The Survivors by Jane Harper is the pick of the novels I’ve read this summer. It’s a perfect holiday book – entertaining, gripping and easy to read.
The story takes place in a small Tasmanian seaside town. The rocks off Evelyn Bay have caused many a shipwreck in the past, and the title of the book refers to a statue of three survivors of those wrecks. The modern-day residents of the town are survivors too, of a tragic storm in which two men and one young woman lost their lives.
The action begins with the return visit to Evelyn Bay of new parents, Kieran and Mia, both present on the day of the storm twenty years before in which Kieran lost his brother and Mia, her best friend. The two reconnect with Kieran’s parents and old friends, all of whom remain scarred by the past event. Then a fresh body is found on the beach.
The evocation of the characters in this small coastal community and its landscape are so well achieved in this book. The action moves at a good pace and new information is drip fed to keep readers turning the page. The Survivors kept me guessing about who was responsible for the deaths in the past and the present right to the end.
Reading it in a similar location, a small coastal town in NSW, added an extra thrill to my experience of the book and to my heightened observations of fellow holiday makers and locals alike. I’m relieved to report no bodies found on the beach.
That said, my favourite Jane Harper books remain The Dry and The Lost Man. Written in the same mystery genre and with the same brilliant creation of place, these two books explored important contemporary issues and contained characters of greater depth. If you haven’t read any Jane Harper books yet, begin with these two and save The Survivors for the holidays.
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| Title: The Survivors Author: Jane Harper Publisher: Pan Macmillan Australia Date: 2020 Pages: 375 ISBN: 9781760783945 |
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| Title: The Lost Man Author: Jane Harper Publisher: Pan Macmillan Australia Year: 2019 Pages: 384 ISBN: 978176078064 |
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| Title: The Dry Author: Jane Harper Publisher: Pan Macmillan Australia Year: 2017 Pages: 352 ISBN: 97819254813 |