What do you think?
Rate this book
Shooting Star
Anne fifteen, beautiful, wayward. Abducted.
The rich Carsons have closed ranks and summoned Frank Calder, subject to strict instructions. This is not the first kidnapping in the Carson family and hard lessons have been learned.
But are the two events connected? And is greed the motivation? Revenge? Or could it be something else? To find out, Frank Calder must go beyond his brief.
And his every step into the darkness may end a girl's life.
Peter Temple is Australia's most awarded crime writer. Text Publishing will release his full backlist—from the Jack Irish Thrillers to An Iron Rose and Shooting Star—in North America by early 2014.
The rich Carsons have closed ranks and summoned Frank Calder, subject to strict instructions. This is not the first kidnapping in the Carson family and hard lessons have been learned.
But are the two events connected? And is greed the motivation? Revenge? Or could it be something else? To find out, Frank Calder must go beyond his brief.
And his every step into the darkness may end a girl's life.
Peter Temple is Australia's most awarded crime writer. Text Publishing will release his full backlist—from the Jack Irish Thrillers to An Iron Rose and Shooting Star—in North America by early 2014.
232 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1999
46 people are currently reading
359 people want to read
About the author
Peter Temple
29 books343 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
Peter Temple is an Australian crime fiction writer.
Formerly a journalist and journalism lecturer, Temple turned to fiction writing in the 1990s. His Jack Irish novels (Bad Debts, Black Tide, Dead Point, and White Dog) are set in Melbourne, Australia, and feature an unusual lawyer-gambler protagonist. He has also written three stand-alone novels: An Iron Rose, Shooting Star, In the Evil Day (Identity Theory in the US), as well as The Broken Shore and its sequel, Truth. He has won five Ned Kelly Awards for crime fiction, the most recent in 2006 for The Broken Shore, which also won the Colin Roderick Award for best Australian book and the Australian Book Publishers' Award for best general fiction. The Broken Shore also won the Crime Writers' Association Duncan Lawrie Dagger in 2007. Temple is the first Australian to win a Gold Dagger.
Peter Temple is an Australian crime fiction writer.
Formerly a journalist and journalism lecturer, Temple turned to fiction writing in the 1990s. His Jack Irish novels (Bad Debts, Black Tide, Dead Point, and White Dog) are set in Melbourne, Australia, and feature an unusual lawyer-gambler protagonist. He has also written three stand-alone novels: An Iron Rose, Shooting Star, In the Evil Day (Identity Theory in the US), as well as The Broken Shore and its sequel, Truth. He has won five Ned Kelly Awards for crime fiction, the most recent in 2006 for The Broken Shore, which also won the Colin Roderick Award for best Australian book and the Australian Book Publishers' Award for best general fiction. The Broken Shore also won the Crime Writers' Association Duncan Lawrie Dagger in 2007. Temple is the first Australian to win a Gold Dagger.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 76 reviews
September 14, 2020
What sort of curse lay on this family, rich beyond greed, cradled in luxury, that their children were stolen from them, that those they touched they marked with crosses of ash.
Frank Calder, former army officer and one-time detective with the Victorian Police, is called in to the Carson family stronghold, to act as intermediary in the release of 15 year old Anne Carson, grand-daughter of Tom Carson, snatched from the street and held for ransom. Years earlier, Alice Carson, the daughter of Tom’s brother Barry, was also taken and the police called in. Alice managed to escape but was left traumatised, moving to England with her mother. This time the family doesn’t want the police involved, just want to pay the money. It’s not the first hostage situation Calder has been involved in, knowing that if he walks away and the girl is killed, he will shoulder the blame. And if he is drawn in and things go wrong?
He quickly discovers that the Carson family are a tough outfit, led by patriarch Pat Carson, a builder who created an empire, ruthless in business and anyone who crosses him, extended members of the family included. This is a world of deals, favours paid and earned, with elder son Tom running the day-to-day business which is about to float on the stock exchange, Barry in a lesser role.
(Barry) was leaning against the doorjamb, not in golf clothes today. Today, it was all grey, like a drug dealer or an architect or someone who owned a smart café designed by architects. Different glasses too…
Calder brings in “his associate”, former soldier, Mick Orlovsky, a computer whizz, the two forging an unlikely friendship back in Afghanistan.
I saw the survivors of C Troop irregularly but we never lost touch. We were like people who had come through a death camp, bearers of a guilt that knew no rationality and admitted of no untroubled sleep…It wasn’t that we liked one another that much. It was that we were like children of the same abusive father: beyond his reach now and scattered, but always joined by our secret knowing.
His starting point is to track Anne’s known movements on the day she was abducted: a wilful teenager, she felt suppressed by the stifling atmosphere at home - to try and work out how and why she was targeted.
I was in a small vestibule, pulsating music audible, facing another door. I opened it and the sound was like a blow to the whole upper body. It hit you then it invaded you, stuck probes up your nose, into your mouth. My fillings seemed to be transmitting sound and I could taste them. I subdued the impulse to flee, stood my ground.
Barry refuses to be in the same room as Tom’s son Mark (Anne’s father) – in Europe somewhere making dubious deals – while the mother is held in a secure mental institution. While Orlovsky works his magic on computers, Calder sifts through details given - readily or reluctantly - by each family member, with Alice providing a vital breakthrough. Calder comes to realise the abduction was never about money, but revenge.
Once again, Peter Temple’s flair with words, the dry-wit observations of everyday people and places make the pages sparkle, though this is a far darker novel than his popular Jack Irish series - a tale of family secrets and earlier disappearances. Did not foresee the ending, and the title? That is a surprise worth waiting for.
Frank Calder, former army officer and one-time detective with the Victorian Police, is called in to the Carson family stronghold, to act as intermediary in the release of 15 year old Anne Carson, grand-daughter of Tom Carson, snatched from the street and held for ransom. Years earlier, Alice Carson, the daughter of Tom’s brother Barry, was also taken and the police called in. Alice managed to escape but was left traumatised, moving to England with her mother. This time the family doesn’t want the police involved, just want to pay the money. It’s not the first hostage situation Calder has been involved in, knowing that if he walks away and the girl is killed, he will shoulder the blame. And if he is drawn in and things go wrong?
He quickly discovers that the Carson family are a tough outfit, led by patriarch Pat Carson, a builder who created an empire, ruthless in business and anyone who crosses him, extended members of the family included. This is a world of deals, favours paid and earned, with elder son Tom running the day-to-day business which is about to float on the stock exchange, Barry in a lesser role.
(Barry) was leaning against the doorjamb, not in golf clothes today. Today, it was all grey, like a drug dealer or an architect or someone who owned a smart café designed by architects. Different glasses too…
Calder brings in “his associate”, former soldier, Mick Orlovsky, a computer whizz, the two forging an unlikely friendship back in Afghanistan.
I saw the survivors of C Troop irregularly but we never lost touch. We were like people who had come through a death camp, bearers of a guilt that knew no rationality and admitted of no untroubled sleep…It wasn’t that we liked one another that much. It was that we were like children of the same abusive father: beyond his reach now and scattered, but always joined by our secret knowing.
His starting point is to track Anne’s known movements on the day she was abducted: a wilful teenager, she felt suppressed by the stifling atmosphere at home - to try and work out how and why she was targeted.
I was in a small vestibule, pulsating music audible, facing another door. I opened it and the sound was like a blow to the whole upper body. It hit you then it invaded you, stuck probes up your nose, into your mouth. My fillings seemed to be transmitting sound and I could taste them. I subdued the impulse to flee, stood my ground.
Barry refuses to be in the same room as Tom’s son Mark (Anne’s father) – in Europe somewhere making dubious deals – while the mother is held in a secure mental institution. While Orlovsky works his magic on computers, Calder sifts through details given - readily or reluctantly - by each family member, with Alice providing a vital breakthrough. Calder comes to realise the abduction was never about money, but revenge.
Once again, Peter Temple’s flair with words, the dry-wit observations of everyday people and places make the pages sparkle, though this is a far darker novel than his popular Jack Irish series - a tale of family secrets and earlier disappearances. Did not foresee the ending, and the title? That is a surprise worth waiting for.
June 11, 2019
In May 2019 Text Publishing announced their Text Classics version of Peter Temple's SHOOTING STAR, two decades on from the original release date.
It's well worth getting hold of a copy of this edition for Adrian McKinty's introduction alone, as it gives real insight into the person that Peter Temple was, and the impact that he had on the Australian Crime Writing community. He is a man who is much missed, and whilst we're all really thankful for the work that he left us, it's impossible not to think of all the work we've missed out on. Which thinking made a re-read of the excellent SHOOTING STAR a bit more emotional than expected.
Even without that background, SHOOTING STAR has always been a masterclass in thriller execution. Sparse, cleverly paced, littered with clues that make for many "of course" proclamations, there isn't a wasted moment in all 232 pages. It's about the cleverness of the observations of the characters, but it's also about the tightness of the plot and the way that the hints are there for the identifying. Temple was never a writer to treat his readers with disdain, so there's respect for those reading, as well as those telling the story. And then there are the little touches, the turns of phrase that show you how his characters, think, behave, interact, never in an overbearing manner, often with dry wit and wry humour - as in this response from offsider and old friend Orlovsky to a comment by central character Frank Calder:
It would be really easy to write a review of SHOOTING STAR that's just quote after quote after quote, there are so many ripe for the choosing. Having picked up this book at the start of the long weekend I'd sort of thought it would be one of those "quick" re-reads. A stroll down memory lane, and quick run through of a book that I'd originally reviewed back in 2008 (link to that review) but it turned out to be anything but. There were so many glorious moments that I found myself going back over parts of the text, savouring the images being sketched into life, the way that the character emerge from the light touches, the wonderful quotes, the bits that make you stop, and think these people are real:
Frank Calder's a man that you would trust in a tight spot, and the Carson family are dealing with a very big problem - the abduction of the second girl of the family, despite their security precautions, despite the family living compound, because of their money. Old Pat Carson is a self-made man, his children that classic type that happens when a rough and tumble man makes a lot of money, and his kids grow up privileged and spoilt. There's plenty of tension in the family and yet, despite the terror of the abduction of his young granddaughter, Pat Carson is resolved, quiet, deadly. A perfect match for Frank Calder.
In another time, another place and different circumstances you can still see Pat Carson and Frank Calder having a meeting of minds. You can see how they understand each other, and you know darn well that no matter what happens to young Anne Carson, there will be consequences for both these men, and ripples out from there.
It should come as no surprise that this thriller, winner of the 2000 Ned Kelly Award for Crime Fiction, is included in the Classics series, and it should not come as any surprise that two decades on from its original release date SHOOTING STAR is still a very good thriller. Actually it's a brilliant book of any type / class or classification.
It's well worth getting hold of a copy of this edition for Adrian McKinty's introduction alone, as it gives real insight into the person that Peter Temple was, and the impact that he had on the Australian Crime Writing community. He is a man who is much missed, and whilst we're all really thankful for the work that he left us, it's impossible not to think of all the work we've missed out on. Which thinking made a re-read of the excellent SHOOTING STAR a bit more emotional than expected.
Even without that background, SHOOTING STAR has always been a masterclass in thriller execution. Sparse, cleverly paced, littered with clues that make for many "of course" proclamations, there isn't a wasted moment in all 232 pages. It's about the cleverness of the observations of the characters, but it's also about the tightness of the plot and the way that the hints are there for the identifying. Temple was never a writer to treat his readers with disdain, so there's respect for those reading, as well as those telling the story. And then there are the little touches, the turns of phrase that show you how his characters, think, behave, interact, never in an overbearing manner, often with dry wit and wry humour - as in this response from offsider and old friend Orlovsky to a comment by central character Frank Calder:
He took a long time to answer, lit another stolen Camel, one of the last. 'The difference between us,' he said, 'is that I'm just doing this for the money. You're another matter entirely.'
It would be really easy to write a review of SHOOTING STAR that's just quote after quote after quote, there are so many ripe for the choosing. Having picked up this book at the start of the long weekend I'd sort of thought it would be one of those "quick" re-reads. A stroll down memory lane, and quick run through of a book that I'd originally reviewed back in 2008 (link to that review) but it turned out to be anything but. There were so many glorious moments that I found myself going back over parts of the text, savouring the images being sketched into life, the way that the character emerge from the light touches, the wonderful quotes, the bits that make you stop, and think these people are real:
I went over to the printer, watched the paper being spat into the collating trays, felt the ache growing in my back, the pointment of pain advancing down my legs.
Frank Calder's a man that you would trust in a tight spot, and the Carson family are dealing with a very big problem - the abduction of the second girl of the family, despite their security precautions, despite the family living compound, because of their money. Old Pat Carson is a self-made man, his children that classic type that happens when a rough and tumble man makes a lot of money, and his kids grow up privileged and spoilt. There's plenty of tension in the family and yet, despite the terror of the abduction of his young granddaughter, Pat Carson is resolved, quiet, deadly. A perfect match for Frank Calder.
I poured a finger of the peaty liquid, dusted it with water, sat down opposite the old man. There was something about the room, the panelling, the armchairs, the soft lights. At the end of a long and fruitless day, my lunch engagement excepted, it brought a little peace to the soul.
In another time, another place and different circumstances you can still see Pat Carson and Frank Calder having a meeting of minds. You can see how they understand each other, and you know darn well that no matter what happens to young Anne Carson, there will be consequences for both these men, and ripples out from there.
It should come as no surprise that this thriller, winner of the 2000 Ned Kelly Award for Crime Fiction, is included in the Classics series, and it should not come as any surprise that two decades on from its original release date SHOOTING STAR is still a very good thriller. Actually it's a brilliant book of any type / class or classification.
June 4, 2021
Temple's second book which displays his talent for observation and dialogue.
An ex-Army officer, ex-cop gets is roped in to help a very rich family handle the kidnapping of a 15 year girl. I didn't enjoy the plot or it's abrupt ending. Temple's other books are better.
An ex-Army officer, ex-cop gets is roped in to help a very rich family handle the kidnapping of a 15 year girl. I didn't enjoy the plot or it's abrupt ending. Temple's other books are better.
May 4, 2013
In this case Peter Temple is a minimalist when it comes to his protagonists' past and attributes. I don't particularly like that in stories. I like to be immersed in the main character/s.
The writing is commendable. I understand that Peter Temple has won several awards for his writing. The story does not turn out the way such stories usually turn out, which is also a good thing. It's not possible, but I would have given this book 3.5 stars.
It is a story about an abduction of a fifteen year old girl from the very rich Carson clan. Previously another girl was also abducted, but managed to escape. A Carson too, but from different parents. Are the two kidnappings connected? Well that is one of the things that Frank Calder is wondering about. He has been hired as an intermediary and is doing his own investigation. Calder is an ex soldier and disgraced ex cop. As Calder and Orlovsky (his helper) start digging it becomes clear that not everything about the Carson clan is as clean as it is made out to be. Calder is very intent on making sure that the girl doesn't end up harmed and feels great responsibility for the task that has been given to him.
It was a good crime story, but a little superficial.
The writing is commendable. I understand that Peter Temple has won several awards for his writing. The story does not turn out the way such stories usually turn out, which is also a good thing. It's not possible, but I would have given this book 3.5 stars.
It is a story about an abduction of a fifteen year old girl from the very rich Carson clan. Previously another girl was also abducted, but managed to escape. A Carson too, but from different parents. Are the two kidnappings connected? Well that is one of the things that Frank Calder is wondering about. He has been hired as an intermediary and is doing his own investigation. Calder is an ex soldier and disgraced ex cop. As Calder and Orlovsky (his helper) start digging it becomes clear that not everything about the Carson clan is as clean as it is made out to be. Calder is very intent on making sure that the girl doesn't end up harmed and feels great responsibility for the task that has been given to him.
It was a good crime story, but a little superficial.
November 10, 2019
PROTAGONIST: Frank Calder
SETTING: Australia
RATING: 3.5
WHY: A former soldier and ex-police negotiator, Frank Calder is serving as a mediator when he is called in by Tom Carson, wealthy head of a troubled family, to find his teenaged granddaughter, Anne, who has been kidnapped. Frank isn’t firm about the direction that should be taken and doesn’t call in the police because the family doesn’t want him to. When Anne’s finger is delivered in the mail, the situation escalates; Frank fears that she is dead. There’s a lot about the dysfunctional family; I didn’t enjoy spending time with these people and the character of Frank is not fully formed. Nonetheless, Temple is such a good writer that even his mediocre books are enjoyable.
SETTING: Australia
RATING: 3.5
WHY: A former soldier and ex-police negotiator, Frank Calder is serving as a mediator when he is called in by Tom Carson, wealthy head of a troubled family, to find his teenaged granddaughter, Anne, who has been kidnapped. Frank isn’t firm about the direction that should be taken and doesn’t call in the police because the family doesn’t want him to. When Anne’s finger is delivered in the mail, the situation escalates; Frank fears that she is dead. There’s a lot about the dysfunctional family; I didn’t enjoy spending time with these people and the character of Frank is not fully formed. Nonetheless, Temple is such a good writer that even his mediocre books are enjoyable.
January 14, 2019
3 1/2 enjoyable. Vale Peter Temple and his Australian crime fiction.
April 13, 2014
I love Peter Temple's writing. his dialogue is outstanding, his snippets of poetic observations in between are a delight. BUT i found this plot a little too complicated. Hero was well outlined and described but the ending was a little abrupt. The Broken SHore is still my favourite.
October 18, 2017
Frank Calder is the Jason Bourne of Australia. He puts everything into his new assignment, even though he knows the police are better equipped, then he goes beyond his employer's request to solve the real underlying issue. Be prepared to chew your fingernails.
February 9, 2010
really gritty mystery set in Melbourne. Temple is a wonderful writer and has a great ear for dialogue.
August 30, 2019
Not totally sure what to say about this one. Peter Temple is obviously a great writer---shades of James Ellroy by way of Lee Child, or vise-versa---but I never really felt anything in this book. Everything went by so quickly, every character, every interaction, every piece of information, that my brain fried so many times I eventually just gave up trying to follow what was happening altogether. Who knows, maybe that was his intention; Shooting Star had the speed of a great thriller, and the impact, but I never found the bedrock. I might try some more Peter Temple some other time if I want to dip my toe in urban Australian crime fiction again, but might try something a little lighter and a little more rounded when that time comes.
October 15, 2021
Shooting Star
by Peter Temple
A bleak and hard-boiled bit of private eye work, this is my first time reading Peter Temple. With sparse, cleverly paced action and wryly observed characters, it won’t be my last. He’s done a great job littering the text with clues along the way, and I’ll not complain about the stereotyping of Collingwood fans.
⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
A bleak and hard-boiled bit of private eye work, this is my first time reading Peter Temple. With sparse, cleverly paced action and wryly observed characters, it won’t be my last. He’s done a great job littering the text with clues along the way, and I’ll not complain about the stereotyping of Collingwood fans.
⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
Want to read
October 30, 2019Synopsis: a 15-year-old girl is abducted and her rich family summons Frank Calder, sacked hostage negotiator. Can he deliver the ransom money?
November 6, 2009
This was my first audio, am going to have to read it in literal form (to a certain degree I feel like I cheated because it was in audio) - It was wonderful entertainment don't get me wrong, lovely to have a break in the car from music & talk back, & I kinda looked forward to jumping in the car to go to the supermarket for a change. I think it would be nice to have one on hand all the time, though this one wasn't appropriate to have on while the kiddies were in the car. Peter does like to drop the odd swear word, and has the occasional comical reference to something that's going to need a whole lot of explaining if little ears were a flapping.
Your feel of the whole book (when in audio form) must greatly be influenced by the narrator, so to a certain degree, a book in audio would be easy to penalise because of shoddy reading or likewise greatly improved on what it actually is by a talented narrator/actor. Which is something I've never given any thought to, quite a lot of acting is involved, endless impressions of characters voices and the emotion that each character needs to portray at any given time.
I thought David Tredinnick who was the narrator in this (better known as the barman in 'Secret Life Of Us' to Australian television viewers) did a wonderful reading. I'm looking forward to reading Shooting Star in paper form in the future to see what influence David had on my impressions of Peter's writing. To see if I will forever hear his voice when reading Peter's work in the future. I gave this 3 Stars but it was definitely worthy of at least 3 1/2 (as an audio) we'll have to see how it fares as a novel in the future.
Your feel of the whole book (when in audio form) must greatly be influenced by the narrator, so to a certain degree, a book in audio would be easy to penalise because of shoddy reading or likewise greatly improved on what it actually is by a talented narrator/actor. Which is something I've never given any thought to, quite a lot of acting is involved, endless impressions of characters voices and the emotion that each character needs to portray at any given time.
I thought David Tredinnick who was the narrator in this (better known as the barman in 'Secret Life Of Us' to Australian television viewers) did a wonderful reading. I'm looking forward to reading Shooting Star in paper form in the future to see what influence David had on my impressions of Peter's writing. To see if I will forever hear his voice when reading Peter's work in the future. I gave this 3 Stars but it was definitely worthy of at least 3 1/2 (as an audio) we'll have to see how it fares as a novel in the future.
November 25, 2013
This may be another one of those books enhanced by an outstanding narrator, or, perhaps I'm just enamored of the Australian accent. Be that as it may, it was a pleasurable listen while doing chores like dishes, etc.
Frank Calder, ex-soldier, and ex-cop, is hired by a rich bad guy to deliver money to kidnappers who have made off with his daughter. When Calder counsels bringing in the cops, the response is the story of a previous kidnapping of another daughter who was threatened with killing by the abductors, but who managed to free herself and escape. This time they don’t want to risk police involvement.
When the first ransom amount is delivered and they are ordered to dump the money off a balcony in a crowded sporting event, Calder realizes this is not about money, it's about inflicting pain on the Carson family. The family lives in a walled in fortress having isolated themselves from the rest of the world in the name of security. The kidnappers escalate the demands and Calder decides to get to the bottom. It's a sleazy journey.
Good story with some surprises. I had trouble identifying with Calder, however.
Frank Calder, ex-soldier, and ex-cop, is hired by a rich bad guy to deliver money to kidnappers who have made off with his daughter. When Calder counsels bringing in the cops, the response is the story of a previous kidnapping of another daughter who was threatened with killing by the abductors, but who managed to free herself and escape. This time they don’t want to risk police involvement.
When the first ransom amount is delivered and they are ordered to dump the money off a balcony in a crowded sporting event, Calder realizes this is not about money, it's about inflicting pain on the Carson family. The family lives in a walled in fortress having isolated themselves from the rest of the world in the name of security. The kidnappers escalate the demands and Calder decides to get to the bottom. It's a sleazy journey.
Good story with some surprises. I had trouble identifying with Calder, however.
May 25, 2018
This is another excellent, gritty crime novel from Peter Temple.
The hero is Frank Carson. He has a different background to Temple's other main men, Jack Irish, Stephen Villani and Joe Cashin but the personas and manner of speech are so, so similar.
"Shooting Star" is a tightly plotted story that roars along. It is driven by Temple's dry, sardonic dialogue, his characterisation and his many plot twists.
If you have read other Temple novels, you will know what to expect. "Shooting Star" does not disappoint.
The hero is Frank Carson. He has a different background to Temple's other main men, Jack Irish, Stephen Villani and Joe Cashin but the personas and manner of speech are so, so similar.
"Shooting Star" is a tightly plotted story that roars along. It is driven by Temple's dry, sardonic dialogue, his characterisation and his many plot twists.
If you have read other Temple novels, you will know what to expect. "Shooting Star" does not disappoint.
September 2, 2011
I can't get enough Peter Temple. I am quickly working through his back catalogue and I have now read four of his novels in the last six months. With the overated hype of "Underbelly" still incessant, Temple should find a rise in the popularity of his books because the dark crime stories are starkly set against iconic Melbourne and Australian locales but with characters far better developed. This is ironic since his writing is fiction while "Underbelly" is based on real people.
January 3, 2016
This the eighth and last of the Peter Temple books read this year and I don't thinks there's any more to come.
This totally gripping, dealing as it did with a kidnap and the inevitable race against time. Frank Calder has to interact in different ways with different folk - the dialogue in which he does it is perfection.
This totally gripping, dealing as it did with a kidnap and the inevitable race against time. Frank Calder has to interact in different ways with different folk - the dialogue in which he does it is perfection.
February 12, 2013
I felt this book was overwhelmed with people and the complicated relationships among them.
In the end I had just about lost interest in who had done what and only finished it in order to tick it off as read.
In the end I had just about lost interest in who had done what and only finished it in order to tick it off as read.
August 17, 2024
Another superb page turner crime/mystery novel by Peter Temple. While this book is a couple decades old it reads like a ripped from the headlines current events news story. As with most if not all of Peter Temple’s protagonists this one is a world weary ex-cop who has seen too much, experienced too much and been too long immersed in violence. Finding himself in debt and needing a paying J O B he agrees to be the bagman for a very wealthy and powerful family whose grand daughter has been kidnapped. As an ex-hostage negotiator our man knows the odds are long she is still alive. As the plot unfolds we learn that there was a previous kidnapping within the family and while the daughter managed to get away she was deeply scarred by the event and never fully recovered. The grand daughter is a bit of a wayward ‘Ho which has made the kidnappers job that much easier to snatch her (no pun intended there). The book is sprinkled throughout with Temple’s outstanding wit and attention to detail. As with all his books do not expect a happy ending. After all it is not a Thai massage parlor. Highly recommended.
December 8, 2020
I've suffered through some of the extremely mediocre thrillers that have gotten a lot of adulation on Goodreads, but then, thank goodness, amid all this, I come across a writer like Peter Temple. (I'm fairly new to the genre and also from the U.S., so I guess that's why he was unknown to me until recently.) This was a compelling, page-turning thriller, beautifully fleshed-out and written in just 232 pages. I found myself stopping in my tracks and rereading many of the passages just so I could fully appreciate them. Occasionally I stumbled over some of the Aussie terms—not a complaint as the dialog adds to the flavor of the book (but I did appreciate the Aussie slang glossary included in his later book, The Broken Shore). I do have some questions about the ending and wish I could find some insight/discussion on that—without spoiling it for everyone else, of course. Having just discovered Peter Temple this year, I have a lot to catch up on, but it's sad that he's no longer around to grace us with his writing.
August 3, 2019
4 -4 1/2 star book. I have discovered Peter Temple in the last few years and am trying to read all his books. This is one of his stand alones and was a cracking good read. The front cover blurb says " Fifteen, beautiful, wayward, abducted." This young girl is from a very rich and dysfunctional family. Frank Calder, ex soldier, ex police hostage negotiator is called in to deliver the ransom money. But Frank is still a cop at heart, so he starts investigating and discovers that nothing and no one is what they seem to be. A previous kidnapping of another family heiress could be coincidence or could be a pattern. And he finds out more about various family members than he really wants to know. A very good read.
June 13, 2022
This is the third of Peter Temple's books I've read, and my least favourite of the three.
The story centres around the abduction of a fifteen year old girl, born into a wealthy but highly dysfunctional family. Enter Frank Calder, ex-soldier, ex-cop, who's hired to find her without any intervention from the police. What follows is convoluted, and complicated by his delving into the foibles of this eccentric family, and even at the end I found myself wondering what it was all about.
I didn't fall in love with Calder, and for me that is the mark of a truly memorable read, nonetheless the book held my interest and I was motivated to follow through to the end, hence my 3 stars.
The story centres around the abduction of a fifteen year old girl, born into a wealthy but highly dysfunctional family. Enter Frank Calder, ex-soldier, ex-cop, who's hired to find her without any intervention from the police. What follows is convoluted, and complicated by his delving into the foibles of this eccentric family, and even at the end I found myself wondering what it was all about.
I didn't fall in love with Calder, and for me that is the mark of a truly memorable read, nonetheless the book held my interest and I was motivated to follow through to the end, hence my 3 stars.
June 23, 2019
Du kan kanskje spør hvorfor jeg har lest alle fire bøkene hvis jeg er misfornøyd med at det er for mange navn i tre av dem. Men det er forrykende gode bøker. De er utrolig spennende og fartsfylte og en lurer hele tiden på hvordan ting henger sammen og hva som kommer til å skje. Så om du bare kan klare å glemme litt at du ikke husker hvem som var hvem i alle tilfellene, vil du bli meget underholdt!
Hele min omtale finner du på bloggen min Betraktninger
Hele min omtale finner du på bloggen min Betraktninger
June 24, 2019
If you have time to waste...
The book is not terrible, but it is close to that.
The plot is thin and under developed. One would suppose it is supposed to be a mystery, but nothing entices you to develop a suspect. No trail of evidence leads the reader to the culprit. It ends with a whimper; not a bang.
The characters are flat with no attempt to develop their personalities—even the main character; I have no idea how he would react if a pound of dog shit hit him in the face; or a bundle of $50 notes.
Sorry, to me it does no qualify as a “Good-read.”
The book is not terrible, but it is close to that.
The plot is thin and under developed. One would suppose it is supposed to be a mystery, but nothing entices you to develop a suspect. No trail of evidence leads the reader to the culprit. It ends with a whimper; not a bang.
The characters are flat with no attempt to develop their personalities—even the main character; I have no idea how he would react if a pound of dog shit hit him in the face; or a bundle of $50 notes.
Sorry, to me it does no qualify as a “Good-read.”
January 2, 2022
Enjoyed this Investigator novel. Frank Calder is ex-soldier and ex-policeman, takes jobs like private investigations. This is more complex than he expects, a kidnapping but the family itself is like an infamous underworld family, which has hundreds of enemies and is also pretty dysfunctional of itself. No love lost between relatives, either.
With all that, the job is complex, frustrating and desperate.
I liked this one and feel it's worth reading for those who like crime stories with a bit of a twist.
With all that, the job is complex, frustrating and desperate.
I liked this one and feel it's worth reading for those who like crime stories with a bit of a twist.
March 5, 2025
Peter Temple is a master of crime fiction. In this novel he examines the characters who make up the wealthy Carson family. Having narrowly escaped tragedy several years before when one of their children was kidnapped they now live in a gated guarded compound.
Despite all precautions another victim, Anne, is taken by kidnappers. The family calls in Frank Calder, ex soldier and ex policeman to assist them to get her back safely.
This is an exciting entertaining ride with excellent descriptive passages and challenging dark situations.
Carinya
Despite all precautions another victim, Anne, is taken by kidnappers. The family calls in Frank Calder, ex soldier and ex policeman to assist them to get her back safely.
This is an exciting entertaining ride with excellent descriptive passages and challenging dark situations.
Carinya
August 26, 2018
Would make a fabulous movie
Another great book by Peter Temple. One of the best scene and dialogue writers around. Even the minor characters are drawn so skilfully you could do your own casting for a screen adaptation.
Then there is Calder, the mediator who can get people to lower their guard and talk, another memorable protagonist worthy of his own TV series. A wounded hero trying not to let the sordid side of power and wealth rub off on him.
Another great book by Peter Temple. One of the best scene and dialogue writers around. Even the minor characters are drawn so skilfully you could do your own casting for a screen adaptation.
Then there is Calder, the mediator who can get people to lower their guard and talk, another memorable protagonist worthy of his own TV series. A wounded hero trying not to let the sordid side of power and wealth rub off on him.
September 13, 2023
One of the best dialogue writers in fiction. As ever with Temple, I was in a mild state of confusion the whole time, barely followed what was going on, struggled to keep track of who's who and what all the little sidetracks meant and at the end I'm still not sure I understood it all. Yet I kept reading to the end. Par for the course for me and Temple. Not as good as some of his later books though.
December 25, 2024
With a sparse writing style & a complicated family tree to keep in mind, this one kept me thinking the whole way through. Well maybe the family tree wasn't complicated but struggled to keep track. Apart from that it was good, very atmospheric but the ending was very abrupt & I had to stop & think about it. The clues were there but I still feel like something is missing, or I missed something. Still gets 4 stars because I love the writing style.
October 18, 2025
Great Australian crime fiction.
Peter Temple is one of my favourite authors and imagine my delight when I discovered this book while on holiday in Melbourne. I found it in the Mary Martin bookshop as a texct classic, which seems very appropriate.
I've read most of Peter Temple's books but had missed this one.
It's a gem. I loved the characters, the setting and the plot. It's complex and intriguing and definitely a classic.
Peter Temple is one of my favourite authors and imagine my delight when I discovered this book while on holiday in Melbourne. I found it in the Mary Martin bookshop as a texct classic, which seems very appropriate.
I've read most of Peter Temple's books but had missed this one.
It's a gem. I loved the characters, the setting and the plot. It's complex and intriguing and definitely a classic.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 76 reviews