Last year when journalist Chris Hammer’s debut novel, Scrublands, hit shelves, there was a mass rush by Australian readers of crime to get their hands on it who then shout its praises from the rooftops. While not usually into the genre, I was one of these people thanks to my local bookstore and holy wow, I loved it with all my being. So much so I eagerly thrust it into the hands of my mother, who proceeded to look at me like I had three heads, sit down and read it cover to cover within my brief 48 hour trip for her birthday. This year, Hammer has again hit bookstore shelves with Silver, the follow-up to his tale of murder from the bush.
The story once again follows Martin Scarsden as he comes to terms with the events of Scrublands. Following his discovery of the occurrences in Riversend, losing his job, and then taking the time to chronicle the saga, he is happy to move on with his life. With the assistance of his girlfriend, Mandalay Blonde (Mandy), he is determined to return to normality and settle down. The problem is, Mandy has come into property in Scarsden’s old home town of Port Silver, a town that holds secrets of his past that he hoped were long buried.
Now I won’t lie, Silver moves at a snail’s pace for the first 100-150 pages despite the fact someone gets murdered extremely early on; as in Martin arrives in Port Silver to Mandy in a corner covered in blood and a dead body slowly bleeding out on the floor. There is a lot of meeting random Port Silver folks from childhood friends, to the local police, and Martin’s kind of creepy but all around bogan uncle with his 5000 children. It took me a long time to get past this first portion because I kept putting it down and venturing to greener pastures. It was a tad tedious but eventually once everyone has had their introductions and we have started to get a little backstory as to Scarsden’s aversion for his hometown, it starts to pick up.
So, after the slow start, Hammer returns with his punchy, fast paced crime writing. Taking place over the course of 8 days, Silver utilises this short time span perfectly, expertly packing a major investigation into a relatively small period. The mystery of the dead body starts to take a more interesting turn as the residents of town point fingers at everyone but the real culprit. While Silver experiences a few other slow portions throughout its massive 600ish pages, its relatively consistent with Martin doing his usual snooping in places he isn’t welcome and interfering with an open police investigation (I mean he’s a journalist so its to be expected). There’s murder, intrigue, and all the things you have come to expect from a really good murder mystery.
By around 80% of the novel everything seemed to be wrapped up in a neat little package but as we all know, when that happens you need to give a novel shifty eyes and wonder what revelation is about to hit the pages. Although not a massive plot twist, things did take an interesting turn, rounding out Silver in a way that was for the most part unpredictable.
Portions about Scarsden’s childhood/past in Port Silver are sprinkled throughout, providing the audience with an insight into why Martin has avoided his childhood home for so many years. The reasoning behind this created a backstory with which one could relate, relaying a tale of abuse, alcoholism and a father who lost his way. These snippets humanised the otherwise steely and stubborn Scarsden, breaking down the walls the reader has come to expect from Hammer’s stoic protagonist.
Although it was fairly good throughout, I really took issue with the way the police were portrayed in this novel. Not only are the authorities treated with a lack of respect by the protagonist, they are made out to be bumbling idiots, constantly tripping over their own feet and each other. There’s a point in time whereby Scarsden takes it upon himself to enter a known crime scene and tamper with evidence only to use the police’s ineptitude as an excuse not to be arrested; not exactly shining a light on the brilliance of the NSW police force.
Overall, the book was well rounded and a fairly enjoyable read after trudging through the first 20%. While the technological side of the story was a little lacking in accuracy, the investigative portion keeps the reader enthralled for the most part. Although Scarsden is portrayed as an investigative genius, I feel a little sorry for the NSW police force and its portrayal within this mammoth novel. While the book felt as though it was rounding out around the 450 pages mark, Hammer includes just a tad more excitement by finishing with a mostly unexpected twist.
Silver is available from Amazon, Book Depository, and other good book retailers.
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Synopsis | Goodreads
For half a lifetime, journalist Martin Scarsden has run from his past. But now there is no escaping. He’d vowed never to return to his hometown, Port Silver, and its traumatic memories. But now his new partner, Mandy Blonde, has inherited an old house in the seaside town and Martin knows their chance of a new life together won’t come again. Martin arrives to find his best friend from school days brutally murdered, and Mandy the chief suspect. With the police curiously reluctant to pursue other suspects, Martin goes searching for the killer. And finds the past waiting for him.
He’s making little progress when a terrible new crime starts to reveal the truth. The media descend on Port Silver, attracted by a story that has it all: sex, drugs, celebrity and religion. Once again, Martin finds himself in the front line of reporting. Yet the demands of deadlines and his desire to clear Mandy are not enough: the past is ever present.
An enthralling and propulsive thriller from the acclaimed and bestselling author of Scrublands.
