Unfinished Business

‘a rare thriller that speaks with such urgency and passion to broader concerns in war: truth might be the first casualty of armed conflict but, sadly, the corpses of journalists are never far behind.’ –Sydney Morning Herald

A breathtaking thriller from the Miles Franklin Award–winning author of Chai Time at Cinnamon Gardens.

Sri Lanka, 2009. Decades of civil war and bloodshed are being brought to an end at last—by any means necessary. In the capital, Colombo, tenacious journalist Ameena Fernando is murdered, execution-style, on a busy street near her home, with no witnesses.

With pressure growing to find Ameena’s killer, CIA agent Ellie Harper is sent to seek justice for the journalist’s death, with strict instructions: find something, but not too much. It’s her first time returning to the island after her last mission went tragically awry four years prior, and Ellie has more than one ghost to lay to rest. Amid the international scheming and jostling for stakes in post-war Sri Lanka, Ellie follows the trail of secrets on a mission to uncover a truth worth killing for.

Praise for Unfinished Business

‘An explosive thriller that pulses with the weight of history. Forget James Bond, Ellie Harper is the real deal.’ —Dinuka McKenzie, author of The Torrent and Tipping Point

‘Tense, gritty and deeply urgent, Unfinished Business is an action-packed thriller with international intrigue and real-world heft.’ —Ashley Kalagian Blunt, author of Dark Mode

‘Passionate and courageous—a thrilling tale of espionage and intrigue and a high-stakes rollercoaster by one of Australia's most exciting writers.’ —Caroline Overington, author of The Lucky One and The One Who Got Away

‘Compelling and sharply written’ —The Saturday Paper

‘Satisfying and sophisticated’ —The Guardian

Unfinished Business expertly evokes the hyper-surveilled metropolis of Colombo as Harper moves through morally impenetrable circles of diplomats, warlords, bureaucrats and spies. –Books + Publishing

The atmosphere, expertly evoked, throbs in your head. –Country Style