Only Killers and Thieves

　　1885年，一場乾旱威脅到了McBride一家，他們的土地乾枯、牲畜挨餓。而當雨水終於落下，甘霖如同奇蹟一般，重新帶來生存的希望，草木再度生長，而那個他們當成游泳池的水坑也重新被注滿，一切彷彿都將好轉起來。但一個外出游泳的下午，當14歲的Tommy和16歲的Billy回到家，卻震驚地發現父母和妹妹慘遭殺害。

　　他們相信兇手是在父親手下工作的原住民Joseph，這對憤怒的兄弟因而找上了狡猾、心狠手辣的大地主John Sullivan，和領導一支惡名昭彰騎警隊的督察Edmund Noone，Tommy和Billy加入他們的勢力，展開了對Joseph的追捕。

　　然而在這場以正義為名的行動下，情況很快失控。和執意復仇的Billy不同，Tommy開始對這些血腥的暴行，以及這一切對Billy產生的影響感到驚恐、不安，而後，他們的父母死亡的真相也終於被揭露……。

　　小說背景穿越荒蕪的澳洲內陸，呈現險惡而嚴酷的地景，和澳洲在種族問題上的一段恥辱歷史。Howarth在這部懸疑感十足、深刻動人的小說中，透過兩兄弟間傷痕累累的關係，探討了這個道德議題中的掙扎和兩難，並描繪出在這塊土地上，來此定居的白人和被迫遷移家園的原住民之間的緊張關係。【文/博客來編譯】

　　Two brothers are exposed to the brutal realities of life and the seductive cruelty of power in this riveting debut novel—a story of savagery and race, injustice and honor, set in the untamed frontier of 1880s Australia—reminiscent of Philipp Meyer’s The Son and the novels of Cormac McCarthy.

　　An epic tale of revenge and survival, Only Killers and Thieves is a gripping and utterly transporting debut, bringing to vivid life a colonial Australia that bears a striking resemblance to the American Wild West in its formative years.

　　It is 1885, and a crippling drought threatens to ruin the McBride family. Their land is parched, their cattle starving. When the rain finally comes, it is a miracle that renews their hope for survival. But returning home from an afternoon swimming at a remote waterhole filled by the downpour, fourteen-year-old Tommy and sixteen-year-old Billy meet with a shocking tragedy.

　　Thirsting for vengeance against the man they believe has wronged them—their former Aboriginal stockman—the distraught brothers turn to the ruthless and cunning John Sullivan, the wealthiest landowner in the region and their father’s former employer. Sullivan gathers a posse led by the dangerous and fascinating Inspector Edmund Noone and his Queensland Native Police, an infamous arm of British colonial power charged with the "dispersal" of indigenous Australians to "protect" white settler rights. As they ride across the barren outback in pursuit, their harsh and horrifying journey will have a devastating impact on Tommy, tormenting him for the rest of his life—and will hold enduring consequences for a young country struggling to come into its own.

　　Recreating a period of Australian and British history as evocative and violent as the American frontier era, Only Killers and Thieves is an unforgettable story of family, guilt, empire, race, manhood, and faith that combines the insightfulness of Philipp Meyer’s The Son, the atmospheric beauty of Amanda Coplin’s The Orchardist, and the raw storytelling power of Ian McGuire’s The North Water.

作者簡介

　　Paul Howarth was born and grew up in Great Britain before moving to Melbourne in his late twenties. He lived in Australia for more than six years, gained dual citizenship in 2012, and now lives in Norwich, United Kingdom, with his family. In 2015, he received a master’s degree from the University of East Anglia’s creative writing program, the most prestigious course of its kind in the UK, where he was awarded the Malcolm Bradbury Scholarship.