ALL ABOARD FOR THE BEST JOB EVER

Those of you who follow me on Instagram and Facebook know I've been doing a lot of "boast posts" lately, and with good reason.

I'm just back from a four-day/three-night journey on the majestic Indian Pacific luxury passenger train that takes 240 lucky ducks across the width of Australia, from Sydney in the east to Perth in the west. It's a simply stunning way to see inland Australia, while being spoiled rotten with complimentary drinks, gourmet meals, super-friendly service, and some iconic Aussie stopovers (like mining town Broken Hill and the dusty Nullarbor).

And it was all in the pursuit of murder!

Well, my Murder Mystery Book Club, that is. Thanks to Giselle Whiteaker and the good folk at Journey Beyond Rail, who also run the iconic Ghan train (which goes from north to south of the country), I was given the chance to hop onboard to research my next crime novel which — surprise, surprise — is set on a luxury train.

I mean, why should Hercule Poirot have all the fun?

In this story, my Book Club are on a Hen's Party weekend, celebrating Alicia's upcoming nuptials, when — yep, another surprise! — they stumble upon a murder. But this time no one believes them and so they have to investigate on the sly.

And sly was exactly what I was being…

Without wanting to alarm my happy fellow travellers, I spent much of the time snooping about for the best place, time and way to kill someone on a luxury train without anyone noticing (no mean feat considering all the fun and frivolity). With help from the incredibly gracious staff, not to mention a few worryingly enthusiastic fellow passengers, I also got to tour the almost-kilometre-long train and ask frankly creepy questions like:

When's the best time to kill someone without getting caught? Where would one store a dead body if required? How can I throw someone from the train without alerting the driver?

Turns out there are some surprising answers to those questions, and you will discover them and so much more when the book comes out mid-2024.

Until then, stay aboard for more…

Over the next few newsletters, I'll be sharing more tidbits on the writing, the research, and the hard work behind the cover shoot, courtesy of my hubby/cabin buddy/photographer Christian (above). Big thanks also to my PR advisers/sisters Simone and Michelle Larmer who run Double Edge PR. That's Michelle, below, doing the hard job of farewelling us at Sydney's Central Station and then hanging around a little longer than was strictly necessary ;-). Thanks also to Greg and Allan who put us up pre-trip.

You all went above and beyond. Thank you.

Until my next newsletter, enjoy these happy snaps or learn more about the Book Club below.

Happy (safe!) travels, everyone.
xo Christina