The Strip
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4.0 • 11 Ratings
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- $16.99
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- $16.99
Publisher Description
‘This is as hard-boiled as Australian crime fiction gets, and it's very good.’ – Sydney Morning Herald
'tense and compelling' – Garry Disher
'The Strip is an eye-popping, nightmarish miasma that sets a new bar for Australian crime. A total triumph in every respect.' – Chris Flynn
When a local doctor is brutally murdered, Detective Constable Lana Cohen joins Strike Force Diablo on the notorious Gold Coast, where she finds herself navigating a world of chaos and corruption.
As she delves deeper into the case, Lana reluctantly pairs up with Henry Loch, a detective with a tarnished reputation who sees an opportunity to redeem himself amidst the mayhem.
But as Lana and Henry unravel the threads of violence and deceit, they uncover a dark side to the Gold Coast that shocks them to the core. With six unsolved murders already haunting them, will they be able to untangle the web of lies before it's too late?
Inspired by real-life events, The Strip is a gripping crime thriller that paints a vivid portrait of a time and place where corruption and ambition reign supreme.
PRAISE FOR THE STRIP AND IAIN RYAN:
‘a cracking crime thriller’ –The Australian
‘The real-life history of vice and corruption on the Gold Coast in the 1970s and 80s has inspired this pacy, tense work of crime fiction’ - The West Australian
‘Page-turning from the start, this book ratchets up the tension tenfold as the pieces fall into place and the novel reaches its thrilling pinnacle.’ - Books + Publishing
‘The Strip is bingeworthy reading – a gritty crime thriller reeking of corruption, murder and sex. If you like your heroines flawed and kick-ass and your cops dirty as hell, you’ll love Ian Ryan’s gripping foray into the underworld of the Gold Coast. Hardly took a breath from first page to last.' – Kate Mildenhall, author of THE MOTHER FAULT and THE HUMMINGBIRD EFFECT
'Fast paced, gritty, sharply observed noir that goes hard into the sleaze and corruption of the moonlight state.' – Andrew Nette, author of ORPHAN ROAD and GUNSHINE STATE
'Steeped in the bitter lore of old-school policing and backlit by the gaudy neon of the Gold Coast streets, The Strip is hands down one of the finest Australian crime novels you’ll ever read.' – David Whish-Wilson, author of LINE OF SIGHT
'an exciting new voice in Australian crime fiction' – Adrian McKinty, author of THE CHAIN and THE ISLAND
Customer Reviews
Perfect one day, dead the next
The author is an Australian musician turned crime novelist, whose debut ‘Four Days’ (2016) was shortlisted for a Ned Kelly Award.
The setting is the Gold Coast, Queensland, 1980. A GP at southern end of the eponymous strip is executed gangland style (two to the head) while out for a run. Background includes series of similarly suspicious unsolved murders over a period of years. The local police task force is getting nowhere due to combination of corruption, laziness, and substance abuse. Female NSW cop seconded to the investigation because the action went down just across the border teams up with local burnout. Real stuff and characters from the period (e.g. “The Joke,” Jack the Bagman) add authenticity for those of us who lived through the “Moonlight State” period, possibly less so for American, British, or even Melbourne readers.
Third person narrative, principally from POVs of main protagonists. Good pace. Plenty of plot twists, and cover-ups to deal with loose ends. (That’s how they rolled in pre-Fitzgerald Queensland.) The author admits to having read mucho James Ellroy and Brett Easton Ellis instead of studying when he was at university. It shows, not that there’s anything wrong with that, although readers without strong stomachs should probably proceed with caution.