Book of the Year in The Times

An Amazon.com Best Book of 2018

'A gripping and vivid novel . . . remarkable' John Boyne

A story of two brothers on a trail of revenge

Queensland, 1885. It is a scorching day in Australia's deserted outback when Tommy McBride and his brother, Billy, return home to discover a devastating tragedy.

Distraught and eager for revenge, the young men set out in search of the perpetrators. They are soon forced to seek help from their ruthless neighbour John Sullivan, and the Queensland Native Police - an armed militia infamous for hunting down Indigenous Australians. The retribution that follows will embroil the brothers in a heartbreaking injustice, uniting them in a battle for survival, and forever tearing them apart.

"Superb debut novel" - The Times, Historical Fiction Books of the Year

"Paul Howarth's superb, but harrowing debut... Such is the savage brilliance of Howarth's prose that the reader feels almost complicit in Noone's horrible vision" - The Times, Historical Fiction Book of the Month

"Outstanding debut... a powerful novel of crimes in a bleak landscape" - Sunday Times

"Paul Howarth impresses with his debut... gripping... Howarth has a real feel for small details of characterisation and setting.. [an] intriguing new writer" - Observer

"A gripping and vivid novel, Paul Howarth brings early Queensland to life so well that you can practically smell the horses" - John Boyne, author of 'The Heart's Invisible Furies'

"Just try putting this book down. An original, breathless, compelling debut" - Jess Walter, author of Beautiful Ruins and The Cold Millions

"Only Killers and Thieves is a historical novel, but the savagery it depicts is still a matter to be reckoned with in contemporary Australia where the traumas of genocide continue to resonate from generation to generation. This is an impressive debut." - Tim Winton, author of 'Cloudstreet'

"Howarth's stunning debut has shades of Cormac McCarthy and Patrick deWitt... a book that grips from the outset and entertains even as it educates us about an appalling part of Australia's history" - Irish Times

"Australia in the 1880s feels like the Wild West in this outstanding debut about the hunt for a family's killers" - The Times Magazine, 100 Best Books to Read this Summer

"In Only Killers and Thieves - latest in a superb line from the groundbreaking Pushkin Press - Paul Howarth has delivered an instant classic" - Irish Independent

"Hugely impressive, if devastating. Reminiscent of Peter Carey" - Irish Examiner

"Accomplished debut... muscular prose... chilling coming-of-age story" - Daily Mail

"Terrific debut... haunting... vivid" - The Sun

"[Exposes] the unique reality of frontier life and little-known aspects of colonial history that have shaped the country" - Independent, Emerging Authors to Look Out for in 2018

"Only Killers and Thieves is a story of brooding danger, family bonds, and the choices two brothers make in becoming men. A sparse and lyrical Western that manages to illuminate one of Australia's darkest periods" - Emma Viskic, author of 'Resurrection Bay'

"The narrative crackles with dramatic tension and an atmosphere of fear and dread. Howarth seduces us with his gripping story and empathetic characters while making us look unflinchingly at the casual brutality and entrenched racism of the Australian frontier" - Julian Leatherdale, bestselling author of 'Palace of Tears' and 'The Opal Dragonfly'

"Grips like a dingo and lives long in the memory" - Crime Thriller Hound

"An astounding debut" - Nudge Books

"The writing is by turns savage and poetic, powerful and tender. The landscape of Central Queensland forms the perfect backdrop for a story about depravation, brutality and human folly, with the harsh, barren terrain becoming almost a character in its own right" - New Books Magazine

"A poignant and disturbing novel that explores a fraternal relationship. Set in the harsh outback of colonial Australia, this is a book that will draw you in from the very beginning, keep you engaged throughout, and leave you reeling from its events" - CUB Magazine

"Beautifully crafted... a quality of painful realism that is found in the best westerns" - Pendora Magazine

"A spellbinding story that holds the attention of the reader by the compelling flow of narrative throughout" - ON Magazine

"Howarth manages to infuse the old tropes with a depth of emotion and moral complication that will stay with readers long after closing the book" - BookPage

"A tale of savagery and race, injustice and honour" - Bookblast, Top Ten Reads for Independent Minds

"Howarth is skilled at taking the old forms of the Western... and reshaping them to address contemporary concerns" - Washington Post

"An impressive debut . . . deals unflinchingly with the brutality of Australian rule. But the heart of the story is the complicated relationship between the brothers . . . While this book has a historical point to make, it also works as a suspenseful mystery and a resonant bildungsroman." - Kirkus

"Brutal and beautiful" - Shelf Awareness

"A powerful debut. Paul Howarth brings early Australia to life, bloody warts and all, in an epic tale of murder, revenge, and colonial oppression, with very little room for redemption. The story and his words will stay with you long after you have finished the book" - New York Journal of Books

"Powerful debut... the novel feels like a modern Western along the lines of Cormac McCarthy's All the Pretty Horses. Howarth's narrative is almost cinematic... U.S. readers will make the connection with our country's oppression of Native Americans and gain an understanding of the fundamental racism of both former British colonies... Howarth is a novelist to watch" - Library Journal (starred review)

"A quest for frontier justice drives the events of Howarth's devastating and impressive debut, set in the Australian outback in 1885" - Publishers Weekly

"Rarely have I read such a powerful account... a compelling read" - Never Imitate (blog)

"A stunning novel, lean yet grand in scale, violent and deeply touching at the same time" - Thriller Books Journal

"An important piece of fiction, brilliantly written with plenty of compassion and understanding. Highly recommended" - Steph's Book Blog

"A Western of grit and grace... at once epic and intimate... a harshly beautiful debut novel by one hell of a promising author" - Hits the Fan (blog)

"The structure, the characters, the emotional aspects were so strong that I felt everything as if I was there. In short, it was like a punch to the gut" - Umut Reviews (blog)