1829, Tasmania. John Batman, ruthless, single-minded; four convicts, the youngest still only a stripling; Gould, a downtrodden farmhand; two free black trackers; and powerful, educated Black Bill, brought up from childhood as a white man—this is the roving party, and their purpose is massacre. With promises of freedom, land grants, and money, each is willing to risk his life for the prize. Passing over many miles of tortured country, the roving party searches for Aborigines, taking few prisoners and killing freely, Batman never abandoning the visceral intensity of his hunt. And all the while, Black Bill pursues his personal quarry, the much-feared warrior Manalargena.
A surprisingly beautiful evocation of horror and brutality, The Roving Party is a meditation on the intricacies of human nature at its most raw.
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“Danger and uncertainty are evoked
in this gritty, masculine tale of racial violence in early-nineteenth-century
Tasmania. Shaun Grindell is an excellent narrator. He moves swiftly through a
complex cast of male characters, distinguishing one from another through
changes in pitch, diction, and tone. The raspy quality of Grindell’s voice
suggests the harsh realities of life in the wilderness. He is most successful
at dialogue, capturing the wide range of accents among the main characters and
differentiating the white pursuers from their native prey. Those who enjoy
literary tales in audio will find much to admire in this volume. Winner of
AudioFile Earphones Award.”
—
AudioFile