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Dirt Town (published in the US as Dirt Creek) is an impressive crime fiction debut from Hayley Scrivenor.
When twelve-year-old Esther Bianchi fails to return home from school one afternoon, the small country town of Durton is horrified. The reader knows from the outset that Esther is dead, though it’s five long days before the town learns her tragic fate.
Dirt Town unfolds from multiple perspectives, most notably the poignant voices of Esther’s best friends, Ronnie and Lewis; the missing girl’s de ...more
When twelve-year-old Esther Bianchi fails to return home from school one afternoon, the small country town of Durton is horrified. The reader knows from the outset that Esther is dead, though it’s five long days before the town learns her tragic fate.
Dirt Town unfolds from multiple perspectives, most notably the poignant voices of Esther’s best friends, Ronnie and Lewis; the missing girl’s de ...more
An excellent debut, well-written & well-paced. Set in a small rural town called Durton, or Dirt Town, as the natives would have it. A place where children can still roam quite freely, but also an environment that is rapidly disappearing in a dying community. It is also a place of secrets, which start to emerge when police come from the city to investigate Esther's disappearance. Friendships & family, vital to such a small community, are fractured by what is brought to light.
Much of the tale is ...more
Much of the tale is ...more
What a STUNNING debut! Undoubtedly one of my best reads of 2022 and I'm going to start this review, right off the bat, by Highly Recommending this book. You'll not regret it. Actually, you will regret it if you don't.
I thought Dirt Town was a novel I was going to enjoy as I do enjoy my crime reads. However, after a few pages, I knew I was not just going to enjoy this read. This read was more. I still can't quite point the finger at exactly what it is but it was just such a rich read; compelling ...more
I thought Dirt Town was a novel I was going to enjoy as I do enjoy my crime reads. However, after a few pages, I knew I was not just going to enjoy this read. This read was more. I still can't quite point the finger at exactly what it is but it was just such a rich read; compelling ...more
3.5 stars
A girl was missing in the quiet small town of Durton, or Dirt Town as the locals called it. Ester Bianchi left school with her best friend, Ronnie, but she never reached home. The news hit the small town big time. Ronnie was left wondering, especially when Detective Sergeant Sarah Michaels arrived from Sydney and started asking questions. Lewis, Esther’s other good friend, might have some information but he had a secret on his own. Slowly, everyone’s secrets were uncovered. Where did Es ...more
A girl was missing in the quiet small town of Durton, or Dirt Town as the locals called it. Ester Bianchi left school with her best friend, Ronnie, but she never reached home. The news hit the small town big time. Ronnie was left wondering, especially when Detective Sergeant Sarah Michaels arrived from Sydney and started asking questions. Lewis, Esther’s other good friend, might have some information but he had a secret on his own. Slowly, everyone’s secrets were uncovered. Where did Es ...more
The Australian publishers have been churning out so much crime in the last few years, and for the most part I say, bring it on!
This book is right up there for me. It perfectly captures the trials of living in a small and isolated town. It evokes the dry, stifling heat of an Aussie summer. Its characters have deep inner lives: "none of us can escape who we are when others aren't looking". We know from the very start that there is a body, so the book covers the police whodunnit process, but the i ...more
This book is right up there for me. It perfectly captures the trials of living in a small and isolated town. It evokes the dry, stifling heat of an Aussie summer. Its characters have deep inner lives: "none of us can escape who we are when others aren't looking". We know from the very start that there is a body, so the book covers the police whodunnit process, but the i ...more
Very disappointed so far. I'm nearly halfway through the book and it's agonisingly slow. We already know that Esther is dead (from the very first chapter) but her disappearance is dealt with in great detail, the same day repeated from different viewpoints. Esther's friend, Ronnie, seems more like a 7 or 8 year old, not 12. Either she's very immature or challenged in some way, or the author doesn't know how to write from a 12 year old's perspective. I suspect I'll be skipping a lot of chapters (e
...more
This cracker of a read by @hayley.scrivenor - Dirt Town (aka Dirt Creek in the US) is riveting!
The story of a child, Esther, who’s gone missing in small town Australia, friends have said they found it hard to put down, reading it in a day or so. I was totally absorbed also in this debut novel.
The narrative is skilfully crafted from multiple points of view. Language and descriptions are evocative and so Australian. It keeps you wondering, noticing, guessing and there in the moment, trying to wor ...more
The story of a child, Esther, who’s gone missing in small town Australia, friends have said they found it hard to put down, reading it in a day or so. I was totally absorbed also in this debut novel.
The narrative is skilfully crafted from multiple points of view. Language and descriptions are evocative and so Australian. It keeps you wondering, noticing, guessing and there in the moment, trying to wor ...more
It is a hot day in Durton, the last Friday in November when 12 year old Esther Bianchi went missing. Her best friend Ronnie is determined to find her and she wants their friend Lewis to help. Detective Sergeant Sarah Michaels and her colleague from the Missing persons unit are sent to investigate. Five days later Esther’s buried body is found. An earthy, gritty, crime novel about a missing child in small town Australia. It was easy to read and hard to put down.
Jul 28, 2022
Margaret
marked it as to-read
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review of another edition
Shelves:
suspense,
australia-new-zealand
