Author(s): James Russell

NZ Authors | Thriller

"Taking in the mesmerising vision before me, I raised my arms towards the ocean like an idiot king acknowledging his subjects. My own surfing realm. Every single wave that broke on this reef was mine.”

Twenty-six-year-old Jimmy Brennan’s life has taken a turn for the worse, and he’s desperate to numb the pain. When his mother dies and his girlfriend betrays him, it’s the final straw and he seeks escape; he boards a plane bound for Bali.

But Jimmy’s demons chase him. Sickened by the tourists and the crowded surf spots, he travels north up the archipelago, driven by a desire for solitude and possessed by a reckless, self-destructive urge.

When he’s offered the opportunity to visit and surf the forbidden island of North Sentinel, home of a forgotten tribe who have violently rejected outside contact for centuries, Jimmy takes it.

He finds his perfect wave, but it’s a decision that will have deadly consequences.

Murder and madness in the tropics.

A back-packer's nightmare.

"Fast-paced and utterly immersive, with passages that will have your heart leaping into your throat. This is ‘Breath’ meets ‘The Beach’, but also a unique tale in its own right that will stay with the reader long after they read the last page."

Eileen Merriman, best-selling author of Violet Black and The Silence of Snow.

Twenty-six-year-old Jimmy Brennan’s life has taken a turn for the worse, and he’s desperate to numb the pain. When his mother dies and his girlfriend betrays him, it’s the final straw; he leaves Australia behind, bound for Bali.
But Jimmy’s demons chase him. Sickened by the filth and the rapacious tourists swarming the Indonesian holiday island, Jimmy escapes north up the archipelago, driven by a desire for solitude and possessed by a reckless, self-destructive urge.
When he’s offered the opportunity to visit the forbidden island of North Sentinel, home of a forgotten tribe which has violently rejected outside contact for centuries, Jimmy takes it.
He finds his paradise, but it’s a decision that will have deadly consequences.