The Campers
By (Author) Maryrose Cuskelly
Allen & Unwin
Allen & Unwin
4th February 2025
Australia
Paperback
336
Width 153mm, Height 234mm
364g
Leah has a good life. She lives on The Drove, an inner-city cul-de-sac, with her husband Moses and their two children. She and her neighbours - the drovers - look out for each other. Theirs is a safe, community-oriented enclave and that's the way it's going to stay.
When itinerants set up camp in 'their' park, some of the drovers are unsettled, some are outraged, and all of them want the campers to move on. Not even Sholto, the campers' charismatic leader, can put their fears to rest.
Why is Sholto - handsome, charming and apparently with other options - living in a tent, and why has he chosen to pitch it beside The Drove And why is Leah tempted to put her family and her comfortable life at risk when Sholto turns his wolf-like gaze towards her
A compelling and revealing novel, The Campers shows what neighbours will do when threats of the unknown and unmanageable come too close for comfort.
Praise for The Cane:
'An evocatively written, atmospheric novel of landscape and rural life...The Cane is perfect for fans of taut outback mysteries.' Books + Publishing
'A fine, brave, perceptive writer.' Mark Dapin, journalist and author of Public Enemies
'A stunning piece of Australian rural noir.' Mark Brandi, bestselling author of Wimmera and The Rip
Maryrose Cuskelly is the best-selling author of The Cane, shortlisted for best crime fiction debut in the 2022 Davitt Awards.
Her bookWedderburn: A True Tale of Blood and Dust,was longlisted for Best Debut and Best True Crime in the 2019 Davitt Awards and in 2016, she was awarded the New England Thunderbolt Prize for Crime Writing for her essay on the 1972 abduction and murder of MarilynWallman.
Maryrose's other works includeOriginal Skin: Exploring the Marvels of the Human HideandThe End of Charity: Time for SocialEnterprise co-written with Nic Frances. The latter won the winner oftheIremonger Award for Writing on Public Issues.
She has twice been awarded fellowships at Varuna, the National Writers' House, most recently in 2020 for her novel The Campers.