Assigned to Murder

Philippa Barnes, a young West Coast glacier guide, is getting over her parents’ death in a climbing accident, when Kirsten, her journalist friend, is murdered beside a nearby lake. Philippa teams up with Kirsten’s brother Jack to try and find out what Kirsten was investigating, while a diarist tries to understand the emotion behind a betrayal that has poisoned at least one life. Philippa’s search will take her from the secretive people of the lake to the home of High Court judge, Loraine Latimer, a powerful woman who has a strange relationship with her family. Philippa finds that the murder of Kirsten is linked to a decades-old mystery, but not in time to prevent another tragedy. Past and present finally come together in a late-night confrontation at Lake Kaniere when two very different people face the consequences of choices they made many years before. It all comes down to what people mistake for love, and the destructive nature of some friendships. The novel’s characters reflect the contradictions of their environment – where life can thrive, even in the ice, and where things that inspire can kill.

Glacier Murder

What do you do when you need to escape from your life? Vivien Revell didn’t intend to die. She was conflicted and scared but also creative and clever. She should have been able to get away, but years later Philippa discovers her mangled body in a crevasse on the Franz Josef Glacier. It looks like an accident; however, Vivien’s friend Julia is convinced she was murdered and persuades Philippa to investigate. It soon becomes clear that someone is determined to keep Vivien’s story hidden. A brutal murder brings a large police team to the village, and as connections are made with the past, more lives are threatened. In a case where empathy is dangerous, Philippa discovers greater depths in human relationships than she ever imagined possible.

Cold Hard Murder

The darkness felt tangible. Like it was pressing against my blind eyes … We were going to die here. Slowly, slowly. Two people struggle on a ledge high above the surge pool at Punakaiki’s Pancake Rocks. One falls to their death, beginning a sequence of violence as Department of Conservation ranger Matt Grey announces plans for a commercial tourism venture bitterly opposed by the local community. More people die, and it seems their murders are motivated by something more personal than a threat to the integrity of the national park. But the trail is as cold and twisted as some of the park’s most labyrinthine caves. Philippa Barnes is asked to do some unofficial sleuthing, which is not welcomed by the police. She delves into the lives of some strong-willed individuals, many of whom have secrets, uncovering a dark story that resonates with events in her own life. But caught in a desperate struggle deep underground, has she run out of time to stop a determined killer?

A polished Agatha-Christie style whodunnit with good characters in a striking West Coast setting Ngaio Marsh Awards Judges. Cold Hard Murder was long listed for the award in 2016.

Girl of the Mountains

The Hermitage Mt Cook 1946: When the volatile Stella is hired as a mountain guide she vows never to return to a life of domesticity below the snowline. With her mentor Philip and troubled returned soldier Jim she roams the Southern Alps finding freedom in her uncoventional career. But Stella and her friends are powerless to prevent a tragedy which will shatter their lives.

2019: Veteran Wellington journalist Kath walks out of her life leaving behind some puzzling old mountaineering photographs. Her daughters, small-town reporter Robin and alpine guide Helen, learn of a deathbed confession made by their grandmother Sarah decades earlier. But they don't know if it is linked to Kath's disappearance. In searching for their mother, they uncover the twisted story of the ill-fated Stella, Philip and Jim and expose the lie at the heart of their family.

A sensitive portrayal of family relationships while also confronting the expectations society places on women both now and in the past. The mountains, a source of both solace and danger, are hauntingly portrayed as the women strive for freedom, independence and refuge. Paddy Richardson - author of Through the Lonesome Dark

A multi-layered story that skilfully moves between the decades to solve a mystery disappearance in the Southern Alps. This book has everything: great characters, knowledgeable descriptions of alpine guiding and a totally unexpected ending - perfect! Tina Clough - author of The Chinese Proverb