Mischance Creek

Hirsch is checking firearms. The regular police audit: all weapons secured, ammo stored separately, no unauthorised person with keys to the gun safe. He’s checking people, too. The drought is hitting hard in the mid-north, and Hirsch is responsible for the welfare of his scattered flock of battlers, bluebloods, loners and miscreants.

He isn’t usually called on for emergency roadside assistance. But with all the other services fully stretched, it’s Hirsch who has to grind his way out beyond the Mischance Creek ruins to where some clueless tourist has run into a ditch.

As it turns out, though, Annika Nordrum isn’t exactly a tourist. She’s searching for the body of her mother, who went missing seven years ago. And the only sense in which she’s clueless is the lack of information unearthed by the cops who phoned in the original investigation.

Hirsch owes it to Annika to help, doesn’t he? Not to mention that tackling a cold case beats the hell out of gun audits and admin...

‘Mischance Creek, the fifth novel in this series, is plotted so well that the eventual climax seems both inevitable and shocking…There are plenty of fine Australian crime writers, but if I could only read one of them it would be Garry Disher.’ Mark Sanderson, Times UK

‘This is a terrific read. It works as a standalone, but really – why stop there? The ‘Hirsch’ series is that good.’ [4.5 stars] Good Reading Magazine

‘A master at controlling his material, taking his readers along the dusty, rutted roads that always pop up when we expect bitumen smoothness. But it’s a journey worth taking, for the pure joy of the writing.’ Herald Sun

Garry Disher sets the gold standard for outback noir once again.’ Avenue Bookstore

‘Mischance Creek confirms Disher’s place as one of Australia’s great crime writers.’ Cheryl Akle, Australian

'Garry Disher is the doyen of the outback crime novel and his latest about South Australian police constable Paul ‘Hirsch’ Hirschhausen, Mischance Creek, once more sets the standard for the genre.’ Canberra Weekly

‘The characters are stark, the emotions of the big dry – quiet despair, hope and endurance – jump off the pages. Authentic Aussie crime writing at its best.’ [5 stars] SA Weekend