Shooting Star

by Peter Temple, Adrian McKinty (Introduction)

Overview

Pat Carson’s old eyes were on me, looking for something.
‘Man is born unto trouble,’ he said.
I said, ‘As the sparks fly upwards.’
Deep lines at the corners of his mouth. ‘Know your Job. Soldier. Policeman. Haven’t been a bloody priest too, have you?’

Anne Carson: fifteen, beautiful, wayward. Abducted.

The rich Carsons have closed ranks and summoned Frank Calder, subject to strict instructions. This is not the first kidnapping in the Carson family and hard lessons have been learned.

But are the two events connected? And is greed the motivation? Revenge? Or could it be something else? To find out, Frank Calder must go beyond his brief.

And his every step into the darkness may end a girl’s life.

First published two decades ago, this standalone crime novel is Peter Temple at his brilliant best.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781925774122
Publisher:	The Text Publishing Company
Publication date:	05/07/2019
Series:	Text Classics
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	240
File size:	1 MB

About the Author

Peter Temple is the author of nine novels, including four books in the Jack Irish series. He won the Ned Kelly Award for Crime Fiction five times, and his widely acclaimed novels have been published in over twenty countries.

The Broken Shore won the UK’s prestigious Duncan Lawrie Dagger for the best crime novel of 2007 and Truth won the 2010 Miles Franklin Literary Award, the first time a crime writer had been awarded a prize of this calibre anywhere in the world. Temple’s Jack Irish series has been made into films with Guy Pearce starring as Jack Irish.

Temple died in 2018.

Editorial Reviews

12/23/2013
Australian ex-cop Frank Calder, now a self-described mediator, has his hands full in this hard-hitting standalone from Ned Kelly Award–winner Temple (Truth). At the invitation of Pat Carson, "patriarch of the Carson dynasty," Calder visits the family compound outside Melbourne, where he meets Pat and his two sons, Barry and Tom. Tom's 15-year-old granddaughter, Anne, has been kidnapped, and the family wants Calder to deliver the $1 million ransom. Despite reservations, Calder agrees, and is sucked into a situation dealing with not only the demands of the kidnappers but the dysfunctional Carsons, whose history includes the earlier kidnapping of Barry's then-11-year-old granddaughter, Alice. Calder has to wonder "what sort of curse lay on this family... that their children were stolen from them, that those they touched they marked with crosses of ash." Calder handles the rough and tumble, as well as the pampered and the spoiled, in this gritty, well-executed tale of greed and vengeance. (Feb.)

Publishers Weekly

‘[A] gritty, well-executed tale of greed and vengeance.’—Publishers Weekly; ‘As always, Temple is a master of the complex plot and his characters leap from the page fully realised in a taut, action-packed thriller.’—Telegraph UK

From the Publisher

Australian writer Peter Temple's latest novel is an entertaining thriller. The story features Frank Calder, a former soldier and hostage negotiator, who is hired to intercede in the kidnapping of the great-granddaughter of wealthy businessman Pat Carson and deliver the ransom to the kidnappers. As events unfold, Calder discovers that money is not the only reason for the kidnapping. David Tredinnick's performance is an ideal complement to the story. In particular, Tredinnick's ability to infuse the characters with unique personalities, coupled with his steady pace, makes the story fly by. D.J.S. © AudioFile 2008, Portland, Maine

APR/MAY 08 - AudioFile