The Darkest Hour (Howell novel)

The Darkest Hour
AuthorKatherine Howell
LanguageEnglish
SeriesElla Marconi
GenreCrime novel
PublisherPan Macmillan
Publication date
1 July 2008
Publication placeAustralia
Media typePrint
Pages384 pp.
Awards2009 Davitt Award, Readers Choice, winner
ISBN9781405038324
Preceded byFrantic 
Followed byCold Justice 

The Darkest Hour is a 2008 crime novel by Australian author Katherine Howell.[1]

It is the second novel in the author's Ella Marconi series of crime novels.[2]

It was the winner of the Davitt Award for Best Adult Novel in 2009.[3]

Synopsis

Paramedic Laureen Yates has been threatened by her sister's ex-partner after a stabbing, fearing for her life and her family. But when the same man, Miles Werner, is implicated in another murder she finds Detective Ella Marconi pursuing her.

Critical reception

Reviewing the novel for the AustCrimeFiction website Karen Chisholm was initially worried about this being the author's second book, but found the author had "managed to do it again". She concluded that "Katherine Howell writes a damn good story – her plot is faultless, tension and suspense balanced with small havens of down time for both the characters and reader."[4]

Publication history

After the novel's initial publication in 2008 by Pan Macmillan[1] it was reprinted by Pan Books in the UK in 2014. The novel was also translated into Dutch in 2009 and German in 2010.[5]

Awards

Notes

  • The author was interviewed about the book and he writing career by Doug Parrington for The Gold Coast Bulletin.[6]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "The Darkest Hour by Katherine Howell". National Library of Australia. Retrieved 22 December 2025.
  2. ^ "Ella Marconi series by Katherine Howell". Austlit. Retrieved 22 December 2025.
  3. ^ a b ""Davitt Award Winners 2001-2025"" (PDF). Sisters in Crime. Retrieved 22 December 2025.
  4. ^ ""The Darkest Hour by Katherine Howell"". AustCrimeFiction. Retrieved 21 December 2025.
  5. ^ "Austlit — The Darkest Hour by Katherine Howell". Austlit. Retrieved 22 December 2025.
  6. ^ ""Full-blooded move seems so write"". The Gold Coast Bulletin, 17 May 2008. ProQuest 376390804. Retrieved 21 December 2025.