Blurb:

Charlie and Nao are strangers from different sides of the tracks. They should never have met, but one devastating incident binds them together forever.

A man is dead and now they are unwilling accomplices in his murder there’s only one thing to do: hit the road in the victim’s twin cab ute, with a bag of stolen gold stashed under the passenger seat.

Suddenly outlaws, Nao and Charlie must make their way across Australia’s remote outback using only their wits to survive. They’ll do whatever it takes to evade capture and escape with their lives . . .

Thelma & Louise for a new generation, No Country for Girls is a gritty, twisty road-trip thriller that follows two young women on the run across the harsh, unforgiving landscape of Australia.

Review:

No Country For Girls first came on my radar when it was chosen for the New Blood Panel at Harrogate Crime Festival in 2022, and I can definitely see why it made the final four. It’s a little different to most crime novels so it stands out in a very busy genre, but it still has all the action and “edge of your seat” moments you would expect.

The protagonists are all women and I loved that Emma Styles took this opportunity to make a statement about how women can often feel unsafe in their own country and they are often met with violence, sometimes from people in positions of trust and authority, and this really resonated with me. The chapters are written from the perspectives of Charlie, Nao and Geena and this really helped me to tap their mindset. Emma Styles has created distinctive voices for each character and I became really interested in their background stories and whether it would work out for them.

No Country For Girls takes the characters (and the readers) on a journey across Australia. Australia is not a country I’ve ever visited before, but I love that the author’s geographical knowledge means she is able to show us the different landscapes in great detail. Emma Styles is such a talented writer and she brings the reader into the story really well.

This novel is not for the faint hearted and there are several incidences of danger and violence. It’s a huge cat and mouse chase which really had the adrenaline running through my veins. The author builds tension really effectively and I really wanted to see how the story would end.

No Country For Girls is available from Amazon.