Whispers and secrets make a winning mix
A SHOCKING secret that threatens to rip apart a small North Queensland community is the topic of a breakthrough novel that has scored a Townsville writer her first big book deal.
Physiotherapist Veronica Lando won this year’s Harpercollins Banjo Prize for her manuscript The Whispering.
More than 250 entries were submitted and it was Ms Lando’s captivating story that took top spot.
“It’s like having a new door open,” said Ms Lando.
“All of a sudden there’s this exciting new future and anything’s possible. It’s just so exciting.”
The Whispering centres on the search for a missing man, and in the process decades of secrets are unearthed that tear through a small community.
Landmarks familiar to many North Queenslanders – including the mysterious Babinda Boulders, where the spirit of a young girl is said to lure young men to their deaths – feature in the story.
“It centres around a man who returns to his home town and a local man goes missing in the rainforest,” Ms Lando said.
“There’s a suspicion of foul play and there’s a lot of mystery and intrigue.”
The book is set to go on sale early next year.