About this Event
About the book
It's 1889 Brisbane and Dr Hamish Hart and Dr Rita Cartwright attend the inaugural exhibition of the Queensland Arts Society, where they encounter the enigmatic Countess Isabella de la Vega. The evening takes a dark turn when a seemingly insignificant painting disappears from the exhibit. The next morning, the artist behind the missing piece is found dead on the mudflats of Hamilton Reach, prompting Hamish to perform an autopsy.
As Hamish, Rita, and Sergeant James Bellamy delve into their investigation, they uncover the fact that the victim was secretly involved with Carlos Perez, a political fugitive from Spain. The plot thickens when another unexpected and violent death occurs at the exciting new tourist attraction of the Queensport Aquarium.
The trio realizes that Perez is not the only one with hidden secrets. The deceased girl's mother harbours secrets of her own, and Rita's friend Anne-Marie also has mysteries to conceal. Even for the Countess, all is not as it appears. Can Hamish, Rita, and Bellamy unravel the interconnected mysteries of these two murders before the lives of everyone involved begin to unravel?
About the author
Dr Karen Thurecht has a PhD in medical anthropology and specialised in Indigenous Health and Aged Care. Starting her career traipsing through the jungles of Papua New Guinea and the tropics of Australia, Karen has published articles in professional journals in relation to both Indigenous Health and Aged Care and has previously published two non-fiction books, "Good Girls Keep Their Legs Together" a novel based on her PhD research into the Social Barriers to Pap Smear Screening for Cervical Cancer, and "Story and Belief" which explores the ways in which our cultural stories frame and shape our lives.
The pandemic of 2020 effectively stopped Karen from travelling for her work, so she sat down to write the "Dr Hamish Hart Mysteries" set in Southeast Queensland in the 1880s. The series follows the exploits of the young and handsome Dr Hamish Hart and his wilful assistant Dr Rita Cartwright. The first book is set at the Dunwich Benevolent Asylum on Stradbroke Island, the second, on the Sugarcane Fields south of Brisbane, with the third in Frogs Hollow, that notorious red-light district of 19th century Brisbane.
Karen's fourth book travels to The Grand Hotel at Deepwater Point on the Gold Coast while her fifth book kills off the Maryborough blacksmith in the first paragraph. Karen has now finished her sixth book in the "Dr Hamish Hart Mysteries" - "The Body on Hamilton Reach" which has Hamish and Rita returning to the Brisbane waterfront of 1887.
Karen has also completed book one in her exciting new saga, the "Dr Nova Corbin Series" which transports you forward to the near future and introduces Dr Nova Corbin, an anthropologist specializing in the emerging field of artificial intelligence who partners with Detective Inspector Mitchell Gray of the Queensland Police Force to investigate a series of deaths that result from interactions with intelligent machines and biotechnologies and which introduces killer drones directed by A.I. in the "Dark Wings of Justice."
Karen continues the "Dr Hamish Hart Mysteries" with book seven being set at Redwood on Queensland's Darling Downs (due mid 2026) as well as book two in the "Dr Nova Corbin Series" which is well on its way to completion (due late 2026). All Karen's books reflect her experience and interest in social history, the history of medicine, and themes of overcoming oppression. Although the actual murders are fiction, each book is based on accurate historical research on the people, places, and circumstances of those periods in Queensland.
Books will be available for purchase, or bring your copy from home to be signed. Presented as part of the Lord Mayor’s Writers in Residence series.
Event Venue & Nearby Stays
Hamilton Library, 36 Racecourse Road, Hamilton, Australia
AUD 0.00
