Solid rural noir. Really evoked the country town feel. ( )

I was soon drawn in to this outback tale . The storyline is enhanced by great descriptions of the setting and characters. Excellent lyrical writing. I can't wait to continue the series. ( )

In this first installment of Disher's series featuring Constable Paul Hirschausen, our protagonist is a cop whose testimony against other members of the force has made him a pariah, assigned to a one-man station in a district where seemingly there are nothing BUT corrupt lawmen. The citizenry see him as just one more of those, and his Sergeant treats him like something to be scraped off the sole of his boot. Yet he is expected to solve the odd burglary here and there, and do the bidding of his higher-ups, right or wrong. Naturally, Hirsch has his own ideas about how to relate, when to see nothing and when to take action, but they don't usually coincide with "protocol". When a young girl's hit-and-run death makes him suspect something more than an accident, Hirsch doesn't let harassment and threats prevent him from investigating. A difficult, disturbing read--much of the first half felt like watching a teenager being tormented by bullies for being a "good kid". But Hirsch bides his time, does his job, and eventually the arc begins to turn slightly toward justice. I'm glad I stuck with it, and will probably seek out the next installment after a while. ( )

A very enjoyable read, with some interesting characters.

The main character is a constable in an out-of-the-way town, nicknamed Hirsch. He got caught up in a no good deed goes unpunished situation where he had to testify against some fellow officers, and was sent to an out of the way town in return, because he's just a little guy, a good-natured cop trying to do a good job, but the bad cops were the more important guys who know people.

So poor Hirsch ends up in a small town with more bad cops, including his boss who he calls Sarge, who tries to keep him out of the way so he won't get too nosy. Which he does, although not really on purpose. He's just a good cop and a good person who wants to help people and make sure they are treated fairly. So, we try to cheer him on, but it doesn't do a lot of good most of the time.

Somehow, he manages to keep himself alive and out of trouble long enough to reach the end of them book. I'm hoping there will be more of him in future books. I'll be looking out for him. ( )

This gives a good picture of what the life of a lone police officer in a small rural Australian community is like. I enjoyed Hirsch and his wry humour, and the plot moved at a reasonable pace, even if it did take place over the course of a few months. The best bits were where Hirsch avoided traps set for him by corrupt colleagues. ( )