably frightened by the outback and headed back to Sydney, or up the Gold Coast, was the common consensus.

It's not until Rita's older sister, Barbara, herself in the police in Berlin, arrives on the scene determined to begin her own search, that the pace picks up again.

I really enjoyed the story surrounding the missing couple except for two things, which are connected. It seems that every outback town now must have, in addition to the servo and the pub, a meth lab. Now that's not exactly going to go unnoticed. Someone, likely more than one someone, is going to notice the extra traffic. And I am fed up to the back teeth with reading about meth addicts, meth labs and organised crime. Rant over.

I enjoyed both Lucas Walker's and Barbara's characters. They complemented one another. Walker is on compassionate leave as his grandmother is dying. I loved the close relationship he has with her. And I enjoyed the way the Walker family embraced and supported Barbara.

This isn't a 'whodunit' as the story unfolds from multiple viewpoints: Walker's, Barbara's, Rita's and the abductor's being the main ones.

The book ends on a bit of a cliffhanger and I will be interested to see what direction future books in this series will take.

⭐⭐⭐.7

#Outback #NetGalley

I: @patricia_wolf_crime @emblabooks

T: @pattywolfcrime @emblabooks

#australianfiction #contemporaryfiction #crime #detectivefiction #mystery #suspense #thriller

THE AUTHOR: I grew up in outback Australia, in far north-west Queensland in a mining town called Mt. Isa, which gets a mention in Outback. After university I left Australia, became a journalist and traveled the world. I lived for twenty years in London and then Berlin, but the outback always called me home. In 2019, just before the Covid pandemic, I spent two months in north-west Queensland getting over a heartbreak by taking a road trip across the country. As I drove, and as I spent days and nights surrounded by the beauty and rugged hardness of the country, DS Lucas Walker and this story were born.

DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Embla Books via Netgalley for providing a digital ARC of Outback by Patricia Wolf 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 is also published on Twitter, Amazon, Instagram and my webpage

DS Lucas Walker is on leave in his remote hometown of Caloodie, visiting his dying grandmother, when two German backpackers go missing from the area. His boss asks him to act as a liaison between the local police and the family in Germany, but Walker suspects there is more at play since he is with the Federal police and this isn't the kind of case they usually get involved in. As days pass with no sign of the missing couple or their car, the girl's sister Barbara, a detective in Berlin, arrives to make sure everything possible is being done, even if it means pursuing leads on her own. To her, the Outback is a hot, brutal, foreign wasteland where people can disappear forever, and as the temperature soars, so does Barbara's despair. The story is masterfully told: at times, you feel like you should have enough information to figure out what's going on, but then Wolf reveals a little bit more and you start to second guess your assumptions. This is an excellent, moody thriller that leaves me looking forward to another DS Walker story.

I chose to read a free eARC of Outback but that has in no way influenced my review.

If you're a regular visitor to damppebbles then you may be aware that my favourite obsession at the moment is Australian crime fiction. I will drop everything else to read a well-written piece of Aussie crime fiction. Which is exactly what Outback is. From the glorious atmospheric cover to the gripping plot to the eminently likeable lead in DS Lucas Walker, I loved everything about this book!

Rita and Berndt, backpackers originally from Germany, go missing in the vast Australian outback on their way to a job at Glen Ines Station. They were seen by locals in Caloodie before embarking on the long, hot journey. But they never arrived at their destination. On compassionate leave in Caloodie, caring for his gravely ill grandmother, DS Lucas Walker of the Australian Federal Police is tasked with finding the two backpackers. Suspicious as to why the AFP are getting involved in a simple missing person's case, and sure the backpackers have changed their minds and headed for the cool of the coast, Walker begins to investigate only to fall at every hurdle. When Rita's police detective sister arrives from Germany to help with the search, an unlikely partnership is formed. Will Walker and Barbara Guerra be able to find the missing backpackers before it's too late...?

I loved this deeply atmospheric, skilfully written debut which takes a long hard look at the escalating drug trade in Outback Australia. Everything about Outback worked for me. From the superb characterisation to the vividly drawn, heat-drenched setting, from the compelling plot which builds over the course of the book to the thrilling, 'hold your breath' conclusion. I savoured every moment I spent with this book and I am already looking forward to the second book in the series which publishes in May 2023.

I really liked DS Lucas Walker and quickly became invested in the character. He's returned to the small town his grandmother raised him in until he was 11 years old and to a house full of happy memories, love and familiarity. Now his grandmother is nearing the end of her life, and Walker has been granted leave to spend time with the woman he feels raised him. The interactions between Lucas and his grandmother were full of warmth and compassion. I appreciated these thoughtfully written softer moments in amongst the darker themes of the novel. Walker's sadness as his grandmother nears the end along with his clear love and fondness for his younger sister, Grace, show the reader that DS Walker is a cop with a heart.

But this is a crime thriller after all and it's certainly not all hearts and flowers. The plot is gripping and dark, told from several different points of view. Each of which kept me turning the pages and fully immersed in the story. The opening prologue immediately puts the reader on edge. The impending sense of doom is palpable, and I loved it. From there the story unfolds gradually, drawing the reader further and further into the dark world these characters inhabit. As Walker's investigation stalls he's joined by Rita's older sister, Barbara Guerra who is a police detective herself. I loved the relationship between these two characters. Barbara is well aware that she is not a police officer in Australia. That she is very limited in what she can and can't do, but will Walker be able to crack the case without her help? Well, you'll just have to read the book yourself to find that out!

Would I recommend this book? I would, yes. I loved Outback. It's such an accomplished, compelling debut which I thoroughly enjoyed from start to finish. I loved the characters. In particular the working relationship between DS Walker and Barbara Guerra. It was a real highlight for me as not only am I fan of Australian crime fiction I also love German crime fiction too, so Outback really was a joy for me to read with influences from both. The plot was fascinating and drew me into the story. I was keen to discover what had happened to Rita and Berndt, which kept me turning the pages. I adored the setting with its wide horizons and emptiness which despite being vast still felt oddly claustrophobic. The author paints a beautifully vivid, atmospheric picture for the reader which I can't help but applaud. All in all, I loved Outback and would recommend it not only to fans of Australian crime fiction but to anyone who enjoys a well written mystery full of suspense. Highly recommended.

I chose to read and review a free eARC of Outback. The above review is my own unbiased opinion.