{"product_id":"9781925355215","title":"The Rules of Backyard Cricket","description":"\u003cp\u003eLONGLISTED FOR THE UK CRIME WRITERS ASSOCIATION STEEL DAGGER AWARD 2017!\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘Serong writes pithy, pin-sharp dialogue…Expertly plotted, and its noirish climax with its dark drama and its final twists, is devastating. Get out and buy this book; it is the best new novel I've read this year’– \u003ci\u003eCrime Time\u003c\/i\u003e (UK)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘There are moments of sheer delight in the boyhood sequences, where sibling rivalry is painted with unerring accuracy by Jock Serong (winner of the Ned Kelly Award for his novel \u003ci\u003eQuota\u003c\/i\u003e )…A novel of suspense, I heartily recommend it’– \u003ci\u003eShots Magazine\u003c\/i\u003e  (UK)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘A story of the love and hate within families, of the failures of masculinity, in a cricket context rendered with technical precision. Brutal, perceptive, uncomfortably funny, occasionally breaking into poetry.’—Geoff Lemon on \u003ci\u003eRules of Backyard Cricket\u003c\/i\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e‘Funny, sad and oddly touching…also riveting…Beautifully written and acutely observed, \u003ci\u003eThe Rules of Backyard Cricket\u003c\/i\u003e is a noir tour de force…Original Australian crime fiction of the first order.’— \u003ci\u003eSydney Morning Herald\u003c\/i\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e'Pitch-perfect dialogue, and a strong sense of place…A very engaging, and extremely realistic debut novel.’— \u003ci\u003eReviewing The Evidence\u003c\/i\u003e on \u003ci\u003eQuota\u003c\/i\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eA novel of suspense about family, sport, celebrity, rivalry, masculinity and the high price of getting everything you want.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eDarren Keefe and his older brother are sons of a fierce and gutsy single mother. Darren has two big talents: cricket and trouble. No surprise that he becomes an Australian sporting star of the bad-boy variety— one of those men who’s always got away with things and just keeps getting.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eUntil the day we meet him, middle aged, in the boot of a car. Gagged, cable-tied, a bullet in his knee. Everything pointing towards a shallow grave.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eNarrated by Darren from the boot of a car on his way to what's sure to be his own murder, this ambitious literary work is impossible to put down. Reads like literary fiction, grips like a thriller.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e \u003cb\u003eJock Serong\u003c\/b\u003e lives and works on the southwest coast of Victoria. Formerly a lawyer, he is now a features writer, and editor of \u003ci\u003eGreat Ocean Quarterly\u003c\/i\u003e . His debut, \u003ci\u003eQuota\u003c\/i\u003e , won the 2015 Ned Kelly Award for Best First Crime Novel.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Text Publishing Company","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47058155340016,"sku":"9781925355215","price":15.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/9781925355215_p0.jpg?v=1763634655","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/9781925355215","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}