Gunnawah: A captivating and compulsive crime thriller about guns, drugs and a young woman dead on the money

'It's amazing to see what Ronni Salt can do when she's freed of a 280-character word limit.' SHAUN MICALLEF

It's 1974 in the Riverina

The weather is hot

But the body in the Murray River is stone cold . . .

A captivating and compulsive crime thriller about guns, drugs and a young woman dead on the money

When nineteen-year-old farmgirl Adelaide Hoffman applies for a cadetship at the Gunnawah Gazette, she sees it as her ticket out of a life too small for her. The paper's owner, Valdene Bullark, seeing something of the girl she once was in young Adelaide, puts her straight to work.

What starts as a routine assignment covering an irrigation project soon puts Adelaide on the trail of a much bigger story. Water is money in farming communities, and when Adelaide starts asking questions, it's like she's poked a bull ant's nest. Someone will do whatever it takes to stop Adelaide and Val finding out how far the river of corruption and crime runs.

Shady deals. Vested interests. A labyrinth of lies. It seems everyone in Gunnawah has a secret to keep. And too many are already dead quiet.

Set deep in the heart of rural Australia during the era of Gough Whitlam, pub brawls and flared jeans, Gunnawah is a compulsive crime thriller of corruption, guns and drugs from Australian Noir's most arresting new voice.

'This compelling rural crime story, embedded in the politically charged Australia of the 1970s, will intrigue fans of Margaret Hickey, Richard Osman and Lainie Anderson.' BOOKS+PUBLISHING

'Well researched and marvellously written' THE AUSTRALIAN WOMEN'S WEEKLY

'Ronni Salt's debut is historical crime fiction at its best, with a strong sense of place and time and wonderful characters at its core.' NEWTOWN REVIEW OF BOOKS

'Salt crafts a captivating character-driven tale that draws you into the small town and its many stories . . . A striking and powerful novel' CANBERRA WEEKLY