The lovely town of Red Creek, located in Australia’s beautiful wine country, is stunned when a young woman is found brutally murdered in her beautiful home. It appeared from the murder scene that the murderer had easy access to the house. Even though her husband had an alibi, Detective Rose Riley launched a full-scale investigation with her partner, Priya Patel, and crime reporter Adam Bowman, who used his experience in crime reporting to help them seek different leads.
Adam Bowman came across the recent reports of the unsolved murders of two single women in another area of Australia. When Priya and Rose learned that the forensic evidence was similar to the Red Creek case, they began to fear this was the work of a serial killer. It appeared that the murders were not random, and the same killer was targeting the women.
Rose and Priya find that their work is cut out for them. Everyone in the small town is suddenly under suspicion, and time is of the essence. They must stop the killer before another murder occurs.

Another great Australian crime fiction story from former journalist Matthew Spencer!

This is the second book in the DS Rose Riley series, this time set in winemaking country of the Hunter Valley.

Homicide Detective Sergeant Rose Riley grew up in the valley and is now investigating the suspected murder of a local woman, alongside her partner Priya Patel. Soon enough crime reporter Adam Bowman also becomes ingratiated in the high-stakes investigation. Forensic evidence links other unsolved murders, and it becomes apparent that women are being chosen and targeted. Will Rose and Priya identify the serial killer, before another woman is murdered?

I enjoyed the police procedural elements, the atmospheric setting of Red Creek and the variety of possible suspects.

With thanks to Thomas & Mercer, Matthew Spencer and NetGalley for this e-ARC, to read and review.

Give this one a read if you like crime thrillers!

I liked this new to me author. He wrote a well crafted engaging plot and loved the setting . Overall was a good quick read
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for letting me review book

I very much enjoyed Broke Road by Matthew Spencer though must confess I remembered little detail from the first book of the series, Black River, published in 2022. I really liked our lead, Rose Riley—a roaming homicide squad detective—here partnered with Priya Patel and investigating the murder of a woman in a small community outside of Sydney. I did remember Adam Bowman quite well, who described himself [in the first book] as a mediocre journalist whose career was going nowhere fast. The case in Black River was quite personal as it took him back to his hometown where his brother had died and family fallen apart years earlier. When he reappears here he's found some fame and fortune from a true crime book based on Riley's investigation.

I really like the way Spencer unpicks the crime here, and he's able to pull readers into the investigation itself. Naturally the victim's husband is the key suspect despite an alibi... until Riley finds links to a similar murder and contacts those detectives, piecing the cases' connections together.

Spencer again throws in local flavour - which he did in Black River as well, giving us a sense of 'place'. Here we're in wine country so the community of Red Creek (near Cessnock) grows on weekends and during tourist seasons but is also rife with development thrown into the mix with old farming families. 

Of course when Bowman knows that Riley and Patel are on the case, he requests the story (now able to pick and choose what he covers) and easily ingratiates himself with the locals. Spencer brings those characters to life through Bowman's interactions with them, putting us there in the thick of things, and gathering intel and gossip he shares with Riley and Patel.

This is another great read from Spencer and I appreciated that he balances the unfolding investigations with the characters' own personal evolutions. And of course there's still a sense that something could develop between Riley and the Bowman but they're not quite there yet.

I wish I would have read the first one, but I followed the story just fine without reading it. I really liked the characters and how they were written he also did a good job depicting Australia. The story was engaging and was able to hold my attention and kept me guessing.

A young woman is found dead in her isolated town house in rural Red Creek, an up and coming wine tourism destination in the Hunter Valley. Her husband was away and there was no forced entry. Detective Rose Riley is called to investigate, along with her partner, Priya Patel. Journalist, Adam Bowman, follows his own leads and together they join forces, identifying similar cases and a potential serial killer on the loose.

This one began with a few potential suspects and that just grew as the novel went on. The author paints a clear picture of the surroundings and characters that really draw you into his novels, along with the mystery and intrigue he creates. This was the author's second novel and while this is the second in a series, I think you could easily read it as a stand alone. It was another one I really enjoyed.

Matthew Spencer's Broke Road is another compelling addition to the crime fiction genre - I did quite like Black River. Matthew is able to immerse readers in the atmospheric setting (this time it's of Australia's wine country). The narrative follows homicide detective Rose Riley as she investigates the murder of a young woman in the rural town of Red Creek. The victim's husbanda presents an alibi that raises more questions than answers which prompts Riley to delve deeper into the community's secrets.

The character development is noteworthy, with Detective Riley emerging as a determined and insightful protagonist. Her collaboration with partner Priya Patel and crime reporter Adam Bowman (love that Adam is back again!) adds some depth to the investigative process which highlights the complexities of uncovering truths in a close knit community.

Definitely a must read for enthusiasts of Aussie crime thrillers. Matthew Spencer is a great Aussie crime noir author.

Thanks Netgalley for the early copy to read and review!

It's so rare to find a sophomore book that's better than the first but Broke Road by Matthew Spencer is such a find.

The follow up to Black River finds Rose Riley two years later working a new murder case in a remote, rural area of Australia's wine country. Frankly, I didn't know Australia had a wine country but apparently they do. Joining Riley again is Priya Patel and Adam Bowman, a trio who has formed a close, working relationship over the past few years. This case will solidify that bond and also confirm the reader's interest in this group.

I wasn't completely sold on this series after reading Black River but after Broke Road I'm already anxious to read the next book Spencer writes. These are slow moving, very character driven plots that delve deeply into the lives of the suspects and the cops involved. I like knowing this much about those I'm reading about; I feel like I'm personally acquainted with them by the end. This is what makes me come back for more and Spencer does this very well.

If you haven't read Black River, I suggest you do read it first although it's not absolutely necessary. This is a terrific series to follow and it's still at the beginning stages. Enjoy!

"She was on the fringes now, thin armies of eucalypts in the headlights, the odd fibro settlement scattered on either side of the road." Broke Road is beautifully written crime novel aimed at an Australian audience... well maybe except those who live in Cessnock: "Cesspit, Methnock—he'd know all the Nock-nock jokes." It's skillfully crafted, so I cooed over the descriptive writing, non-clunky dialogue (and dry Australian wit), and the way Matthew Spencer can connect to the first book of the Rose Riley series, Black River without making it tiresome for a reader who starts at this book.

Broke Road has a strong start and a fast-paced ending, but the story felt a little flabby in the middle. I did however enjoy reading it, particularly the class divide between wine people and the Cessnock locals, which you can feel when you visit the area in question: "'No one from Cessnock would ever come here.' 'Why not?' 'Too far—you know, metaphorically. Wine country, that's for top-shelf dickheads. That's for Sydney." I think for a local reader, particularly a Sydneysider who descends on the Hunter region for weddings, weekends away wine tasting, and music in the vineyards, this is going to appeal, as it holds up a mirror to us showing us how we behave and are perceived by the locals: "We renovated a couple of years back for the wine tourists. There are things they expect." Warning: Spencer ain't too fond of food influencers who photograph their food either.

You definitely get a strong sense of place from this novel, that places it firmly into upper echelon of Aussie noir for me, even if the crime itself wasn't quite as compelling as the one Spencer conjured up for Black River.

Thank you Netgalley and Thomas & Mercer for this eARC!
This is a very interesting thriller that was based in Australia which is refreshing. This is a pulsing thriller with loads of drinking and a captivating start. Somehow, I kinda lost interest in the middle and then it came up with an adrenaline-packed ending!

Broke Road by Matthew Spencer is an intriguing, page-turning thriller set in South Australia. I really enjoyed this police procedural with strong character development and I think it would be great for fans of Jane Harper and Deborah Crombie. Spencer imbues the novel with a strong sense of place and keeps you guessing until the final pages. I really enjoyed it and am looking forward to reading more from him. Thank you to Thomas and Mercer and NetGalley for the advanced reader copy!

An absolutely terrific police procedural set in areas around Sydney that aren't often featured in fiction. The narrative is deeply steeped in everyday Australian life, including its language, and therein lies my only reservation about the book.

For better or worse, American readers are by far the largest audience for English-language fiction. In my own experience as an America formerly resident in Australia, Americans have next to no interest in Australia and are completely unfamiliar with the common vernacular of Australian conversation. I do wonder if the reach of this book is going to be limited by the extent to which much of the language of the narrative really is terribly local. I lived in Australia for more than a decade, and there were expressions and explanations here and there that even I had to try to puzzle out from the context. Do you know what 'tradies' are, or what 'Macca's' means? If you don't, you'll miss plot points and occasionally wonder what the author is talking about.

If that does limit this novel's reach, that's a shame. It's a fine piece of crime fiction and deserves wide readership.

Atmospheric, somewhat brooding murder investigation - middle of nowhere Australia gives a dark and interesting setting that really sucks you in, with a solid cast of diligent investigators and varied suspects.

I really enjoyed Detective Rose Riley as a character in Broke Road—she brought a sense of depth and authenticity to the story. However, despite this, the book as a whole just wasn’t for me. While I can appreciate the writing and the effort put into the narrative, the overall story didn’t quite resonate with me. That said, readers who appreciate police procedurals and novels centered around solving serial killer crimes will likely enjoy this much more. It’s definitely a matter of personal preference, but unfortunately, this one didn’t capture my attention as much as I hoped it would.

What an exciting read ... A great story that kept me up all night. The well thought out twists and turns bring this novel together brilliantly and lead to a surprising finale. Broke Road, set in the Hunter Valley wine fields, is a highly recommended thriller that is more than worthy of five stars.

I received a copy of this novel from the publisher via NetGalley.

3.5* rounded up.

I don't remember much about the first in this series now, but I do recall that Adam the journalist was personally involved in the mystery in some way. Here he seemed pretty superfluous - the book could have been written solely from the perspective of the detective Rose (and it might have felt more streamlined then too).

Rose and her colleague Priya are sent to investigate the murder of a woman in her own home and are accommodated in a weird sort of self-serve motel called the Quirk. Adam decides to join in the fun, but stays at the local pub. All the characters drink beer and wine like there's no tomorrow (to be fair this is set in wine country), but I was appalled by the way Adam drinks the best part of two bottles of wine and then drives back to the pub. On the way he is pulled over and charged with a DUI and the focus of the book is on who alerted the local police to the fact that he was over the limit, rather than how criminally dangerous and selfish he was being. He expresses no remorse (only regret at having been caught) and Rose and Priya seem to feel only sympathy for him.

This had an interesting beginning and a good ending, but sagged a bit in the middle.

3.5 stars

A solid Australian murder mystery, this one was hard to put down and had some interesting plot twists. I like Riley and enjoyed her relationships with Priya and Bowman.

Thank you to netgalley for the ARC.

Broke Road by Matthew Spencer, published by Thomas & Mercer, is the second book in the Rose Riley Series. The previous book is Black River.
For best reading experience I recommend to read the books in order.
Broke Road is Detective Rose Riley's next case.
Set in Australia, written with great love to detail, this story gives all the feels. I enjoyed reading this book, 4.5 stars.

Taut, intelligent, and layered with tension, Broke Road delivers a gripping murder investigation set against the backdrop of Australia’s wine country. While this is the second book in Matthew Spencer’s series, I read it as a standalone and had no trouble immersing myself in its world.

Detective Rose Riley is a compelling lead—sharp, determined, and unafraid to question the narrative unfolding around her. When a woman is found dead in the seemingly idyllic town of Red Creek, Riley and her team are quick to suspect those closest to the victim. But as they uncover chilling links to other unsolved murders, the case takes on a far more sinister scope. The tension builds steadily as Riley pieces together the threads of a calculated killer’s pattern, all while navigating the pressures of a small town on edge and a media circus hungry for scandal.

Spencer’s writing is crisp and evocative, bringing the Australian setting to life in a way that adds both charm and menace. The investigative detail is meticulous without slowing the pace, and the interplay between Riley, her partner Priya Patel, and crime reporter Adam Bowman adds depth to the storytelling. The mystery itself is layered with red herrings and sharp twists, leading to a payoff that feels both surprising and inevitable.