Rather a grim story; an old cattle, station owner comes back from his annual spree (escorted by his adult son) and finds the man he left in charge of the station vanished, an unknown man dead, apparently murdered, and the stock suffering terribly from water shortage and neglect during a drought. The effects of the drought make for an unusually grim setting which I do not enjoy. ( )

Inspector Napoleon Bonaparte is sent to the outback of New South Wales to investigate the murders of two men. The area has suffered a long drought, leaving the animals barely alive and the owners of the sheep station where one body was found on the edge of ruin. When the other body proves to be the missing hired hand from the same station, Bony looks for clues from the owners, the local government agents and the tribe of Aborigines that live nearby.

Because of the isolated location, this is pretty much a "locked room" mystery even though much of the action happens in the outback. It seems like the answer is easy to figure out, but there's a hard to foresee twist. Looks like this book was also published under the title "Bony and the Black Virgin. ( )

Crime