Ripper by Shelley Burr

Ripper is an addictive novel that had me enthralled until the last page and had me immediately going back to read Burr’s first novel Wake.

Gemma’s small rural town of Rainier is notorious for one reason – three people had been murdered by the Rainier Ripper seventeen years ago and the last victim died in her arms in her little teashop. Now a tour operator wants to promote tours of Rainier as the murder town and the town is divided about its impact. Some want the custom that visitors would bring, while others dread having the memories of their loved ones being viewed by curious tourists. When the tour operator is found dead in the fountain in a copycat murder Gemma is drawn into the dark secrets that haunt the town. Her husband Hugh is a police officer still suffering the effects of investigating the first murders, while townspeople are becoming desperate because of the lack of visitors bringing trade to the town. Gemma is drawn into the investigation, and so is a prisoner named Lane Holland who has been asked to find the identity of the first victim, an unknown Czech woman.

Ripper is a gripping thriller that is difficult to put down. Burr vividly describes a country town that has been by-passed by the highway between Sydney and Melbourne, and which has lost its tourist visitors because of its reputation as a murder town. The difficult relationships between some of the families living in the town and the grief of family members who have lost a loved one add to the underlying tension. Gemma believes she knows everyone, but who can be the killer? There are quite a few characters to become familiar with, but I found the Rainier Ripper Trial Tour VIP list pg. 6.,  a handy reference point while working out who is who in the story.

I thoroughly enjoyed Ripper and can see why Burr’s first novel Wake, enjoyed acclaim and awards. I read it as a stand-alone, and then read Wake, but readers who have not read either would benefit from reading Wake first as Lane Holland’s story can be found there. Another great rural noir novel for readers who enjoyed books by Garry Disher, Jane Harper and Chris Hammer.

Themes: Murder, Country towns.

Pat Pledger