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'Jean Kay, my skipper, fellow adventurer, my friend. My brother.
Jean Kay, soldier-of-fortune, opportunist, embezzler, hijacker.
'In her youth, amidst the throes of a reckless grief, aspiring Australian writer Marele Day is caught up in a shipwreck adventure and forges an unlikely bond with an international fugitive travelling under a pseudonym. For the next 30 years they correspond before reuniting, both older and wiser, in France.
'Marele is now an accomplished crime writer, and while she knew of her travel companion’s previous reputation as ‘the high-jacker with heart’ and ‘brother to the poor’, she is intrigued to discover his connection to the disappearance of eight million francs and a secret dossier that made global headlines.
'Brilliantly crafted, Reckless tells the story of how Marele uncovers the truth about Jean Kay’s identity and motives by piecing together clues from their letters, her diaries and a stash of newspaper clippings, and how, in the process of telling his story, she ultimately makes peace with the reckless ghosts of her past.' (Publication summary)
Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of
Works about this Work
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‘You’re not the nice guy I thought you were’ : The Australian Crime Novelist and the French Bank Thief
2023
single work
essay
— Appears in: The Guardian Australia , 7 May 2023; -
‘Candid’, ‘Gripping’, ‘Compulsory Reading’ : the Best Australian Books Out in May
2023
single work
review
— Appears in: The Guardian Australia , 10 May 2023;
— Review of Everything and Nothing 2023 single work autobiography ; Obsession 2023 single work autobiography ; Anam 2023 single work novel ; She Is the Earth 2023 single work novella ; Search History 2023 single work novel ; Fat Girl Dancing 2023 single work autobiography ; The Albatross 2023 single work novel ; Home Before Night 2022 single work novel ; Reckless 2023 single work autobiography
-
‘Candid’, ‘Gripping’, ‘Compulsory Reading’ : the Best Australian Books Out in May
2023
single work
review
— Appears in: The Guardian Australia , 10 May 2023;
— Review of Everything and Nothing 2023 single work autobiography ; Obsession 2023 single work autobiography ; Anam 2023 single work novel ; She Is the Earth 2023 single work novella ; Search History 2023 single work novel ; Fat Girl Dancing 2023 single work autobiography ; The Albatross 2023 single work novel ; Home Before Night 2022 single work novel ; Reckless 2023 single work autobiography -
‘You’re not the nice guy I thought you were’ : The Australian Crime Novelist and the French Bank Thief
2023
single work
essay
— Appears in: The Guardian Australia , 7 May 2023;
Awards
- 2023 longlisted Mark and Evette Moran Nib Award for Literature