Journey into the Unforgiving Outback: A Review of ‘Outback’ by Patricia Wolf

This rural Australian crime novel has all the classic ingredients – a man-alone detective, a love interest, a harsh and intense landscape, and a rural township full of suspects.

A German backpacker and her boyfriend pass through a small town on their way to work on a station in the outback. They are driving a clapped-out old car which breaks down on a hot, remote highway.

At this point they go off the radar. The older sister of the backpacker is a Berlin policewoman called Barbara, who takes leave to look for her, teaming up with DS Lucas Walker, who is here on leave to visit his dying grandmother. He’s a real star of this novel and his nuanced relationship with Barbara is at the heart of the novel.

Barbara and Lucas’ suspicions build when the local constable who doesn’t seem concerned enough about the couple’s disappearance.

Patricia Wolf’s vivid writing and descriptions of the unforgiving outback pack a huge punch. This is not a good place to have car troubles, and people disappear without trace. I can still picture in my mind the shed at the centre of this drama.

I couldn’t stop reading it and quickly moved on to the sequel, called Paradise.