Crime writer unveiling new book

Chris Hammer chooses Millicent & Mount Gambier for launch

Highly acclaimed award-winning author Chris Hammer is headed to the Limestone Coast, releasing his latest novel The Seven on Thursday, October 5, at both the Millicent Library and Mount Gambier Library.

The Millicent event is an 11am event, while Chris will face the Mount Gambier audience at 7pm the same day.

Chris is one of Australia’s leading crime writers. His first book, Scrublands, was an instant bestseller. It won the prestigious UK Crime Writers Association John Creasy Award for debut crime novel in 2019 and was shortlisted for various awards in Australia and the United States.

Scrublands has been translated into several foreign languages and is in the mists of being developed for television. His follow up books Silver, Trust and Treasure & Dirt are also bestsellers and shortlisted for major literacy prizes. Chris has also written two non-fiction books The River and The Coast.

“The Seven is a compelling thriller filled with intrigue, emotional depth, and an evocative sense of place – where nothing is ever quite what is seems,” Team Leader Library Programs Kristi Brooks said.

Yuwonderie’s seven founding families have lorded it over their district for a century, growing ever more rich and powerful. But now, in startling circumstances, one of their own is found dead in a ditch and homicide detectives Ivan Lucic and Nell Buchanan are sent to investigate.

Could the murder be connected to the execution of the victim’s friend thirty years ago – another member of The Seven – or even to the long-forgotten story of a servant girl on the brink of the Great War?

What are the secrets The seven are so desperate to keep hidden? With the killer still on the loose and events spiralling out of control, the closer Ivan and Nell get to discovering the truth, the more dangerous their investigation becomes. Can they crack the case before more people die?

With The Seven’s publication date being October 3, Millicent and Mount Gambier are two of the first venues to host Chris Hammer for his Australian tour.

Contact the Millicent Library for more details of the morning event, while the Mount Gambier session is a free event with supper provided and books available for sale and signing on the night. Contact Mount Gambier Library (08)8721 2540 or book your seat online via the library’s website.