A page-turning literary mystery set in a small community, where family and class tensions threaten to erupt after a brutal attack on a young student.

"The nights aren't too cold yet, lucky thing. Otherwise we'd be having a different conversation."

Jessica Mowbrie, beaten and dumped in the bush like a sack of garbage and lying comatose in a hospital bed- lucky to be alive.

Lorraine Henry doesn't think Jess is so lucky. She thinks whoever hurt her needs to be hunted down. But the Masterton police are isolated and underresourced, and to be honest, even though Lorraine works for them, she thinks they're a bit hopeless.

So it might be up to Lorraine to do the hunting. She's not getting any younger, of course. But she has all the police records at her fingertips-and as much information about who hates who as anyone in Masterton. Plus, she's used to being underestimated. And you should never underestimate a middle-aged woman with justice in her sights.

In this follow-up to his award-winning debut novel Paper Cage, Tom Baragwanath delivers another bone-deep exploration of life in the margins of small-town New Zealand. Lucky Thing is a gripping new instalment in the Lorraine Henry series.