The Unbelieved
Vikke Petraitis
Reviewed by Helen
This is Vikki Petraitis’s first fiction book and can I say WOW, what a book I totally understand how it won the Allen & Unwin Crime Fiction Prize. It is compelling and gripping as she opens up a world where woman are not always given the respect they deserve and sometimes it feels like you are hitting a brick wall no matter how hard to try to protect the innocent. This is a must read.
Senior Detective Antigone Pollard takes a new position in the small town of Deception Bay on the coast of Victoria, she is still getting over what happened in Melbourne and is hoping that being in a town that she spent a lot of time in when she was a child will help her heal but guilt is hard to forget. With her police dog Waffles by her side and a great partner Senior Detective Warren Harvey (Wozza) and living in her Nan’s house Antigone is settling in.
There have been a few sex attacks in the area and no convictions when Antigone stops in at the pub on her way home from work she finds herself targeted by someone planning to rape her, but things don’t go his way and Antigone is having trouble getting anyone to give an honest statement about what happened that night, even her boss is not convinced.
Antigone will never give up no matter what and with the help of her partner Wozza they are uncovering a lot of clues and hints but finding answers is even harder and with her boss and most of the males in the town putting up a brick wall it is not easy. There is also a lot more going on in this town, are the woman safe, well Antigone is determined to help them be safe and when she also uncovers a past case the more she looks into it the more this case smells of corruption.
This books is written so well and has taken on issues that are very much making headlines today and Petraitis has done it brilliantly, I could barely put this book down, Antigone is such a strong and caring character and I was cheering her on and yes I was so frustrated with what her and the victims in this story had to go up against and the ending is so very good. I do highly recommend this one, an enthralling read.
My thanks to the publisher Allen & Unwin for my copy to read
Senior Detective Antigone Pollard takes a new position in the small town of Deception Bay on the coast of Victoria, she is still getting over what happened in Melbourne and is hoping that being in a town that she spent a lot of time in when she was a child will help her heal but guilt is hard to forget. With her police dog Waffles by her side and a great partner Senior Detective Warren Harvey (Wozza) and living in her Nan’s house Antigone is settling in.
There have been a few sex attacks in the area and no convictions when Antigone stops in at the pub on her way home from work she finds herself targeted by someone planning to rape her, but things don’t go his way and Antigone is having trouble getting anyone to give an honest statement about what happened that night, even her boss is not convinced.
Antigone will never give up no matter what and with the help of her partner Wozza they are uncovering a lot of clues and hints but finding answers is even harder and with her boss and most of the males in the town putting up a brick wall it is not easy. There is also a lot more going on in this town, are the woman safe, well Antigone is determined to help them be safe and when she also uncovers a past case the more she looks into it the more this case smells of corruption.
This books is written so well and has taken on issues that are very much making headlines today and Petraitis has done it brilliantly, I could barely put this book down, Antigone is such a strong and caring character and I was cheering her on and yes I was so frustrated with what her and the victims in this story had to go up against and the ending is so very good. I do highly recommend this one, an enthralling read.
My thanks to the publisher Allen & Unwin for my copy to read
5 stars
August 1, 2022 by Allen & Unwin
