Stuart Black

THE SIGNATORY is a thriller set in and around an Australian advertising agency, leaving this reviewer wondering if there's an argument that crime fiction set in the corporate / business world is under-represented. On the face of it, perhaps an unlikely setting, but then again, there are more than reasons to think that there's villainy in day to day business, even if its not strictly illegal.

The story of THE SIGNATORY revolves around Sam Pride - who has just sold his start-up company to a US conglomerate for large piles of money. His life is looking good - young, married to the love of his life, good times look to be ahead for Sam. Until his CFO is taken hostage by a ruthless criminal demanding a very specific document in exchange for his life, followed by a brutal murder. Sam quickly finds he and his family are at risk, as he's drawn deeper and deeper into corporate espionage, and a powerful group of faceless conspirators connected to the company that just bought them out.

This thriller, which moves setting between Australia and the US, is very much a "who can you trust?" story. The setup does take a while to get moving, and there are quite a few characters introduced in the early stages that readers might find they have to really pay attention to keep track of. Once the threats to Sam and those he loves fire up, the action is taut and rapid paced, delivered with a lot of twists and turns. There's unexpected betrayals aplenty and some very unexpected complications for an ad exec like Sam to have to deal with. Deal he does, in a low-key, overtly Australian, "whatever" sort of manner.

Definitely one for fans of thriller styled fiction, THE SIGNATORY could end up giving readers a very different view of the corporate world (or not). It definitely will provide some very rapid, and quite engaging entertainment regardless of whether it's dispelling, or reinforcing, those previously held views.

https://www.austcrimefiction.org/review/signatory-stuart-black… (plus d'informations)

Stuart Black, ad exec turned author has his first book out - SHALLOW WATER - in September 2009, published by Sid Harta Publishers.

It is the story of a down to earth Australian builder and would be musician Brad West, who, by marrying the beautiful Jemma Beckford, gets a wife and her very wealthy and dysfunctional family. The tension between Jemma and her sister Rose is exacerbated when Jemma, who considered herself heir apparent to her father's wealth and companies, sees control of the company and therefore the family fortune, willed to her older, more stable sister. In a rather unexpected conciliatory gesture, Jemma invites Rose, her stuffed shirt of a husband Charles and their son on holidays in Australia with Brad and herself. On a diving tour a body is found.

In the media kit that came with this book the author says about the motivation: 'It was when I heard why the siblings in a wealthy family I knew weren't talking to each other, that I began thinking about the subject matter of SHALLOW WATER. The role money played in the lives of these people seemed so different to the role it played in ordinary families, it made me wonder what the consequences of such a different value system might be.'

That motivation explains a lot of the characterisations. Brad, the knock-about builder, close to his own family, he's a very typical sort of an Aussie bloke. Jemma, on the other hand, is portrayed as a classic wealthy, party-girl, spoilt brat. Interestingly enough, her sister Rose is less brat and more somebody a little sad, over-controlled and guilty about something - right from the start. The family background of the sisters is expanded upon throughout the book and there's a very stark contrast built up between them and Brad. SHALLOW WATERS uses the characters as the central focus, rather than the crime itself. There is a police investigation into the death, and whilst this proves a catalyst in a number of resolution points, the concentration of the book is definitely on the motivation rather than the resolution.

Brad's very much the hero of the piece and occasionally he does seem too good to be true for this reader's taste; Jemma on the other hand is mildly interesting, but again just a little stereotypical to engender much strong reaction either for or against. There are some odd procedural points in the narrative which just need to be accepted for what they are, given that the book isn't the tale of a police investigation.

SHALLOW WATER is a first novel, and being a character based book, has less of a paced and driving imperative than a reader would expect from something more procedural or thriller based. There are a series of revelations about the girl's background; there's a subplot of threat that had an interesting twist to it; there's a resolution to the death; and a neatly tied up happy ending. It would be fair to say that a number of the plot elements are not that unusual in this sort of a book, but they are delivered well within the characterisations and the storyline. SHALLOW WATER delivers up a story of death in a very non-confrontational manner which readers who prefer less gore and more character based; family, love and life stories will undoubtedly appreciate.… (plus d'informations)