The Dry is a page-turner written with a maturity of style rarely seen in a first-time novelist and it's here the writer excels. Harper's exploration of the pressures of a small town where people are not able to escape the past is thoughtful and mature. Her plot twists and layering are intricate and subtle and keep you guessing to the end while the townspeople grow on you despite their dirty secrets. Harper's well-executed final scenes are both filmic and tense, and sure to spark a few did-you-guess-it discussions * The West Australian * A tightly plotted page-turner that kept me reading well into the night...Harper shines a light on the highs and lows of rural life - the loyalty born of collective endurance in adversity, as well as the loneliness and isolation, and the havoc wrought by small-town gossip. She also explores the nature of guilt and regret, and the impact of the past on the present. In this cracker of a book Harper maintains the suspense, with the momentum picking up as it draws to its nerve-wracking conclusion * Australian Financial Review * It's extremely rare and exciting to read a debut that enthralls from the very first page and then absolutely sticks the landing. Told with heart and guts and an authentic sense of place that simply cannot be faked, THE DRY is the debut of the year * C.J. Box, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Off The Grid * One of the most stunning debuts I've ever read. I could feel the searing heat of the Australia setting. Every word is near perfect. The story builds like a wave seeking the purchase of earth before it crashes down and wipes out everything you might have thought about this enthralling tale. Read it! * David Baldacci * Debut author Harper plots this novel with laser precision, keeping suspects in play while dropping in flashbacks that offer readers a full understanding of what really happened. The setting adds layers of meaning. Kiewarra is suffering an epic drought, and Luke's suicide could easily be explained by the failure of his farm. The risk of wildfire, especially in a broken community rife with poverty and alcoholism, keeps nerves strung taut... A chilling story set under a blistering sun, this fine debut will keep readers on edge and awake long past bedtime. * Kirkus, starred review * Every so often a debut novel arrives that is so tightly woven and compelling it seems the work of a novelist in her prime. That's what Jane Harper has given us with The Dry, a story so true to setting and tone it seemed I fell asleep in Virginia only to wake in Australian heat. It's rare, that sense of transportation, and I loved every minute of it * John Hart, New York Times bestselling author of Redemption Road * A stunner...It's a small-town, big-secrets page-turner with a shocker of an ending... * Booklist, starred review * A razor-sharp crime yarn dripping in the sights, sounds and smells of the Australian bush...The storytelling is accomplished, with a bald sparseness to the writing that draws you in and characterization that rings resoundingly true...as the action twists and turns, the pace build[s] to a fantastic finale that will leave you breathless * Australian Women's Weekly * Devastating debut...a suspenseful tale of sound and fury as riveting as it is horrific * Publishers Weekly, starred review * Terrific characters, unique and evocative setting, knockout plot construction. This book has it all * John Lescroart, New York Times bestselling author of The Fall * You will feel the heat, taste the dust and blink into the glare. The Dry is a wonderful crime novel that shines a light into the darkest corner of a sunburnt country. * Michael Robotham, CWA Gold Dagger Winner, bestselling author of Life or Death * Every now and then an Australian crime novel comes along to stop your breath and haunt your dreams...There is about The Dry something mythic and valiant. This a story about heroism, the sins of the past, and the struggle to atone * Sydney Morning Herald * You can almost feel the searing heat of the Australian drought in this intense, gripping, atmospheric tale. A compulsive read. * Kate Hamer, bestselling author of The Girl in the Red Coat * Put up your tray table, buckle your seatbelt, and sit back: you've found the right book for this flight. Set in the flash-ready tinder of a town going under, The Dry is a cracking good read that will have you hoping the pilot decides to circle the airport before landing. A hit by land or air. * Laura McBride, author of We Are Called to Rise *

A brutal crime rocks a town suffering the worst drought in a century. Winner of the 2015 Victorian Premier's Award for an Unpublished Manuscript.