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PM Newton’s second novel is a rich portrayal of the thin blue ethical line and the toll it takes on those who seek to do good.

After her life is shattered by a shooting, Detective Nhu ‘Ned’ Kelly is desperate to get back to the normalcy of her job. She’s good at it; there she knows who she is. Deemed unfit for the field, she is placed on desk duties with a new team in Cabramatta. Then the cold-blooded shooting of a schoolboy in broad daylight draws her back into the field where her trauma springs humiliatingly to life. Ned soon discovers Cabramatta is a community thick with desperate immigrants and those willing to exploit them, none of whom will talk to cops, that corruption isn’t just on the streets, and that a word in the wrong ear can have devastating consequences.

Beams Falling resounds with pathos and veracity. It draws on Newton’s experience as a police detective to provide a compelling portrait of Ned’s struggle to find herself and her place in her altered life. It also reflects realistic policing. With no early clues, the investigation initially takes a backseat to Ned’s mental distress and her difficulties with her new colleagues, most of whom don’t welcome her presence. Those familiar with traditional crime novels, with a clue in almost every scene, may find the pace a little slow. There is, however, plenty to keep you interested until Ned gets a break in the case. Newton’s writing is faultless and evocative. Her inspired observations (“a crocodile of school children”) bring a great sense of place to the world Ned inhabits, and her pared-back portrayal of a woman on the brink is masterful.

Beams Falling showcases the breathtaking quality of Newton’s prose and it is easy to become lost in this alone. Yet it is Ned’s journey which makes this such a memorable novel.