Review: Sticks and Stones by Katherine Firkin

 

Title: Sticks and Stones

Author: Katherine Firkin

Published: June 2nd 2020, Bantam Australia

Status: Read June 2020 courtesy PenguinRandomHouse Australia

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My Thoughts:

Sticks and Stones is a debut crime novel from Melbourne journalist Katherine Firkin, inspired by the many criminal trials she has covered.

Recently promoted to the head of the Missing Persons Unit, Detective Senior Constable Emmet Corban is finding the job frustrating. The hours are long, the paperwork is a grind, and more often than not, the missing simply don’t want to be found.

Corban’s most recent cases involve a single woman who didn’t to turn up for her invalid brother’s birthday party, and a young wife and mother who failed to collect her two children from vacation care. Corban is fairly certain the former, Rosemary Norman, simply ditched the event for another adventure, but he is concerned for Natale Gibson, whose parents are frantic, and whose husband is angry.

When the mutilated body of a female is found and identified as one of the missing women, Corban finds himself unexpectedly leading a homicide investigation into the activities of a serial killer. Firkin develops plenty of red herrings as Corban and his unit attempt to trace the movements of the missing women to determine how they crossed paths with their killer. The plot is interesting and complex but to me also felt a little unwieldy, unfolding from multiple perspectives and involving a large cast of characters.

To be honest I had a difficult time keeping the many characters straight initially, especially as the links between some of them aren’t immediately obvious, and the transitions between scenes are quite rapid. The case itself introduces Corban and his staff, as well as suspects, victims and their families. Another thread explores Corban’s personal life, featuring his wife and her slightly inappropriate relationship with her Svengali-like employer, while a third person narrative reveals the past of the killer.

I did enjoy Sticks and Stones, it’s a promising debut, and I can see the potential for an ongoing series featuring Emmett Corban and the Missing Person Unit.

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