Page Turners – October 2022 review

Page Turners met in October to discuss ‘Wake‘ which was first published in 2022.

This first novel by Australian author Shelly Burr was recommended on a ‘good summer read’ list and has been generally well reviewed as a debut work of crime fiction.  Opinions within the group were divided – a page turner for some but not worth finishing for others.  To some it was well written, taut and compassionate, but for others the format involving transcripts of internet forum conversations was confusing and the characters were unsympathetic.  Lies and the withholding of information at the time of the disappearance of a young girl in a remote community left the case unresolved until a private investigator, with his gradually revealed ulterior motives, uncovers some of the deceptions and eventually solves the complex interconnection of cases.

The remote, hot, arid location was generally thought to have been convincingly depicted but the characters less so.  Most found it difficult to feel any empathy with either the sister of the missing girl or the detective and his own family horrors.  However, it did stimulate discussion of how much you would do to protect your loved ones, how money plays a part in the success or failure of an investigation and whether some people are judged more worthy of sympathy than others.

Deborah Wallis