Twisted River

When charity worker Cate and website designer Rory, a married couple in their thirties, return from their European holiday, they make a nightmare discovery. Their credit cards have been cancelled, their bank account has been emptied, and their phones and internet have been cut off. Their home in the New South Wales coastal town of Kiama has been rented out as a holiday let, and their dog and pet-sitter have disappeared. Meanwhile, Cate's work colleagues have received copies of her handwritten resignation letter, posted from Paris, filled with insults and lurid allegations.

The pain isn't over yet, not by a long shot. Someone has set out to destroy Cate and Rory Porter's lives - and their anonymous enemy's motivations are a mystery.

As the harassment ramps up, some likely suspects emerge. Is it the anti-vax campaigners who have already targeted them over Rory's website for dog owners? Or maybe a pro-Russian activist who objects to Cate's work with Ukrainian refugees?

To make matters worse, the local police seem suspicious of their allegations. Cate and Rory quickly realise the only way to reclaim their lives - and their beloved poodle cross, Iris - is to find their tormentor themselves. And it isn't long before things turn dangerous. Deadly dangerous.

Full of sinister twists and turns, dark humour and a fascinating cast of supporting characters from society's shadowy fringes, this suspenseful thriller will keep you entertained and on the edge of your seat, right up until its heart-racing conclusion.
Biographical note
James Dunbar is a journalist, television scriptwriter, travel writer, university lecturer and website editor. Mole Creek (Echo Publishing, 2024), his first venture into the serious crime thriller and espionage genre, was shortlisted in the Danger Awards. Published as Jimmy Thomson, he is also the author of two crime 'caper' novels and two true-crime memoirs, as well as several books about Australian army engineers (sappers) during the Vietnam War.