What readers think of Exiles, plus links to write your own review.

Exiles could have been a great book, but somehow just missed the mark for me ... Jane Harper is a good writer, and the concept of this book was a sound one, the character development, which is an important element of any fiction book for me, was excellent ... especially the characters of Aaron Falk and Gemma Tozer. But, it somehow still missed the mark.

I think some better editing might have been a great asset to this book. Many chapters seemed repetitive, and shifting back and forth between the present day and the time of the crime could have been handled a bit more deftly.

I seem to remember the same feeling about Jane Harper's earlier work: The Dry. Good book, but something's not quite right. Would I recommend it - yes, but I'd be sure to tell reader's that while I like the characters and the basic premise, I have reservations about the overall book.

Kim Gillespie leaves her newborn baby alone at a busy festival and disappears. A year later Federal Investigator Aaron Falk is visiting friends in the Southern Australia wine country and becomes enmeshed in Kim's mysterious disappearance.

I really enjoy Jane Harpers ability to evoke a sense of place, Australia. She is also adept at character development. Her characters always seem interesting and just a little bit quirky.

What I didn't particularly like about this book was how slow the plot was developed. It was just not as compelling as her other Aaron Falk books, The Dry and Force of Nature.

That being said, I would still recommend Exiles. It is good reading and no one knows her way around a mystery like Jane Harper. She is a favorite author of mine and well worth the read.

A great read set in the land down under. I enjoyed the pace of the book as well as the introduction of characters and their relationships to each other over time. In addition never having been to Australia, Harper paints a great visual for the reader. She puts the individual pieces of the puzzle on the page for the reader to assemble.

Having received a copy of this book in exchange for a honest review, I have to say I have not read any of Jane Harper's books before. I did not enjoy reading this book. It was so full of tension and anxiety that I found it hard to follow the storyline and the characters. l gave it 4 stars because of the complexity of the mystery and the skill of the writer. It is a talent to put words on a page that touch emotions. I am an avid mystery reader and I don't know why I feel this way about this book, but I read for entertainment and I found none here nor a place I wanted to escape to.

Exiles by Jane Harper is a solid mystery featuring Aaron Falk, a character the reader might recognize from two previous books. This thriller involves a woman who has mysteriously disappeared at a busy festival. Falk and friends dig into this mystery a year later at the same festival. The exciting plot developed slowly and I did not guess the resolution until nearly the end of the book.
The small town setting in Australia is essential as it allows for close friendships among the townspeople. The family Falk visits is warm and close knit. Falk fits in as his character develops. Jane Harper weaves a suspenseful plot in straight-forward language. I did have a problem with her many transitions from past to present events. They often seemed a bit clumsy and confusing. All in all, Exiles is a great read if you enjoy well developed mysteries with with fully drawn characters - I do.

Jane Harper has said this is her conclusion to the Aaron Falk series and like the previous 2 books it is well written and compelling. Weather plays much less of a factor in this novel, it is set during a beautiful Spring week. Aaron has traveled to the Marralee Valley to be godson for his friend, Raco. He does investigate 2 deaths, but they occurred 1 and 6 years prior. As well, he is not on the clock; these are musings and thoughts in his spare time. The characters, though plenty, are clearly different from each other and while I wanted to slow down and savor my time with Aaron, I just kept turning the pages.

Jane Harper is well known for her clever mystery novels which include outstanding character development and detailed development of her setting - and this book certainly does not disappoint readers with regard to either. This time she takes us to South Australia's wine country, the Marralee Valley, where the annual Food and Wine Festival is just underway, and Aaron Falk, the friend of a local vineyard owner, shows up to star in his third novel by Harper. In this book we see real character development in Falk, as he not only fulfills his investigative role, but also steps outside it to engage in a personal relationship. Readers will enjoy seeing him in this light.

There are many characters in this novel for him to interact with, and early on I began to write them down as a means of remembering each and to focus on their connections to one another. This broad cast makes the buildup of her mystery a bit more tedious than usual, and if there is a weakness in the plot, I believe this is it. As usual, there is much detail, both for setting and characters, but with such a large character list, and a week-long festival, the plot bogs down somewhat.

The last third of the novel makes up for this in every way, however. We have all our questions answered, the is mystery solved, and Aaron Falk's character is more fully developed than ever. The books conclusion is satisfying and exciting in every way - including an interesting shift in writing style I have not seen the author use previously.

This book's mystery simply felt as if it took a bit longer to resolve than her previous works, but it is well worth the time spent reading.

Exiles is the latest book by Australian author Jane Harper and the third in the Aaron Falk series. Once again, this author has created a solid mystery with an intriguing plot and a variety of twists and turns.

From the prologue we learn that a young mother has gone missing from the annual local festival and left behind her six-week old baby parked in her carriage. The infant is not noticed until the festival is closing at the end of the evening at which time the mom's disappearance is also discovered.

The book begins one year later where, in spite of the best efforts from local police and concerned friends, no trace of the mom has been found. This is followed by a very long, slow moving first half of the book. There are many conversations and a lot of over descriptions of scenery but very little action.

Just past the midpoint, the pace picks up--some viable suspects emerge and a second unsolved crime involving a fatal hit and run is given more attention. This section provides a much better sense of the characters' personalities and possible motives for the disappearance. The last fifty pages are a head spinning ride where both crimes are resolved.

I have long been a fan of Jane Harper and have read everything she has written. However, this one surprised me by the uncharacteristic uneven pacing of the story. That being said, I would still recommend the book because of the second half and stunning conclusions.