The Roadhouse

by Kerry McGinnis

When aspiring actress Charlie Carver learns that her cousin Annabelle has died, she immediately leaves Melbourne to fly home to the remote family roadhouse east of Alice Springs. It has been years since her last visit and her relationship with her mother, Molly, is strained but Charlie is determined to patch up their differences.

The reunion, however, is interrupted when Molly suffers a heart attack. With her mother airlifted out for life-saving surgery, Charlie is left to take the reins of the struggling family business, alongside friends old and new, including the captivating local stockman Mike.

The authorities declare Annabelle to have taken her own life, but when a woman’s body turns up at an abandoned mine site, Charlie begins to wonder what else is being covered up, and why.

Beginning a search for the truth, a perilous bush chase unfolds that threatens her own life, causing Charlie to wonder whether she ever knew Annabelle at all…

From the bestselling author of The Heartwood Hotel comes the suspenseful new outback mystery from Australia’s authentic rural writer and beloved voice of the bush.

Genres: Mystery, Audiobook, Crime, Romance, Contemporary, Australia, Fiction

352 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 2, 2019

About the author

Kerry McGinnis was born in Adelaide and, at the age of twelve, took up a life of droving with her father and three siblings. The family travelled extensively across the Northern Territory and Queensland before settling on a station in the Gulf Country. Kerry has worked as a shepherd, droving hand, gardener, stock-camp and station cook, eventually running a property at Bowthorn, near Mount Isa. She is the author of two volumes of memoir and now lives in Bundaberg.

Reviews

[Sharon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Charlie Carver can’t believe her cousin Annabelle has died, but after finding out the terrible news, Charlie leaves Melbourne on the next available flight to a remote family roadhouse in Alice Springs. It had been quite a few years since Charlie had been back home. Charlie’s relationship with her mother, Molly hasn’t been great, but she is hoping to change that.

Not long after Charlie arrives back home, Molly has a heart attack and Charlie is left with helping out the family business whilst Molly recovers. In the meantime it looks like all is not as it seems with Annabelles death and now the search is on to find out what really happened to her.

I have enjoyed this authors previous books and this one was no exception. A mystery romance that I have no hesitation in highly recommending to anyone who enjoys a great read.

[Brenda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Charlie Carver wasn’t too upset to be leaving Melbourne and heading to the property a few hours east of Alice Springs in the Northern Territory that she’d called home until five years prior. Her mother’s phone call letting Charlie know cousin Annabelle had died didn’t stir any grief, but she wanted to be by Molly’s side and the vulnerability she heard in her voice cemented her commitment. The thought that Annabelle had committed suicide didn’t sit well with Charlie however…

Not long after her arrival at the roadhouse, Molly had a turn and after discovering she had been seeing a doctor for her heart, Charlie immediately organized the Royal Flying Doctor for her mum. While Molly was under the doctor’s care, Charlie and old Bob, along with the new cook, continued to run the roadhouse, with travellers arriving frequently. But it was the discovery nearby of a young woman’s body which set the police searching and changing their thoughts on Annabelle’s death. And as the mystery deepened, so did the danger surrounding those at the roadhouse. What was the cause of Annabelle’s death? And why were they all in danger?

The Roadhouse is another excellent outback mystery by Aussie author Kerry McGinnis which I loved! Fast-paced, plenty of suspense, with a light dusting of romance, Ms McGinnis has firmly secured her place in my list of favourite authors! The light, amusing moments had me laughing out loud on occasion, and the Australian landscape came to life under the author’s pen. The Roadhouse is one I have no hesitation in recommending highly.

With thanks to Penguin Random House AU for my ARC to read in exchange for an honest review.

[Amanda - Mrs B's Book Reviews · Rating 4 out of 5]

*https://mrsbbookreviews.wordpress.com
Kerry McGinnis is the bestselling author of a number of Australian romantic suspense novels and she returns with her latest release, The Roadhouse. A story of family, secrets, relationships, The Roadhouse is an engrossing outback story that ties in an unsolved crime to this contemporary drama. It is a book that kept me up way past my bedtime, as I was determined to get to the bottom of the puzzling crime that defines the direction of The Roadhouse.

The lead of this tale, Charlie, is an actress, carving out various low level roles for herself in the big smoke. When Charlie receives the shocking news that her cousin Annabelle has passed way in suspicious circumstances, she trades life in Melbourne for her family home, east of Alice Springs. Charlie has avoided returning home for years, so this homecoming is hard on a number of fronts. In particular, the tenuous relationship between Charlie and her mother Molly plays on her mind. A trip back home may be what mother and daughter need at this emotional time. No sooner has Charlie arrived at the roadhouse when her mother has a heart attack. With no appropriate medical facilities nearby, Molly is transported by air to the nearest hospital. Charlie is left with the responsibility of running the roadhouse. With a support network rallying around her including Mike, a possible love interest, Charlie takes it all in her stride. However, Charlie’s cousin Annabelle’s mysterious death is still playing on her mind. When the police surmise that Annabelle most likely took her own life, Charlie is dubious. Then a dead body surfaces and there are more questions than answers to the events surrounding Annabelle’s death.

Kerry McGinnis is an author I have turned to in the past when I am need of a good quality Australian outback mystery novel. McGinnis doesn’t disappoint with this latest offering. The Roadhouse is a strong outback based family drama, with elements of crime and romance rounding this novel off nicely. It proved to be the perfect choice for one of the final categories I need to cover for Book Bingo 2019, ‘a book set in the Australian Outback.’

Setting and atmosphere is a strong point in The Roadhouse. The physical presence of the outback and landscape is so potent that it is almost impossible not to consider the land as a solitary character. Kerry McGinnis is an accomplished author of ten books, all of which are rural Australian based stories. McGinnis employs her expertise to her most recent novel to help situate the reader in her compelling Australian outback setting. As soon as Charlie arrives back home, we are consumed by the overwhelming atmosphere of this particular outback location. Set just outside of Alice Springs, almost on the road to nowhere, we feel the intense heat, the sheer expanse of the land, the sense of isolation, but at the same time, the community spirit evident in this area is a joy to read.

I really enjoyed getting to know Charlie Carver, the lead of this tale. Not only did Charlie come across as genuine and friendly, I appreciated that she had her misgivings. Charlie isn’t perfect and she does come with some baggage, namely her family background. This provides McGinnis with ample room to delve into the complicated mother-daughter and family relationship issues between the main players of this novel. As the book progressed, long held secrets and shocking revelations come to the surface. The truth is catalyst for change, as we view the characters, especially Molly, with a different set of eyes. Personally, it gave me a greater sense of understanding and I definitely had a lot more sympathy for the characters of the novel following these disclosures.

The supporting cast are well placed in The Roadhouse. I liked fellow roadhouse workers Ute and Bob. Both were quirky but endearing and I liked the way in which they interacted with Charlie. McGinnis sets this off with plenty of authentic dialogue, that I found quite humorous in places. In addition, there is a side serving of romance that adds just a dash of love and hope, which is in contrast to the unfurling drama.

The crime and mystery aspect of The Roadhouse is what urged me to continue reading late into the night when I selected this book to read. Coupled with the fascinating and realistic experiences of running an isolated outback roadhouse, I was quite taken with the murder mystery surrounding Annabelle. McGinnis issues her readers with a number of possible final outcomes in relation to Annabelle’s death, which I enjoyed weighing up. The end result was not hugely shocking, but it made me feel that the investment I placed in this story was definitely worthwhile.

Based on my reading and enjoyment of The Roadhouse, I can see why Kerry McGinnis has been awarded the title of ‘beloved voice of the bush’. The Roadhouse is classic Australian outback mystery fare, balanced with a touch of romance and a generous serving of family drama. An engaging read from page one to page 329, The Roadhouse comes with a seal of approval from this reader.

*I wish to thank Penguin Books Australia for providing me with a free copy of this book for review purposes.

The Roadhouse is book #143 of the 2019 Australian Women Writers Challenge

[Sue Gerhardt Griffiths · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another good one from Kerry McGinnis!

Crime, romance and Ute! (the roadhouse cook, what a character!)




Listened to the audiobook on BorrowBox
Published by Bolinda audio
Narrated by Lexi Sekuless
Duration: 9 hrs, 19 min. 1.50x Speed

[Shelleyrae at Book'd Out · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Roadhouse is an engaging story of romantic suspense, the eleventh novel set in the Australian Outback region from author Kerry McGinnis.

When Charlie Carver learns of her cousin’s suicide, she decides to leave behind her life in Melbourne, making her way to the remote roadhouse, east of Alice Springs, that she calls home. Little seems to have changed during her five year absence, except her mother appears to be struggling, and within days of Charlie’s return, Molly has a heart attack is is airlifted to Adelaide for life saving surgery.
Charlie willingly steps up to run the roadhouse with the assistance of long time handyman, Bob, and a new cook, Polish backpacker Ute, and is also tasked with taking care of the details related to her cousin’s death. Though she disliked Annabelle, whose beauty barely masked her selfishness, and is beginning to suspect that the suicide could have been faked, Charlie is as shocked and puzzled as everyone else when the body of a murdered woman is found at a nearby abandoned mine site, and is identified as Annabelle.
When Charlie’s family home is ransacked shortly afterwards, she believes the incident is somehow connected to a visit Annabelle made shortly before her death, and danger could be closer to home than anyone expects.

I really enjoyed the mystery element of The Roadhouse, which firstly focuses on the possible motives for Annabelle’s suicide. Charlie is suspicious of the verdict from the outset, believing that even if Annabelle killed herself, she would never choose that particular manner in which to die. After the discovery of Annabelle’s body proves her right, Charlie speculates as to the meaning of a recent visit Annabelle made to the Roadhouse with a strange man in tow, and after the break in at her home, rashly follows a hunch and finds herself in a fight for her life in a tense and thrilling confrontation.

Unfortunately I did feel that the relationship between Charlie and Mike, a stockman she meets from a nearby station, was underdeveloped. The seeds of attraction were sown, but the couple spent very little time together, even less time alone together, and their relationship was unusually chaste for two twenty somethings in this day and age, all of which made Charlie’s ‘proposal’ awkwardly presumptuous, rather than romantic, in my opinion.

The Roadhouse is also a story about family. Molly was not a demonstrative mother, and Charlie’s feckless late father favoured Annabelle, who came to live with Charlie’s family as a young girl after the death of her own parents. Charlie felt overshadowed by her beautiful cousin whose spiteful behaviour towards her often went unnoticed. Charlie hopes to forge a closer relationship with her mother on her return home, and
over the course of the novel comes to understand more about her family’s dynamics.

Ute, with her unique grasp of English, was probably my favourite character in The Roadhouse, I enjoyed the humour she brought to the story and her practical approach to every facet of her life. I also liked the curmudgeonly Bob, whose gruff exterior fails to hide his soft spot for Charlie and Molly.

With a dramatic suspense plot, and likeable characters, in an uniquely Australian setting, I enjoyed The Roadhouse.

[Jenny · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Roadhouse is about family secrets, and what you aspired to can be right under your nose. One day Charli Carver realised that she does not have the talent to be an actress decided to go home after her cousin Annabelle died. On arrival, Charli's mum had heartache and airlifted to Adelaide for surgery. Charli required to take the reins of the family business. However, unexplained incidents were happening at the Roadhouse that started Charli thinking about Annabelle's death. The readers of The Roadhouse will continue to follow Charli to find out what happens.

The Roadhouse was the first book I had read of Kerry McGinnis, and I enjoy reading this book. The plot and the descriptions of the setting done in a way that engaged me from the start. I loved Kerry McGinnis portrayal of her characters and the way they intertwine with each other throughout this book. The Roadhouse was well written and researched by Kerry McGinnis.

The readers of The Roadhouse will learn about running a service station in an isolated rural area of the Northern Territory. Also, the readers of The Roadhouse will understand how keeping secrets and greed can cause misunderstandings and stress in families.

I recommend this book.

[Lesley Moseley · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the wrong edition as I read the EBOOK. Good enough story, great as a 'palate cleanser' after some 5 star , heavy going reads.

[Alicia Hope · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've enjoyed all of Kerry McGinnis' books, but this one was the best (so far!).
Loved it.

[Tarasimone · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hard to give a review on this, as I've read it before. But the first time I read it, I liked it so much that I recommended it to my husband to read.

An enjoyable outback Australia story.

[Candida Waterford · Rating 5 out of 5]

After hearing her cousin Annabel has died, Charlie Carver returns home to help her Mum with the Roadhouse despite the strained relationship she has with her.
However the reunion will have to wait as her mother suffers a heart attack and has to have an operation.

[Neil · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great read from Australian Author Kerry McGinnis. Reading this book, it did not take long to be fully immersed into the storyline. I actually felt like I was transported into the outback surroundings and living the scene with the characters. I resonated with the Australian lifestyle and was taken aback with the cook. One of the best portrayed characters I have read. Suspenseful, thriller, survival, adventure and romance.

[Rita Chapman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely to read a romance that is so well written! Returning to the family's roadhouse out from Alice Springs, due to her step-sister's suicide, Charlie searches for the reasons for Annabelle's death. In doing so she finds love and more adventure than she was looking for!

[Anna Ottersbach-McLean · Rating 1 out of 5]

It started out pretty good, but the ending was so underwhelming. Definitely not thriller-y enough, plus it perpetuated some pretty old school ideas about relationships (I get that it’s set in the 90s in very rural Australia, but I just couldn’t relate at times).

[Deb Bodinnar · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoy Kerry's novels. This novel has a great cast of characters and the plot is quite engaging. A mixture of crime and romance makes for great reading.

[Melanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars.

Liked some of the secondary characters more than our heroine- Ute made the book for me. Would have been very boring without her!

[Tracy · Rating 2 out of 5]

A tad boring
The narrator was a bit fake too

[Bree T · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve read a few Kerry McGinnis books and enjoyed them but there’s still quite a few I haven’t read. A lot of them are set in the Northern Territory, which is a place I definitely want to visit one day. Australia is such a big country but with very few large cities to hop between. This is also set in 1991 and even though that doesn’t feel that long ago, things have changed a lot since then, particularly with technology, accessibility, the global village, getting word out, staying in touch, etc.

Charlie left her family home near Alice Springs some years ago and has been trying to get her big break as an actress in Melbourne. It hasn’t been working out though, so when her mother calls and asks her to come home after the untimely death of her cousin Annabelle, who was raised with Charlie, it’s a good excuse to pack in Melbourne and return to the Territory for good. Charlie’s mother runs a roadhouse, keeping people fuelled and fed and although their relationship has been strained, Charlie sees this as an opportunity to improve things between them, by sticking around to help out and hopefully building a better rapport. Charlie’s mother has never been demonstrative, has never really admitted to needing anything from her or even wanting it. Her heart attack is a surprise to Charlie, who has never known her mother to be even a little ill. As Charlie steps in to run the roadhouse, the story of Annabelle’s death takes an ugly turn and it seems like she was caught up in something very serious. Even though they never had a good relationship, Charlie feels the need to find out what really happened to her so they can properly lay her to rest.

This book definitely made me think about the challenges of living remotely at a time when technology wasn’t what it is now. Even just getting there….Charlie can’t get a direct flight from Melbourne to Alice Springs, she has to go via Adelaide, which is not an issue now (unless it’s you know, a global pandemic). When her mother is taken to hospital and then transferred to Adelaide, each time Charlie calls to check on her, it has to be with careful consideration of the long distance costs. There are no cell/mobile phones, no internet. No Skype or FaceTime. Everything is done via landline and there would’ve been times when to make calls would’ve been incredibly expensive. Tracking someone down can take some time, especially when people work on remote cattle stations and can be out anywhere on the property.

There’s a lot about troubled family relationships here. Charlie had a difficult childhood – her orphaned cousin came to live with her family when Charlie was just a baby but the two of them never got along. Annabelle was spoiled, beautiful and wilful and had no interest in fostering a relationship with Charlie when she could compete with her and try and beat her in every which way. Charlie also wasn’t particularly close to her parents – her feckless father seemed to prefer Annabelle and her sensible, no nonsense mother saw to their needs without being warm and loving. After being betrayed in the worst of ways, Charlie left her home and hasn’t been back until now. Without Annabelle around any longer, it feels like Charlie might be able to finally carve out a place for herself where she grew up. Her mother needs help at the roadhouse, especially now. Charlie can tell that there are things that have been let go and that need work in order to bring the place back up to scratch. And after meeting Mike, a man who works on a nearby property, there might be even more reason to stick around.

The story revolving around Annabelle certainly went in some very unexpected ways and brought with it the sort of danger that would’ve been very unexpected. It was very much presented that one thing had happened to Annabelle, as strange as it seemed but it doesn’t take Charlie long to feel as though something is wrong with that story. There was a nice element of suspense later in the story as the danger and tension escalated around Charlie, the closer she got to the truth.

A good read, will definitely go back and read another Kerry McGinnis in the future.

[Alex Shaikh · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Roadhouse is all about family secrets mixed with crime and romance. So the plot goes out like Charli who wants to be an actress doesn't have the talent to be one so she decided to go back home a few hours east of Alice Springs in the Northern Territory. When she arrived, she found out that her mom had heartache and airlifted to Adelaide for surgery. So Charli took over the family business however, unexplained incidents were happening at the roadhouse that made Charli thinking about Annabelle's death. The Roadhouse is the first book I had read of Kerry Mcginnis and I really enjoyed reading it. As you see, the plot got my attention to read this book especially after waiting for my favorite author novel to arrive this coming week. I thought this book was fantastic. I love how Kerry portrayal of Charli characters and the way they twine everything together with one another. The book is well written and the readers will learn about how to run a service station in isolated places while learning family values and not to keep secrets and greed which can cause misunderstanding and stress in the families. I totally recommend this book!!

[Lesley · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was quite a good mystery with romantic overtones. The desert landscape was quite beautifully described and was mostly accurate for the area. The latter part of the book was quickly tied up as if the author was tired of the story and had to just wrap it up. In my opinion, the later part didn’t really need to be told. The crepe bows on the chairs and non-drooping wattle for the wedding were quite irrelevant details and it was a slightly boring conclusion. There were also detailed heart-to-heart conversations of past incidents that were not necessary to the storyline and could have been omitted. It would have left the reader with a enough of the story while they were still interested in it.

The heroine was a bit of a drama queen, but likeable enough. The Polish cook’s take on Australian idioms was an entertaining diversion from a somewhat predictable storyline.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

A rural mystery and romance set at an outback roadhouse near Alice Springs. After the death of her cousin Annabelle, Charlie goes home from Melbourne after many years absence, to help her mother run the roadhouse. She rapidly ends up having to step up as her mother is evacuated to hospital after a heart attack. Charlie is left to solve the mystery of Annabelle’s alleged suicide, run the roadhouse and deal with ruggedly handsome stockman Mick along the way. I liked the roadhouse cook Ute who added something to the story. I like the reality of Kerry’s authentic bush experience, down to the details of the personality and behaviour of heeler dogs.

[Victoria · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice little read set in the outback of NT Australia. Having spent a little time in that area of the country I could get a sense of the land the author described. And the one roadhouse between Alice and Tennant Creek brought back memories for me. This is a light read about a young woman who left Melbourne to return home to the roadhouse after news of her cousins murder. All the outback romance, dust, heat, dogs, jewel theft and such make up a page turning story. No literary masterpiece but nice fill in read, and happy endings are always good. 5/10

[Helen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love Kerry’s books as they are based on her real life experiences. If you have not yet read her autobiographical adventures, I heartily recommend them. When you travel around Australia you come across these roadhouses in the outback; they are iconic. Also the road workers camps, the distances, the community support for the medical services. This is the background to a great family story, a new romance and a murderous rampage.

[Judy Curry]

Set in Australia, The Roadhouse captured attention rather. Quickly. I was drawn into the family of the outback. I thought Kerry McGinnis interwove her characters well. The location descriptions came alive for me as well written descriptions are meant to do.

While it wasn’t a novel you would beat down the door to read I did enjoy it. It was fast paced and easy reading. I’d liken it to a Millls and Boon book.

7/10

[Jodie- Readthewriteact · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a brilliant example of crime fiction set in the Australian outback. It is filled with loads of twists and turns and the ending really had me on the edge of my seat. It also has a nice little romancic element to it which was a nice contrast so the book didn't seem sooo heavy. I am definitely going to have to pick up some more of her books!

[Faye Weston · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set in outback Central Australia, we have a city girl from Melbourne coming home to re-connect with her mother, a roadhouse owner, dealing with a suicide tragedy. Some of these popular stories are very slow reading but this one had intrigue, murder, health issues and vandalism plus a bit of romance. A few family secrets and a mix of dialects add interest.

[blessedbookmumma · Rating 3 out of 5]

This story was a nice easy read, nothing heavy although a nice romance or 2, mystery, a suicide and murder. I was hoping for something a bit more gritty. But overall it was a nice story. Lovely ending.

[Suzy Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

My first Kerry McGinnis book and I really enjoyed it. She managed to captivate me with the description of the outback and the rich, tough characters who live out there.

Great plot and well written. Will definitely be looking for more of Kerry's books at my library.

[Dianne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not sure why I had this on my list apart from it being an Australian author. Family drama at it’s best. A lighthearted read. ‘You can’t choose your family, but you can make your own’, so the saying goes.

[Craig and Phil · Rating 4 out of 5]

https://www.instagram.com/p/BzZiAhcg5...

[Christine · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoy this book. It had good characters, an interesting plot that slowly developed a level of tension and a pleasing outcome, all set in outback Australia.