The Ledge by Christian White

Wow! The Ledge is a gripping thriller that kept me guessing right up to the end. When human remains are uncovered in a Victorian forest, old secrets are about to be unveiled. A group of three friends, now adults, begin to worry about what the police might uncover. In 1999 four teenagers had a tight friendship, vowing to be blood brothers. It was after 16-year-old Aaron had run away from home that his three best friends were pulled into his misery with terrible consequences.

The Ledge is told in a dual timeline narrative from the point of view of one of the friends in the present and in 1999 from the diary of Justin Smith, another friend.  White seamlessly brings the past and present into play. Gradually the events of the past come alive and mesh with what is happening in the small town as the police investigate what had happened to the body that was lying at the bottom of the Ledge, deep in the forest. I  found myself holding my breath trying to work out the sequence of events, what the friends were covering up and what the police were uncovering. And the final twist was breathtaking, and one that I didn’t see coming. To reveal more would spoil the suspense.

The Ledge was not easy to put down and will thrill readers who love psychological mysteries set in rural Australia.

Themes: Psychological thriller, Murder, Country towns.

Pat Pledger