I would like to thank Netgalley and Echo Publishing for an advance copy of The Beacon, a stand-alone set in Byron Bay, New South Wales.

Jack Harris, son of publishing magnate Malcolm, is suddenly demoted from his executive position with the company and sent to Byron Bay to work as a journalist. He arrives at The Beacon’s premises to find the editor, Patrick O’Shaughnessy missing, presumed attacked by a shark while surfing. Jack isn’t so sure when he realises that Patrick was working on a big exposé. He works with Patrick’s daughter, Caitlin, to find both a murderer and the exposé.

I thoroughly enjoyed The Beacon, which is a fun read with plenty of action and some good twists. It held my attention throughout, mostly because, I think, it offers plenty of opportunity for speculation and not a lot of answers until the final chapters. I just wanted to know what was going on.

The novel is told mostly from Jack’s point of view with others contributing as and when required. There is no contribution from the bad guys, so no hint as to what they want or what they’re up to or even who they are. With the reader’s attention on Jack’s investigation and misadventures it makes for an immersive read. The investigation builds slowly as Jack and Caitlin look for Patrick’s research, but that’s doesn’t make the novel slow as Jack seems like a trouble magnet. If he’s not tangling with the local police he’s having some awkward encounters with the locals, losing his job or getting arrested. There is a sense of powerful forces at work and a great sense of satisfaction when they are beaten.

Jack is a fun guy. He comes from wealth, which has cushioned him from some parts of life and he can be naive. He is also smart and does most of the thinking on the investigation. His encounters with the murder detectives are funny as he runs rings round them. Caitlin is the stroppy one. She’s feisty even without her grief, but there are reasons for it unfortunately.

The Beacon is a fun read that I have no hesitation in recommending.

For most, Byron Bay is the place to go to relax, take it easy and unhitch from the hustle and bustle of the real world. It’s the holiday destination of just about the rest of the world, so when Mark Harris finds himself demoted from his executive job in Melbourne by his father and sent to the town, he could hardly predict the mystery he was walking into. But that’s where he finds himself in The Beacon, the debut thriller by Byron local P.A. Thomas. This mystery captures the essence of Byron and its surrounds while also delivering an intriguing investigation featuring some very interesting characters.

Mark has been demoted to work at The Beacon, the local newspaper in Byron Bay and he’s supposed to report to Patrick O’Shaughnessy. But when he arrives at the office, there’s no Patrick to be found and his daughter, Caitlin, is holding down the fort but is mighty pissed about her derelict dad.

But there’s a good reason for Patrick’s no-show at the office. First, his surfboard is found floating in the ocean and later, his body makes an appearance, also floating in the ocean. Both board and body appeared to have been savaged by a shark.

It’s the worst possible news, but when Caitlin confides to Mark that her father had been acting jumpy lately, working on a story he was certain would land him a Walkley award and that he’d recently taken out life insurance he becomes a little alarmed. Then, upon seeing the surfboard and O’Shaughnessy’s body, there are aspects that don’t add up to a shark attack.

From a few small glimmers of misgivings on the part of Caitlin and Mark grows quite the convoluted web of deceit, misappropriated money and misuse of power. But, of course, it’s also mostly about the money and when a great deal of money’s involved thrown around by people with a helluva lot of power, the result is the people doing the uncovering are suddenly at risk.

Mark takes up his role as investigative reporter with aplomb and chooses to poke a few people to see if he can ruffle some feathers. He’s hardly prepared for the scale of the reaction he gets, or the direction from which it comes. The problem is, of course, if Patrick was murdered there’s no telling the lengths people will go to protect their secret. HOwever, we soon get a pretty clear idea.

The Beacon is a solid thriller that unfolds in a neat, linear fashion. The focus remains primarily on Jack as he follows a logical path with his investigation. Consequently, we know as much as he does when it comes to who the bad guys are and who he feels he can trust. This double-edged sword means that we’re kept in the dark for a large proportion of the operation but it definitely helps to build the intrigue and sharpens up the tension levels.

I was consistently entertained throughout the story and enjoyed the developing relationship between Mark and Caitlin, as awkward as it was at times. The infrequent appearances of Ricky, Mark’s former school friend with gangland connections, are a highlight and manages to inject a spark into every scene he inhabits. There’s a lot of truth to the exhortation that ‘everyone needs a Ricky’.

The inspirational setting of Byron Bay, the fear-inducing possible shark attack and the looming shapeless menace of shapeless figures combine to make this a tightly plotted, multi-dimensioned thriller.

My thanks to Bonnier Echo via NetGalley for providing me with a digital ARC that allowed me to read, enjoy and review this book.

Impressive Australian thriller set in of Byron Bay!

Jack Harris, son to Media Magnate Malcolm (ring any bells? Can’t help but see a sly reference to a real Australian Media Magnate) has been sent back to the town he grew up in to work on his father’s first newspaper, The Beacon. His father’s decided Jack needs to learn to be a journalist from the ground up, with one of the best, Patrick O’Shaughnessy. Up until now Jack’s been in Melbourne helping his father run his business conglomerate. Jack had been running the Harris Media portfolio. He’d also tentatively voiced opinions about ethical journalism. Now here he’s back in Byron Bay about to work in a regional newspaper as the lowest ranking hack. (Byron Bay is the easternmost point on the Australian coastline. Another interesting fact, the lighthouse is the most powerful in Australia!)
What Jack doesn’t count on is Patrick being found dead, mauled by a great white shark. Except there’s something off about Patrick’s surfboard that Jack can’t quite figure out.
What he does find out is that the Walkley Award journalist Patrick had been working on something big, explosive! Patrick’s computer is missing, replaced by another. His house has been searched.
Jack finds himself joining forces with Patrick’s daughter Caitlin. It becomes clear that someone wants Jack to stop his investigation about Patrick’s death and what he was working on.
Tight writing, the build up of intrigue, the setting in one of Australia’s best known and loved 70’s hippie/surfing spots, all combine for a winning read!

An Echo ARC via NetGalley.
Many thanks to the author and publisher.
(Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.)

I really enjoyed this book. It was different than anything else I've read recently. I couldn't put it down! I will keep an eye out for this author's future work!