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Two brothers are exposed to the brutal realities of life and the seductive cruelty of power in this riveting debut novel - a story of savagery and race, injustice and honor, set in the untamed frontier of 1880s Australia - reminiscent of Philipp Meyer's The Son and the novels of Cormac McCarthy.
An epic tale of revenge and survival, Only Killers and Thieves is a gripping and utterly transporting debut, bringing to vivid life a colonial Australia that bears a striking resemblance to the American Wild West in its formative years.
It is 1885, and a crippling drought threatens to ruin the McBride family. Their land is parched, their cattle starving. When the rain finally comes, it is a miracle that renews their hope for survival. But returning home from an afternoon swimming at a remote waterhole filled by the downpour, 14-year-old Tommy and 16-year-old Billy meet with a shocking tragedy ....
About the author
Paul Howarth is a British-Australian author and former lawyer who holds an MA in creative writing from the University of East Anglia, where he was awarded the Malcolm Bradbury Scholarship. His debut novel Only Killers and Thieves was published to international acclaim, winning the Barnes & Noble Discover Award for fiction, and appearing on numerous other awards and books-of-the-year lists. Dust Off the Bones is his second novel.
Summary
A debut novel set in Australia in the 1880s. A gripping, moving story about the brutal reality of frontier life and the shocking treatment of an Aboriginal tribe.
