After the Flood by Dave Warner

Publisher's Synopsis

A violent death by crucifixion near a remote north-west station has Detective Inspector Dan Clement and his Broome police officers disturbed and baffled. Other local incidents – the theft of explosives from a Halls Creek mine site, social justice protests at an abattoir, a break-in at a childhealth care clinic – seem mundane by comparison. But as Clement starts to make troubling connections between each crime, he finds himself caught in a terrifying race. In a landmass larger than Western Europe, he must identify and protect an unknown target before it is blown to bits by an invisible enemy.

My Review of After the Flood by Dave Warner

After The Flood is the 4th book in the series featuring Detective Dan Clement and it continues what is proving to be an extremely strong rural-based police procedural series. Although part of an established series it’s definitely possible to pick it up as a stand-alone novel and enjoy it in its entirety.

Set in the northwest coastal town of Broome in WA, a small but highly capable police force is kept busy with what is usually a routine and somewhat mundane series of crimes and incidents. Keeping the peace during a right to life protest at the local abattoir, following up on a break in at the early childhood clinic where vials of vaccine were destroyed and theft of ammonium nitrate and a booster at a nearby mine are all part of the day to day job.

Things become rather more serious when the body of a man is found at a remote cattle station. He had been staked out on the ground as if crucified and then run over repeatedly. Clearly a very personal murder and one that demands the attention of the entire police staff.

Who is this man? What was he doing in such a remote location? And why would be be killed in such an unusual way?

As the investigation progresses it starts to become apparent that the recent mini crime spree may all be connected. And there is a likelihood that it’s all potentially leading to a much larger crime.

Readers who really appreciate the ins and outs of good, solid police investigation where working small, seemingly isolated clues and putting them together to build the larger picture will appreciate the work done here. There are elements of environmental activism, terrorism and personal revenge at play here, all of which have great relevance in recent times.

Once again, Dave Warner has done a superb job of capturing the intricacies and the dynamics at play in small-town policing. From the more humorous side involving the petty jealousy over who is getting the perceived plum roles to the family drama surrounding the disappearance of the son of one of the cops. Chuck Clement’s uncomfortable moments of reflection on his own loneliness in for good measure and we get a well rounded picture of the main characters. All of this takes place without interrupting the flow of the investigation which moves slowly but smoothly along its investigatory path.

As with the earlier books in the series,  the harsh, remote but beautiful landscape plays a big role in setting the mood of the book. It is brought to life in vivid detail making it an uncompromising element to be admired and respected. It also becomes an important part of the overall investigation.

With a well constructed plot, fully developed characters and a subtle injection of humour throughout, After the Flood proves to be a high quality addition to the series and adds to the strength of Australian crime literature.

Surely…surely this is the type of series that should be picked up and developed into a television series a la Peter Temple’s Jack Irish or Shane Maloney’s Murray Whelan. Shouldn’t it?

Note that I’m calling this the 4th Dan Clement book. The first, City of Light, features a Perth detective constable named Snowy Lane but he calls in the help of fellow police officer, Dan Clement to play a small but crucial role.