Shooting Star
""...a solid addition to Temple’s works..." "
Synopsis:
Anne Carson, a fifteen year old member of a rich Australian family, has been kidnapped. Following a similar kidnapping years before that was bungled by the police, her family are adamant that this time they will do it their way. They ask ex-soldier and failed police hostage negotiator Frank Calder to act on behalf of the family to pay the ransom. But Calder has his suspicions about the case. He believes that if the girl is not already dead then she is unlikely to get out of the kidnapping alive and calling the police is the best option.
As he gets drawn into the case, Calder is forced to look deeper into the dysfunctional Carson family where its secrets, enmities and indiscretions could hold they key to the girl's kidnapping. But Frank knows that if he gets it wrong, not only will the girl die but he will have to answer to the brutal Carson clan.
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Review:
Peter Temple is an expert at both serial crime novels and stand alone books. This new book is a solid addition to Temple's works although as a protagonist, Frank Calder doesn't quite match up to Jack Irish, Temple's usual detective. However, he is a convincing character particularly in his search for the missing girl and his interaction with the disturbed Carson family. The plot is well constructed, particularly when dealing with the various family members and Temple does well to bring the strands of this large family together. The scenes where Calder talks to the victim of the previous kidnapping are also very well written and add an interesting dimension to the search for the girl. Although not Temple's best book, fans of the writer's books will enjoy reading this new novel as it offers plenty to keep the reader interested. But, can we have more of Jack Irish please?