Beneath the Shadows: a Townsend & Gray prequel novella

by Tanya Nellestein

Before Sergis descended into darkness, Ashleigh Gray made a choice that changed everything.

When a nine-year-old girl vanishes from Sydney’s Northern Beaches, Detective Senior Sergeant Ashleigh Gray is thrust into the spotlight of a task force already cracking under fear, politics, and public outrage. With seven children missing in six months, the pressure to find answers is suffocating—and the command is desperate for someone to blame.

Ash’s instincts pull her toward a suspect whose perfect alibi begins to unravel thread by thread. But every step she takes toward the truth puts her career, her reputation, and her future on the line. Still, she refuses to back down. Not when a child’s life hangs in the balance. Not when darkness is closing in from all sides.

Beneath the Shadows is a gripping prequel novella to the Townsend & Gray series—revealing the case that pushed Ash to her limits, tested everything she believed in, and set her on the path toward Sergis… and the shadows waiting for her there.

54 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 7, 2026

About the author

Award-winning author Tanya Nellestein has been recreating the fruits of her overactive imagination on paper since she was a child. She is an avid reader, novelist, experience enthusiast, outstanding car vocalist, and Queen of fancy dress. Tanya writes gut-churning historical fiction, contemporary crime/mystery and suspense with a romantic angle that always includes good sex and a happily ever after. One thing you will always get with Tanya's books - a strong woman who knows who she is (eventually) and gets what she wants.
She lives on the outskirts of Sydney with her two children, a psychotic cat and a dog that refuses to believe he’s not human. She is also an award-winning freelance journalist and member of the Romance Writers of Australia, the Australian Romance Readers Association and the Romance Writers of New Zealand.
W8inner of the 2022 Romance Writers of Australia Sapphire Award for best unpublished romance manuscript for This Side of Fate.
Tanya was shortlisted in the 2020 Australian Romance Readers Award for Favourite Debut Author and Favourite Holiday/Christmas story. In 2021, Tanya won the Romance Writers of Australia Romance in Media Award.

Reviews

[Alana · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read books 1 and 2 in the series so this was a great quick read to see why Ash our FMC left Australia and went to the US. The other books are a very slow burn with the romance, this one has no romance it is more thriller, suspense and it was more of a look into the past. The writing was fantastic as always from Tanya. I am looking forward to more book in this series.

[Dianne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Arc review of Beneath the Shadows by Tanya Nellestein
3.5 stars
Read as eBook
Tropes: Missing person/child, serial killer
Triggers: Trigger warnings: Child abduction/murder

First thing to note, I was anaware that the start of this series has been released so I went into the prequel blind and do not know where the series leads after this.

Six children have gone missing in six months and all have turned up dead. Now a seventh has gone missing and the higher ups are breathing down Detective Senior Sergeant Ashleigh Gray’s neck demanding answers as she fights to follow a lead that could tank her career if it doesn’t pan out.

I will be honest, it has been a long time since I read a mystery and a novella is a great intro to a series, but doesn’t give a large amount of depth of plot or character development to review. That being said, here we go.

I genuinely liked the characters you were supposed to like. I felt for Ash as she struggled in her marriage with a husband who struggled with her drive to try solve the case before the latest missing child shows up dead.

I liked the plot and the mystery. It was easy to jump in and follow. I didn’t feel like I needed to have been reading crime thrillers for ages to keep up with.

Overall, an intense prequel with an interesting premise. I’m looking forward to reading more of this authors work!

Rating: 3.5/5
Spice: 0/5
Darkness: 1/5
Storyline: 2/3

[Jodie Kuhn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow! I was hooked from the start - absolutely invested in Gray's journey to solve such horrendous crimes.
This prequel definitely played into my inner crime junkie, was well written and easy to follow. I couldn't put it down.
Without having read the rest of the series, I'm keen to learn what happens next. I need to know - Did Gray solve the murders in Sydney? Does she find Sienna? Was it this case that led to her move? How does Townsend fit into all of this? So many follow up questions - someone get me the next book - Stat!

[Robin Mattei · Rating 5 out of 5]

For those who love Townsend and Gray this will bring you back to the days before Ashleigh moved to Sergis. A good look at what drives her and why! A great series and i enjoyed a look at her back story and cant wait for the next in the series