One of the region's favourite authors, Margaret Hickey, will launch her new novel at the Wangaratta Library on Thursday, 24 July, with a visit to Mansfield planned in the coming weeks. The acclaimed local writer will discuss her latest chilling rural crime thriller, 'An Ill Wind', at the Docker Street library. The Beechworth-based author of 'Cutter's End', 'Stone Town', 'Broken Bay' and 'The Creeper', has been on tour with her book since late June, visiting Western Australia and New South Wales, and is now on the close-to-home and Victorian leg. Local events include Albury's Booktique store on 23 July, Wangaratta Library on 24 July, Ink Bookstore in Mansfield on 1 August, Beechworth on 7 August and Wodonga on 2 September. The new book explores the tensions and secrets that surface when a massive wind farm is constructed on the outskirts of a small Victorian town. High on a hill above Carrabeen, 300 wind turbines spin relentlessly - except one, now eerily still, with a body hanging from its blade. Detective Sergeants Belinda Burney and Will Lovell are drawn into a complex investigation when the victim is revealed to be Geordie Pritchard, a wealthy local philanthropist and owner of the wind farm. Suicide at first seems the likely explanation, until Geordie's widow Lucinda insists her husband was murdered - and she has the death threats to prove it. Certainly, the wind farm has ripped the rural town in two. Some welcome the jobs and prosperity it brings, others are enraged by the loss of farming land. In short, Pritchard was both saint and sinner. But who in the small community hated him enough to want him dead? As the town reels from the shock, long-standing divisions erupt; some residents embrace the economic boost, while others mourn the loss of farmland and community identity. An award-winning author and playwright, and a dedicated local English teacher and university lecturer, Margaret brings her signature storytelling to this gripping new tale. During her visits she will discuss the inspiration behind 'An Ill Wind', her writing process, and the real-life issues that shape her compelling fiction. The event is free, but bookings are essential, and can be made at https://events.humanitix.com/host/wangaratta-library, or by contacting library staff on 5721 2366. For bookings to the upcoming Mansfield event, contact Ink Bookstore on 5775 1701 or email - inkbookshopmansfield@gmail.com.
