Author: Sarah Barrie
ISBN: 9781489255273
RRP: $29.99
Publisher: HQ Fiction
Copy: Courtesy of the Publisher
Sarah Barrie is an acclaimed Australian author who writes rural romantic suspense. The current book is a stand-alone thriller that shares a couple of characters with her trilogy. I hadn’t read Sarah Barrie before but after Bloodtree River I will be sure to keep an eye out for her.
Indy O’Meara is a Sydney detective with a violence filled past, she became a police officer to try and get bad guys off the street. She is dedicated and good at her job, she is also perfect for undercover work because she has no-one at home wondering where she is. Indy is a fantastic lead, I loved her. She is kind and sensitive but she has a kick ass attitude and the moves to back it up. She was interesting to get to know and watching her undercover gave me more than a couple of giggles.
A remote Tasmanian cattle station has had some trouble with missing girls over a number of years and they haven’t been able to close the case. A Senator’s daughter is the latest girl to disappear and he wants answers, and he isn’t afraid to use his position to make sure another investigation is started down there. The main suspect looks like a shoo-in but there isn’t enough evidence, part of Indy’s role is to find the necessary evidence; without arousing suspicion that she is anything but who she says she is.
Bloodtree River is a romantic suspense story and that makes it super important to be careful what I say, there’s nothing worse than suspense spoilers. Actually, that might be a slight exaggeration but it’s still pretty bad.
Logan Atherton is part of the management team at Calico Mountain Lodge and the prime suspect in the disappearances. He and all the senior staff at the family owned and run Lodge are adamant it has nothing to do with them and they, and their business, are suffering at the hands of the police and the media. They want it sorted but they are also becoming wary and worn down. It’s increasingly difficult to stay well staffed and they are all putting in a lot of extra work to keep the business afloat. He is charismatic and charming but his eyes also hold an icy depth, because there is a lot of contradiction to him it makes him enigmatic and hard to read.
The start of the story had Logan looking guilty as not quite charged, and no other suspects worth considering but before long we are questioning whether he is really capable of that even though some of his actions leaving us thinking he is the answer, and starting to consider a much longer suspect list. Barrie has woven some fantastic red herrings into the narrative which leave you forever wondering where you want to cast suspicion.
The romance element is, I guess, a little predictable but it was well written and I was enchanted. I wanted things to work out.
Bloodtree River incorporates a lot of information which I found quite interesting about the Lodge, the produce farms and the police procedural point of view. I was out last night and when I got home I decided to read a couple of chapters before bed because the house was so quiet and peaceful…. at 2.30am I forced myself to put the book down and go to bed because I had to be up early for a fun run. I was captivated, I couldn’t walk away from the story because I had to know. In the end, I went to bed with about 4 chapters to go because I knew I wouldn’t sleep if I finished it.
Barrie writes with consistent pacing, gripping tension and more than a couple of twists that came out of the blue for me. I am glad I read this one and will definitely add the Hunters Ridge trilogy to my wishlist and Sarah Barrie to my watch list. A solid suspense that kept me guessing and captivated.
Bloodtree River is book #21 for the Australian Women Writer’s Challenge 2018.
Sarah Barrie can be found on Facebook and her Website.
Bloodtree River is published by HQ Fiction, and available now from Angus & Robertson Bookworld, Booktopia and where all good books are sold.
Thanks to HQ Fiction 20 of our lucky Beauty and Lace Club members will be reading Bloodtree River so please be aware there may be spoilers in the comments below.
I devour books, vampires and supernatural creatures are my genre of choice but over the past couple of years, I have broadened my horizons considerably. In a nutshell – I love to write! I love interacting with a diverse range of artists to bring you interviews. Perhaps we were perfect before – I LOVE WORDS!
Thankyou to Beauty and Lace and Harlequin Enterprises for the opportunity to read Bloodtree River by Sarah Barrie.
The first thing I did after finishing this book was to order the Hunter’s Ridge Trilogy by Sarah Barrie!
The story is gripping and intense,with romance, suspicion, secrets, murder , mystery and crime! All the good stuff!
Indiana O’Meara is a detective sent undercover to investigate the disappearance of a number of girls who had been working at a remote cattle station in Tasmania.
The main suspect is Logan Atherton, the owner of Calico Mountain Lodge. Indy discovers that any one of the Atherton family, their staff or neighbours could be responsible for the disappearances.
Who can Indy trust? Will she be safe?
It is one of those books you can’t put down until you know the truth!
An excellent read, I give it 5 stars!!
This book really does live up to all the hype and it had every emotion in it.
It got me thinking I knew who was involved in the murders and then had me changing my mind again and the end was a bit of a roller-coaster of emotions and some unexpected events.
It wasn’t predictable and everything Sarah Barrie wrote was so believable and I can still picture the scenery in my head.
Indy was a great character who held herself well throughout the book and Logan was a great but mysterious character which made me want to not put this book down in a hurry. It had me having the quick chuckle a few times, made me so suspicious and teary among other emotions.
There must have been a lot of research as just a fantastic, unfolding, clever written story.
This didn’t disappoint me, very refreshing read from what I usually read and had me wanting for more books like this.
The Hunters Ridge Trilogy is in my horizons for reading and her other book, Secrets of Whitewater Creek.
Thanks Beauty and Lace, Harlequin and Sarah Barrie for this beauty! LOVED IT!!!
I was super excited to start reading Blood Tree River by Sarah Barrie and it did not disappoint!!
BTR features Indy O’Meara who also featured in Barrie’s Hunters Ridge Series, don’t worry if you haven’t read the series BTR is a stand alone book, but you should read them as they’re awesome books!
Emerging from a dark past Indy became a police officer to help others that had been hurt like her, now a detective she is busily investigating a big time drug gang when she is pulled from the case to go undercover and investigate the mystery disappearances of women from a remote lodge on a farm in Tasmania.
The chief suspect and owner of the Calico Mountain Lodge Logan Atherton immediately grabs Indy’s attention, his love for horses, animals and those close to him is obvious (could be really be a serial killer?), though where does he disappear to all on his own and what does he do?
As Indy quickly fits in and becomes one of the Atherton family she finds herself falling for Logan, is she be falling for a murderer?
As she keeps digging, she realises things are not as they seem and the disappearances are apart of a much much bigger dangerous web, putting her in grave danger, will Indy be able to solve the mystery and come out alive?
I loved this book, Barrie is so good at giving out little clues, but without giving away the whole story, I thought I had it figured out who the bad guys were but was never certain until the end!
Thanks to Beauty and Lace and Harlequin books for the chance to review Blood Tree River.
OMG this book was fantastic!
I was captivated from the first chapter I couldn’t put the book down.
It was intense the whole way wondering what was going on, who was killing who? Why they were going missing? Where were they going?
Even at the end when you thought I’d was happily ever after it wasn’t!
But with that mix has to be a hot cowboy who falls in love.
The story was very well written.
I have All of Sarah’s books on my shelf and can’t wait to read those now!
Loved loved loved it!
Thanks beauty and lace for choosing me to read Bloodtree river!
Wow…what a great read this was. It really had you guessing from start to finish.
A story of girls going missing from a place called Calico Mountain Lodge in Tasmania, the main suspect being Logan Atherton as he is always the last to see them before they disappear. Detective Indy O’Meara is sent undercover to find out the truth, but what she discovers along the way is so much more than she expected and her feelings for Logan grow, but can she really trust him or is he playing her?
Then there is the Cartwrights who own Hilltop Farm, you can never really be sure to know who is connected to who and you should always watch your back!
One a family who truly care for each other, the other sadistic.
It’s a story that keeps you wanting to turn pages and not put the book down as there are so many twists and plots and they thicken as time goes on, you think you know the answers then you are thrown to think again but in the end you get answers and I found it to be a pretty good ending.
I was a little worried at first if it was going to be too much of a “thriller” type book for me, probably more so from the name of the book (that’s why you never judge a book by its cover..or name) ,but the reviews I had read were really good so I thought I’d give it a try and boy I am so glad I did.
Thank you to Beauty and Lace and all those concerned to be able to have this review possible, this book is definitely highly recommended.
I was very excited to receive Blood Tree River as my first book to read and review from Beauty & Lace.
BTR is the first novel by Sarah Barrie that I have read and I thoroughly enjoyed it.
It is a well researched and crafted novel of the romantic suspense genre.
Through Barrie’s clever writing style I really felt as if I was there with Indy, at Calico Mountain Lodge in the beautiful Tasmanian bush, caught up in the intrigue and suspense of why girls are disappearing.
As the story evolves the suspense and romance builds to a clever and satisfying conclusion.
BTR kept me captivated from start to finish and I found myself experiencing a whole range of emotions.
I loved this book and look forward to reading more Sarah Barrie novels.
Thankyou Beauty & Lace I am so happy to have been chosen to read Blood Tree River
I was captivated from the very first page of Blood Tree River. A story involving the strong bonds of a loving family and the criminal suspense of grudges and jealousy within. Sarah Barrie writes its not just your every day thriller about crimes of the heart but passion and secrets that run deeper than you could imagine. All the good stuff to keep you on your toes, guessing what the next twist will be and just when you think its over you find blood is not always thicker than water.
This is my first novel by Sarah Barrie and I really enjoyed it!
A great romantic suspense, it was easy to read but kept you guessing to the last chapter. Just when you thought you knew how the plot was going Barrie would throw something else in, the story turns and keeps you in suspense yet again!
Being Tasmanian myself made the setting for the book even more special, I was able to relate to the places and felt at home besides the characters in the story. It really helped the book come alive for me.
I look forward to delving into her other books!
Thanks to Beauty and Lace and Harlequin Books for a chance to read and review and more importantly discover another great Australian author!
Working as an undercover detective Indy is to investigate the owner (and prime suspect) Logan at the cattle station; Calico Mountain Lodge. Set in the Tasmania outback, the lodge attracts many tourists and backpackers yet when some of the workers go missing Indy must discover the truth behind these disappearances.
As Indy tries to blend into the backdrop we see the build-up of chemistry between her and Logan. Detective or not Indy is only human so will this attraction cloud her better judgement and hinder the case? As Indy tries to separate her feelings she relies on her ‘gut’ instincts and hopes she can be trusted to do her job without comprising the case.
I really enjoyed this romance-suspense novel. It was a good blend of the two genres. The anticipation of the looming desire and plot twists made this for an entertaining and enthralling read right until the end!
While it is the first of Sarah Barrie book I have read- it won’t be last, happy to recommend. Thank you Beauty and Lace Book Club and HQ Fiction for the reading and reviewing opportunity!
Brilliant!! I absolutely loved this book. It’s definitely a stay up/cannot put down & read all night book, well that’s what happened to me. 5/5