This book, like The Dry, takes place in Australia with Federal agent Aaron Falk in charge. During a corporate retreat in the Giralang Ranges, four women have gone missing. Agent Faulkner and his partner Carmen Cooper have been called in because one of the missing women,
…more Alice Russell was the subject of their case. They have been assigned to get to the bottom of irregular financial practices of Alice's company Bailey Tenants. Eventually three of the women come out of bush with scratches and a snake bite. Alice is missing and the women have no idea where she is. Alice they say, left with her phone in the middle of the night.
The story is told in two strands one being the investigation by Falk and Carmen and the other follows the women as they argue and at times physically fight over food, the way to get out of the bush and old disagreements they brought with them on the trip. If the company thought this was going to be a bonding experience for employees, it was a failure.
At first I was intrigued by the story. The description of the weather, difficult terrain were vivid. The petty arguing and the dredging up of old grievances from years before became annoying. The women not only argued about grievances among them, but also their children. I felt relieved when the story turned from the lost women to Falk and Carmen solving the crime.
Harper does a good job with building suspence at the end of each chapter, but I feel there was too much of it. (less)
