A01=Vikki Petraitis
abduction
all the colours of the dark
antigone pollard
aussie noir
australia
australian crime fiction
australian noir
Author_Vikki Petraitis
candice fox
Category=FBA
Category=FFP
Category=FFS
Category=FXS
chris hammer
chris whitaker
crime fiction
deception bay
detective fiction
detective novel
dirt town
down under
eq_bestseller
eq_crime
eq_fiction
eq_isMigrated=1
eq_isMigrated=2
eq_modern-contemporary
eq_nobargain
female detective
feminism
feminist crime fiction
feminist fiction
forthcoming
hayley scrivenor
international crime fiction
jane harper
kidnapping
outback
police procedural
sarah bailey
scrublands
small town
the dry
we begin at the end
Product details
- ISBN 9781398557239
- Dimensions: 130 x 198mm
- Publication Date: 24 Sep 2026
- Publisher: Simon & Schuster Ltd
- Publication City/Country: GB
- Product Form: Paperback
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Step into the dark heart of small-town Australia in this gripping follow-up to the award-winning The Unbelieved – perfect for fans of Chris Hammer’s Scrublands and Jane Harper’s The Dry.
After a calm start to the summer holiday season, the small coastal town of Deception Bay is rocked by a report of a missing baby. Detective Antigone Pollard steps up to lead the team searching for the kidnapper, but the case is complicated by the return of her old boss, Bill Wheeler, who seems determined to thwart her progress.
To make matters worse, the frantic investigation is interrupted by the unexpected arrival of Antigone’s mother in need of her help. As family secrets threaten to spill over, and with time running out to find the missing baby, Antigone finds herself fighting on two fronts and facing the same two questions. Who’s protecting the women? And what happens when we don’t believe them?
‘Delivers on absolutely every page. Vikki Petraitis is the real deal!’ HAYLEY SCRIVENOR, award-winning author of Dirt Town
‘Crackles with tension’ CHRISTIAN WHITE, author of The Ledge
‘A must-read’ JACQUELINE BUBLITZ, author of Before You Knew My Name
After a calm start to the summer holiday season, the small coastal town of Deception Bay is rocked by a report of a missing baby. Detective Antigone Pollard steps up to lead the team searching for the kidnapper, but the case is complicated by the return of her old boss, Bill Wheeler, who seems determined to thwart her progress.
To make matters worse, the frantic investigation is interrupted by the unexpected arrival of Antigone’s mother in need of her help. As family secrets threaten to spill over, and with time running out to find the missing baby, Antigone finds herself fighting on two fronts and facing the same two questions. Who’s protecting the women? And what happens when we don’t believe them?
‘Delivers on absolutely every page. Vikki Petraitis is the real deal!’ HAYLEY SCRIVENOR, award-winning author of Dirt Town
‘Crackles with tension’ CHRISTIAN WHITE, author of The Ledge
‘A must-read’ JACQUELINE BUBLITZ, author of Before You Knew My Name
Vikki Petraitis is best known for her true crime books, including the bestselling The Frankston Murders about serial killer Paul Denyer, and her first book, The Phillip Island Murder, which has been featured in several TV shows and podcasts. She began a PhD in Creative Writing at La Trobe University in 2017 to continue to expand her writing skills, and brought thirty years of true crime writing and investigating to creating her first work of fiction, The Unbelieved. In a parallel career, Vikki is also a teacher with a Master's degree in IT Education, and runs creative writing workshops and short courses in schools and local libraries.
