CRIME
CRIME
MAD MABEL Sally Hepworth
PB $ 34.99
They called it murder. She called it justice. In 1959, at just 15 years of age, Mabel Waller became the youngest Australian in history to be convicted of murder. In 2025, on a quiet Melbourne lane, an elderly man is found dead by his neighbour, 81-year-old Elsie Fitzpatrick. No one suspects any foul play. Until they discover Elsie’ s name used to be Mabel, or Mad Mabel as she’ s known to the world. But is she mad? More importantly, is she guilty? When the police open a new investigation and the media descend upon her, the elderly Mabel decides it’ s time to set the record straight. In a world first, at the age of 81, Mabel Waller is speaking.
PB $ 34.99 due nov 4
MURDER IN THE CATH- EDRAL: PHRYNE FISHER # 23
Kerry Greenwood
When Phryne Fisher is invited to Bendigo to witness the investiture of her old friend Lionel, who is being made a Bishop, she does not expect a murder. Phryne quickly involves herself with perspicacious local Constable Watson and eagle-eyed Detective Inspector Mick Kelly as they identify the murder victim – an overzealous deacon with a nose for trouble. Will Phryne be able to bring to light the proof she needs before the murderer strikes again?
THE IMPOSSIBLE FORTUNE: THURSDAY MURDER CLUB # 5
Richard Osman
PB $ 34.99
Who’ s got time to think about murder when there’ s a wedding to plan? It’ s been a quiet year for the Thursday Murder Club. Joyce is busy with table plans and first dances. Elizabeth is grieving. Ron is dealing with family troubles, and Ibrahim is still providing therapy to his favourite criminal. But when Elizabeth meets a wedding guest who fears for their life, the thrill of the chase is ignited once again. A villain and the uncrackable code they want access to. Can the gang solve the puzzle and a murder in time?
PB $ 34.99
EVERYONE IN THIS BANK IS A THIEF: ERNEST CUNNING- HAM # 4
Benjamin Stevenson
10 suspects. 10 heists. A puzzle only Ernest Cunningham can solve. Ernest has spent the last few years solving murders. But a bank heist is a new one, even for him. He has never been a hostage before. The doors are chained shut. No one in or out. Which means that when someone in the bank is murdered, hostages become suspects. Turns out, more than one person planned to rob the bank today. You can steal more from a bank than just money. Who is stealing what? And are they willing to kill for it?
THE REDLINE: JESSE REDPATH # 3
Adrian Hyland
PB $ 34.99
due nov 25
An open road. A dead cop. A killer in the hills... Sergeant Jesse Redpath’ s day is going from bad to worse. It begins with her having to arrest the usual drunks and troublemakers, and ends with the death of a colleague out on the Redline Road. And it’ s not the first death or disappearance in the ranges. The local rumour mill suggests the perp is an elusive, semi-mythical character who goes by the name of‘ Anarchy’. Beneath the charm of a close-knit community, a darker truth festers, and Jesse is going to expose it, no matter the disruption to the valley’ s fragile tranquillity.
THE LONG NIGHT
Christian White
PB $ 34.99
Em has lived a quiet life with her complicated mother and is now looking for love and a potential escape from her small hometown. When a masked man kidnaps her in the dark of night, though, she and her mother are drawn into a terrifying world – a world that Jodie has been trying to forget. As Em and her mother Jodie race into the darkness, the agony of the past rushes up to meet them. It will take all their devotion and courage to escape this night alive. Bold, vivid and heart-racingly intense, The Long Night is the darkest and most exhilarating novel yet from bestselling author Christian White.
shop online at hillofcontentbookshop. com or hillofcontentbalmain. com. au 12 | Summer Reading Guide 2025