The Dry

by Jane Harper

'One of the most stunning debuts I've ever read...Read it!' David Baldacci

'Packed with sneaky moves and teasing possibilities that keep the reader guessing...The Dry is a breathless page-turner' Janet Maslin, New York Times

THE SIMON MAYO RADIO 2 BOOK CLUB CHOICE
AUSTRALIA INDIE BOOK OF THE YEAR 2017
AUSTRALIA INDIE DEBUT OF THE YEAR 2017

WHO REALLY KILLED THE HADLER FAMILY?

I just can't understand how someone like him could do something like that.

Amid the worst drought to ravage Australia in a century, it hasn't rained in small country town Kiewarra for two years. Tensions in the community become unbearable when three members of the Hadler family are brutally murdered. Everyone thinks Luke Hadler, who committed suicide after slaughtering his wife and six-year-old son, is guilty.

Policeman Aaron Falk returns to the town of his youth for the funeral of his childhood best friend, and is unwillingly drawn into the investigation. As questions mount and suspicion spreads through the town, Falk is forced to confront the community that rejected him twenty years earlier. Because Falk and Luke Hadler shared a secret, one which Luke's death threatens to unearth. And as Falk probes deeper into the killings, secrets from his past and why he left home bubble to the surface as he questions the truth of his friend's crime.

• ISBN10: 1408708175
• ISBN13: 9781408708170
• Publish Date: 12 January 2017 (first published 31 May 2016)
• Publish Status: Withdrawn
• Out of Print: 29 March 2021
• Publish Country: GB
• Publisher: Little, Brown Book Group
• Imprint: Little, Brown
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 352
• Language: English

Reviews

[Berls]

3.5 stars - going back to past was jarring, loved they mystery, very unexpected, decent narration. Full review to come.

[maggiefan]

2.5
It was... Fine, I guess.
Apparently, my expectations were too high.

[brokentune]

My first Jane Harper, and what I can tell so far is that this book is not going to be a favourite.
It's not the story, it's the writing style. It doesn't grab me. And the characters seem very generic - I can't tell them apart.

Do I care about the story if I can't care about the characters....not so much.

If something doesn't happen soon that makes me sit up, this may end up being a DNF.

Update: DNF @ page 94

[Kat @ Novels & Waffles]

“Luke Lied. You Lied. Be at the funeral. ”

First of all, if you are contemplating reading this book, even a little bit – GET THE AUDIOBOOK. The narrator reads in a heavy Australian accent and I think half the fun of this story was just listening to his voice. But seriously, what's better than listening to a whole seven-plus hours of thick Australian accents and a heart-pounding, who-done-it mystery? Not much that I can think of.

The premise of The Dry is nothing especially new – the protagonist is a small-town boy who moves to the big city, but is forced to return home for an unexpected funeral where he is met with unexpected complications. Based solely on that blurb, this book could easily be a Hallmark Channel movie that ends with a white-chapel marriage. But there are no wedding bells awaiting you at the end of this book. No. In this story, the small-town boy is a federal agent named Aaron Falk and his hometown is a drought-infested Australian farm hub called Kiewarra (thus the narrator's accent). Skeletons in the closet come crashing out and long-buried memories are dug up as Falk is forced to confront the secrets he's been hiding for most of his adult life, and some dirty new ones too. It's a pretty standard plot line for this genre I should think – nothing shiny, new, or mind-blowing about it – and yet, I found myself dragged in immediately.

The intrigue starts off thick and fast in the first chapter, and continues on from there in a wildfire-like fury. The suspense leads you down one twisting back alleyway and then another in a beautifully well-crafted mystery that I couldn't stop listening to. As Falk recalls the events that led up to his move to the big city, Harper expertly weaves in pieces of both past and present in a way that simultaneously fills in blanks while leaving questions unanswered. I usually only listen to audiobooks while I take my daily walk with my son, but this one had me lying in bed at night, listening to the audiobook instead of sleeping because I just had to know what came next.

The Dry was like a rollercoaster – most coasters go up and down. They go fast, and if we're honest, we don't necessarily remember every loop or drop. But we remember the exhilaration. We remember that moment when our stomachs flew up into our noses. The Dry is the same. Later on, I might not remember the names of the characters, because if I'm honest, they weren't all that memorable. I probably won't think back on the story due to some outstanding uniqueness or originality, because it didn't particularly shine in that category either. But I will remember that it was one heck of an entertaining ride and I am so glad that I chose to get on.

[mrs_mander_reads]

Such a great read/listen! I've been looking forward to it for awhile. This ranks with Tana French and Paula Hawkins for me, and truly, I never saw the twist coming. I have Force of Nature up next!

[rohshey]

What a wonderful atmospheric thriller.

This sharply plotted mystery begins when a man returns to the small, insular drought-plagued farming town he fled as a teenager, falsely accused of a crime he didn't commit. You can almost feel the hot, gritty weight of the past as well as the burden of a half forgotten friendship that brings Aaron Falk home again in this engrossing novel, and be surprised right up to its dramatic conclusion.