Wire, bone, and a mystery

COLIN King’s latest novel, Wire and Bone, is set to be launched later this month in Kennington.

With some scenes in the wild Mallee desert, a region King is fond of, the murder mystery story is immediately dramatic.

“In the thick of Mallee scrub, two young endurance athletes on a training run trip over the body of a woman that was chucked out of an aeroplane,” he said.

“The two runners soon take upon themselves to solve the baffling mystery, which in their case, is a normal reaction.

“Andre Marshall is a homicide cop and his partner Ella Richie is a journalist. They had come to the Mallee for the funeral of Ella’s mum and were staying at the family farm.

“Painful secrets arise in Ella’s family and the action shifts to Melbourne, Central Victoria, Mildura, and even back in time to when Lake Albacutya was a massive brimming oasis.

“Things do however return to the Mallee to finally be resolved.”

It was many years ago that King first got the inspiration to set a novel in this remote area.

“I regularly drove to Mildura through thick Mallee scrub along the Calder Highway,” he said.

“On the car radio, I’d hear news about badly hidden bodies that kept turning up.

“With murderers making such a meal of things, it occurred to me that all they needed to do was drive up here and drag the body fifty metres into the scrub.

“This is where a writer’s mind can wander on a lonely four-hour road trip.”

King is a Horsham-raised, Bendigo-based author who managed government projects in his career, but loves being out in the bush.

“I grew up in the Wimmera and was drawn to nearby wilderness areas as soon as I could drive,” he said.

“The Big Desert, Little Desert and Grampians are all places I’d spend time trekking and camping.”

Wire and Bone is his fourth murder mystery novel after A Vintage Death, Wetland, and Deep Down, set in vineyards of Heathcote, Bendigo and the wild Grampians.

“Solving the case…is the part I enjoy most [about writing],” King said.

His first novel has been adapted into a play by Synchronicity Preforming Arts which the company is set to stage in August.

The Wire and Bone book launch will take place at the Kennington Tavern on Saturday 27 April at 3pm.

The event is free to attend, but registrations are essential on Eventbrite at bit.ly/43UqBUQ.