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The Last Time We Spoke
WINNER NGAIO MARSH AWARD FOR BEST CRIME NOVEL 2017
On the night that Carla Reid plans on celebrating her wedding anniversary with her husband Kevin and their grown son Jack, their New Zealand farmstead has never felt more like home. But when Ben Toroa and another aspiring gang member brutally force their way into the house with robbery and more on their minds, the night and the rest of both their lives take a radically different direction.
As Carla struggles to come to terms with the aftermath and bereavement of different kinds, and Ben faces the consequences in prison, their stories will be forever entwined.
On the night that Carla Reid plans on celebrating her wedding anniversary with her husband Kevin and their grown son Jack, their New Zealand farmstead has never felt more like home. But when Ben Toroa and another aspiring gang member brutally force their way into the house with robbery and more on their minds, the night and the rest of both their lives take a radically different direction.
As Carla struggles to come to terms with the aftermath and bereavement of different kinds, and Ben faces the consequences in prison, their stories will be forever entwined.
319 pages, Unknown Binding
First published January 1, 2016
41 people are currently reading
1003 people want to read
About the author
Fiona Sussman
6 books115 followersAward-winning author Fiona Sussman was born in Johannesburg, South Africa, and immigrated to New Zealand over thirty years ago. A former family doctor, she hung up her stethoscope in 2003 to pursue another long-held dream, to write.
Published internationally, she is the author of four novels and numerous critically- acclaimed short stories.
Her novel 'The Last Time We Spoke' won the Ngaio Marsh Award for Best Crime Novel 2017 and was shortlisted for the NZ Heritage Prize 2016. An early draft won the Kobo/NZ Society of Authors Publishing Prize.
'Addressed to Greta' launched Bateman Books’ fiction list and went on to win the NZ Booklovers Award for Best Adult Fiction 2021.
'The Doctor's Wife', her fourth novel (and first in the Bandara/Stark series), was released in October 2022. It was shortlisted for the NZBooklovers award for Best Adult Fiction 2023 and is a finalist for the Ngaio Marsh Award for Best Crime Fiction.
'Hooked Up', Fiona's fifth novel (and second in the Bandara/Stark series), was released in September 2025.
To find out more about Fiona, go to her website:
www.fionasussman.co.nz
Published internationally, she is the author of four novels and numerous critically- acclaimed short stories.
Her novel 'The Last Time We Spoke' won the Ngaio Marsh Award for Best Crime Novel 2017 and was shortlisted for the NZ Heritage Prize 2016. An early draft won the Kobo/NZ Society of Authors Publishing Prize.
'Addressed to Greta' launched Bateman Books’ fiction list and went on to win the NZ Booklovers Award for Best Adult Fiction 2021.
'The Doctor's Wife', her fourth novel (and first in the Bandara/Stark series), was released in October 2022. It was shortlisted for the NZBooklovers award for Best Adult Fiction 2023 and is a finalist for the Ngaio Marsh Award for Best Crime Fiction.
'Hooked Up', Fiona's fifth novel (and second in the Bandara/Stark series), was released in September 2025.
To find out more about Fiona, go to her website:
www.fionasussman.co.nz
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 108 reviews
November 30, 2019
This was so dam good.
The beginning of this book starts off with one huge blast that will keep you turning pages.
I so want to be like Carla, strong and resilient. She shows a part of how strong and determined women can be. Emotionally.
This book impacted on me so much.
The beginning of this book starts off with one huge blast that will keep you turning pages.
I so want to be like Carla, strong and resilient. She shows a part of how strong and determined women can be. Emotionally.
This book impacted on me so much.
November 19, 2016
4★
South African born Fiona Sussman, now living in NZ, shows the price we pay for destroying culture. At least, that’s how I see it. People, particularly young people, who don’t belong or are ashamed of where they belong, are the natural enemies of the privileged.
Young Maori boys murderously attack a dairy-farming family, leaving Carla (wife and mother) bereft. Ben, one of the boys, returns to his beloved mother and his vicious, abusive father. It’s not hard to see where the anger comes from.
Chapters alternate, mostly between Ben and Carla, but interspersed in italicised, poetic fashion from Beyond, addressed to Ben, presumably from the Spirit of his ancestors.
One of the first of these laments that they have lost another son who hasn’t been taught their ways and doesn’t honour his history.
“Another son of Kupe has fallen from my basket, the woven flax now limp and loose. Where will it end, this unravelling? Where will it end?”
. . .
“I watch over you because you are part of me and me of you. The same thread binds us, earth to earthling, sky to soul . . . if you remain cut loose from your culture, so will your descendants and so will theirs.”
Ben is arrested and is almost relieved to have arrived at this rite of passage to his destiny--prison. We begin to see more of his problems.
“. . . an officer wearing a pair of latex gloves handed Ben his bedding, a grey tracksuit and a copy of the prison rules. ‘Stick to them rules and your stay with us will be a happy one.’
Ben held up the piece of paper and squinted at the meaningless squiggles.”
He can’t wait to show off his criminal status to his gang when they come to support him in court. Surprise. They don’t come. None of them. But his mum does, which brings unexpected tears to his eyes. Not so tough now, eh?
In prison later, an inmate says:
“ ‘My boss gets real hungry and he don’t like to see good food wasted on trash like you. So, listen up, brother. Every night I’m gonna come and get your tea. Just the meat, mind you. Rider ain’t too partial to vegetables. . . . ’ It would be many months before he got to eat meat again.”
Meanwhile, Carla is fighting her own battles. At her darkest point, a doctor who had lost all of his family in Kosovo tells her:
“ I have visited the place that you are at now. . . where every minute is empty and drags its feet towards nothingness. . . What I can tell you is this. . . One day the pictures you have in your mind of broken bodies will make way for pink complexions and happy eyes, and you will find there is still living to be done.”
She recognises a kindred spirit and begins a genuine struggle to start a new life. She questions why Ben did what he did and resolves to do something about it.
Meanwhile, from Beyond to Ben (perhaps the title of the book?):
“I was talking about the law when last I left off. I keep on even though you do not hear me. What I hope for is that my words reach you on a dream, words that find and mend that severed cord, which catapulted you into this darkness.”
As Ben does begin to reconnect with his Maori heritage, he is advised by a lifer:
“Remember, stay with your people, stick with your history, make your ancestors proud.”
Some of this is a bit of a stretch, but New Zealand does have some interesting programs for victim-offender mediation, and while this book is not about that, it does raise some points for comparison.
There is some romance, and the ending is wrapped up a bit too neatly, but then again, who am I to begrudge some happiness after such grim events?
South African born Fiona Sussman, now living in NZ, shows the price we pay for destroying culture. At least, that’s how I see it. People, particularly young people, who don’t belong or are ashamed of where they belong, are the natural enemies of the privileged.
Young Maori boys murderously attack a dairy-farming family, leaving Carla (wife and mother) bereft. Ben, one of the boys, returns to his beloved mother and his vicious, abusive father. It’s not hard to see where the anger comes from.
Chapters alternate, mostly between Ben and Carla, but interspersed in italicised, poetic fashion from Beyond, addressed to Ben, presumably from the Spirit of his ancestors.
One of the first of these laments that they have lost another son who hasn’t been taught their ways and doesn’t honour his history.
“Another son of Kupe has fallen from my basket, the woven flax now limp and loose. Where will it end, this unravelling? Where will it end?”
. . .
“I watch over you because you are part of me and me of you. The same thread binds us, earth to earthling, sky to soul . . . if you remain cut loose from your culture, so will your descendants and so will theirs.”
Ben is arrested and is almost relieved to have arrived at this rite of passage to his destiny--prison. We begin to see more of his problems.
“. . . an officer wearing a pair of latex gloves handed Ben his bedding, a grey tracksuit and a copy of the prison rules. ‘Stick to them rules and your stay with us will be a happy one.’
Ben held up the piece of paper and squinted at the meaningless squiggles.”
He can’t wait to show off his criminal status to his gang when they come to support him in court. Surprise. They don’t come. None of them. But his mum does, which brings unexpected tears to his eyes. Not so tough now, eh?
In prison later, an inmate says:
“ ‘My boss gets real hungry and he don’t like to see good food wasted on trash like you. So, listen up, brother. Every night I’m gonna come and get your tea. Just the meat, mind you. Rider ain’t too partial to vegetables. . . . ’ It would be many months before he got to eat meat again.”
Meanwhile, Carla is fighting her own battles. At her darkest point, a doctor who had lost all of his family in Kosovo tells her:
“ I have visited the place that you are at now. . . where every minute is empty and drags its feet towards nothingness. . . What I can tell you is this. . . One day the pictures you have in your mind of broken bodies will make way for pink complexions and happy eyes, and you will find there is still living to be done.”
She recognises a kindred spirit and begins a genuine struggle to start a new life. She questions why Ben did what he did and resolves to do something about it.
Meanwhile, from Beyond to Ben (perhaps the title of the book?):
“I was talking about the law when last I left off. I keep on even though you do not hear me. What I hope for is that my words reach you on a dream, words that find and mend that severed cord, which catapulted you into this darkness.”
As Ben does begin to reconnect with his Maori heritage, he is advised by a lifer:
“Remember, stay with your people, stick with your history, make your ancestors proud.”
Some of this is a bit of a stretch, but New Zealand does have some interesting programs for victim-offender mediation, and while this book is not about that, it does raise some points for comparison.
There is some romance, and the ending is wrapped up a bit too neatly, but then again, who am I to begrudge some happiness after such grim events?
November 4, 2017
The Last Time We Spoke by Fiona Sussman is a very good novel, of which, probably the less stated the better.
I can't recall how much I read of the content of the novel before reading it, but do know it was very little. I believe it really captured my interest after reading on the The Rap Sheet blog that it was awarded the Ngaio Marsh Award for Best Crime Novel for 2017 in New Zealand.
The novel is not a police procedural, detective story or actual crime thriller and instead deals with the aftermath of a terrible crime, which also includes the before, during and after aspects of the crime.
To this reader, while the content of the novel surrounds a terribly violent incident, Sussman deals with the graphic nature and descriptions of the offenses in the crime in a very powerful and effective way. Her writing is without gratuitous, explicit descriptions of the crimes that other writers often rely upon to evoke responses in the reader.
Like in older movies where only shadows are used to illustrate acts of violence to great visual impact, Sussman's writing avoids minute details with great effectiveness in her descriptions of the disturbing events. Her less really is more when it comes to the power of her storytelling.
While the novel is with adult subject matter, it is not a depressing novel and instead, in some ways, an uplifting novel that deals with difficult subject matters.
Highly recommended.
I can't recall how much I read of the content of the novel before reading it, but do know it was very little. I believe it really captured my interest after reading on the The Rap Sheet blog that it was awarded the Ngaio Marsh Award for Best Crime Novel for 2017 in New Zealand.
The novel is not a police procedural, detective story or actual crime thriller and instead deals with the aftermath of a terrible crime, which also includes the before, during and after aspects of the crime.
To this reader, while the content of the novel surrounds a terribly violent incident, Sussman deals with the graphic nature and descriptions of the offenses in the crime in a very powerful and effective way. Her writing is without gratuitous, explicit descriptions of the crimes that other writers often rely upon to evoke responses in the reader.
Like in older movies where only shadows are used to illustrate acts of violence to great visual impact, Sussman's writing avoids minute details with great effectiveness in her descriptions of the disturbing events. Her less really is more when it comes to the power of her storytelling.
While the novel is with adult subject matter, it is not a depressing novel and instead, in some ways, an uplifting novel that deals with difficult subject matters.
Highly recommended.
October 9, 2020
This book unflinchingly examines the impact of a brutal home invasion. Told through the voices of both the victim (Carla - a Pakeha; a white New Zealander) and the perpetrator (Ben - a Maori; an indigenous Polynesian New Zealander), it allows the reader to understand what was happening to each of them on a deeper level. As I read The Last Time We Spoke, the lives of the characters were both authentic and plausible.
Fiona Sussman, the author, set out on years of research before she wrote this book. She immersed herself in the world she was writing about, from visiting youth units in prisons, talking to police, victim support agencies, victims of crime and their relatives, and ex-gang members.
The novel is set in New Zealand, which made it all the more challenging for me, knowing the towns and areas the author describes. Sussman has also cleverly interspersed "voice channels" - a voice from beyond which channels Ben's Maori tipuna and atua (ancestors), therefore widening the focus of the story and providing a broader context for Ben's story and his alienation from his Maori culture.
For me, the most compelling part of this book was about navigating the parameters of loss, the human ability to transcend circumstance, and the finding of light in dark places.
It got me thinking...what would I do? how would I react? would I have the strength to go on? could I survive something like this?
A powerful story, a wonderful writer, and a confronting read.
Fiona Sussman, the author, set out on years of research before she wrote this book. She immersed herself in the world she was writing about, from visiting youth units in prisons, talking to police, victim support agencies, victims of crime and their relatives, and ex-gang members.
The novel is set in New Zealand, which made it all the more challenging for me, knowing the towns and areas the author describes. Sussman has also cleverly interspersed "voice channels" - a voice from beyond which channels Ben's Maori tipuna and atua (ancestors), therefore widening the focus of the story and providing a broader context for Ben's story and his alienation from his Maori culture.
For me, the most compelling part of this book was about navigating the parameters of loss, the human ability to transcend circumstance, and the finding of light in dark places.
It got me thinking...what would I do? how would I react? would I have the strength to go on? could I survive something like this?
A powerful story, a wonderful writer, and a confronting read.
February 19, 2017
You probably don’t know it, but I am the product of the apex of privilege existence. I am a white male who grew up with two parents who cared for me, spent endless amounts of money and time on me to give me a great education and, in a sense, shelter me from the terrible things floating around the world. That isn’t to say they did anything to prevent me from the evils of the world, but, as an older Millennial, I did eventually have access to the internet at a fairly young age and thus, could read and see things that were outside of my particular sphere. It’s probably important to know this if you are about to read a few words on my review of this book. I have had very little adversity to deal with so far in my life, and a lot of that comes from socioeconomic privileges I’ve been lucky enough to have throughout my life. Thus, reading a novel about adversity, even if it is a piece of fiction, can still affect me greatly, do to my, so far, inexperience with devastating life events.
This book was not easy to read, emotionally, but that doesn’t mean that I didn’t love it. I very much did. I found the story emotionally draining and important, and I found both Carla and Ben to be two polar opposites that, when looking close enough, are really not that much different. Their respective adversaries are both very different in how they manifest themselves over the course of the book. I found Carla’s story heart-wrenching throughout, as she continues to get hit with wave after wave of devastation. And although Ben’s narrative seems more about the issues he has had to face, along with his hand in altering Carla’s life, the empathy for his characters is harder to find, yet still equally as powerful.
I am really glad I read this book. I love reading about monsters and mysticism and lore (and love listening to things like the Lore podcast) so I don’t usually reach for a book like The Last Time We Spoke, but I am really glad I did. I found Fiona Sussman’s writing to be both simply yet inspiring. The way she develops these two characters and sends you through such an important spand in each of their lives, it really was the type of story that makes you feel differently about life when you finish the last sentence. As I said, I have been given so much in life and have had very little taken from me, so to read Carla and Ben’s stories and see how incredible they both are in their own ways, made me want to do more good for those less fortunate than myself. This book might not hit everyone like it did me, but it was one of the best books I’ve read over the last few years and I look forward to reading more from her.
This book was not easy to read, emotionally, but that doesn’t mean that I didn’t love it. I very much did. I found the story emotionally draining and important, and I found both Carla and Ben to be two polar opposites that, when looking close enough, are really not that much different. Their respective adversaries are both very different in how they manifest themselves over the course of the book. I found Carla’s story heart-wrenching throughout, as she continues to get hit with wave after wave of devastation. And although Ben’s narrative seems more about the issues he has had to face, along with his hand in altering Carla’s life, the empathy for his characters is harder to find, yet still equally as powerful.
I am really glad I read this book. I love reading about monsters and mysticism and lore (and love listening to things like the Lore podcast) so I don’t usually reach for a book like The Last Time We Spoke, but I am really glad I did. I found Fiona Sussman’s writing to be both simply yet inspiring. The way she develops these two characters and sends you through such an important spand in each of their lives, it really was the type of story that makes you feel differently about life when you finish the last sentence. As I said, I have been given so much in life and have had very little taken from me, so to read Carla and Ben’s stories and see how incredible they both are in their own ways, made me want to do more good for those less fortunate than myself. This book might not hit everyone like it did me, but it was one of the best books I’ve read over the last few years and I look forward to reading more from her.
December 19, 2018
The machinations of the real world no longer interested her…she hadn’t read a paper in weeks. She was in print and tired of her own story, no longer able to distinguish which bits really belonged to her and which were simply the fiction of an overzealous reporter.
This started really well. Set on the North Island of New Zealand, a farmer and his wife’s wedding anniversary is blighted by a home invasion / robbery by two Maori youths high on drugs, the son killed, the husband left brain damaged, the wife beaten and raped. Weeks later the youths are taken into custody and Ben (the more innocent of the two) spirals down from the remand centre to high security prison. We learn about his family life, the brutal beatings of his mother by various partners.
The victim (Carla) is also spiralling: cremating her son, visiting her husband in hospital, selling the farm at a loss to pay off debts, only to find it subdivided raising far, far more for the developer than she received. Then there are the journalists… One cruel turn after the other she tries to take her own life.
As the reader follows the paths of Ben and Carla, a third voice, that of the Maori ancestor, reaches out to Ben through his dreams, while the well-intended try to help Carla.
Carla knew that Vera was really asking whether she was scared of sleeping alone. In truth, nothing frightened her any more. While some victims apparently became paralysed with fear, Carla felt a strange sense of numb detachment…
We go through the perpetrator faces victim, and each party manages to gain some semblance of a life, Carla teaching Ben to read (was he dyslexic?) Three-quarters of the way through I’d had enough. Then it got schmaltzy. I finished it, but felt far from satisfied.
Why blame the invasion of New Zealand by the pakeha (whites) for their downfall and conveniently forget that the Maori themselves were invaders, cannibalising the indigenous people? So Ben comes to grip with te tangata whenua (kinship), hapu (clan), whanau (family) and iwi (tribe). But that’s selective. Why “warehouse” violent prisoners at taxpayer expense, when they could face traditional Maori justice?
This started really well. Set on the North Island of New Zealand, a farmer and his wife’s wedding anniversary is blighted by a home invasion / robbery by two Maori youths high on drugs, the son killed, the husband left brain damaged, the wife beaten and raped. Weeks later the youths are taken into custody and Ben (the more innocent of the two) spirals down from the remand centre to high security prison. We learn about his family life, the brutal beatings of his mother by various partners.
The victim (Carla) is also spiralling: cremating her son, visiting her husband in hospital, selling the farm at a loss to pay off debts, only to find it subdivided raising far, far more for the developer than she received. Then there are the journalists… One cruel turn after the other she tries to take her own life.
As the reader follows the paths of Ben and Carla, a third voice, that of the Maori ancestor, reaches out to Ben through his dreams, while the well-intended try to help Carla.
Carla knew that Vera was really asking whether she was scared of sleeping alone. In truth, nothing frightened her any more. While some victims apparently became paralysed with fear, Carla felt a strange sense of numb detachment…
We go through the perpetrator faces victim, and each party manages to gain some semblance of a life, Carla teaching Ben to read (was he dyslexic?) Three-quarters of the way through I’d had enough. Then it got schmaltzy. I finished it, but felt far from satisfied.
Why blame the invasion of New Zealand by the pakeha (whites) for their downfall and conveniently forget that the Maori themselves were invaders, cannibalising the indigenous people? So Ben comes to grip with te tangata whenua (kinship), hapu (clan), whanau (family) and iwi (tribe). But that’s selective. Why “warehouse” violent prisoners at taxpayer expense, when they could face traditional Maori justice?
February 18, 2018
Fiona Sussman stworzyła przygnębiający, rozpaczliwy dramat obyczajowy o zbrodni, karze i przebaczeniu, w którym główny nacisk nie jest postawiony na element stricte kryminalny, ale psychologiczne konsekwencje zbrodniczego czynu. Świetnie napisany, przejmujący, niemniej o bardzo konkretnym podejściu do tematyki moralności i jej zastosowaniu w systemie karnym. To jednocześnie intrygujące spojrzenie na historię Nowej Zelandii, ale zarazem ciężka przeprawa emocjonalna, tym bardziej dla czytelników o słabych nerwach, którzy silnie przeżywają cudze krzywdy i potrafią empatyzować z rozpaczą ofiary.
September 11, 2017
The story to start with feels like it’s the start of a crime thriller with an everyday loving family having their world ripped apart when they are victims to an horrific burglary which rips their world apart. What happens on that night was just horrible and I was absolutely devastated for them all.
From this point on though the story takes a different path, one that is very different to what you would find in a crime book. Where as that sort of genre we would be racing through the pages whilst the police catch up with the bad guys, the author shows us what it is like for Carla dealing with the aftermath of the events as well as the bad guy living with the consequences of his actions.
My heart wanted to reach out to Carla for everything she had been through and what she was still having to go through. It seemed so unfair that this had happened to her. I so admired her strength and composure though. I think it’s times like this that shows us who we really are and what we are made of. Even though she isn’t coping very well she still tries to function by doing everything she needs to do. The love she has for her husband Kevin put my heart through the wringer and it truly touched me.
Ben’s story is very much one of circumstance. I don’t think deep down he is a bad person it’s just the world he has been brought up in and mixing with the wrong people. It still doesn’t go anyway to making any of what he did that night okay but it was interesting to read of him also coming to terms with his actions.
The Last Time We Spoke is a deep and powerful story that moved me for various reasons. Due to the story line it’s one that doesn’t feel quite right saying I enjoyed it but with out a doubt it is a strong solid book that I would recommend others reading.
From this point on though the story takes a different path, one that is very different to what you would find in a crime book. Where as that sort of genre we would be racing through the pages whilst the police catch up with the bad guys, the author shows us what it is like for Carla dealing with the aftermath of the events as well as the bad guy living with the consequences of his actions.
My heart wanted to reach out to Carla for everything she had been through and what she was still having to go through. It seemed so unfair that this had happened to her. I so admired her strength and composure though. I think it’s times like this that shows us who we really are and what we are made of. Even though she isn’t coping very well she still tries to function by doing everything she needs to do. The love she has for her husband Kevin put my heart through the wringer and it truly touched me.
Ben’s story is very much one of circumstance. I don’t think deep down he is a bad person it’s just the world he has been brought up in and mixing with the wrong people. It still doesn’t go anyway to making any of what he did that night okay but it was interesting to read of him also coming to terms with his actions.
The Last Time We Spoke is a deep and powerful story that moved me for various reasons. Due to the story line it’s one that doesn’t feel quite right saying I enjoyed it but with out a doubt it is a strong solid book that I would recommend others reading.
March 4, 2017
For though each man hauls behind him the weight of his history, in the end what he does with his life is his to own.
I added this book a while ago based on a GR review, but in the meantime I forgot that the author is an ex South African. The moment I started reading about the farm attack, it felt so familiar that I had to go and look at her bio. It was interesting to read about similar societal problems in another country. I thought Carla's process was well-written, and I liked that the author wrote with insight and empathy about all the characters. My only issue was that I did not enjoy the Beyond (NZ speaking to one of her sons) chapters. It broke the story into parts, and made it more difficult to stay connected with characters.
The Story: On the night that Carla Reid plans on celebrating her wedding anniversary with her husband Kevin and their grown son Jack, their New Zealand farmstead has never felt more like home. But when Ben Toroa and another aspiring gang member brutally force their way into the house with robbery and more on their minds the night and the rest of both their lives take a radically different direction. As Carla struggles to come to terms with the aftermath and bereavement of different kinds, and Ben faces the consequences in prison, their stories continue to interweave.
February 19, 2018
Książka mega mocna i momentami poruszająca, ale zakończenie dla mnie było kompletnie niezrozumiałe i brakowało mi w nim jeszcze kilku rzeczy...
January 28, 2018
This must have been a challenging book to write, it has such a profound sense of place and culture, it is firmly a very New Zealand story, but it is one which could be read by anyone anywhere and be thoroughly appreciated.
It is the story of a home invasion and the aftermath of that, but it is so much more. It deals with the post traumatic stress for those involved, it doesn't flinch away from letting you see how incredibly damaged these people are, on the other hand it deals with the lives and aftermath for those who committed the crime. Even though the character of Ben, the perpetrator of the crime is so flawed and unpleasant, you come to see how this has become who he is, you begin to hope for his redemption and grieve that his life has been so trauma filled. What Fiona Sussman has done with this novel is to give you an insight into both sides of the New Zealand culture. Those who have and those who haven't, those who have the privilege of what we consider a normal upbringing and those who live in the underbelly of society and how difficult it must be for them to live anything other than the lives they see every day. At times it is an uncomfortable read, the chapters alternate between Carla, whose life has been totally ruined by the crime that Ben, one of the people who caused that ruin. I found myself often wincing when reading Ben's story, he was so uncared for and abandoned, it made me want to weep.
There is so much in this book, it got to me on so many levels, my sense of social justice was outraged and my heart was hurt by the things that happened to both Carla and to Ben. I'm making it sound miserable, but it isn't that, it is a book which is hope filled as well.
I think the author did a marvellous job by looking at both sides of a heinous crime. The voice of Maori Culture which is an inherent part of the book was well done too. All in all a really really good book.
It is the story of a home invasion and the aftermath of that, but it is so much more. It deals with the post traumatic stress for those involved, it doesn't flinch away from letting you see how incredibly damaged these people are, on the other hand it deals with the lives and aftermath for those who committed the crime. Even though the character of Ben, the perpetrator of the crime is so flawed and unpleasant, you come to see how this has become who he is, you begin to hope for his redemption and grieve that his life has been so trauma filled. What Fiona Sussman has done with this novel is to give you an insight into both sides of the New Zealand culture. Those who have and those who haven't, those who have the privilege of what we consider a normal upbringing and those who live in the underbelly of society and how difficult it must be for them to live anything other than the lives they see every day. At times it is an uncomfortable read, the chapters alternate between Carla, whose life has been totally ruined by the crime that Ben, one of the people who caused that ruin. I found myself often wincing when reading Ben's story, he was so uncared for and abandoned, it made me want to weep.
There is so much in this book, it got to me on so many levels, my sense of social justice was outraged and my heart was hurt by the things that happened to both Carla and to Ben. I'm making it sound miserable, but it isn't that, it is a book which is hope filled as well.
I think the author did a marvellous job by looking at both sides of a heinous crime. The voice of Maori Culture which is an inherent part of the book was well done too. All in all a really really good book.
February 20, 2018
4.5/5
Wiecej powiedzialam tu: https://youtu.be/KYHN8-1bSd8
Kolejna po "To, co zostawiła" książka wydana przez Wydawnictwo Kobiece, która rzeczywiście coś po sobie we mnie zostawiła. Będę do niej wracać. 💪🏻
Wiecej powiedzialam tu: https://youtu.be/KYHN8-1bSd8
Kolejna po "To, co zostawiła" książka wydana przez Wydawnictwo Kobiece, która rzeczywiście coś po sobie we mnie zostawiła. Będę do niej wracać. 💪🏻
June 30, 2018
W bibliotece rzadko pojawiają się książki na półkach innych niż ta z literaturą amerykańską, angielską i polską. Kiedy więc zobaczyłam kryminał nowozelandzki sięgnęłam po niego z czystej ciekawości. Autorka bardziej niż na samej zbrodni skupia się na tym, co później. Jak ofiara radzi sobie z potrzaskanym życiem, czy przestępca odczuwa jakąkolwiek skruchę. A co się stanie, gdy się spotkają? Książka chociaż dotyka bolesnych tematów, jest w sumie dość optymistyczna. Najciekawsza jest jednak dyskretnie wpleciona w tło historia i kultura Nowej Zelandii. Autorka, urodzona w Południowej Afryce, wykonała ogrom pracy, by poznać losy swojej nowej ojczyzny i dzieli się tą wiedzą z czytelnikiem. Sama skrzętnie spisałam kolejne książki do przeczytania.
Największą wadą polskiego wydania jest brak przypisów/wyjaśnień użytych w tekście maoryskich zwrotów. Rozumiem, że to kryminał, ale sama sięgałam do google'a co rusz, żeby przetłumaczyć niektóre słowa i lepiej zrozumieć całą powieść.
Największą wadą polskiego wydania jest brak przypisów/wyjaśnień użytych w tekście maoryskich zwrotów. Rozumiem, że to kryminał, ale sama sięgałam do google'a co rusz, żeby przetłumaczyć niektóre słowa i lepiej zrozumieć całą powieść.
August 21, 2016
Darrelle
I thought this was a fantastic book, both heart breaking and heart warming. It is well written and brings us to the very heart of current issues in New Zealand. I kept thinking- this would make a great movie, a step forward from Once Were Warriors, or Boy.
I thought this was a fantastic book, both heart breaking and heart warming. It is well written and brings us to the very heart of current issues in New Zealand. I kept thinking- this would make a great movie, a step forward from Once Were Warriors, or Boy.
February 20, 2018
Ta książka okazała się być całkiem inna, niż myślałam. Zawiera inną treść, inne przesłanie i działa na czytelnika w sposób, jakiego się nie spodziewałam.
Fiona Sussman stworzyła powieść, w której na pierwszych stronach jesteśmy świadkami okrutnej zbrodni i spoglądamy na sceny pełne krwi i brutalności. Życie głównych bohaterów zmienia się całkowicie - Carla musi budować życie po utracie rodziny niemal od zera, Ben, jako sprawca, odbywa swą karę w więzieniu. W tym momencie emocje opadają, akcja zwalnia, a my analizujemy psychologię każdej z postaci oraz sprawdzamy, jaki wpływ na ich czyny miało otoczenie, w jakim żyją.
Początkowo lektura mnie odrzucała. Było w niej tak wiele przekleństw, odstręczających i niesmacznych scen, że ciężko było mi się przestawić na taką formę narracji. Z czasem miałam także dość niezwykle szczegółowo opisanych codziennych czynności, takich jak robienie herbaty. To było niemal jak instrukacja krok po kroku. Brutalność dałam sobie radę wytłumaczyć i nawet jestem wdzięczna autorce, że pokazała w swojej powieści świat taki, jakim jest - okrutny, niesprawiedliwy i niezbyt grzeczny, zamiast go upiększać i osładzać.
Odniosłam też wrażenie, że autorka, mimo iż sama pochodzi z RPA, miała wiele problemów związanych z dyskryminacją rasową i stara się działać przeciw podobnym zjawiskom, w swojej książce powieliła schematy, których sama chce uniknąć. Skupia się na ludzkich korzeniach i pokazuje, że osoby wychowane w złym otoczeniu, same muszą stać się czarnymi charakterami. Całe szczęście, że na koniec historii daje pewną nadzieję, chociaż nie robi tego w sposób oczywisty i pewny ze względu na otwarty charakter zakończenia.
To z całą pewnością nie jest książka dla każdego. Polecam ją osobom, które mają ochotę na historię przepełnioną bólem i cierpieniem, ale także psychologią, elementami antropologii kulturowej oraz pięknymi metaforami.
Więcej: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_DQro...
Fiona Sussman stworzyła powieść, w której na pierwszych stronach jesteśmy świadkami okrutnej zbrodni i spoglądamy na sceny pełne krwi i brutalności. Życie głównych bohaterów zmienia się całkowicie - Carla musi budować życie po utracie rodziny niemal od zera, Ben, jako sprawca, odbywa swą karę w więzieniu. W tym momencie emocje opadają, akcja zwalnia, a my analizujemy psychologię każdej z postaci oraz sprawdzamy, jaki wpływ na ich czyny miało otoczenie, w jakim żyją.
Początkowo lektura mnie odrzucała. Było w niej tak wiele przekleństw, odstręczających i niesmacznych scen, że ciężko było mi się przestawić na taką formę narracji. Z czasem miałam także dość niezwykle szczegółowo opisanych codziennych czynności, takich jak robienie herbaty. To było niemal jak instrukacja krok po kroku. Brutalność dałam sobie radę wytłumaczyć i nawet jestem wdzięczna autorce, że pokazała w swojej powieści świat taki, jakim jest - okrutny, niesprawiedliwy i niezbyt grzeczny, zamiast go upiększać i osładzać.
Odniosłam też wrażenie, że autorka, mimo iż sama pochodzi z RPA, miała wiele problemów związanych z dyskryminacją rasową i stara się działać przeciw podobnym zjawiskom, w swojej książce powieliła schematy, których sama chce uniknąć. Skupia się na ludzkich korzeniach i pokazuje, że osoby wychowane w złym otoczeniu, same muszą stać się czarnymi charakterami. Całe szczęście, że na koniec historii daje pewną nadzieję, chociaż nie robi tego w sposób oczywisty i pewny ze względu na otwarty charakter zakończenia.
To z całą pewnością nie jest książka dla każdego. Polecam ją osobom, które mają ochotę na historię przepełnioną bólem i cierpieniem, ale także psychologią, elementami antropologii kulturowej oraz pięknymi metaforami.
Więcej: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_DQro...
September 13, 2016
The Last Time We Spoke by Fionna Sussman
The setting is rural Auckland. Carla Reid was a teacher who had desperately wanted a child of her own and after many years if trying to get pregnant she and her husband Kevin were expecting a child. Jack now sixteen was working at a bank came home to celebrate his parent’s twenty-seventh wedding anniversary discloses that he is interested in pursuing a career in finance rather than take over the family farm. Carla, caught off guard by this decision, lets Jack know how disappointed she is but immediately feels remorse and plans on apologizing for her emotional response but unfortunately does not have the chance as a home invasion goes horribly wrong. Ben Taroa, a young Maori fifteen-year old member of the DOA gang is anxious to show his stuff and be recognized by his peers, takes part in the invasion that takes the life of Jack, leaves Kevin with severe brain damage and Carla alone to try to make sense of what happened. This is about her journey of recovery and the story alternates between the victim, Carla, and Ben the perpetrator. Sussman brilliantly uses the sections titled Beyond where the Maori ancestors presents the wonder of whakapapa (Maori culture) to impress the importance of the connectedness of ancestral history while Ben and Maori people are still reeling from the effects of British colonialism. Excellent.
The setting is rural Auckland. Carla Reid was a teacher who had desperately wanted a child of her own and after many years if trying to get pregnant she and her husband Kevin were expecting a child. Jack now sixteen was working at a bank came home to celebrate his parent’s twenty-seventh wedding anniversary discloses that he is interested in pursuing a career in finance rather than take over the family farm. Carla, caught off guard by this decision, lets Jack know how disappointed she is but immediately feels remorse and plans on apologizing for her emotional response but unfortunately does not have the chance as a home invasion goes horribly wrong. Ben Taroa, a young Maori fifteen-year old member of the DOA gang is anxious to show his stuff and be recognized by his peers, takes part in the invasion that takes the life of Jack, leaves Kevin with severe brain damage and Carla alone to try to make sense of what happened. This is about her journey of recovery and the story alternates between the victim, Carla, and Ben the perpetrator. Sussman brilliantly uses the sections titled Beyond where the Maori ancestors presents the wonder of whakapapa (Maori culture) to impress the importance of the connectedness of ancestral history while Ben and Maori people are still reeling from the effects of British colonialism. Excellent.
June 6, 2017
This blend of literary or contemporary fiction with crime fiction, from a New Zealand doctor who grew up in Apartheid South Africa, is an absolute triumph. It’s a powerful, evocative novel that presses into the ongoing impact of violent crime for all involved.
Carla Reid has a nice life as a farmer’s wife, with a son cresting into adulthood. One night her world collides with that of Ben Toroa, an illiterate teen caught up in gang life. A brutal home invasion tears both from their axis. A violent act, fodder for headlines, but what happens long after the media moves on? This is the tale of Carla’s stuttering recovery and Ben growing into adulthood in prison. What do we do when our lives are broken? When the world’s torn away our choices?
Sussman has crafted a sublime story that burrows into some unspoken aspects of crime. It’s confronting, but beautifully written. Provocative, but hopeful. Packed with a heart-renchingly authentic array of characters, The Last Time We Spoke is a book that will stay with you long after you reach the final page.
Carla Reid has a nice life as a farmer’s wife, with a son cresting into adulthood. One night her world collides with that of Ben Toroa, an illiterate teen caught up in gang life. A brutal home invasion tears both from their axis. A violent act, fodder for headlines, but what happens long after the media moves on? This is the tale of Carla’s stuttering recovery and Ben growing into adulthood in prison. What do we do when our lives are broken? When the world’s torn away our choices?
Sussman has crafted a sublime story that burrows into some unspoken aspects of crime. It’s confronting, but beautifully written. Provocative, but hopeful. Packed with a heart-renchingly authentic array of characters, The Last Time We Spoke is a book that will stay with you long after you reach the final page.
September 5, 2016
Where do I start... I picked this book up when I was New Zealand on holiday, eager to read a book from the New Zealand section of the book shop. Normally I'm a fast reader but admittedly this book didn't grasp me straight away. I would read a bit then put it down, read a bit and then put it down. The beginning of the book is quite emotionally draining and I wasn't enjoying it as I felt bogged down by the emotional narrative. Until one day while sick in bed I aimed to finish the book and in that process I fell in love with it, although for me it took about 100 pages for me to reach the point where I couldn't put it down. It's well written, poignant, emotional and you can't help but feel for the characters and their lives. This book had me thinking so much about systemic poverty, the judicial system, rehabilitation and the effect we have on each other. It's such a powerful read that I sincerely recommend.
August 8, 2016
Thank you to the publishers Allison & Busby for sending me this book as a Goodreads Giveaway.
The story alternates between the lives of two people - the victim, Carla and the criminal Ben, and what each of them are going through and how their lives become fascinatingly intertwined.
Right from the start I was hooked on this story which was beautifully written and I found myself thinking about this book during the times I wasn't reading it and I couldn't wait to find time to read.
I highly recommend this book.
The story alternates between the lives of two people - the victim, Carla and the criminal Ben, and what each of them are going through and how their lives become fascinatingly intertwined.
Right from the start I was hooked on this story which was beautifully written and I found myself thinking about this book during the times I wasn't reading it and I couldn't wait to find time to read.
I highly recommend this book.
November 23, 2016
What an amazing book. I was engrossed. Confronting and brutal at times the author didn't shy away from some of the hard and sad truths in our society. The violent collision of those with very different lives was confronting but the moments of real human understanding, hope and forgiveness were powerful.
A must read from an NZ author. This was her second novel and I will be hunting out her first.
A must read from an NZ author. This was her second novel and I will be hunting out her first.
August 13, 2017
This was a brilliant book about grief, loss, violence, tough prison life among criminals but mostly about restorative justice love and forgiveness. A thread running through was the impact of colonialism and the tragic loss of Maori indigenous culture, relationships and community.
March 11, 2017
very rarely do you find this...a well written kiwi novel that has both maori and pakeha elements.
October 30, 2017
New Zealand author Fiona Sussman has created something absolutely remarkable in her blended crime and contemporary fiction novel THE LAST TIME WE SPOKE. Winner of the 2017 Ngaio Marsh Award for Best Crime Novel this is a novel that contrasts the brutality and thoughtlessness of a crime, against the heartbreaking loss resulting, and the way that a woman recovers, and rebuilds her life in the aftermath.
It's a story that's all too familiar. An illiterate disadvantaged young boy, caught up in gang life, gets involved in a brutal, vicious home invasion that leaves one person dead, another seriously injured never to recover, and a woman struggling with that reality, to say nothing of what they did to her on the night. That woman, a farmer's wife had led a normal life involving family and the farm, nothing in her past could possibly have prepared her for the way that one violent act would tear her world apart. And then there is the problem of how she moves on. This woman loses everything that is near and dear to her on that night, and when the media attention has faded, when the perpetrators are identified and jailed, there's still the problem of why and what does she do with a life that's ripped to shreds.
Sussman has created an astounding exploration of consequences in THE LAST TIME WE SPOKE. What Carla Reid does with the pieces of her life is confronting, distressing in places, hopeful and profoundly uplifting in others. What causes a young offender like Ben Toroa to do what he did is considered, carefully and respectfully developed. There's no sense here that Sussman is excusing offenders, rather, she explores, as with the consequences of crime, the consequences of disadvantage, peer pressure and lack of hope. There are aspects of this novel that are a physical, not just a mental experience, searingly uncomfortable and yet, moving and affecting.
In the end it does all come down to hope - you hope that Carla Reid will continue to move on. You hope that Ben Toroa will continue to understand his choices haven't been wise or necessary. Ultimately, THE LAST TIME WE SPOKE will leave readers thinking about consequences long after the novel has come to an end.
https://www.austcrimefiction.org/revi...
It's a story that's all too familiar. An illiterate disadvantaged young boy, caught up in gang life, gets involved in a brutal, vicious home invasion that leaves one person dead, another seriously injured never to recover, and a woman struggling with that reality, to say nothing of what they did to her on the night. That woman, a farmer's wife had led a normal life involving family and the farm, nothing in her past could possibly have prepared her for the way that one violent act would tear her world apart. And then there is the problem of how she moves on. This woman loses everything that is near and dear to her on that night, and when the media attention has faded, when the perpetrators are identified and jailed, there's still the problem of why and what does she do with a life that's ripped to shreds.
Sussman has created an astounding exploration of consequences in THE LAST TIME WE SPOKE. What Carla Reid does with the pieces of her life is confronting, distressing in places, hopeful and profoundly uplifting in others. What causes a young offender like Ben Toroa to do what he did is considered, carefully and respectfully developed. There's no sense here that Sussman is excusing offenders, rather, she explores, as with the consequences of crime, the consequences of disadvantage, peer pressure and lack of hope. There are aspects of this novel that are a physical, not just a mental experience, searingly uncomfortable and yet, moving and affecting.
In the end it does all come down to hope - you hope that Carla Reid will continue to move on. You hope that Ben Toroa will continue to understand his choices haven't been wise or necessary. Ultimately, THE LAST TIME WE SPOKE will leave readers thinking about consequences long after the novel has come to an end.
https://www.austcrimefiction.org/revi...
July 23, 2024
The writing is at about the level of a Year 12 creative writing assessment. It’s clunky and juvenile and unfortunately the ‘historical interludes’ told by the spirit of Aotearoa … or something, it’s all a bit confusing … is completely unnecessary and makes it feel like the author is writing to a marking matrix that says ‘explain the impact of colonisation on present New Zealanders.’ The fact that Ben never actually shows remorse about murdering one person at the time, physically assaulting another, which ended in murder but just a few years later and raping and infecting a women, makes it very hard to feel any kind of sympathy for him, and you have to wonder why he was given so many chances.
If you like this kind of story I would recommend Auē by Becky Manawatu, heart wrenching, difficult and beautifully written.
If you like this kind of story I would recommend Auē by Becky Manawatu, heart wrenching, difficult and beautifully written.
December 5, 2017
This emotionally intelligent, gripping book recently won the 2018 Ngaio Marsh Prize for Best Crime Novel – well deserved, I say. The plot had me dropped-jawed at times, even when I knew what was coming. For example the brutal home invasion—I knew from the blurb it was coming, but Sussman’s vivid rendering of character and action left me speechless.
The structure is third person point of view swapping between Carla and Ben, whose stories merge and separate throughout the book. Interspersed are italicized sections titled “Beyond”, the Māori spiritual voice speaking to Ben through time. Under another writer’s pen this could seem affected, but it melds seamlessly with the book, and adds a delicate cultural perspective.
Sussman is to be congratulated for the research she did (see interview here: http://www.noted.co.nz/culture/books/...) in order to craft a believable and gripping story. When you do that much research it’s tempting to throw it all in there, just because you can, but she has wielded her knowledge delicately, sewn it into the fabric of the book so it’s not obtrusive or distracting.
I also applaud Sussman for taking up the challenge—as a South African writer living in New Zealand—to write Māori characters (who are three dimensional, not clichéd), and to include the “Beyond” chapters, which act as a omniscient foil to the main plot.
This would make a fantastic Christmas gift for those who love a racy read that is intelligent and beautifully written.
The structure is third person point of view swapping between Carla and Ben, whose stories merge and separate throughout the book. Interspersed are italicized sections titled “Beyond”, the Māori spiritual voice speaking to Ben through time. Under another writer’s pen this could seem affected, but it melds seamlessly with the book, and adds a delicate cultural perspective.
Sussman is to be congratulated for the research she did (see interview here: http://www.noted.co.nz/culture/books/...) in order to craft a believable and gripping story. When you do that much research it’s tempting to throw it all in there, just because you can, but she has wielded her knowledge delicately, sewn it into the fabric of the book so it’s not obtrusive or distracting.
I also applaud Sussman for taking up the challenge—as a South African writer living in New Zealand—to write Māori characters (who are three dimensional, not clichéd), and to include the “Beyond” chapters, which act as a omniscient foil to the main plot.
This would make a fantastic Christmas gift for those who love a racy read that is intelligent and beautifully written.
November 8, 2017
A poignant book, telling both sides of victim and perpetrator and including nz history both pakeha and Maori.
November 19, 2017
"Religion was a nonsense. A fiction to make the pain of a random existence seem purposeful."
June 4, 2016
We have an advantage in the bookselling trade of being able to read ahead of schedule and find the pearls in amongst so many new releases....well Last Time We Spoke is it for me this month!
told in alternating chapters, Sussman draws out the raw, emotional impact of a home invasion crime and tells the stories of both victim and criminal.
Cara is settled and content in life, hard working and motivated until a night that changes her life...she experiences a home invasion crime on her farm and devastating loss on so many levels follows.
Ben is the offender and Ben never stood a chance in life...
Their two lives weave together through these horrific circumstances and I was intrigued to read an account of such an impact in life.
I loved the redemptive ending and found it most fascinating - I couldn't turn the pages quick enough and now the story should be read to lead onto further conversations around why people commit crimes and the victims in their way.
told in alternating chapters, Sussman draws out the raw, emotional impact of a home invasion crime and tells the stories of both victim and criminal.
Cara is settled and content in life, hard working and motivated until a night that changes her life...she experiences a home invasion crime on her farm and devastating loss on so many levels follows.
Ben is the offender and Ben never stood a chance in life...
Their two lives weave together through these horrific circumstances and I was intrigued to read an account of such an impact in life.
I loved the redemptive ending and found it most fascinating - I couldn't turn the pages quick enough and now the story should be read to lead onto further conversations around why people commit crimes and the victims in their way.
July 28, 2016
I thought this was a brilliant book, I really enjoyed reading it.
It covers so many things. The 'Beyond' parts were really interesting, as I did not know much about the history of the Maoris & New Zealand, especially the pact between the English & the New Zealand Maoris in 1840.
The effects of the trauma that came to Carla, are well written & seem completely believable.
Also the problems of Ben are sensitively handled.
I would definitely recommend this book.
It covers so many things. The 'Beyond' parts were really interesting, as I did not know much about the history of the Maoris & New Zealand, especially the pact between the English & the New Zealand Maoris in 1840.
The effects of the trauma that came to Carla, are well written & seem completely believable.
Also the problems of Ben are sensitively handled.
I would definitely recommend this book.
May 24, 2017
An interesting, relatable and very clever book about the journeys of not just the two main characters (Carla and Ben) but also New Zealand Maori. By embracing and celebrating our separateness, we can be unified to achieve a common goal. "True unity embraces separateness" as exemplified by the central brass pole at Te Noho Kotahitanga Marae. At times a bit clunky, there was still plenty here to like.
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