11/02/2020
Sydney physiotherapist Kieran Elliott, the protagonist of this elegiac suspense novel from bestseller Harper (The Lost Man), has steeled himself for an emotionally turbulent visit to his hometown of Evelyn Bay, Tasmania, where he has returned to help his mother pack up the family home before his dementia-afflicted father moves into a nursing facility. Then the murder of college student Bronte Laidler, who had been spending her summer break creating art inspired by the area’s rugged coast, upsets the town. While locals profess that Bronte’s killer must be an outsider, many start wondering—as do the police—whether there’s any connection to a tragedy involving Kieran that tore apart the community 12 years earlier. That Kieran’s father may have been wandering on the beach the night of the murder raises the stakes. The distinctively Aussie array of stoic characters who are weathered, and in some cases warped, by their uncompromising environment more than compensates for a denouement that feels psychologically false. Harper expertly weaves past guilts with present grief. She remains a writer to watch. Agent: Daniel Lazar, Writers House. (Feb.)
Instant New York Times bestseller, #1 International Bestseller
"I love Jane Harper's Australia-based mysteries....and The Survivors is the best yet. There are cave scenes that will freeze your blood." —Stephen King
“As always, Harper skillfully evokes the landscape as she weaves a complicated, elegant web, full of long-buried secrets ready to come to light.”
—New York Times Book Review
“Harper is to Australia what Tana French is to Ireland, a writer whose psychologically rich plots are matched by a deep understanding of place.”
—Washington Post
“Another suspenseful thriller...And in Harper's proven style, the story is not only atmospheric, it delves deep into the psyche of main character Kieran Elliott and the townsfolk, unearthing dark secrets, hidden guilt and simmering social tensions.”
—Herald Sun
“The latest stunner from Jane Harper…[She] expertly raises the reader's pulse throughout the narrative, insinuating what happened that day but only revealing the truth slowly as Kieran comes to see past and present in a new light.”
—Booklist, starred review
“[Harper is] a master at creating atmospheric settings, and it’s easy to fall under her spell…A layered and nuanced mystery.”
—Kirkus
“Jane Harper has created a tightly told, beautifully written, and suspenseful novel… It is a novel of guilt, remorse, injustice, and regret, all skillfully woven together seamlessly into a realistic work of literary power I cannot recommend highly enough.”
—Deadly Pleasures
“Harper expertly weaves past guilts with present grief. She remains a writer to watch.”
—Publishers Weekly
“Jane Harper creates an impressive landscape that serves to illustrate how the experience of place inevitably shapes the lives of those who live there.”
—Sydney Morning Herald
“It's now clear Harper has a gift...every book has a distinct landscape that plays a central part in the plot made possible by her uncanny knack of bringing scenery to life.”
—Daily Telegraph
Praise for Jane Harper:
“Ms. Harper is not one to drop a fact [...] without using it later. If you enjoy being hoodwinked…you’ll love Ms. Harper’s sleight of hand. Ms. Harper has made her own major mark.” —The New York Times
“Such a good storyteller… Harper has again raised the bar for emerging crime writers.” —Chicago Tribune
“Intense, deeply intelligent psychological thrillers that explore how our pasts – especially our childhoods – mold and disrupt our lives in the present.” —Christian Science Monitor
“Harper writes with precision and creates a tense atmosphere on the brink of combustion.” —Real Simple
“Book by book, [Harper is] creating her own vivid and complex account of the outback.” —New York Times Book Review
“Place is paramount, a multifaceted character that’s in turns brutal and breathtaking.” —Washington Post
“An author at the top of her game.” —Kirkus, starred review
“I think of Jane Harper as the Australian Louise Penny. Like Penny's Inspector Gamache series, Harper's books evoke a vivid sense of place, and are as much about her nuanced characters and the moral dilemmas they face as the mystery itself.” —BookRiot
“Harper works miracles. We’re lucky to witness them.” —A.J. Finn, #1 New York Times bestselling author
“Harper evokes the complexities of love, hate, rage, emotional baggage, and a spot of redemption with a spare language that suits her story’s geographical surroundings – and her characters’ deeply interwoven and even more deeply imprinted relationships – down to a T.” —Seattle Review of Books
“Harper adroitly blends the tension and brisk pace of a thriller with the psychological acuity and stylish prose of literary fiction.” —Irish Independent
“In just a couple of years, Jane Harper has soared into the first rank of contemporary crime writers.” —Sunday Times (UK)
“Ms. Harper is not one to drop a fact [...] without using it later. If you enjoy being hoodwinked…you’ll love Ms. Harper’s sleight of hand. Ms. Harper has made her own major mark.” —The New York Times
“Such a good storyteller… Harper has again raised the bar for emerging crime writers.” —Chicago Tribune
“Harper writes with precision and creates a tense atmosphere on the brink of combustion.” —Real Simple
“Book by book, [Harper is] creating her own vivid and complex account of the outback.” —New York Times Book Review
“Harper works miracles. We’re lucky to witness them.” —A.J. Finn, #1 New York Times bestselling author
02/01/2021
Kieran and his girlfriend, Mia, return to their childhood hometown in Tasmania with their infant daughter to help Kieran's parents move to mainland Australia. Twelve years earlier a terrible storm left two men dead, including Kieran's brother, Finn, who died trying to rescue Kieran. A young girl also went missing in the storm's aftermath. Burdened by guilt, Kieran moved to Sydney and has not been home since. When a woman is found murdered on the beach, the police begin to question whether the previous deaths are in some way connected. Rumors begin spreading in the small town, and Kieran must face the possibility that the events of the past may not be as he remembers them. Further complicating the matter is that Kieran's father, suffering from dementia, was the last person to be seen with both the missing girl years ago and the current victim. VERDICT Harper (The Lost Man) again excels at creating atmosphere and depicting tense interpersonal relationships. But unlike her previous stand-alone, this story's suspense doesn't escalate satisfactorily. Instead, the author delivers a nuanced rumination on guilt, community, and family that's best for readers of domestic fiction or light mysteries.—Anitra Gates, Erie Cty. P.L., PA
2020-10-14
It’s been 12 years since Kieran Elliot left his hometown of Evelyn Bay under a dark cloud.
Evelyn Bay, on the Tasmanian coast, is a small, quiet town where everyone knows each other and the days roll by like the waves that lap at its secluded beaches. Now, Kieran has returned with his partner, Mia, and their 3-month-old daughter, Audrey, to help his mother move house so she can be closer to his father, who has dementia and will be moving into a nursing home. Kieran is glad to see old friends Ash, Olivia, and Sean, but tensions linger. After all, there are those who still blame Kieran for a boating accident that killed his older brother, Finn, and Sean’s brother, Toby. The vicious storm that raged that night also supposedly claimed the life of Olivia’s 14-year-old sister, Gabby, though her body was never recovered. When the body of Olivia’s housemate, art student Bronte, is found on the beach, a darkness as relentless as the tides comes pulsing to the surface, and it seems everyone has something to hide. As rumors spread on the community’s web page and alarm mounts about the possibility of a killer in their midst, the town’s secrets are steadily unfurled, coalescing into a few unexpected revelations. While this novel isn’t quite as suspenseful as Harper’s previous books, she’s a master at creating atmospheric settings, and it’s easy to fall under her spell.
A layered and nuanced mystery.
