My Island Homicide (Catherine Titasey, UQP)

Catherine Titasey’s debut novel My Island Homicide, which won the 2012 Queensland Literary Award for an unpublished manuscript by an emerging author, is part murder mystery, part family drama and part love story, set on the picturesque Thursday Island in the Torres Strait. In a bid to start afresh after the abrupt end of a relationship, and to learn more about her Islander heritage, Thea Dari-Jones takes a job as the officer in charge of Thursday Island’s police station. Thea pictures a peaceful, laidback lifestyle, but is immediately thrown into drama and unfamiliar Islander traditions as she finds herself investigating a gruesome murder. At the same time, her burgeoning relationship with a local fisherman gives her an opportunity for a new life and family that she previously hadn’t imagined. As Thea builds her home on Thursday Island, she discovers that her future and the outcome of the murder investigation are linked through what the locals call maydh, or black magic. My Island Homicide is filled with likeable characters—Thea’s colleagues Jenny and Jack are standouts, and her mother and potential mother-in-law bring some laughs. However, there are times when the narrative takes a back seat to the day-to-day events on the island, and this reader was left wanting something more substantial. My Island Homicide will appeal to readers of contemporary family dramas and those who would like to learn more about the culture of the Torres Strait Islands.

Eloise Keating is news editor of Books+Publishing

Books+Publishing pre-publication reviews are supported by the Copyright Agency Cultural Fund.

Category: Reviews