Scrublands

In Scrublands, Chris Hammer, has contributed to the growing list of excellent crime stories set in an Australian location - usually the outback. In this case the story is set in the fictional town of Riversend on the road to Hay in New South Wales. The town is suffering from a severe drought with many of the businesses closed or only open for a few hours a week. But the drought is not the only issue to be faced by the remaining population in Riversend.

Journalist, Martin Scarsden, arrives in Riversend to write a story of how the town is coping after the massacre of five men outside a church in the town almost twelve months previously. However as he interviews people for his story he discovers that the story of the massacre written and published by a colleague may not be correct. Different people in the town have a variety of views on what happened that day and repercussions from the events are still being played out in the community.

The gripping story told in this book makes it difficult to put the book down as the the journalist uncovers what is really occurring in this region. The story also provides a commentary on media, both print and television. This book is definitely, to use a well used cliche, a good read.