FATAL ENVY by Linda Dowling
Published May 15, 2023
399 pages, available from Amazon
$47.59 paperback or $9.99 on Kindle
Fatal Envy is the third and final book of author Dowling’s Red Dust Trilogy featuring Australian outback romance, history, love, grief, joy and envy, focused on two families interlaced with all of the above, and addresses issues that confront racism, violence, sexual awakenings, missing persons, murder, to Indigenous Dreamtime stories. The first few chapters introduce us to Jesse and Jedda, the newest generation of one of those families, on the day of their birth – a great way to start this new book. It’s 1975 and our heroine and new mother, Lisa O’Connor (now Garrett) is finally escaping the memories of the horror and sadness of her earlier life. She’s married to Aboriginal jackaroo (cowboy) Billy Garrett and with the birth of their twins, she seems set to chart her life’s course in a more calm and secure setting. But there is heartbreak and tragedy ahead as the young Garrett family collides with an evil and vengeful individual set to inflict revenge on Lisa’s uncle and her husband. For those of you who have read the first two novels, you will understand Lisa’s fear and rage as she starts this next chapter of her life. Dowling exhibits great empathy with her characters, finding humanity in even the darkest of them, and this allows her to write from multiple perspectives with sensitivity and passion.
Linda Dowling has won numerous awards for her first two novels in the Red Dust series and scoring #1 on the Australian best sellers list for her debut novel, Splintered Heart. During her childhood, she spent most of her time in rural areas of New South Wales, and has continued to enjoy life in the bush or in areas with natural surrounds. Her aunt, a talented horsewoman, taught her a great deal about horses, riding and the outback. In her professional life, Linda has been involved in reporting on coronial matters and inquests, working with the NSW Police State Crime Command Centre and in various Royal Commissions where she was exposed to the worst of human nature. Linda has drawn upon her professional and personal experiences while writing her Red Dust novel series, but the stories are works of fiction and do not depict any person, living or dead.
You can follow the books and Linda via: www.facebook.com/reddustnovels
And you can learn about Linda and all three books via her publishing service: www.theeruditepen.com/authors/linda-dowling
Reviewed by Glenda Fordham
for The Rider.