The Dry

Kiewarra is suffering through its worst drought in a century, and the heat and tension hang over every page. Aaron is not welcome: twenty years earlier, a teenage girl named Ellie Deacon, his close friend, was found drowned, and suspicion fell on him and his father, who were forced to leave town. Now the old anger returns, and Ellie's family and others make clear that he should go. Yet Aaron stays to help Raco, the town's new police sergeant, who also has doubts about Luke's case.

Harper alternates the present investigation with short flashbacks that slowly reveal what happened in the past, including what Aaron and Luke may have hidden about Ellie's death. Small details, such as a receipt and the timing of events, start to point in new directions. The book handles violence and grief with restraint, focusing on people and their secrets rather than graphic description. The writing is clear and controlled, and the two mysteries come together in a tense, well-earned finale. It won the British Crime Writers' Association Gold Dagger and was later filmed.

Atmospheric, gripping and satisfying. About 352 pages in the Flatiron paperback.