{"product_id":"force-of-nature-9780349142128","title":"Force of Nature","description":"\u003cb\u003eBook Synopsis\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e''Once again Harper leaves you gagging to know who did what'' \u003ci\u003eEvening Standard\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e''Places Harper in the elevated company of the authors she most admires: Val McDermid, Gillian Flynn and Lee Child'' \u003ci\u003eDaily Mail\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e''\u003c\/i\u003ePowerful, intriguing and recommended...Harper is wonderful at evoking fear and unease'' \u003ci\u003eThe Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eIs Alice here? Did she make it? Is she safe? \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003eIn the chaos, in the night, it was impossible to say which of the four had asked after Alice''s welfare. Later, when everything got worse, each would insist it had been them.\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFive women reluctantly pick up their backpacks and start walking along the muddy track. Only four come out the other side.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe hike through the rugged landscape is meant to take the office colleagues out of their air-conditioned comfort zone and teach resilience and team building. At least that is what the corporate retreat website advertises.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFederal Police Agent Aaron Falk has a particularly keen interest in the whereabouts of the missing bushwalker. Alice Russell is the whistleblower in his latest case - and Alice knew secrets. About the company she worked for and the people she worked with.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFar from the hike encouraging teamwork, the women tell Falk a tale of suspicion, violence and disintegrating trust. And as he delves into the disappearance, it seems some dangers may run far deeper than anyone knew.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eTrade Review\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eJane Harper, the new Queen of Crime...Even more impressive than \u003ci\u003eThe Dry\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e...Harper makes it look easy but she has to pace two narratives without giving too much away,\u003cb\u003e creating an almost unbearable level of suspense\u003c\/b\u003e...\u003cb\u003eNature is a hostile, unpredictable force in both of Harper's novels, but her brilliance lies in making it into a test of horribly fallible human nature\u003c\/b\u003e * The Sunday Times *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eOnce again Harper leaves you gagging to know who did \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003ewhat. \u003c\/b\u003eOnce again there are plenty of suspects * Evening Standard *\u003cbr\u003eWith consummate skill, Harper alternates between Falk's investigation and an account of what happened to the five women on their hike, as they rapidly find that the natural world is out to get them and their relations with each other deteriorate . . . \u003cb\u003eHarper has a fine gift for making her readers comfortable in inhospitable territory - psychological as well as physical\u003c\/b\u003e -- Jake Kerridge * Daily Telegraph *\u003cbr\u003e'\u003cb\u003eThe most exciting emerging novelist of the last 12 months\u003c\/b\u003e...As gripping, atmospheric and ingeniously plotted as \u003ci\u003eThe Dry\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003cb\u003eit places Harper in the elevated company of the authors she most admires: Val McDermid, Gillian Flynn and Lee Child\u003c\/b\u003e * Mail on Sunday *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePowerful, intriguing and recommended...\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eHarper is wonderful at evoking fear and unease\u003c\/b\u003e, and she draws a mesmeric picture of the terrifying Australian terrain * The Times *\u003cbr\u003eJane Harper brings a potent outsider's eye once again to the uncanniness of the Australian bush . . . Like \u003ci\u003eThe Dry\u003c\/i\u003e, this is a \u003cb\u003edeftly assembled \u003c\/b\u003eand \u003cb\u003ecleverly paced \u003c\/b\u003enovel, the \u003cb\u003echaracters skillfully and nimbly drawn\u003c\/b\u003e . . . It's stirring to see a writer racing out of the traps with such confidence and storytelling flair. -- Alasdair Lees * Independent *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eJane Harper is more from the Patricia Highsmith and Donna Tartt school of mystery: elegant, intelligent and not for the faint-hearted\u003c\/b\u003e...As chapters swap between the tense outward-bound weekend (where self-hatred, fear and resentment jostle for position) and its subsequent investigation, \u003cb\u003eHarper creates a claustrophobic page-turner that conjures up that other great Australian mystery, Joan Lindsay's \u003ci\u003ePicnic At Hanging Rock\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e * Emerald St *\u003cbr\u003eFive women head out on a camping trip, but only four emerge, bruised and traumatised. What follows is \u003cb\u003ea clever twist \u003c\/b\u003eon a locked-room \u003cb\u003emystery\u003c\/b\u003e, set in a forest as\u003cb\u003e alien\u003c\/b\u003e and\u003cb\u003e hostile\u003c\/b\u003e as anything in a fairy tale * Sunday Times *\u003cbr\u003eThis \u003cb\u003eirresistible\u003c\/b\u003e thriller is a \u003cb\u003eperfect summer read\u003c\/b\u003e - and a warning against bonding weekends with colleagues you don't like . . . * Mail on Sunday *\u003cbr\u003eJane Harper has high literary credentials - her debut novel, \u003ci\u003eThe Dry\u003c\/i\u003e, one of the big hits of last year, matched critical acclaim with bestselling sales figures. \u003cb\u003eThis second novel is just as good\u003c\/b\u003e...Landscape is a sinister presence in Harper's novels and \u003cb\u003ehere it takes on a powerfully disruptive, psychological force\u003c\/b\u003e...Harper creates an atmosphere of stifling claustrophobia as the novel inexorably telescopes in...\u003cb\u003eThis is that rare thing, a whodunnit where the writing is as satisfying as the thrills\u003c\/b\u003e * Metro *\u003cbr\u003eThe delight of\u003cb\u003e this spell-bindingly suspenseful thriller \u003c\/b\u003elies in the slow revelation of what really happened to the missing woman...\u003cb\u003eThis follow-up novel shows Harper is a crime-writing force to be reckoned with\u003c\/b\u003e * Sunday Mirror *\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eForce of Nature \u003c\/i\u003eis Jane Harper's eagerly awaited follow-up to her debut novel \u003ci\u003eThe Dry\u003c\/i\u003e, an international bestseller that has won a string of awards....\u003cb\u003eHarper's writing style has no frills but it is clear and beautifully paced. \u003c\/b\u003eIt makes the bushland come alive and the sense of the wilderness closing in is tangible...\u003cb\u003eThis thriller will make the hairs stand up on the back of your neck and leave you gripped to the final page\u003c\/b\u003e * Daily Express *\u003cbr\u003eJane Harper's \u003ci\u003eThe Dry\u003c\/i\u003e was a publisher's dream: a critically acclaimed debut novel that became an immediate best seller. \u003ci\u003eForce of Nature\u003c\/i\u003e is her follow-up, and it arrives without a trace of sophomore slump; \u003cb\u003eif anything it is a better novel than its predecessor\u003c\/b\u003e...\u003cb\u003eWhile the plot unfolds at an expertly controlled pace and is resolved in a satisfyingly ambiguous fashion\u003c\/b\u003e, it is the relationships between the women that drive the novel...\u003cb\u003ethoughtful, moving, troubling \u003c\/b\u003e * Irish Times *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA three-day team-building hike in the Australian bush \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eends in disaster\u003c\/b\u003e when the unpleasant Alice Russell disappears. Throw in a serial killer, industrial espionage, and several unreliable narrators and \u003cb\u003eyou have a \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003etense thriller that made me feel good about my decision never to go camping\u003c\/b\u003e * Red magazine *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA gripping follow-up\u003c\/b\u003e to her debut, \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Dry\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e * Good Housekeeping, Three Thrillers We Love *\u003cbr\u003eWe cancelled \u003ci\u003eall \u003c\/i\u003eour plans when we heard the brilliant Jane Harper was bringing out a follow-up to her fab crime novel \u003ci\u003eThe Dry.\u003c\/i\u003e \u003cb\u003eAnd we're glad we did, because \u003ci\u003eForce Of Nature \u003c\/i\u003eis every bit as gripping as its predecessor. . . Don't miss it\u003c\/b\u003e * NEW magazine *\u003cbr\u003eThat all-important 'difficult' second novel? \u003cb\u003eJane Harper has smashed it in spades\u003c\/b\u003e...Her astonishing first book, The Dry, a sizzlingly tense murder drama set during the Aussie drought, picked up maximum stars in this column last year - but we'll have to empty the star drawer for this one...\u003cb\u003eThrow in a serial killer in the area and you've got a netful of red herrings to sift through before you get to the clever and nerve-jangly ending\u003c\/b\u003e * Weekend Sport *\u003cbr\u003eI loved \u003ci\u003eThe Dry\u003c\/i\u003e. \u003ci\u003eForce of Nature\u003c\/i\u003e is even better. Brilliantly paced, it wrong-foots the reader like a rocky trail through the bush. \u003cb\u003eI adored it\u003c\/b\u003e * Susie Steiner, bestselling author of Missing, Presumed and Persons Unknown *\u003cbr\u003eI loved \u003ci\u003eThe Dry \u003c\/i\u003eby Jane Harper, I thought it was magnificent, like everybody else did...Fabulous! And her new book \u003ci\u003eForce of Nature\u003c\/i\u003e...such brilliance. \u003cb\u003eFrom the first paragraph I was hooked - you just know you're in the hands of a master. She's such an excellent writer and the sense of place is so powerful\u003c\/b\u003e * Marian Keyes *\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eLord of the Flies\u003c\/i\u003e in the Australian outback, with grown women in place of school boys. \u003cb\u003eI loved every chilling moment of it. A blistering follow-up to\u003ci\u003e The Dry \u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003efrom one of the best new voices in crime fiction * Sarah Hilary, author of the bestselling DI Marnie Rome series *\u003cbr\u003eHarper's debut, \u003ci\u003eThe Dry\u003c\/i\u003e, was \u003ci\u003eThe Sunday Times\u003c\/i\u003e crime novel of 2017 and won the CWA Gold Dagger award. \u003cb\u003eThat makes this second outing from the Australian a very hot ticket indeed\u003c\/b\u003e * Sunday Times, Books of 2018 *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe Dry\u003c\/b\u003e was one of the standout crime debuts of 2017; Australian author Harper follows it with a story of women hiking in the bush - five go out, but only four come back * Guardian, Books of 2018 *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eRiveting, tension-driven thriller\u003c\/b\u003e...Perfect for fans of Tana French and readers who enjoy literary page-turners * Booklist, starred review *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eHarper's crackerjack plotting propels the story\u003c\/b\u003e...Harper layers her story with hidden depths, expertly mining the distrust between Alice and her four colleagues, and the secrets that simmer under the surface...\u003cb\u003eA spooky, compelling read\u003c\/b\u003e * Kirkus *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA gripping tale of an elemental battle for survival\u003c\/b\u003e...Harper once again shows herself to be a storytelling force to be reckoned with * Publishers Weekly *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eOnce again, Harper manages to touch on something mythic in the Australian experience of the land\u003c\/b\u003e...From Frederic McCubbin's mournful painting...\u003ci\u003eLost\u003c\/i\u003e, to Joan Lindsay's \u003ci\u003ePicnic at Hanging Rock\u003c\/i\u003e...getting lost in the bush was for a while every non-Indigenous Australian's worst nightmare. \u003ci\u003eForce of Nature\u003c\/i\u003e plays on this fear and then some. \u003cb\u003eRatcheting up the sense of threat is the shade of a notorious serial killer lurking in the undergrowth\u003c\/b\u003e * Sydney Morning Herald *\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eForce of Nature\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cb\u003e proves Jane Harper, author of \u003ci\u003eThe Dry\u003c\/i\u003e, is no one-hit wonder\u003c\/b\u003e. Its premise is instantly gripping * Herald Sun (Melbourne) *\u003cbr\u003eAs thick with menace as the bush that seems to swallow the difficult Alice...\u003ci\u003eForce of Nature\u003c\/i\u003e cuts between past and present, corporate and domestic, and \u003cb\u003ecements its author as one of Australia's boldest thriller writers\u003c\/b\u003e * Australian Women's Weekly *\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe narrative is finely constructed, with perfectly measured pace and suspense. So much so that it reminded me of another master of form, Liane Moriarty\u003c\/b\u003e...Harper has also harnessed what captivates the Australian psyche - the landscape. \u003ci\u003eThe Dry\u003c\/i\u003e is set in a small country town in drought, and this time she takes us into the bush. There are echoes of \u003ci\u003ePicnic at Hanging Rock\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eLord of the Flies\u003c\/i\u003e as any appearance of civility slips away and the women lose direction in a hostile landscape. \u003cb\u003eSo does Harper's new book live up to the first? I was thrilled to find that it does. The novel delivers and Harper writes like a dream\u003c\/b\u003e * The Saturday Paper, Australia *\u003cbr\u003eHarper's mastery of pace makes \u003ci\u003eForce Of Nature\u003c\/i\u003e one of 2017's best thrillers * Elle Australia *\u003cbr\u003e[\u003ci\u003eThe Dry\u003c\/i\u003e] was a superbly riveting demonstration of intelligent crime writing, and its successor, \u003ci\u003eForce of Nature\u003c\/i\u003e, provides further proof: \u003cb\u003eJ\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eane Harper knows all there is to know about detonating the gut-level shocks of a great thriller\u003c\/b\u003e....There's a distinct Liane Moriarty vibe to \u003ci\u003eForce of Nature...\u003c\/i\u003ebut with a sharper edge. Jane Harper's brilliance in characterisation and evocative prose is on full display here...\u003cb\u003eIn a crowded market, Jane Harper shines at the quality end....\u003ci\u003eForce of Nature\u003c\/i\u003e is masterfully paced, wonderfully rendered, and devastatingly entertaining\u003c\/b\u003e * Simon Macdonald, Potts Point Bookshop, Sydney *\u003cbr\u003eHarper has proved once again that \u003cb\u003eshe \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eis a master of the thriller genre\u003c\/b\u003e. Highly, highly recommended * Watford Observer *\u003cbr\u003eHarper's tough but mild-mannered detective Aaron Falk returns for a second outing . . . Flitting between descriptions of Falk's investigation and an account of Alice and her colleagues' adventures before her disappearance, \u003cb\u003eHarper has produced another humdinger of a thriller\u003c\/b\u003e -- Charlotte Heathcote * Sunday Express *\u003cbr\u003e[A] well constructed mystery that's suitably atmospheric with fine descriptions of the Australian bush * Choice magazine *\u003cbr\u003eAnother \u003cb\u003esuperb \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003ethriller\u003c\/b\u003e by the author of \u003ci\u003eThe Dry\u003c\/i\u003e * The Lady *","brand":"Little, Brown Book Group","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":48733657661783,"sku":"9780349142128","price":9.49,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0817\/1739\/5799\/files\/9780349142128.jpg?v=1720001066","url":"https:\/\/bookcurl.com\/products\/force-of-nature-9780349142128","provider":"Book Curl","version":"1.0","type":"link"}