I LOVE Kate Morton’s books and I was excited to listen to this one for my final days on the interminable commute. It was SO GOOD! I love the mystery behind it and Ms. Morton’s amazingly beautiful and evocative writing. This was a sad story, but a good one. Fun fact: I was part of a Harper-Collins survey group that voted for the cover for this title and this was the cover I chose. It is so beautiful!

I should add that the narration of this title was just wonderful. The story takes place in Australia and centers on a family that is found deceased on Christmas and the many pieces of that puzzle from the past, along with the current, and the house where it all happened.

I got mine with an Audible credit. If you love Kate Morton, this one will not disappoint!

Here’s the scoop:

A brand-new book from award-winning author Kate Morton, read by powerhouse Emmy award–winning actress Claire Foy. This breathtaking mystery of love, lies and a cold case come back to life is told with Morton’s trademark intricacy and beauty.

Adelaide Hills, Christmas Eve, 1959. At the end of a scorching hot day, beside a creek in the grounds of a grand and mysterious house, a local deliveryman makes a terrible discovery. A police investigation is called, and the small town of Tambilla becomes embroiled in one of the most shocking and perplexing murder cases in the history of South Australia.

Many years later and thousands of miles away, Jess is a journalist in search of a story. Having lived and worked in London for nearly two decades, she now finds herself laid off from her full-time job and struggling to make ends meet. Until a phone call out of nowhere summons her back to Sydney, where her beloved grandmother, Nora, has suffered a fall and been raced to the hospital.

At Nora’s house, Jess discovers a true crime book that chronicles the police investigation into a long-buried event: the Turner Family Tragedy of Christmas Eve, 1959. It is only when Jess skims through the pages that she finds a shocking connection between her own family and this once-infamous scandal – a murder mystery that has never been resolved satisfactorily.

2023, Queensland Literary Awards, Short-listed

2024, Indie Book Awards Fiction, Long-listed

2024, Australian Book Design Awards, Short-listed

2024, Australian Book Industry Award General Fiction Book of the Year, Short-listed

2024, The Crime Writers’ Association Dagger Awards Gold Dagger, Long-listed