First published 1983
A dead stranger lies in Lucifer's Couch, a meteor crater in the Australian outback. No one in Hall's Creek saw the man arrive. No footprints mark the desert sand around the crater. The local Aboriginal people track every eagle that crosses their territory, yet they claim to know nothing about this death. Detective Inspector Napoleon Bonaparte faces a puzzle that divides the entire community. Did white settlers commit this murder? Did the Aboriginal people kill the stranger? Or did both groups work together to hide something darker? Bony turns to the oldest stories the tribe tells around their fires. The ancient legends hold secrets that both white and black residents want buried. As he listens to these traditional tales, Bony uncovers a truth so uncomfortable that everyone in Hall's Creek would rather pretend the dead man never existed. The desert keeps many secrets, but this one threatens to tear apart the uneasy peace between two worlds.
Genres: historical-fiction, adventure, mystery, crime, thriller, detective
Vibes: atmospheric, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: amateur-detective, divided-community, hidden-truth
Setting: Australia, Hall's Creek
Period: 20th-century
245 pages · Paperback · Angus & Robertson