Description

‘Incredible! A vividly told mystery, perfect for fans of Jane Harper’ ALLIE REYNOLDS, AUTHOR OF SHIVER

‘A triumphant debut’ ROSE CARLYLE

‘Intriguing and compelling. Shelley Burr is a bright new talent’ CHRIS HAMMER

EVERYBODY THINKS THEY KNOW MINA McCREERY.
EVERYONE HAS A THEORY ON WHAT HAPPENED TO HER SISTER.
NOW IT’S TIME TO FIND OUT THE TRUTH…

Mina McCreery’s sister Evelyn disappeared nineteen years ago. Her life has been defined by the intense public interest in the case. Now an anxious and reclusive adult, she lives alone on her family’s destocked sheep farm.

When Lane, a private investigator, approaches her with an offer to reinvestigate the case, she rejects him. The attention has had nothing but negative consequences for her and her family, and never brought them closer to an answer.

Lane wins her trust when his unconventional methods show promise, but he has his own motivations for wanting to solve the case, and his obsession with the answer will ultimately risk both their lives.

Superbly written, taut and compassionate, Wake looks at what can happen when people’s private tragedies become public property, and the ripples of trauma that follow violent crimes. Wake won the CWA Debut Dagger in 2019.

Publisher Review

Incredible! A vividly told mystery, perfect for fans of Jane Harper * Allie Reynolds, author of SHIVER * A triumphant debut * Rose Carlyle * Intriguing and compelling. Shelley Burr is a bright new talent * Chris Hammer * Atmospheric, tense, poignant - the most gripping cold case investigation I've read in a long time. SUPERB * Will Dean * It is hard to believe WAKE is a first novel. Plot, pacing and characterisation are so finely judged that it feels more like the work of a past master. The tension builds, and the revelations keep coming, right until the final page where a thrilling climax combines horror, relief and hope * The Times * WAKE is a stunning, masterfully written debut novel, its remote, bleak locations adding tension to an atmospheric and compelling mystery that is hard to put down * Sunday Express * We devoured this stunningly drawn, deeply compelling mystery in one day * Crime Monthly * I guarantee you will feel exhausted and satisfied as the end of this remarkable book is reached. WAKE has more twists and turns than the usual novel and it is very tempting to make your own suppositions as to the end of the book, but it has a brilliant denouement. In fact the book itself is an impressive achievement for a debut novel and I'll be searching out whatever Shelley Burr writes next * On Magazine * Sinuous and spellbinding, this debut from a young Australian civil servant comes with a big reputation, which it richly deserves. Intense, evocative and with two characters to move the soul, it deserves to be a hit. It's sensational * Daily Mail * A cracking debut * Peterborough Telegraph * An outstanding first novel . . . Burr writes clear-sightedly about the corrosive effect of suspicion on people who have achieved a horrible kind of fame, forced on them by events beyond their control * The Sunday Times * This outstanding debut . . . With a slow build and complex characters, this is both a well-plotted, gripping mystery and a sensitive exploration of the aftermath of trauma * The Guardian * My crime novel of the year so far, a moving depiction of the pain that a mysterious disappearance can wreak on those left behind -- Sarah Vine's Female Half Hour Summer Books Special * Daily Mail * The plot builds slowly, but the tension never slackens in this forceful story of damage and retribution * Book Brunch * Australian newcomer Shelley Burr's sensitive exploration of the aftermath of trauma in a parched outback town * Guardian, Best Crime & Thrillers of 2022 *