Only Killers and Thieves - Softcover

Howarth, Paul

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1911590057 ISBN 13: 9781911590057

Publisher: ONE, 2019

Synopsis

Book of the Year in The Times

An Amazon.com Best Book of 2018

A gripping and vivid novel . . . remarkable John Boyne

A story of two brothers on a trail of revenge

Queensland, 1885. It is a scorching day in Australia's deserted outback when Tommy McBride and his brother, Billy, return home to discover a devastating tragedy.

Distraught and eager for revenge, the young men set out in search of the perpetrators. They are soon forced to seek help from their ruthless neighbour John Sullivan, and the Queensland Native Police an armed militia infamous for hunting down Indigenous Australians. The retribution that follows will embroil the brothers in a heartbreaking injustice, uniting them in a battle for survival, and forever tearing them apart.

About this title

Review

A TIMES BOOK OF THE YEAR

An Amazon.com Best Book of 2018

Chosen by Nick Rennison as a BBC History Magazine Book of the Year

Chosen by Jon Coates as a Crime Time Magazine Book of the Year



'Superb debut novel' -- Antonia Senior, The Times, Historical Fiction Books of the Year

'Paul Howarth's superb, but harrowing debut... Such is the savage brilliance of Howarth's prose that the reader feels almost complicit in Noone's horrible vision' -- The Times, Book of the Month

'Outstanding debut... a powerful novel of crimes in a bleak landscape' -- Sunday Times

'Paul Howarth impresses with his debut... gripping... Howarth has a real feel for small details of characterisation and setting.. [an] intriguing new writer' -- Observer

A gripping and vivid novel, Paul Howarth brings early Queensland to life so well that you can practically smell the horses' -- John Boyne, author of The Heart's Invisible Furies

'Only Killers and Thieves is a historical novel, but the savagery it depicts is still a matter to be reckoned with in contemporary Australia where the traumas of genocide continue to resonate from generation to generation. This is an impressive debut' -- Tim Winton, author of Cloudstreet

I couldn't put Only Killers and Thieves down. It does what great Westerns do, it drops you inside the ugliness and chaos of Australian frontier life, it educates and horrifies, but also it entertains. Howarth's debut is a powerhouse page turner' -- Willy Vlautin, author of The Free

'Howarth's stunning debut has shades of Cormac McCarthy and Patrick deWitt... a book that grips from the outset and entertains even as it educates us about an appalling part of Australia's history' -- Irish Times

Australia in the 1880s feels like the Wild West in this outstanding debut about the hunt for a family's killers' -- The Times Magazine, 100 Best Books to Read this Summer

'In Only Killers and Thieves - latest in a superb line from the groundbreaking Pushkin Press - Paul Howarth has delivered an instant classic' -- Irish Independent

Hugely impressive, if devastating. Reminiscent of Peter Carey' -- Irish Examiner

'Terrific debut... haunting... vivid' --The Sun

'A powerful and, at times, savage novel that's incredibly compelling, promising great things from Howarth in the future' -- Culturefly, Best Books of 2018

'The writing is by turns savage and poetic, powerful and tender. The landscape of Central Queensland forms the perfect backdrop for a story about depravation, brutality and human folly, with the harsh, barren terrain becoming almost a character in its own right' -- New Books Magazine

'[Exposes] the unique reality of frontier life and little-known aspects of colonial history that have shaped the country' -- Independent, Emerging Authors to Look Out for in 2018

'A gripping novel about conflict in the Australian outback at the turn of the century; beautifully done' -- Paulette Jiles, New York Times Bestselling Author of News of the World

'Only Killers and Thieves is a story of brooding danger, family bonds, and the choices two brothers make in becoming men. A sparse and lyrical Western that manages to illuminate one of Australia's darkest periods' -- Emma Viskic, author of Resurrection Bay

The narrative crackles with dramatic tension and an atmosphere of fear and dread. Howarth seduces us with his gripping story and empathetic characters while making us look unflinchingly at the casual brutality and entrenched racism of the Australian frontier' -- Julian Leatherdale, bestselling author of Palace of Tears and The Opal Dragonfly

'An astounding debut' -- Nudge Books

Beautifully crafted... a quality of painful realism that is found in the best westerns' -- Pendora Magazine

'A spellbinding story that holds the attention of the reader by the compelling flow of narrative throughout' -- ON Magazine

Howarth manages to infuse the old tropes with a depth of emotion and moral complication that will stay with readers long after closing the book' -- BookPage

'A tale of savagery and race, injustice and honour' -- Bookblast, Top Ten Reads for Independent Minds

Howarth is skilled at taking the old forms of the Western... and reshaping them to address contemporary concerns' -- Washington Post

'An impressive debut . . . deals unflinchingly with the brutality of Australian rule. But the heart of the story is the complicated relationship between the brothers . . . While this book has a historical point to make, it also works as a suspenseful mystery and a resonant bildungsroman' --Kirkus

'Brutal and beautiful' -- Shelf Awareness

'A powerful debut. Paul Howarth brings early Australia to life, bloody warts and all, in an epic tale of murder, revenge, and colonial oppression, with very little room for redemption. The story and his words will stay with you long after you have finished the book' -- New York Journal of Books

'Everywhere alive with vivid evocations of a landscape as punishing as it is beautiful and vibrant characters who would be just as at home in Blood Meridian or Butcher's Crossing, Only Killers and Thieves compels and convinces from the start. This is a thrilling book and Paul Howarth a writer of tremendous talent' -- Laird Hunt, author of Neverhome'Powerful debut... the novel feels like a modern Western along the lines of Cormac McCarthy's All the Pretty Horses. Howarth's narrative is almost cinematic... U.S. readers will make the connection with our country's oppression of Native Americans and gain an understanding of the fundamental racism of both former British colonies... Howarth is a novelist to watch' -- Library Journal (starred review)

'A quest for frontier justice drives the events of Howarth's devastating and impressive debut, set in the Australian outback in 1885' -- Publishers Weekly

'Rarely have I read such a powerful account... a compelling read' -- Never Imitate (blog)

'A stunning novel, lean yet grand in scale, violent and deeply touching at the same time' -- Thriller Books Journal

'An important piece of fiction, brilliantly written with plenty of compassion and understanding. Highly recommended' -- Steph's Book Blog

'A Western of grit and grace... at once epic and intimate... a harshly beautiful debut novel by one hell of a promising author' Hits the Fan (blog)

'The structure, the characters, the emotional aspects were so strong that I felt everything as if I was there. In short, it was like a punch to the gut' --Umut Reviews (blog)

About the Author

Paul Howarth is a British-Australian author and former lawyer. He holds a master's degree from the University of East Anglia's creative writing program, where he was awarded the Malcolm Bradbury Scholarship, and currently lives in Norwich with his family. Only Killers and Thieves is his first novel.

About this edition

• Publisher: ONE
• Publication date: 2019
• ISBN 10: 1911590057
• ISBN 13: 9781911590057
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 416