Part of Inspector Napoleon Bonaparte, book 14
First published 1998
A killer stalks the elderly bachelors of Broken Hill, leaving behind a trail of strange deaths. Each murder scene yields the same puzzling clue: witnesses report seeing a woman nearby when the victim dies. But when Detective Napoleon Bonaparte begins collecting testimonies, the descriptions of this mysterious woman contradict each other wildly. No two accounts match. Bonaparte, a half-Aboriginal investigator known as "Bony," realizes he needs unconventional help to solve these baffling crimes. He turns to two unlikely allies: a skilled professional burglar and a talented amateur sketch artist. Together, this unusual team must piece together the truth behind the conflicting witness reports. Bonaparte faces a killer who seems to change appearance at will, preying on vulnerable old men who live alone. The detective must decode the pattern behind these deaths before another bachelor becomes the next victim.
Genres: fiction, 20th-century, mystery, crime, thriller, detective
Vibes: suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: amateur-detective, unreliable-narrator
Setting: Broken Hill
Period: 20th-century
254 pages · Paperback · Touchstone