Reviews

“Absolutely fantastic.”

The Examiner Newspaper, Launceston

“Freycinet will keep you guessing to the end with its quirky, mysterious characters and stunning poetry narrative of the Tasmanian landscape. If you have visited Tasmania before, you’ll relate to Calvert’s eloquent descriptions, and if you haven’t, you’ll want to, and be enveloped in its mesmerising beauty, as Ginny is throughout the story. Freycinet is a worthy beach holiday– or bush cabin holiday – read, if you dare.” HerCanberra

“Freycinet effectively presents Tasmania as a place of beauty, but also one of mystery and murder; an enigmatic living museum with a history of harsh cruelty, and a strange Gothic potency.” TasmanianTimes.com

“Melanie Calvert has a way with colours! Where I might describe a colour as blue or green, Melanie has a myriad of creative contrasts to interchange. Many scenes have been painted from a palette of colours that I’ve never experienced, and it left me wanting to see them. The Freycinet novel might be a murder mystery, but I can only imagine it will entice people to visit Tasmania, rather than scare them off.” Think Tasmania

“She has an evocative style of writing, where every smell, sight and touch is deftly captured in paragraphs of colourful description. As she innocuously drops nuggets of information and peppers each chapter with a different recollection of Ginny’s past, readers are drawn further into the tangled web that connects Ginny, Julian and the two missing girls.” ArtsHub

“The novel, a thriller, is rich in lyrical yet ominous descriptions of the landscape. This is not exactly the place Tourism Tasmania is promoting in the ‘Australian Magazine’.” Carmel Bird, author of The Bluebird Cafe, carmelbird.blogspot

5 out of 5 stars
Hauntingly Beautiful, Grippingly Suspenseful
By K. McCulloch “www.kayoz.com” (Australia)
I found this book hauntingly beautiful. The line in the book description about it being the “site of the thin, tenuous, shimmery line that separates memory and forgetting, permanence and transience, sanity and insanity” is a perfect description. It is also a gripping mystery that will keep you guessing – and reading – until the end. And the atmosphere of the book will stay with you after you put it down. Can’t wait to read Ms Calvert’s next book!

5 out of 5 stars
Exquisitely crafted
By Kirrilee
This book captures the essence of Tasmania in a way that very few other Tasmanian novels have. It is eerie, suspenseful and, ultimately, disturbing in its exploration of an environment that can be cruelly unforgiving. Not your usual murder mystery!

5 out of 5 stars
Great Read
By elizabeth
LOVED this book. Lived on the East Coast of Tassie for the last 20 odd years or so, before moving to Hobart, so I know the area quite well. Very un-put-downable book!!! Loved the way the characters developed, the pace of the book, and the unexpected twist at the end. The author has captured the heart and soul of the Freycinet area most perfectly, using the right words, mood, and colours to let your imagination take you right to the heart of that magnificent area of Tasmania. I cannot wait to read her next novel!!! Thank you for a fantastic read!!!

4 out of 5 stars
What a great read
By Perth WA
Set in Tasmania, this murder mystery is a must read. The plot twists and turns delightfully and while you may suspect who the murderer is, you are never quite sure until the end.

4 out of 5 stars
First time murder mystery reader
By Isobel
As a first time murder mystery reader, I think this book is great! The descriptions of Tasmania and the characters were amazing, beautifully written, and I could fully immerse myself in the world that was being created around me. It made for a great read for a trip through Tassie I happened to be on, and may just have me hooked on murder mysteries now!

5 out of 5 stars
Freycinet
By Luciana Carter (Australia)
Great and enjoyable reading. Very well done describing the Tassie scenery. It is definitely a page turner. I’m very happy with the purchase. Thank you!

5 out of 5 stars
Freycinet
By Rbeswick
This book is very well written and very descriptive of the location and the island of Tasmania. When I started reading Freycinet I found it very hard to put the book down and I had to keep reading it to the end. The unexpected twist and turns throughout the book had me hooked. Extremely well written Melanie Calvert and I look forward to her next book. Thoroughly recommended to readers.

5 out of 5 stars
Thrilling!
By Maur
Thriller – loved the twist at the end. The location was described so well I could see the colours of the sea, sand, mountains and the bush. Excellent book, I would recommend it to anyone who loves a thriller.

5 out of 5 stars
A real page turner
By Vicki B
I started reading this book on Sunday driving back from Launceston and could not put it down. The story setting was so true to the area that I could see in my mind the white sand and the rugged outline that is the coast of Freycinet. The story was suspenseful, which made you want to continue reading until the very end.

4 out of 5 stars
Excellent read!
By Luz
Enjoyed the thrill and the unexpected twist. Excellent! Made me feel like I’m in Freycinet, the description of the surroundings is simple yet effective. Love it!

“When I started reading Freycinet I found it very hard to put the book down and I had to keep reading it to the end. ” Rbeswick | 3 reviewers made a similar statement

“Loved the way the characters developed, the pace of the book, and the unexpected twist at the end. ” elizabeth | 2 reviewers made a similar statement

“The location was described so well I could see the colours of the sea, sand, mountains and the bush. ” Maur | 1 reviewer made a similar statement