THE SURVIVORS

4 stars out of 5

The build-up is on the slow side - until perhaps the mid-point it was interesting, but I really didn't mind setting this one down when other tasks beckoned. Thereafter, though, it turned into a real zinger. At the very least, it's a study in excellent character development; at best, it'll keep you turning pages right to the end.

Kieran, his partner Mia and their infant daughter, Audrey, have returned to Tasmania to help his parents move. His father has worsening dementia, and his mother - who really doesn't want to leave - is barely able to care for him. The return home, though, doesn't give Kieran or Mia much pleasure; their good memories are overshadowed by events that happened during a monster storm not far from three life-size iron female figures that have come to memorialize the nearby wreck of the "Mary Minerva" many years ago (known locally as The Survivors). The wreck is a popular diving site, and a couple of Kieran and Mia's old friends still run a diving business there as well as tours through the caves when the tide is out.

The bad memories include a couple of accidental deaths and a still-missing person that have haunted Kieran (and others) ever since, though perhaps for different reasons. Then, a new body turns up on the beach - this one a murder - putting a new spin on those old memories. No one gets a pass as they're forced to revisit what happened years ago until the truth finally emerges. Well done, and thanks to the publisher, via NetGalley, for the opportunity to read it in exchange for an honest review.

The Survivors by Jane Harper (Flatiron Books, February 2021); 384 pp.