“As far as I'm concerned, you can't beat a good whodunnit: the twists and turns, the clues and the red herrings and then, finally, the satisfaction of having everything explained to you in a way that makes you kick yourself because you hadn't seen it from the start.” ― Anthony Horowitz, Magpie Murders
Right on, Magpie Murder man. Right on. Now do me a favor and give Harvard Crimson staff writer, Arielle Frommer, a call. In her recent review of Exiles, Frommer called out our girl Jane Harper. We’re protective of authors named Jane around here. And we’re honest fans of Aaron Falk. If you don’t know who Aaron Falk is, don’t worry—stop reading this post and go grab yourself a copy of The Dry. You’ll be glad you did, pinky promise.
Federal agent Falk stars in 3 of Harper’s 5 suspense novels. (The Dry, Force of Nature, and Exiles.) This go around, our favorite Aussie agent is off duty to attend his godson’s christening. Set in Australian wine country, locals grow secrets like they grow grapes. Not one but two town mysteries go unsolved in Marralee. Despite reported sightings of Kim Gillespie at the Marralee Valley Annual Food and Wine Fair, she remains missing after her year-long disappearance. First mystery. Hidden details behind the hit-and-run accident of Gemma Tozer’s husband lurk in the background of Kim’s cold case. That’s the second head scratcher. Mystery leaves the tight-knit community unsettled and distraught. Naturally, Falk uncovers well-buried clues. More importantly, he unearths new definitions of home and family for himself.
I’ll close with two short but stout thoughts for Arielle Frommer. (Not to pick on a critic.) The great Stephen King remarked, “I love Jane Harper’s Australia-based mysteries”; this fact alone should make you reconsider your choice of the word “underwhelms.” And then we have the aforementioned Mr. Horowitz. Harper’s fifth bestseller gives us twists and turns, clues and red herrings, and a need-to-know whodunnit. She has this crime novel thing down. I guess it’s true what Jane says, “we see what we expect to see.”
P.S. Here’s another reason to savor Exiles: sadly, it’s the last we will read of Aaron Falk.