The Koneke by Suzanne Singleton reviewed by Ian Clarke

The Koneke begins in 1943 at a run-down pig farm in the township of Te Kauri. Local cop, Will Grayson interviews a reluctant and seemingly hostile Tom Cooper about the disappearance of Joe and Molly Priestley. Despite the case having been thoroughly investigated, the Priestleys’ absence remains shrouded in mystery. The locals are suspicious of the reclusive Tom Cooper and Will’s superiors are pressing him for results.

As we follow Will’s investigation we experience the beauty and the bleakness of rural New Zealand during the forties. The tale unfolds as a murder investigation but the real story lies in its characters and their motives. Differing perspectives reveal Will’s complexities. Uncomfortable memories haunt him and he feels impelled to confess past misdemeanours to his wife. A family secret is uncovered, an anxiety-ridden telephone operator reports her findings and the guilt-ridden local doctor relives his childhood trauma. All achieve layers of interest.

The reader is soon transported into the inner world of the main characters’ minds. Scenes have pathos and provide a strong sense of time and place. Yet the clear imagery and concise style make easy reading as depicted in the following extract.

‘He’d known a tough childhood in that isolated community on the other coast of the North Island. It was a place where wild winds lashed the mud flats and rough tides pounded the black iron-sand. He rode to school on horseback, at first behind his older brother, and then later with him taking the reins and the next child holding on behind. His was a large family of eight children. They grew up with the older ones caring for the younger ones. It was a long journey along the beach and when the tides were lapping the rocky foreshore, they took the alternative route over a hilltop on a narrow clay track. During the summers he and his brothers ran free over the mudflats, the thick sludge squelching between their toes as they searched for crabs. They dropped their net or fishing lines from the wharf, often for hours on end, not returning home until there was a catch for tea.’

Although The Koneke is the author’s first novel, she has previous academic writing to her name and a book of short fiction. A mother, teacher and psychologist, the author is writing about things she knows. From harvest fairs and conversations in a bustling stockyard to a young boy’s efforts to catch a giant eel, every scene is compelling.

If you’d like an insight into rural New Zealand during the war years The Koneke is the book to choose.

Suzanne Singleton’s first book of fiction The Promise, a novella and collection of short stories, was published in 2012 by Oceanbooks Ltd.

The Koneke

Publisher: Oceanbooks Ltd, PO Box 4075, Mount Maunganui South.

RRP: paperback NZ$ 26.95, epub and mobi NZ$ 7.95