Title: Ripper
Author: Shelley Burr
Published: August 30th 2023
Publisher: Hachette Australia
Pages: 352
Genres: Fiction, Contemporary, Crime, Mystery
RRP: $32.99
Rating: 4 stars
Gemma Guillory has lived in Rainier her entire life. She knows the tiny town’s ins and outs like the back of her hand, the people like they are her family, their quirks as if they were her own.
She knows her once-charming town is now remembered for one reason, and one reason only. That three innocent people died. That the last stop on the Rainier Ripper’s trail of death seventeen years ago was her innocuous little teashop. She knows that the consequences of catching the Ripper still haunt her police officer husband and their marriage to this day and that some of her neighbours are desperate – desperate enough to welcome a dark tourism company keen to cash in on Rainier’s reputation as the murder town.
When the tour operator is killed by a Ripper copycat on Gemma’s doorstep, the unease that has lurked quietly in the original killer’s wake turns to foreboding, and she’s drawn into the investigation. Unbeknownst to her, so is a prisoner named Lane Holland. Gemma knows her town. She knows her people. Doesn’t she?
Review:
Shelley Burr, the 2023 Matt Richell Award Winner for New Writer of the Year is back with her hotly anticipated second novel. Ripper is a stifling small town Aussie crime novel that covers theme of community politics, murder, guilt versus innocence, incarceration and dark tourism. Ripper is an edgy and terrifying murder tale novel from a rising star in the field of Aussie crime fiction.
Rainier is the subject town of Shelley Burr’s follow up novel to her highly successful debut Wake. We meet Gemma Guillory, a woman who is part of the social fabric of the once quaint town of Rainier, which is now known as a notorious murder village. This tiny dot on the map is known for being the horrific murder site of three victims of the Rainier Ripper. Although this tragic event occurred almost two decades ago, it was Gemma’s teashop that was the last port of call on this heinous killer’s violent spree. This horrible scene has continued to haunt Gemma, her police officer husband and those who remain living in Rainier. Now, a new chapter in Rainier’s history emerges as a tourism plan is put in place to attract visitors to the dark side of Rainier’s nightmare past. But this idea is soon thwarted when a tour representative is killed in a situation that closely resembles the original Ripper slayings. Gemma is again thrust into the new investigation and encounters a dark figure named Lane Holland. Rainier’s population can be trusted, can’t they?
I can usually judge if I’m going to enjoy a book when the prologue draws me in. This was the case completely with Shelley’s Burr’s Ripper, the sophomore novel from the highly acclaimed Australian crime writer. The opening of Ripper absolutely blew me away and I felt the need to read this one late into the night. I couldn’t put it down! Filled with tension, dark desire, suspicion, danger and deception, Ripper was a captivating Aussie crime yarn.
I went straight into Ripper after concluding Shelley Burr’s first release, Wake. I think this was a good move as although Ripper is not a sequel to Wake it does share the same enigmatic male lead character. I appreciated the reappearance of Lane Holland from Wake. It was interesting to hear what happened beyond the ending of Wake. Lane’s fate is sealed by a stint in prison and I liked the focus on the incarceration episodes of this tale. In terms of the other characters added to Ripper, I enjoyed followed Gemma’s story, along with the other inhabitants of the town of Rainier. Burr’s characterisation is as strong as her debut, perhaps even a touch better than her first novel. The interactions and interplay between the cast in Ripper was fantastic. I’m sure fans of Wake or even those who are new to Burr’s writing will get swept up into the storm of Ripper.
Burr’s writing is pointed and immersive. The atmosphere is also thick with desperation and despair. A pulse pounding landscape and a plenty of amped up tension rounds off this novel well. My highlight was the focus on the dark voyeuristic style of tourism, which we see in the tour plans for Rainier. I thought this was an excellent punch line for an Aussie crime novel. It is clear that Burr is able to think outside the box and deliver something that is a clear deviation from the Aussie crime mystery crowd.
Ripper is a story of rebuilding, restitution, inherited trauma, violence, small town politics, grief tourism and dark secrets. Turn to this Aussie crime meditation if you have quench for quality Australian based murder mystery novels.
Ripper by Shelley Burr is published by Hachette Australia on August 30th 2023. $32.99.
https://www.hachette.com.au/shelley-burr/ripper-from-the-author-of-mega-bestseller-wake
*Thanks is extended to Hachette Australia for providing a free copy of this book for review purposes.
To learn more about the author of Ripper, Shelley Burr, visit here.
