Hooked Up
Ramesh and Hilary are back!
The unforgettable detective duo from The Doctor’s Wife are back, and this time the stakes are even higher. When DS Ramesh Bandara is asked to head up a homicide investigation in a small New Zealand beachside town, he has no idea he’s stumbled onto something much bigger. With little to go on, the investigation is frustratingly slow to get off the ground, but it’s Bandara’s unconventional colleague, Hilary Stark, who spots similarities with a murder case she worked years before. Overnight, their suspect list expands to include the cast and crew from a controversial reality TV show, Hooked Up, that screened a decade earlier. Someone, it appears, has been holding onto a grudge for a very long time. But is Hilary s hunch really on the money? This is New Zealand, after all …
Hooked up named one of the NZ Listener’s Best 100 Books of 2025
Hooked up named one of the Auckland Libraries top 100 Books of 2025/6 and one of the top 10 beach reads for 2025/6
Reviews for HOOKED UP:
Carol Beau, Owner Women’s Bookshop: “This is a very clever and engrossing crime novel from a NZ author. I loved the slowly developing relationship between the two detectives and the tension in the plot kept me desperately reading to find out more . . . Great Stuff!”
David Hill, The Listener, Aug 30-Sept 5: “. . . So we are taken back a decade to Hilary’s first case, with a quiz-show connection that Sussman ingeniously builds towards the Northland killing . . .”
Michael Bennett, author of Better the Blood: A knockout premise . . .Anyone who feels driven to murder by TV dating shows will be cheering. Sussman delivers on her supersmart concept with storytelling that is as playful as it is tense.”
Jacqueline Bublitz, author of Before You Knew My Name: “Hooked up starts at a cracking pace and doesn’t let up. . . every twist in this addictive murder mystery is earned. . . Yeah Noir fans are in for a treat.”
Karen McMillan, Books Editor NZ Herald, Sat 6th Sept: “A previous NZ Booklovers winner, Fiona Sussman’s latest crime novel is again first-rate. . . A Page-turning plot, with superb characters.’
Timeout Bookstore: “The latest compulsive page-turner from the author of The Doctor’s Wife. An incredibly smart thriller with a focus on the manipulative nature of reality TV.”
Tom Baragwanath, author of Paper Cage: “An electric mix of intrigue and mystery, handled with a deft touch for character.”
Olivia Spooner,The Booklover: “ . . . Fiona writes beautifully – and she is back with a fantastic literary whodunnit set in Mangawhai! . . . The plotting is deftly handled with brilliant twists and red herrings to keep you guessing right till the end. And I love reading a book set in our own backyard. ”
Kirsteen Ure,Kete Books: “Sussman is an accomplished crime writer . . . Hooked Up is a highly enjoyable, well-paced thriller, with a compelling set-up. It’s the kind of book readers will inhale, reading swiftly to find out what happens.”
Full Review at: Kete Books
Karen McMillan,NZ Booklover: “Hooked Up is an addictive read, and the writing is superb. It delivers a page-turning read with superb characters, with plenty of twists and turns along the way. A murder mystery, the novel also sheds light on the downside of so-called ‘reality TV’ and the real-life long-term psychological harm for some contestants. A clever premise delivered well..”
Full Review at: NZ BOOKLOVER
Steve Braunias,North and South Magazine: “… her story telling is world-class, and it qualifies Hooked Up as one of the best novels of any kind in 2025 … The essential nature of Hooked Up is a whodunnit. There is a sea of red herrings. Bandara thinks back to when he was a kid and read Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express: ‘The best whodunnits were those that kept the reader guessing right to the end.’ I kept guessing the identity of the serial killer in Hooked Up right to the end.”
Full Review at: North and South Magazine
Terry Toner,Dustyshelves Book Reviews: “
A wonderful New Zealand crime story . . . I didn’t want to let go . . . The Good thing – this is a series that shows it’s got the “chops” for further ongoing titles in a series – I for one will be hanging out for the next one – put my name down now – please !!!
Full Review at: Dustyshelves