Broke Road

An unputdownable Australian thriller from the bestselling author of Black River.


'Enthralling. Matthew Spencer nails it.'

Chris Hammer


'A tightly plotted, fast-moving, beautifully written whodunnit.' 

Jane Caro 


'A great read.' 

Michael Brissenden 


'Spencer is a master of the craft; Broke Road satisfies on every level.' 

Malcolm Knox 


SHORTLISTED for the 2026 Edgar Award for Best Paperback Original by the Mystery Writers of America


A late-night phone call is never good news for Homicide Detective Sergeant Rose Riley. This time she's being sent up to the Hunter Valley, where a woman has been found dead in her home. 


Rose grew up further along the valley. She knows that for every vineyard and golf course resort visited by tourists to the 'wine country' there are as many dilapidated fibro houses and drug dens, in the shadow of one of the state's largest prisons. 


A media hound points the finger at the husband, angering Rose but capturing the attention of journalist turned true crime author Adam Bowman. His book on the 'Blue Moon Killer' made him famous but the case nearly cost Rose her life, and she's not sure how she feels about seeing him again. 


Suspects abound, from the grieving husband to sinister business interests and suspicious locals. But when new evidence connects the crime to an old case, Rose realises they have no time to lose. The murderer is ready to strike again.


'If you like a good police procedural, you'll love this.' Chris Hammer, author of The Valley 


'Broke Road is a real page-turner. I even stayed up late to finish it and that never happens!' Jane Caro, author of Lyrebird 


'Place, pace and brilliantly detailed police procedure. Matthew Spencer's Broke Road has everything you'd want from a crime thriller. Well drawn characters driving an intricate sophisticated plot.' Michael Brissenden, author of Smoke 


'Black River showed Matthew Spencer's expertise in building a world with familiar surfaces and dark undercurrents. Broke Road is another taut, compelling crime thriller set in a community in transition: wineries in the sunshine, struggling mining towns in the shadows. The suspense builds in each scene as Riley and Bowman try to unlock the secrets behind a brutal slaying.' Malcolm Knox, author of The First Friend 


'A propulsive whodunit...Spencer's second novel is a page-turner that will have readers guessing until the end.' The Australian


'Spencer has a few writerly superpowers but one of his strongest is his meticulous police procedural. When you open a Spencer book, you are not only in safe hands, you are watching a meticulous craftsman at work. You are in for a fast intelligent ride on Broke Road. Best buckle up!' ABC Bookclub