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Dorothy Johnston Dorothy Johnston i(A27120 works by)
Born: Established: 1948 Geelong, Geelong City - Geelong East area, Geelong area, Geelong - Terang - Lake Bolac area, Victoria, ;
Gender: Female
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Works By

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1 y separately published work icon The Lodeman Dorothy Johnston , Manly Vale : For Pity Sake Publishing , 2021 23829859 2021 single work novel mystery

'These days, Queenscliff on Victoria's Bellarine Peninsula is more often known as a seaside holiday town but 'The Lodeman' brings into sharp focus one of the town's remaining industries - the pilot service. Pilot boats are a fixture of Queenscliff, darting into the treacherous Rip in all weathers to shepherd big ships into and out from the Port of Melbourne.

'Many crewmembers have been lost in the line of duty, local police constable Chris Blackie's father among them. But when the body of a pilot captain is found on a local beach, suicide or accidental death are presumed by almost everyone except Chris himself. Sensing there's much more to this case than meets the eye, Chris is nonetheless disturbed by the wide and tangled net that's been cast. And with his mainstay deputy, Anthea Merritt currently on maternity leave, he must navigate these murky waters alone.' (Publication summary)

1 y separately published work icon Gerard Hardy’s Misfortune Dorothy Johnston , Manly Vale : For Pity Sake Publishing , 2019 19467412 2019 single work novel crime 'According to local legend, the historic Royal hotel in the Victorian coastal town of Queenscliff is haunted. Having served as both a mental asylum and a morgue in the early days it could hardly fail to be, but a bizarre murder in the hotel's basement puts a decidedly eerie spin on things.

'The victim is an academic, obsessed with spiritualism, the tarot and the town's most famous literary resident, Henry Handel Richardson. From the outset, the local knowledge and unorthodox methods of Queenscliff's police officers, Chris Blackie and Anthea Merritt, are ridiculed by the bull-necked Detective Inspector Masterson from Geelong's CIU. And yet, hard-nosed police investigation practices seem ill-equipped to counter the otherworldly influences at play.

'What DI Masterson believes is an open and shut case turns out to be anything but.' (Publication summary)

 
1 y separately published work icon The Swan Island Connection Dorothy Johnston , Manly Vale : For Pity Sake Publishing , 2017 14316320 2017 single work novel detective

'The murder of a 10-year-old boy, strangled with the lead of his dog, shocks the quiet town of Victoria's Queenscliff to its core.

'The local senior constable, Chris Blackie and his deputy Anthea Merritt, expect the murder investigation to be handled by Geelong-based detectives from the Criminal Investigation Unit. But they're blind-sided by the interest that personnel from the secret military training base on Swan Island take in the case, strongly suspecting that the Detective Inspector may be taking direction from them.

'Consigned to the edges of the investigation and fearing an imminent wrongful conviction, Chris and Anthea defy their superiors to follow their own lines of enquiry - at great personal risk.'

Source: Publisher's blurb.

1 A Camel, A Corpse and the Coast Dorothy Johnston , 2016 single work essay
— Appears in: Good Reading , June 2016; (p. 30-32)
'Australian author of literary and crime fiction Dorothy Johnston writes about the real-life kidnapping of a camel, coming home to Victoria’s Bellarine Peninsula, and how she came to write Through a Camel’s Eye.'
1 Schooled by a Tale of Modern Dilemmas Dorothy Johnston , 2016 single work review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 25-26 June 2016; (p. 25) The Saturday Age , 25-26 June 2016; (p. 26)

— Review of The Teacher's Secret Suzanne Leal , 2016 single work novel
1 Between a Wolf and a Dog Review : Georgia Blain's Cool Eyed-look at Family Crises Dorothy Johnston , 2016 single work review
— Appears in: Brisbane Times , 23 April 2016;

— Review of Between a Wolf and a Dog Georgia Blain , 2016 single work novel
'...What make it possible to contain tragedy in words, so that the reader enters into the experience and passes through it, cleansed? ...'
1 Domestic Crises and the Question of Truth and Lies Dorothy Johnston , 2016 single work review
— Appears in: The Saturday Age , 23-24 April 2016; (p. 29) The Sydney Morning Herald , 23-24 April 2016; (p. 29)

— Review of Between a Wolf and a Dog Georgia Blain , 2016 single work novel ; Special Georgia Blain , 2016 single work novel
1 A Mother's Burden of Grief and Guilt Dorothy Johnston , 2016 single work review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 12-13 March 2016; (p. 24) The Saturday Age , 12-13 March 2016; (p. 24)

— Review of The Light on the Water Olga Lorenzo , 2016 single work novel
1 Review : The Birdman's Wife by Melissa Ashley and The Atomic Weight of Love by Elizabeth J. Church Dorothy Johnston , 2016 single work review
— Appears in: Brisbane Times , 4 November 2016;

— Review of The Birdman's Wife Melissa Ashley , 2016 single work novel
'The first point I noted about The Birdman's Wife is that Elizabeth Gould, not her husband John, the famous ornithologist, painted the pictures of birds I knew and loved as a child. While Elizabeth was credited by her initials, alongside John's, for creating over 650 hand-coloured lithographs for a number of publications, including The Birds of Australia, very little is known about the artist; she was overshadowed by her larger-than-life husband. Melissa Ashley's task, as she says in an author's note, is to bring to life, through fiction, what the factual accounts have overlooked. ...'
1 Accomplished Women with an Avian Fascination Dorothy Johnston , 2016 single work review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 12-13 November 2016; (p. 29)

— Review of The Birdman's Wife Melissa Ashley , 2016 single work novel
1 3 y separately published work icon Through a Camel's Eye Dorothy Johnston , Manly Vale : For Pity Sake Publishing , 2015 9174984 2015 single work novel crime

''Still, he looked for hoof prints, glad there was nobody to laugh at him for doing so. He shaded his eyes and squinted at a dark object, half covered in sand, then began to walk towards it. He should should have been wearing sunglasses to protect his eyes, but he never thought of things like that. It was a women's coat, black, or at least it has been.'

'A young camel disappears from its trainers paddock and the coat of a murdered women is found abandoned in the sand dunes. These seemingly unrelated events are a far cry from the regular police duties of Constable Chris Blackie and his rookie recruit from Melbourne, Anthea Merritt, in the small seaside town of Queenscliff. Little by little and with a burgeoning sense of menace, these two unlikely detectives carefully navigate the eclectic, often eccentric personalities of the town, as well as the disdain of law enforcement colleagues further afield, to uncover the unsettling truth.

'Described as a 'sea-change mystery' Through a Camel's Eye deftly juxtaposes the idyllic surroundings of a coastal Victorian town with the gravity of murder. ' (Publication summary)

1 y separately published work icon A Sea-Change Mystery Dorothy Johnston , 2015 Manly Vale : For Pity Sake Publishing , 2015 9174952 2015 series - author novel crime
1 Life's Quiet Lessons Revealed in a Rich Emotional Palette Dorothy Johnston , 2015 single work review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 12 September 2015; (p. 24) The Age , 12 September 2015; (p. 24)

— Review of The Landing Susan Johnson , 2015 single work novel
1 A Journey into the Meaning of Exile Dorothy Johnston , 2015 single work review
— Appears in: The Age , 1 August 2015; (p. 24) The Sydney Morning Herald , 1 August 2015; (p. 24)

— Review of The Other Side of the World Stephanie Bishop , 2015 single work novel
1 How to Handle the Global Financial Crisis – And Win Messer Tackles the GFC - and Wins Dorothy Johnston , 2015 single work review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 2-3 May 2015; (p. 25) The Canberra Times , 2 May 2015; (p. 14) The Age , 2-3 May 2015; (p. 25)

— Review of Hopscotch Jane Messer , 2015 single work novel
1 Nasties Add Humour to Volcanic Story Cast of Nasties Adds Humour to a Volcanic Story Dorothy Johnston , 2014 single work review
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 6 December 2014; (p. 22) The Saturday Age , 6-7 December 2014; (p. 31)

— Review of Window Gods : Truth Sleeps in the Seed Sally Morrison , 2014 single work novel
1 Wanderers in the Wilderness Hint at Rare Chance of Rebirth Dorothy Johnston , 2013 single work review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 27-28 April 2013; (p. 30-31) The Age , 27 April 2013; (p. 30) The Canberra Times , 25 April 2013; (p. 21)

— Review of Harmless Julienne Van Loon , 2013 single work novel
1 Second Chance at Happiness in an Aptly Named Suburb Dorothy Johnston , 2013 single work review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 9-10 March 2013; (p. 28-29)

— Review of Elsewhere in Success Iris Lavell , 2013 single work novel
1 Where the Ladders Start Dorothy Johnston , 2013 single work short story
— Appears in: Eight Pieces on Prostitution 2013;
1 Names Dorothy Johnston , 2013 single work short story
— Appears in: Eight Pieces on Prostitution 2013;
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