Mystery Annotation: The Dry

Harper, Jane. (2017). The Dry. New York: Flatiron Books.

Synopsis

Days after a childhood friend named Luke killed himself and his family in a horrific murder/suicide, Aaron Falk receives a letter in the mail that simply says: “Luke lied. You lied. Be at the funeral.” Aaron returns home to the small Australian town of Kiewarra for the first time since the drowning death of a young girl over twenty years ago – a death that most people in the town think Aaron committed. The only reason he wasn’t charged was an alibi provided by his friend Luke, an alibi that was a lie. Aaron’s plan is to leave town as soon as the funeral is over, but before he knows it he finds himself joining forces with the local sheriff to figure out if there is more to Luke’s death than meets the eye. Flashbacks tell the story of the original murder, too, and readers will be completely engrossed as the truth is revealed in the two crimes. The Dry is a gripping and thoroughly enjoyable page-turner that will have you guessing until the very end.

Mystery Characteristics

* In the opening paragraph of the mysteries section in The Readers’ Advisory Guide to Genre Fiction, Joyce Saricks writes that “mysteries are a puzzle” and that “we, along with the detective, are drawn into the puzzle in an attempt to solve it” (Saricks, 145). That describes The Dry to a tee. Aaron Falk is drawn into this puzzle and almost feels compelled to solve it for Luke, for Luke’s family, for himself, and for the city of Kiewarra.

* A crime, usually a murder, has been committed. (Luke and his family were murdered. Twenty years ago, Ellie was murdered.)

* An investigator (or investigative team) attempts to discover who committed the crime. (Aaron, a federal agent with the financial investigative unit, teams up with Raco, the local sheriff.)

* Secondary characters, whether suspects or supporting characters in the investigation, play an important role in the appeal of the mystery. (There are so many great characters in The Dry, and Harper does an excellent job giving you just enough information to make you plausibly suspect that they could have committed either of the murders.)

* The investigator(s) follows clues, working to solve the puzzle. (It’s a lot of fun to watch the pieces fall together. Some clues are dead ends and others aren’t what they initially appear to be.)

* Order is restored, but justice does not always result. (I feel like I answer this one I might be giving too much away!)

* The frame in which the mystery is set plays a crucial role in the appeal of the mystery. (Keiwarra is a small town in the Australian outback that has been plagued by drought. That plays a large role in the book and Harper’s description of the barren landscape turns the setting almost into a character.)

* Mysteries are often written as series. (Harper has already announced that her next book will again feature Aaron Falk though it will be in a different setting.)

Appeal Terms

Character: Authentic

Storyline: Fast-paced

Tone: Atmospheric

Writing Style: Compelling, Richly Detailed

Readalikes

The Cuckoo’s Calling – Robert Galbraith (JK Rowling)

Crucifixion Creek – Barry Maitland

The Black Box – Michael Connelly

A Great Reckoning – Louise Penny

The Broken Shore – Peter Temple

Personal Notes

* The Dry was the book choice for the book club I visited in February.

* Harper was a business writer for the Herald Sun newspaper in Melbourne. She wrote The Dry as part of an online novel-writing class put on by a literary agency in Australia. The book was independently published to wide acclaim in 2015 before being gobbled up by Flatiron Books later that year.

* Reese Witherspoon’s production company purchased the film rights to The Dry shortly after Flatiron bought the publication rights.