Carved in Blood, Michael Bennett
Carved in Blood, Michael Bennett
List: $24.99 | Sale: $17.50
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Carved in Blood
A Hana Westerman Thriller

Author: Michael Bennett

Series: Hana Westerman Thrillers

Narrator: Miriama McDowell, Errol Shand

Unabridged: 8 hr 39 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 07/15/2025


Synopsis

From the Barry Award nominee and Ngaio Marsh Award winner of Better the Blood, a new thriller bringing danger ever closer to Hana Westerman.

When Detective Inspector Jaye Hamilton stops at an Auckland liquor store for a bottle of champagne, it is supposed to be celebratory: his daughter Addison has just gotten engaged. Instead, he is suddenly gunned down at the register by a balaclava-clad assailant in what appears at first to be a random act. The getaway car is quickly recovered, containing the cell phone of a young Maori man, Toa Davis, who is immediately the object of an all-out police search.

Jaye’s ex-wife, former Maori detective Hana Westerman, asks in on the investigation. Her instincts suggest that the vehicle was meant to be found, and that Jaye had been targeted. The gun used in the assault is distinctive, and she learns that a local gang leader, Erwin Rendall—who had threatened Hana in the past—owns such a weapon.

After Davis turns up dead, the hunt for Rendall is on. When he slips through the dragnet and escapes the country, and in the wake of Jaye’s death, Hana decides to rejoin the force, acknowledging that she now has unfinished business.

Skillfully plotted, inviting listeners ever further into the appreciation of Maori culture, and with vibrant characters determined to overcome tragedy with resolve, Carved in Blood takes Michael Bennett’s highly-praised series to new heights.

About Michael Bennett

Michael Bennett (Ngati Pikiao, Ngati Whakaue) is an award-winning screenwriter, director, and author whose films have been selections at major festivals, including Cannes, Berlin, Toronto, and New York. He is the author of the crime novels Better the Blood and Return to Blood, the nonfiction book In Dark Places, and the young adult graphic novel Helen and the Go-Go Ninjas, which was a finalist for the 2019 New Zealand Book Awards. He lives in Auckland.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Shannon M (Canada) on January 11, 2025

I requested this book from NetGalley because I like to read novels set in a different culture, and the blurb promised this. Had I received it as a library book, I would have dnf’d by the 15% point, given its annoying writing style—the use of the present tense rather than the far more common, and eas......more

Goodreads review by Sue on July 14, 2025

Thanks to Atlantic Monthly Press and NetGalley for an eARC of Carved in Blood, the third entry in Mark Bennett’s Hana Westerman series. I have read the prior books and was very glad to receive this one. As the story begins, all of the primary characters, Hana, her daughter, Addison and Addison’s soo......more

Goodreads review by Sophie on April 29, 2025

I absolutely love this series. I am drawn to New Zealand so that will always help but I feel like the characters are richly drawn. The crime element pushes the narrative but the real importance for me is the way in which all the various relationships are drawn. Perhaps there are a few heavy handed o......more

Goodreads review by Nancy on February 14, 2025

I really enjoyed the first two Hana Westerman books and while I enjoyed reading more about the Māori culture and getting to know more about Hana’s friends and family I felt Like Carved in Blood was lacking in anything very exciting or thrilling and was more of a filler piece to give Hana a reason to......more

Goodreads review by Kasa on April 29, 2025

Third in a wonderful series that focuses on the Maori population of New Zealand. Hana Westerman had quit her job with the Aukland police in order to return to her home, but re-enlists when her former husband is shot in what appears to be a random shooting at a minimart. Her daughter, Addison, provid......more