A Nail-Bitting and Intense Thrill-Fest: Read Our Review of The Creeper by Margaret Hickey

Victim… or killer?

For the last decade, the small mountain town of Edenville in Victoria’s high country has been haunted by the horrific murders of five hikers up on Jagged Ridge.

Also found dead near the scene was Bill ‘Creeper’ Durant, a bushland loner, expert deer-hunter, and a man with a known reputation for stalking campers…

Conclusion: murder-suicide. Case closed.

But as the ten-year anniversary of the massacre draws near, Detective Constable Sally White – the only officer at Edenville’s modest police station – finds herself drawn into the dark world of the notorious Durant family.

Lex Durant, in particular, has started to publicly protest his brother’s innocence and accuse the police of persecution.

As Sally combs the investigation to prove him wrong, it becomes all too clear that each murdered hiker had skeletons in their closet – and possible enemies in their past…

Margaret Hickey is an award-winning author and playwright from North East Victoria. She has a PhD in Creative Writing and is deeply interested in rural lives and communities – something we see evident in her heart-pounding novels, including Cutters End, Stone Town and Broken Bay.

In her latest novel, The Creeper, Hickey creates a slow-burn mystery that packs in quite a punch with both the original murder of the five hikers and the investigation that Sally picks up ten years later. Sally is a compelling protagonist who’s as interesting as the mystery surrounding Bill ‘Creeper’ Durant, and her admirable determination is a large part as to why I kept reading.

Apart from Sally, there is also the town of Edenville, which feels like a character in itself. Fully immersive, I felt like I knew the town inside and out with its intersesting townsfolk (or should I say, suspects?) and locales is exceptionally Australian – which was refreshing.  It felt like parting with a friend when the mystery was solved – I need more!

And be prepared to be completely enthralled by the mystery itself and the infamous Durant family. Once Sally starts travelling down the road-of-no-return, the twists come quickly, one after the other, making it enjoyable to see who’s really behind everything. Towards the second half, The Creeper becomes an action-packed, heart-pounding adventure; I was clenching the book when I reached one of the last chapters. 

If you’ve been searching for a dark, Aussie thriller with a kick-ass female hero, then The Creeper is the perfect cure for your craving… I think it’s time for a re-read!

Buy a copy of The Creeper here.