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It is 1885, and a crippling drought threatens to ruin the McBride family. Their land is parched, their cattle starving. When the rain finally comes, it is a miracle that renews their hope for survival. But returning home from an afternoon swimming at a remote waterhole filled by the downpour, 14-year-old Tommy and 16-year-old Billy meet with a shocking tragedy.
Thirsting for vengeance against the man they believe has wronged them – their former Aboriginal stockman – the distraught brothers turn to the ruthless and cunning John Sullivan, the wealthiest landowner in the region and their father's former employer. Sullivan gathers a posse led by the dangerous and fascinating Inspector Edmund Noone and his Queensland Native Police, an infamous arm of British colonial power charged with the 'dispersal' of indigenous Australians to 'protect' white settler rights.
As they ride across the barren outback in pursuit, their harsh and horrifying journey will have a devastating impact on Tommy, tormenting him for the rest of his life – and will hold enduring consequences for a young country struggling to come into its own.
Recreating a period of Australian and British history as evocative and violent as the American frontier era, Only Killers and Thieves is an unforgettable story of family, guilt, empire, race, manhood and faith that combines the insightfulness of Philipp Meyer's The Son, the atmospheric beauty of Amanda Coplin's The Orchardist and the raw storytelling power of Ian McGuire's The North Water.
It is 1885, and a crippling drought threatens to ruin the McBride family. Their land is parched, their cattle starving. When the rain finally comes, it is a miracle that renews their hope for survival. But returning home from an afternoon swimming at a remote waterhole filled by the downpour, 14-year-old Tommy and 16-year-old Billy meet with a shocking tragedy.
Thirsting for vengeance against the man they believe has wronged them – their former Aboriginal stockman – the distraught brothers turn to the ruthless and cunning John Sullivan, the wealthiest landowner in the region and their father's former employer. Sullivan gathers a posse led by the dangerous and fascinating Inspector Edmund Noone and his Queensland Native Police, an infamous arm of British colonial power charged with the 'dispersal' of indigenous Australians to 'protect' white settler rights.
As they ride across the barren outback in pursuit, their harsh and horrifying journey will have a devastating impact on Tommy, tormenting him for the rest of his life – and will hold enduring consequences for a young country struggling to come into its own.
Recreating a period of Australian and British history as evocative and violent as the American frontier era, Only Killers and Thieves is an unforgettable story of family, guilt, empire, race, manhood and faith that combines the insightfulness of Philipp Meyer's The Son, the atmospheric beauty of Amanda Coplin's The Orchardist and the raw storytelling power of Ian McGuire's The North Water.
Two brothers are exposed to the brutal realities of life and the seductive cruelty of power in this riveting debut novel, bringing to vivid life a colonial Australia that bears a striking resemblance to the American Wild West in its formative years.
Paul Howarth was born and grew up in Great Britain before moving to Melbourne in his late twenties. He lived in Australia for more than six years, gained dual citizenship in 2012, and now lives in Norwich, United Kingdom, with his family. In 2015, he received a master’s degree from the University of East Anglia’s creative writing program, the most prestigious course of its kind in the UK, where he was awarded the Malcolm Bradbury Scholarship. David Muscat is a London-based actor, extra, model, TV presenter and radio presenter. In 2012, he played the role of Mr Braithwaite in London's West End production of Billy Elliot the Musical, directed by Oscar Award-winning Stephen Daldry. In September 2014, Billy Elliot was filmed and broadcast live to over 300 cinemas across Europe, then later replayed internationally and released in Blu-ray/DVD worldwide. David travelled the world in the international tour of Jersey Boys, playing Donnie. He has also appeared in several UK Tour productions, including Thoroughly Modern Millie, Miracle on 34th Street and One Man Two Guvnors.
'Australia in the 1880s feels like the Wild West in this
outstanding debut about the hunt for a family's killers.'
*The Times*
'Howarth's stunning debut has shades of Cormac McCarthy and Patrick
deWitt ... a book that grips from the outset and entertains even as
it educates us about an appalling part of Australia's history.'
*The Irish Times*
'A powerful debut ... The story and his words will stay with you...
long after you have finished the book.'
*New York Journal of Books*
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