Into the Fog

Georgie Harvey & John Franklin #3

by Sandi Wallace

How could police lose three children?

Three missing children.
A wild storm.
A long way from home.

Melbourne journalist Georgie Harvey is on hand when three children disappear from a police-run camp in the Dandenong Ranges.

When Daylesford cop John Franklin hears the news, he is on secondment 200 kilometres away. Feeling responsible for the local kids, he abandons his post to join the search.

Somebody saw the children.
Somebody knows something.
Every minute is vital.

Frustration and desperation mount as the polar storm intensifies. Pushed to the outer by local detectives, Franklin and Georgie find cyber links to a serial predator and another missing girl, and will risk everything in their race to avert tragedy.

Genres: Crime, Australia, Mystery

352 pages, Paperback

First published August 17, 2018

About the author

Sandi Wallace is an award-winning Australian crime writer and avid reader of good crime reads. Her latest publication is psychological suspense-thriller What You Don’t Know.

‘Tense, twisty, terrific.’—Vanda Symon
‘An unsettling claustrophobic tale of small-town secrets.’—Alan Carter
‘A deliciously tense and suspenseful journey.’—Nikki Crutchley

Sandi’s ‘writer’s apprenticeship’ included gathering fodder for her stories from stints as banker, paralegal, cabinetmaker, office manager, executive assistant, personal trainer, journalist… and life. She nearly joined Victoria Police but instead, chased her writing dream. Sandi has won a host of prizes for her short crime fiction including several Scarlet Stiletto Awards. Her debut rural thriller Tell Me Why won the Davitt Award Readers’ Choice and was shortlisted for the Davitt's Best Debut.

Sandi lives on Millowl / Phillip Island off the southern coast of Victoria, Australia with her husband where she is at work on a new thriller. She loves to hear from her readers. Stay in touch by joining her on her socials or her website.

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Reviews

[Brenda · Rating 4 out of 5]

A camp run by police, filled with troubled children who were being given a special few days – the Dandenong Ranges in country Victoria; bitterly cold; violent thunderstorms with driving rain and lightning cracking overhead. It couldn’t get more terrifying than that – but yes, it could. Twelve-year-old Hannah and her two younger brothers, Riley and Cooper had gone missing on the first afternoon of the camp, just as the storm was settling in…

Journalist Georgie Harvey was with the group at the camp, as well as Senior Constable John Franklin’s daughter Kat, rookie Constable Sam Tesorino and Sergeant Tim Lunny and the pressure was mounting. The weather was atrocious, the conditions worse – the surrounding bush dense and frightening with the heavy fog shrouding the area. They all knew they needed to find the kids, and fast. The scenarios they were all thinking; the outcome they were hoping for against the one they dreaded – could they get a good result from something that wasn’t shaping up that way?

With local volunteers, SES (State Emergency Service), police pulled in from outlying areas – the ground was covered in searchers. But would it be enough? When John Franklin joined them from his post in Ballarat, he gave the others confidence. Determined to find the youngsters, no one slept – coffee was their staple, while Georgie conducted her own searches on the internet. What she found chilled her to the bone…

Into the Fog is the 3rd in the Harvey and Franklin series by Aussie author Sandi Wallace. Set in the rugged bushland of Victoria, not far from Melbourne, it’s easy to visualize the dense fog, the darkness of the bush and its sinister surroundings. The distraught parents; the desperation of the police; the terror of the missing. The cover is perfect for the book – eerie, atmospheric and chilling. An excellent follow on in the lives of Georgie Harvey and John Franklin, Into the Fog is one I thoroughly enjoyed and highly recommend.

With thanks to the author for my digital ARC to read and review.

[Jülie ☼♄  · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the third book in this Harvey and Franklin (Crime/Mystery) series by award winning Australian author Sandi Wallace, and what a great follow on.

Three young children in the charge of off duty police and other professional volunteers have vanished on day one of their holiday.
The weather has suddenly turned from bad to atrocious making for hazardous searching conditions...
And....there are no obvious clues or motives.
In icy cold and rapidly worsening stormy conditions with blinding rain and thick fog, the crew of volunteers realize their worst nightmares.

Set in a huge and plush country manor called Upalong House, on a sprawling property in Mount Dandenong, Victoria Australia...the picture is already looking bleak as a dense fog rolls in ahead of a serious storm front.

In what is an otherwise remote and beautiful country bush setting, this is certainly not the kind of weather envisaged by this special group of volunteer minders from Daylesford.
When they organized this school holiday camp for a group of kids from troubled backgrounds...It was meant to be a happy departure from the norm for them.
Now it is a race against the clock and the elements as they face an intense time ahead in the scramble to find their three missing charges.
Their problems are multiplied by the fact that this group of volunteers is mostly made up of, and organized by, off duty police officers.

No sooner had they all arrived at Upalong House when three of the children went missing.
The three siblings, Hannah twelve, Riley seven and five year old Cooper, seem to have vanished into thin air, and with the weather suddenly turning and threatening treacherous conditions, the crew were understandably worried.
The children were not dressed for exposure to such conditions having only worn clothes befitting their anticipated activities for that day.

After searching the house and immediate surrounds with no luck, a search party was quickly put into action to search the property.
However, with the rapidly increasing chaotic weather bringing thick fog, torrential rain and darkness upon them, it made the going really tough.
Emergency services were already being stretched to the limit and could not offer immediate assistance.
With each passing hour the crew couldn't help but wonder if the children were just lost due to a game gone wrong, or from a genuine attempt to run away and being disoriented from the poor weather conditions, or if in fact something more sinister was at play.
Whatever the case, it didn't bode well.

Can the combined on hand skills of the police presence and Georgie Harvey's journalist techniques unravel this mystery...or is it already too late?

Sandi Wallace has a gift for describing a tense situation or scene without too much off putting embellishment of the gory details, yet in such a way as to put you there to feel it for yourself.
You find yourself being gradually drawn into the unfolding events, cheering for the heroes and cursing (the villains) in turn as you become more engrossed in the story.

This third book in the series can easily be read as a standalone, but if you have read the previous two then you will enjoy catching up with Franklin and Georgie.
I for one am liking the subtle ways these characters are developing into people we want to care about, how they are growing over the course of this series is a magnet to those of us who are following their progress, and a tribute to the skill of this author to grow her characters...with each book getting better than the last.

I hope we will see more of Franklin, Kat, Georgie and the crew that make up this disparate team of sleuths in a fourth book.
If that's not to be then I will read anything Sandi Wallace cares to write about, such is her talent.

5*s This was a compelling read.

................."..................

[Carolyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

When policeman John Franklin and his colleagues organised a holiday camp for a group of troubled kids in Victoria's Dandenong ranges, they had no idea the weather would be so bad with a massive storm arriving on their first day. As if having to entertain a bunch of bored kids indoors isn't bad enough, they discover to their horror that three children, teenager Hannah and her two younger brothers have gone missing. Surrounded by the dense bushland and forest, whether they have run away or been abducted, they are in real danger with the storm worsening causing poor visibility, driving rain and trees and branches crashing down.

Sandi Wallace sure knows how to tell a tension packed tale of lost kids, anxious carers and distraught parents in an environment that is rugged and forbidding. The tension is further heightened by reports of a previous case of a missing girl in the area who was never found, raising concerns that the children may have met with a pedophile. Along with journalist Georgie Harvey and his daughter Kat, Franklin must use all their resources and contacts to find the children before it is too late. This is an excellent third outing for Frankin and Harvey and I look forward to the next.

[Marianne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Into The Fog is the third (and so far best) book in the rural crime series which features Georgie Harvey and John Franklin, by award-winning Australian author, Sandi Wallace. While Senior Constable John Franklin is stuck in Ballarat doing some deadly-boring covert surveillance as part of his Detective training, his girlfriend, journalist Georgie Harvey is part of the team supervising a five-day camp for troubled Daylesford kids at Mount Dandenong. This is not quite as planned, but they are a capable group (four adults, two teens) looking after eight kids.

Circumstances also mean they are not at their intended venue, and their host and his staff act a little strangely, but the camp team’s plans to keep the kids active and entertained are not really derailed by the wild weather that has suddenly hit. Then, as the skies darken early with the storm, twelve-year-old Hannah Savage and her two younger brothers are discovered to be missing.

The responsibility weighs heavily on Sergeant Tim Lunny and Constable Sam Tesorino: to lose three children in their care is unthinkable. Buildings and grounds are quickly searched, to no avail, and the local police alerted. But it soon becomes apparent that Hannah planned her disappearance. It seems this determined pre-teen has made a common error online, and connected to an undesirable. The press are quick to tie this to the earlier disappearance of a teenaged girl, perhaps for headline value, but is there any real connection?

Franklin feels impelled to join the search, although the Daylesford cops soon find themselves frustrated to be excluded by the task force, citing their initial involvement and the need to maintain impartiality. But the good rapport that Franklin has built in his role as Youth Liaison in Daylesford ensures that Hannah’s friends are forthcoming with information when it is needed.

Not just a few cops work extra hours behind the scenes, some putting their jobs on the line with the sole intention of finding three missing kids. Much will be asked of Georgie over the next few days, and the last thing that she needs is a phone call from her ex, A.J. to distract her at this stressful time.

Wallace gives the reader a fast-paced mystery, with the action taking place over a mere five days. The narrative is split between the members of team looking for the Savage kids: Franklin, Georgie, and Sam. Wallace throws in a few red herrings early on but passages from Hannah’s perspective, which precede some chapters, eventually make her fate clear.

And despite mounting evidence implicating a certain person, Franklin and his team try to keep minds open to all possibilities: “The biggest regret of a copper was having ignored other possibilities when what they’d fixated on turned out to be a dead-end.”

Wallace draws attention to several topics in this story, including the practicalities and problems inherent such an operation: the influx of police and volunteers, all needing food, accommodation, and coordination; possible casualties among searchers; the double-edged sword of social media, offering viral spread of information but also toxic comments; and the parental anguish.

It is refreshing to read a story in which there are realistic time frames; in which red tape and procedure cause frustrating delays; in which, despite many people working in the background, results are not instant like on TV; and in which procedural rules may restrict what information can be followed up, depending on the source (confidential informants, or obtained by not strictly legal means).

The third instalment of Harvey and Franklin is another excellent piece of crime fiction: taut, tension-filled, and with a nail-biting finish. Readers of earlier Harvey and Franklin books may wonder if Sandi Wallace can maintain that high standard. The answer is a most-assured yes. More, please!
With thanks to the author for this proof copy to read and review

[Elaine · Rating 5 out of 5]

It has been a while, years in fact, since I pulled an all nighter to finish a book that I couldn't put down but this is exactly what happened with Sandi Wallace's latest offering. Three children go missing in the Dandenongs and almost from the very beginning you are hooked. Sandi weaves her story, dangling clues and keeping us riveted whilst not giving too much away. This was definitely a page turning read and a very compelling one and you hit the point of no return where the thrill takes over and the chase begins and the book becomes "unputdownable". Franklin and Georgie return, along with other favourites and some new ones, fighting against all odds, red tape, various egos to bring the kids safely home. Will they succeed? What has befallen these children? What sinister monster lurks in the bush? Whilst this is a brilliant read on its own, what makes it even more noteworthy are the lovable, caring, daring characters at the heart of the Daylesford team, who will do whatever they have to for their mates and showcases the unique and incomparable Aussie spirit. Do yourselves a favour and pick this up and read it right now. Believe me you will not be disappointed. Thank you Sandi Wallace for delivering another exciting, fast paced, corker of a novel with heart. Looking forward now to the next thrilling ride. This one will be hard to top but if anyone can do it, it is this author.

[Karen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Anybody who has spent any time in the Dandenong Ranges will know all about the pea-souper fogs that often accompany rain storms of almost biblical proportions. Add to that the dense, heavy canopy and undergrowth of the Mountain Ash rainforest up there and you're hard pressed to see your own feet on occasions, let alone find 3 missing kids who have disappeared from a police-run camp high up in the Hills.

INTO THE FOG is the third Georgie Harvey, John Franklin mystery from Dandenong-ranges based Sandi Wallace, and she's used her local knowledge of the place to great effect, when a young girl and her two younger brothers vanish from a magnificent old house that's being used as a temporary camp for kids from Daylesford that need a break. The little group has been hand picked by the Daylesford police - either because of family trauma or deprivation to enjoy some time away from families and responsibilities. Which quickly goes wrong as a huge storm batters the hills on the night that the 3 disappear.

At the time Franklin is in Ballarat, hopefully on a career advancement trajectory, which goes very pear-shaped as soon as he hears that the kids he feels responsible for have vanished. There's no clear indications either of whether they got lost or whether they have been abducted, and there's no shortage of possible villains lurking in the near vicinity from the creepy house owner who left the house but not suspicions behind, his housekeeper and her increasingly odd husband, or the terrain itself. The storm doesn't help search parties, and it makes the likelihood of sightings complicated as well - very few Dandenong ranges residents are out meandering about in a storm that will bring down huge trees, drench everything to the skin in seconds, take out electricity, block roads and generally make life complicated for everyone.

Despite the search parties, despite the local knowledge from local cops, and despite Franklin's frantic run from Ballarat to the Hills, things are looking very bad for these kids, when they haven't been found after days of searching, even before Wallace gives you a peak into the current circumstances of the young girl - whose fate is looking pretty bleak, and whose brothers seems to have completely disappeared.

There's a good sense of the place, the climate, the local residents and the terrain in INTO THE FOG. It's a real strength of this novel - this is a place that Wallace obviously knows well and the idea that kids could simply vanish up there makes sense, and is well supported by the god awful weather that's being experienced. Harvey's investigative skills are also put to good use as she determinedly hunts for hints and clues about people who surround the kids, and about what they have been up to themselves - there's a social media trail here that's sketchy but followable. The inclusion of Franklin's Daylesford colleagues, and his own daughter Kat in the cast, makes sense in terms of the kids camp setting, and it gives Wallace a chance to ramp up the personal woven into these stories - they have an element of romance in them for readers who like that sort of thing. There's also that feeling of a closed room - it's a big area, made small and enclosed by the house in which the characters are all staying, and the forest that encloses them.

On the crimeance side of the genre spectrum, INTO THE FOG has a good sense of confusion and complexity, with plenty of red herrings, some pleasing twists in the tail, and a bit of side-road meandering in the personal for those looking for some romantic as well as case based tension. Readers might feel some sinking sense of inevitability early on, but don't believe everything you're reading, the resolution here isn't as straight-forward as you might think.

https://www.austcrimefiction.org/revi...

[Sharah McConville · Rating 5 out of 5]

'Into The Fog' is book #3 in the Georgie Harvey and John Franklin series. This fast-paced, thrilling, rural crime novel about missing children gave me goosebumps! I'm looking forward to starting this series from the beginning. Thanks to the author, Sandi Wallace, for my paperback copy.

[Claire Louisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved Dead Again, book 2 in the Georgie Harvey and John Franklin series so I was straight down the library to order book 3, Into the Fog. I think this series just gets better and better and I found myself not wanting to put this novel down despite having to work the following day.

I was totally absorbed in the disappearance of three children whilst on a camp in Mount Dandenong which has been organised by Franklin and his colleagues from the Dalesford Police Department. Looking after the group of children are his colleagues, Sam and Lunny are Georgie, his daughter Kat and Josh a teenager who Franklin has worked with at the boxing centre. They are all in total panic when the kids go missing, the terrible icy weather makes things harder for the people searching and more dangerous for the kids.

Franklin heads straight up to his group after hearing the news, despite it possibly affecting his chance at making detective, these kids are his local kids and Franklin is all about his community. There is a fight for Franklin's team to stay involved in the hunt for the kids and the possible perpetrators after the local police are called in, a conflict of interest is cited, but there are plenty of allowances made to start with and between them, they do some good working into finding out who is behind the disappearance. 

In today's society, we are constantly reminded to be aware when on social media, especially in regards to our children who are easily influenced and where criminals can pretend to be whoever they want to be in order to lure them in. Sandi Wallace has done a thorough job of showing us how easily this can be done and the terrible outcomes that could occur because of this medium of communication. 

The story is told from multiple viewpoints, including one of the missing children and the story progresses both fast and slow, but at the same time, it felt like nonstop action in the desperate hunt to find these children.

The chapters are mostly quite short, and this is an easy way to trick me into reading far more than I planned before going to bed, just one more chapter, was I'll just read one more because they are short, which lead to me turning page after page in the need to know what was going to happen. 

I really hope there are more Georgie Harvey and John Franklin novels to come. This series is being rereleased, so preorder this book now ready for June 2020.


#AWW2020 15/50

[The Honest Book Reviewer · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

The third novel to feature Georgie Harvey and John Franklin takes place in a different part of Victoria, and that was a welcome change. This time most of the book is set in Olinda, which is a small town set in a forest not too far outside of Melbourne. The atmosphere of the forest comes through so strongly in this book. You get the sense of the trees closing in on you, and you can feel the cold nights on your skin when you read this, and sense the pitch black closing in each night that they try to find the missing children. A great use of setting and atmosphere to really drive home the impact the setting has on every character in this book.

You do get the sense their are two villains in this story - the weather, and the true perpetrators of the crime.

But while I enjoyed this book, I felt it slow paced for much of it, as the author tried to delve more deeply in the psychological impact the missing children had on the characters. Even though that comes through clearly, it felt drawn out and dare I say a bit repetitive. Over the course of a few days, while they hunt for the missing children, I felt the psychological exploration of some characters was stuck in gear or churned over the same thoughts. I appreciated the switch of pace, but maybe it could have progressed to a different gears earlier in the story.

Still, this is gripping and, at times, chilling, especially when we're give the Hannah's POV - Hannah being the missing teenager in the story. Hannah's chapters are amazing in my view.

Think series has been a hidden gem for me. I discovered this by accident, because one of my local libraries had a display of stories set across my home state. Thank goodness for local libraries!

[Mari · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the fourth novel I’ve read by this author and she is becoming a favorite. Once again the story starts slow. The tension builds as there are three young lives involved. The police officers work when ordered not to. Everyone searching for that one lead. Then the worst fear arises. A Child pedophile could have nabbed the eleven-year-old girl. Franklin breaks the rules to help with the search and Georgie keeps searching the media find the guilty and arranges a meeting. Has she picked the right villain? The book becomes a page terming, I need to know what happens next. Will they find the children in time to save their live?

[Kerri Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

A thrilling conclusion (although there could be more coming) to this series. The crime was well plotted and written and kept you guessing right until the end. I also enjoyed the character development and look forward to seeing where the author takes this couple.

[Ellen Morgan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great read. Hard to put it down once you start.

[Mary O'Riordan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the 3rd book in Sandi Wallace's excellent Georgie Harvey and John Franklin series. It was totally gripping, I couldn't put it down. Love the Australian setting so descriptive, you could actually see all those well described places. I highly recommend this series and book.

[Sue Parritt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Crime fiction isn’t my preferred genre, but I really appreciated this one, even sacrificing two hours writing time to finish it! Fast-paced, great characters, a storm-tossed bush setting all drawing me into the narrative. I particularly liked the segments ‘Hannah’ dotted throughout the book, which provided an authentic voice of a twelve-year-girl caught in a desperate situation. Police and emergency services characters were believable, demonstrating that the author had done her homework. So often, I find crime fiction police are depicted as maverick, super-hero types to whom I cannot relate. Into the fog is the third book in the series ‘Georgie Harvey and John Franklin but can be read as standalone. I look forward to reading others in the series.
Sue Parritt, author of A Question of Country and 6 other books

[Cel Jel · Rating 4 out of 5]

How do you as a policeman cope with the fact that three children go missing from a camp that you are running. Do you follow protocol, or do you act as a maverick? This book had many layers to the story, which were well woven together. A romance between a policeman and a journalist, the clever red herrings, the way in which the police investigations were described all kept the book moving and the reader wanting to find out where the children were.
Set in the Dandenongs outside Melbourne, on a foggy September afternoon three children vanish. The story is told using different voices, and over some days. Well worth a read if you like mystery and crime fiction.

[Richard Hunter · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am absolutely loving this series. Well constructed and engaging plots, a cast of characters who are often likeable yet fallible and being set in Daylesford and rural Victoria gives a real sense of place and makes the books authentically Australian. It really helps to read the books in order so I would absolutely recommend that potential readers start at Book 1(Tell Me Why) and commit to the series as they get better and better.

[Susie Hollams · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing

Once again caught right until the end. Sandi you are an amazing storyteller. You have captured me with your incredible talent and your ability to paint such beautiful word pictures. You sure do have talent ♥️Susie

[Heather M · Rating 5 out of 5]

A thriller of a story building to a nail-biting climax. Into the Fog is a very enjoyable addition to Sandi Wallace's rural crime series and her best book yet.

[Nissie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Waited until the new one was nearly out to read this. Loved it.

[Susan Murray · Rating 5 out of 5]

Into another mystery

Once again a brilliant mystery for Georgie and John to solve.

Alternately thrilling and terrifying the story twists and turns as they piece it all together.

[Jeffrey Firestone · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thumbs up

Once started it's hard to stop reading. The characters are developed enough to make them believable, liked or disliked. (Some seemed to be over- drenched with anguish.) I recommend this book to anyone(16 + over ) who wants real life suspense.

[Tierney caden · Rating 5 out of 5]

An author worth following

This is the third book in a great series. Well crafted, with an entertaining story line, and wonderful characterisation. Definitely an author to follow!

[Les Newberry · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another ripping story from Sandy Wallace. Very easy to picture the characters as if they were real.
being set in and around Melbourne makes the stories even more realistic. Just like the first two I could not put the book down Look forward to reading the next one.

[Sandy Sexton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having read the third Georgie Harvey/John Franklin novel, I'm clearly a fan of Sandi Wallace. There's much I admire about her writing as she seems adept at keeping a good balance between plot, characters and setting - all are interwoven effectively. I appreciate her insights into the emergency services and the positive portrayal of people who devote their lives to helping and protecting others.

[Black Butterfly · Rating 4 out of 5]

WHEW! WHAT A ROLLERCOASTER RIDE OF A STORY. IT WAS A MESS, SO MANY PEOPLE INVOLVED IN A NIGHTMARE STORYLINE A REAL CLUSTERFUCK. I FELT SORRY FOR EVERYONE, THE KIDS, COPS AND PARENTS. ;D

[Deborah Lievens · Rating 5 out of 5]

great book

Grabbed me at the start and would not let go. Great characters and I appreciated the depiction of the rescue process

[Julie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Somebody save me now! How did this receive 4+ stars? As if it didn't start confusingly enough, with so many characters, that I found it difficult to keep track of who was who, it scrambled my brain- then after persevering with that little gem, the actual story is going nowhere. The children are still missing 30% of the way in and it's only the first day, what a load of old cobbles. Ditched and on the look out for a better book, which shouldn't be too difficult! 🥱

[Miss Nessa · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read the book in 2 days!