AustLit

'What happens when the keynote speaker at an important arts festival is found dead?

'Welcome to modern Melbourne, UNESCO City of Literature, home to arts festivals galore as well as the internationally famous Melbourne Cup horse race. But the Imagine Festival, held in late August, has more surprises in store than the Festival Director planned when he discovers Deborah Dangerfield's lifeless body upstairs at the Malthouse Theatre.

'Join Senior Sergeant Brendan O'Leary, a family man who's struggling to keep up with life's changes and Ange Micelli, fourth daughter of Italian migrants, who's fit, fiery and ready to go. Together they make a formidable team in this fast-moving thriller that uncovers much more than just the identity of the murderer.

'Through Simpson's spare and gritty prose, threads of political intrigue, society gossip and secret adoption are woven together, capturing the essence of urban Australia.'  (Publication summary)