Having previously met and been impressed with Constable Paul Hirschhausen (Hirsch) in Garry Disher’s novel Peace, the encounter with him again in Consolation is also enjoyable.

Hirsch lives in a small Australian town in South Australia called Tiverton where there an unusual array of crimes - from snowdropping (stealing of women’s underwear), child welfare issues and criminal assault and questionable financial dealings. Hirsch keep an eye on what is happening the in town but also does regular drives around the district to keep in touch with those in more remote areas in the areas surrounding the town.

I love his approach to people and his method of policing:
“..his ABC of policing: assume nothing, believe nothing, challenge everything.”
His persistence and ability to deal with a whole of range of people and issues is admirable!

While he has failed relationships in the past his current one is going well and while slow moving it is positive. Too many of the fiction detectives/police have very sad and lonely lives and it is good to see that this isn’t the case here.

This is another delightful Garry Disher novel which has many and varied characters and a story line that has multiple layers and inter-related threads.

Thank you to Netgalley and publisher Text Publishing for a copy to read and review.

‘I’m concerned for someone’s welfare.’

Constable Paul Hirschhausen (Hirsch) was posted to the one-man police station at Tiverton in the small South Australia eighteen months ago. Tiverton may be a small town, but he is busy. First, there is a snowdropper at work, stealing elderly women’s underwear from their clotheslines. Hirsch is not taking this lightly, but suddenly there are a few other issues to deal with. A teacher from the high school ‘phones him: she’s worried about the welfare of a home-schooled student. Things are about to get even busier for Hirsch: his sergeant must take leave suddenly, and he needs to take on her job as well. And then he is called urgently to the Tiverton Primary School:

‘I need you to get here straight away. A parent’s going mental.’

This is just the beginning. A child in danger, another family under pressure. And there are some concerning rumours doing the rounds about one of the local pillars of the community. An elderly woman dies: was it an accident or could it have been murder?

I was drawn into this novel and could not put it down. Mr Disher brings his characters to life with their concerns and frustrations, added in a few complications which kept me guessing, and has me wanting to read the first two novels in this series immediately.

There are several different threads in this action-packed novel, and Mr Disher manages to bring them all together by the end of the story. Highly recommended.

Note: My thanks to NetGalley and Text Publishing for providing me with a free electronic copy of this book for review purposes.

Jennifer Cameron-Smith

Es ist klirrend kalter August in Tiverton und Constable Hirschhausen jagt seit einiger Zeit mittels Videoüberwachung und Markierungen einen Unterwäschedieb. Aber dann kommen in kurzer Zeit ein vernachlässigtes, eingesperrtes Kind und ein durchgedrehter Familienvater, der mit seinem Sohn durchbrennt, dazu.

Oft muss Hirsch als Beichtvater, Therapeut, Sozialarbeiter oder Vermittler herhalten. Er vermisst die richtige Kriminalarbeit aber einige Hinweise und Ereignisse weiter ist alles komplexer als zunächst vermutet und seine Wünsche werden schneller wahr als er gedacht hätte.

Die meiste Zeit ist er ganz auf sich allein gestellt und gerät von einer brisanten Lage in die nächste. Verstärkung oder ein Krankenhaus sind über eine halbe Stunde entfernt. Es gehört viel Mut, Menschenkenntnis und Können dazu damit umzugehen. Zudem fällt seine Chefin in Redruth Sergeant Brandl wegen privater Angelegenheiten einige Tage aus und er muss auch noch die Leitung übernehmen, nur von zwei blutjungen Anfängern unterstützt.

In immer schnellerem Tempo folgt ein Ereignis auf das nächste, es wird immer verwobener und auch privat gerät Hirsch in arge Bedrängnis.
Dieser 3. Teil ist eine solide Fortsetzung, wieder ein typischer Disher, Hirsch ist wieder ganz er selbst. Aber leider war mir die Geschichte irgendwann schon zu unübersichtlich, zu verflochten und es gab für mich zu viele Beteiligte, die ich irgendwann nicht mehr auseinanderhalten konnte. Aber für manche Leser mag das genau das richtige sein.

Oh wow, after reading the previous book, Peace, and then this one I am officially a Garry Disher fan. This book was so good, it had a lot of heart. I think that is what distinguishes Disher’s books from many others. In this story Sergeant Brandl has a badly broken leg so Hirsch (Constable Paul Hirschhausen) has to monitor the Redruth police station as well as his own patch at Tiverton. Unfortunately it is at this time that things really kick off in his extended bailiwick.

Among other things Hirsch has to contend with: removing a young girl from malnourishment and squalor, tracking down a father and son with guns who have gone all Rambo and run amok over some money owing to them, some Irish con men scamming people over roof repairs, an old lady who is killed after having had suspicions of having her bank account raided. There are more assaults and deaths but to top it all off Hirsch has an unwelcome female stalker who he can’t quite rid himself of. If you think that all sounds a bit Keystone Cops, stop! Mr Disher delivers top notch writing that really evokes the spirit of rural Australia. It is pitch perfect. I can tell you that because I live in rural Australia. The heat, the cold, the distances, the loneliness, the mateship, the “have a go” spirit - it’s all beautifully rendered. The characters are vibrant and so real and the story has plenty of drama and suspense interspersed with doses of dry wit.

I loved every minute of this book and when I get a chance I will explore Mr Disher’s back catalogue. This book will appeal to anyone who loves a good, character driven drama. My thanks go to Netgalley, Text Publishing and Garry Disher for providing me a copy. My opinions are my own.

This is the third novel in my new favourite crime series. I've told all my crimey friends to read this series, they are reliably good, great comfort reading. There is enough action to keep you turning the pages furiously, Hirsch is one of the nicest cops you could ever hope to meet, the bad guys turn up in unexpected places and the scenery is so beautifully written. I'm so invested in these novels that when this one was finished I had a terrible moment of sadness that I'd have to wait for ages to get a new one.
This time Hirsch has a 'snowdropper' to deal with, someone who steals women's underwear, the middleaged and elderly women of Tiverton are troubled by this, it is making everyone uncomfortable. Hirsch has dealt to the awful cops of Redruth, they have been replaced and now he has a decent boss, but she is not in town and Hirsch is acting chief. There is a lot of crime going on, a child being treated appallingly on a remote farm, a stalkery teacher, a local businessman has gone missing. And managing to keep track of all of this, plus patrol his huge remote area is full on.

What makes these books so engaging is Hirsch. His mild manner, his love of music, the way he relates to the people in town and the recurring characters are becoming like old friends to me. These are quiet crime of the very best kind. This new one is a great addition to the series.

Thanks Netgalley and Text publishing for giving me access. I loved it.

This is another wonderful instalment in the Paul 'Hirsch' Hirschhausen series. Once again the quiet, rural town Tiverton where Paul is the sole policeman appears to implode as a series of events trigger a frustrated farmer into a rampage of fury and revenge. Hirsch is a very human character with his flaws and fears. However, once things become personal for him he knows he has to fight his growing panic and deal with matters as they crop up. Dealing with several crimes as once including an extreme case of child neglect, he is busy and things appear to be spiralling out of control.
On top of all this his boss is laid up with an injury and he finds himself in charge of the regional station and working with two inexperienced officers. The pace of the story really rattles along and events keep cropping up that test Hirsch and his small team.
Disher proves once again he is an author who can tell a great story. Certainly a major player in the growing Australian noir genre, this is a book that I can highly recommend.
Thank you Text Publishing and Netgalley for the opportunity to review this book in exchange for an honest review.

Constable Paul Hirschhausen ('Hirsch') has now been posted at the one man police station in the tiny South Australian town of Tiverton for eighteen months and is well and truly part of the community. Although it's winter, his job is just as busy as ever with someone stealing elderly ladies' underwear, a case of a badly neglected child, suspicions that someone is fiddling with the bank accounts of several elderly citizens, concerns of some investors about a dodgy scheme and an enraged armed farmer hiding out in the bush with his son after a shooting incident. On top of that he has a personal stalker and when his boss at Redruth, Sgt Brandl is injured in an accident Hirsch is put in charge of both stations.

This is the third book in this enjoyable rural crime series, which gives real insight into life in a small isolated community with it's wide variety of characters from wealthy property owners to the more impoverished living on the fringes. In Hirsch, Disher has created a very likeable character with a temperament well suited to rural policing. As well as being smart and intuitive, Hirsch is very conscientious about his job, which is as much social worker and peacemaker as it is policeman. With a huge beat to patrol and many isolated properties, he makes a point of visiting the most vulnerable and lonely members of his community on his weekly patrols and, unless he's following up a major crime, always has time for a chat and a cup of coffee or tea. While there is a lot going on in this book, the action is well paced with all the threads falling into place and being satisfactorily resolved, although not without some drama before the end.

The third of Garry Disher's Paul Hirschhausen series of the lone policeman in the South Australian outback, with the first two books adapted into television movies. What begins as a investigation of a snowdropper develops into a series of other crimes in the surrounding district. The laconic nature of the protagonist combined with the aussie environment makes for a nonchalant style despite the various crime inquiries building to a crescendo. The understated policeman makes for an unlikely hero, but with Disher’s prose a most enjoyable sequel or even standalone. Highly recommended 4 and a half stars.

Consolation is the third book in the Paul Hirschhausen series by popular Australian author, Garry Disher. If it was intended as device to remove him from the close contact (and wrath) of his colleagues, Hirsch's demotion to the one-cop station in rural Tiverton has now morphed into something else: he inhabits the role with quiet purpose and an unexpected satisfaction. Hirsch has become part of the community.

During the August chill, Hirsch makes a welfare check revealing a case of child cruelty, swiftly followed by an angry parent terrorising the school principal. Hirsch proves a talent for mediation, but senses resentment simmering.

Follow-ups with victims of a persistent snow-dropper, and of Irish roof-repair scammers are added to his regular patrols, but then a nasty incident puts him also in charge of Redruth Police Station and on the trail of a gun-toting pair seeking revenge. Filled with toxic masculinity, they’re not behaving like fugitives, indulging in thefts, intimidation and arson.

This is another excellent dose of Hirsch. Not only does he deal with financial irregularities in the bank accounts of vulnerable elderly, possible undue influence by neighbours or family, and a missing husband, he also gets stuck in the mud, acquires a stalker and is restrained by his own handcuffs. The kidnap of a teen and an armed stand-off provide exciting climaxes.

With his often-exquisite prose, Disher easily evokes his setting: “He’d been formed by a city, its exact delineations of asphalt streets and bricks in orderly rows, but out here the angles were unpredictable. Roads shot off in unlikely directions, buildings decayed at a lean and the endless flatland was neither endless nor flat, throwing up stone reef patches or plunging into gullies. And it was a landscape charged with unheard testimony: an ochre hand stencil in a cave; a stick figure carved into a rockface; a grinding tool laid bare after a flash flood.”

Amid a glut of flawed heroes, Hirsch is a refreshing protagonist: comfortable in his own skin; not perfect but certainly principled; not battling drugs or alcohol, not tempted by illegal or immoral activity; an essentially tireless cop, exuding integrity, dedicated to enforcement and protection tempered with the judgement calls essential in rural policing. Fans can only hope this is not the last of Tiverton and Constable Paul Hirschhausen. Brilliant Australian rural crime fiction.
This unbiased review is from an uncorrected proof copy provided by NetGalley and Text Publishing.

Another good entry in the Hirsch series from Disher. Once again lots to keep our Constable busy on his rounds both big and small. Shootings, fraud, stalking, kidnapping, fetish stealing, Etc are just some of the tribulations keeping him busy this time as he has to cover two stations due to his commanders illness. Once again great storytelling of both the mundane and the action orientated in this one.

A snowdropper operating in town leads to a complex story where Hirsch finds himself trying to juggle managing three police stations, being trolled and finding two culprits on the run...
With the background concerning isolation in outback South Australia, you can feel the dust, the floods and the hardened people that choose to live there. I certainly enjoyed this backdrop as a former Broken Hill resident
Finally, what can one mention that hasn't already been mentioned numerous times over Garry Disher's career?
An independent review NetGalley / Text Publishing

A complex, suspenseful plot with tension so thick that it felt palpable. Wonderful characters with depth and substance. I was immediately drawn in and held captive from beginning to end.

*I received a complimentary copy of this book in order to read and provide a voluntary, unbiased and honest review, should I choose to do so.

#Consolation #NetGalley

The third in Garry Disher's rural Aussie noir series featuring Constable Paul 'Hirsch' Hirschhausen, the cop demoted and banished to small town Tiverton, has Hirsch becoming more embedded in the community after 18 months, doing his level best to secure and protect his town. He finds himself tested to the limits personally, he acquires a stalker, and professionally, as he finds himself in charge when his Redruth boss, Sergeant Hilary Brandl has personal issues and suffers injuries in the line of duty. His role, more often than not, consists of father confessor, therapist, social worker, fixer and general go-between between different parties. Many who move to Tiverton and Redruth find the isolation too much, and it is hardly surprising that those living in remote areas find the stresses and pressures put them at increasing risk of mental health issues, and it can be where hidden abuses can proliferate.

The region is scarcely immune from economic difficulties, with many living close to the financial edge, where it would take little to tip them over the edge, as Leon Ayliffe does, when as a supplier his bill is not paid and his daughter, Chloe, is humiliated at school. Leon and his 18 year old son, Josh, a confused teen, go on the run after a shooting incident, well armed, and with enough supplies to survive in the bush. A local businessman with an impeccable record and reputation becomes subject to growing rumours of an inability to pay, putting a festival at risk, with many looking to be out of pocket as a result. Hirsch has a snowdropper to deal with, as elderly women find their underwear taken from their clotheslines, uncovers troubling child abuse, investigates murders, and to top it all, his life becomes unbearable as he tries to avoid coming down hard on a stalker.

One of the aspects of this series that I enjoy is the wide ranging insights into the everyday life of a rural community police officer, particularly if they are the sole law enforcement representative, and have a vast area to police. Disher gives us a real sense of the disparate, and off beat characters that comprise the community, many of whom are vulnerable, and are part of Hirsch's twice weekly patrols into the more isolated areas under his jurisdiction. Hirsch does an incredible job in impossible circumstances, not always getting right, as he finally bows to advice from Brandl and Wendy on a more straightforward approach to being stalked. This is a wonderfully engaging addition to this terrific and compulsive Aussie crimes series, and I avidly look forward to the next. Many thanks to the publisher for an ARC.

This was a really good mystery with characters that were not always likeable. I found the setting a mixture of eerie and grim. It suited the story but did leave a sense of almost despair hanging over the whole thing. I really liked how several plotlines were intertwined throughout the book. I hadn’t read anything by this author before and can’t believe I have missed him - he has written a lot!

Gary Disher is an amazing writer who publishes book after book, juggling a number of series, all of them distinctive and able to put character and setting together with a complex plot using spare but elegant prose.

The trouble with finding a writer whose books you seize eagerly, knowing he always knocks it right out of the park, is that your expectations may be set a little too high. I enjoyed this book, but not as much as his previous. When I read the first in this series, the protagonist really grabbed me as he tried to find his place in an unfamiliar rural community in which his reputation as a police whistleblower sets him up for hostility from the local law. The central crime in that story was also emotionally gripping.

This time, Hirsch has become more settled, but shows less of himself to the reader. There are a lot of plot threads to keep track of, but none of them gave me the kind of emotional anchor I have felt in previous books. It was fine, with the usual spare but effective prose, vivid characterization, and great sense of place and of the day-to-day work of a rural officer tending to many small fires at once, but something about it felt a little off, a little tired. It could be me, of course, being more distracted than usual, not doing my part as a reader..

I'm not sure if was reading Disher for the first time if I'd give it five stars because, wow, this fella can write. Or if I'd give it three for being a bit hard to follow with a protagonist who seemed a bit distant from me. As a long=time fan I'll give it four for being less than his best, but still better than average.

Absolutely love this series. Garry Disher is the king of gritty Australian crime novels and this latest Paul 'Haitch' novel is no exception. Thanks to Netgalley for the opportunity to read a preview of this book.

Consolation is a fantastic read which kept me interested from the first page to the last. Consolation is the third book in the Constable Paul Hirschhausen series. the sole policeman in a small Australian country town called Tiverton. The author keeps a number of different story lines and threads going at the same time, be it an underwear thief, a female stalker, Irish roofing con artists, graffiti writing, missing money from bank accounts or a father and son version of Bonnie and Clyde.
I hope Mr Disher keeps this series going as each book is a pleasure to read.

3.5 stars rounded up to 4. Thanks to NetGalley and Text Publishing for the ARC in return for an honest review.

Award-winning author, Garry Disher, has written several dozen books that can be classified as Aussie rural -noir crime novels. He has been writing books in this category well before they became popular elsewhere. He is also known for non-fiction, short story collections, and children's literature.

I have only read one of his previous crime books and this is my first in the Paul Hirschhausen series. Consolation is the third book in the Hirsch series, and am now anxious to read the previous two.

Hirsch works out of a one-man police station in a small, rural South Australian town. There are wonderful descriptive passages of the surrounding landscape and the memorable characters he meets while on patrol. His territory covers a huge area and long distances. If he requires assistance, it may take more than an hour before other police or ambulances arrive on the scene. The country roads are often rough, muddy and prone to occasional flooding.

He seems like a kind and caring police officer who prefers to solve problems with diplomacy and helpful advice rather than arrests when possible. Among his calls are ones for minor thefts, wellness checks, mental health intervention, family and neighbour disputes. he is concerned about the lack of coordination with child welfare services, various police units, and the legal system.

There are a number of disparate threads and subplots. The author manages to juggle various people and events and make the story coherent. Hirsch is investigating the case where someone is stealing underwear from elderly ladies' clotheslines. He is called to rescue a young girl who is badly neglected and malnourished, filthy, and kept in isolation by her family. Next, he diffuses an angry dispute at a school. An enraged father is threatening the principal for punishing his daughter when he was unable to pay school fees. He goes on a rampage with his son, disappearing into the bush. Soon incidents of vandalism, vehicle theft, and arson are being reported. Some citizens are reporting fraud and embezzlement of their investments and retirement savings from the local bank. A formerly respected businessman has angered people for not meeting his obligations to pay them for goods and services.
Hirsch is being distracted by a lovelorn school teacher who is stalking him.
There is a lot going on: a couple of husbands have gone missing, child neglect, fires, shooting, kidnapping, property damage, and the teacher constantly sending him messages and emojis that make him unwilling to check his phone calls.

On his daily rounds, Hirsch's encounters include criminals, suspects, possible witnesses, victims, and people in need of advice. Often, we are introduced to police officers from other districts. I regret not keeping a chart to identify and recall people in this large cast. I often had to pause to remember the name of someone and their previous role when last encountered. The conclusion weaves together the various threads in a believable solution but I still wanted to know how the outcome affected some of the people in the future.
I am now going to read the first book in the Hirsch series. He is a compassionate, good-hearted police officer.

Thanks to NetGalley for this early read.
Starts out like the everyday life of a police constable based in a tiny town with a far ranging area to cover. But don’t kid yourself, this no Hamish MacBeth. He is as nice and caring as the character in M.C. Beaton’s series but that is where the similarity ends.
The first vignette is a heartbreaking glimpse into the life of a little girl kept in conditions no decent person would leave a dog in. Hirsch takes care of the situation and goes on to the next job. Like he does everything every day. The story moves inexorably, slowly, day by day, until, BAM! Fraud, shootings, murder, theft, vengeance and retribution.
The writing is somewhat stark but beautiful, like the landscape of this country town three hours from Adelaide.
I am hooked and have to go back and read the earlier books in this series and whatever else I can find by this author.
Plus I learned a lot of Australian words and phrases that I never knew before.

Garry Disher has been writing Aussie rural noir since before it was a thing and his books are fantastic. Like Jane Harper or Chris Hammer, the landscape, the climate, the distances all play a key part in his writing. His books are gripping and eventful and they grab you right from the start.

Hirsch mans the station in a one cop South Australian town. His territory is vast: if he is at the scene of a crime and radios for help, he knows he’ll be lucky if someone shows up within an hour. Racing to crime scenes is tricky when you have to navigate corrugated roads and run the risk of getting bogged in streams. He’s a wonderful character, very human, caring, quietly humorous.

There’s no quiet country life for Hirsch. Among other things, he’s dealing with a serial underwear thief, a stalker, an enraged farmer and an abused schoolgirl. There are many disparate threads, which gradually weave together into a smaller number of sub-plots. If I think about how many characters and plots Disher juggles and how seamlessly he does it, I’m in awe. He can build a rounded character with the sparest of descriptions.

This is the third book featuring Hirsch. You don’t have to have read the others, but after reading this you’ll want to. Bitter Wash Road is the first (called Hell to Pay in the US).

I received an ARC from Net Galley.