Exiles

Product Information

Two days later, they found a shoe. Kim Gillespie’s white trainer, waterlogged and streaked with sediment, was recovered more than a kilometre to the east, jammed in the dam’s filters.” A year later, Kim Gillespie’s absence still casts a long shadow as her friends and loved ones gather to welcome a new addition to the family. Harper presta molto cura al luogo, al paesaggio, la natura, l’ambientazione: non si tratta di semplice “atmosfera”, riesce a rendere questo elemento parte della storia, come se fosse un personaggio. Forse per questo nei suoi libri i personaggi camminano molto, si muovono spesso a piedi, oltre che in macchina.

This is a softer, gentler Harper, but with the same fine writing and addictive storytelling." Ann Cleeves Turnbull, Sue (23 September 2022). "It's a family affair as a woman goes missing and Jane Harper's Falk is on the case". Sydney Morning Herald . Retrieved 9 December 2022.

Media Reviews

I have loved every thriller Australian author Jane Harper has written, and Exiles is no exception -- Alison Flood, The Observer Jane Harper has this wonderful ability to put the reader in an Australian location that feels real, beautiful, and just let’s her characters shine. It was a spring night and the South Australian sky was clear and starry with no rain forecast, but the weatherproof hood had been pulled over to full stretch. A linen square normally used as a sunshield was draped over the opening between the hood and the pram. A casual glance would not now see the sleeping girl at all. Having a defined writing process is important for Harper to avoid being overwhelmed. Over the years her process has “become so much more streamlined – with each book you learn something more. I know as long as I take those steps, the book will be finished.” She keeps an office away from home, “completely dedicated to working on the books … I spend a long time planning. I make hundreds of my notes on my phone. I find quite often when I shut down the computer and leave the office, that’s when the idea comes.” Every book has an uncertain outcome – but every now and then, due to a strange alchemy that publishers wish they could bottle, a megahit emerges. Thanks in large part to the Dry, Harper has sold 1.5m books in Australia and 3.5m worldwide. The Dry also became a hit film in 2020, starring Eric Bana as Falk. The Dry is now the 15th highest-grossing Australian movie ever; another adaptation is in the pipeline for Harper’s second Falk novel, Force of Nature, which will also star Bana.

Exiles is Harper’s fifth book. With a large and voracious readership waiting, there’s sure to be more to come; her publishers ask, when buying each book: “Where’s the next one?” The setting of the novel is one of the only places where “Exiles” really shines. The deep bushland, lush vineyard, and reservoir lake serve as significant locations in the plot, and the writing excels at immersing the reader in the surroundings of Maralee Valley and elevating the novel above the rest of its mediocre elements.Federal investigator, Aaron Falk, was joining the family this year, as he was to be godfather to his best friend's child. As Aaron was drawn into the mystery of the past, he also learned about a hit-and-run six years earlier which had never been solved. The grief that rippled through the community was raw, even after the passing of years, and Kim's disappearance added to that grief. But would answers be found? Or would the two cases remain unsolved? The one minor gripe that I have involves two chapters told from the point of view of two additional characters. I wish Harper didn't include them--they explain what happened to one character and add insight into another, but because their chapters come near the very end, they pulled me out of the narrative and disrupted the flow of events. Just to give you a refresher, Aaron Falk first met Greg Raco, and his wife Rita, in The Dry. Raco was (still is) the new police sergeant in Kiewarra (Falk’s hometown) investigating the Hadler murders with Falk unofficially assisting. Rita was pregnant with their first child, Eva. Greg also appeared briefly in the second book – Force of Nature. Exiles is set six years after the events of The Dry, and the setting of Marralee Valley is the small town Greg grew up in. His older brother Charlie still lives in the family cottage there, and has turned the attached land into a successful vineyard, which is where Greg Raco, Rita, their two children, and Aaron Falk stay whenever they visit. I enjoy spending time with Aaron. He has a troubled past that will never let him go but he does his best to treat people right and be a good friend to the few people he's befriended. Now he's a godfather to little Henry and more a part of a family than he's ever been. He's even met someone who he'd like to spend more time with if his job didn't take up his entire life. At least while he is here he can help his best friend puzzle over the situations of Dean and Kim. If only he could stay here forever, a place he knows could be a home for him, if his job didn't place such huge demands on his conscience. Her baby lies alone in the pram, her mother's possessions surrounding her, waiting for a return which never comes.

A truly wonderful read. Rich in detail, landscape and character and deeply satisfying on all levels." Sarah Hilary The possibility of Falk finding love is a tender counterpoint to the murder mystery in this worthy conclusion to one of the most outstanding of recent crime series * Daily Express * Beneath the ferris wheel at the Marralee Valley Annual Food and Wine Festival is a pram bay, for attendees to leave their prams, pushchairs, bikes, scooters, etc. But, when the festival closes, there is a single uncollected pram, and on closer inspection a technician discovers six week old Zoe Gillespie sleeping within – her thirty nine year old mother Kim nowhere to be found. No spoilers here but I will tell you that there is more than one mystery to solve and also a budding romance, or two!! Aaron may have some important lifestyle decisions to make as he spends time in this beautiful wine country and meets a very special woman. The pace here is certainly much slower than Melbourne!!

What is Jane Harper's latest novel?

The Dry is one of those books that has everything – an equivocal setting, great writing, interesting character development, and numerous twists and turns. It is exceedingly hard to believe that this is Jane Harper’s first book because the writing feels like the work of a virtuoso. This is a slow burn crime story. While I am quite comfortable with slow pace, it feels quite different from the earlier two as the pace for nearly 60% of the book is far slower than in the other two books. What I did not much like though is the introduction of some character behaviours in the later part of the book, which is now usual in psychological thrillers and is becoming a silly & painful pattern. The plot elements are however, very strong and I liked how the last sections closed on the two mysteries in the book. The descriptions of the locales, as in the previous books is excellent. Aaron Falk’s character, as in the previous books is very well developed, nuanced and a treat to read. Kim Gillespie vanished over a year ago leaving her baby in her pram. Kim had not been found and there have been no clues or explanation as to why she would leave her baby behind. Everyone who knows her claims this is out of character for her. She was a devoted mother.