{"product_id":"just-like-the-night-9781761473678","title":"Just Like the Night","description":"\u003cp\u003eWhen is it time to stop protecting family, and time to start running?\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'One of the finest, most realistic, most compulsive and stylistically impressive crime thrillers of the year' Matthew Condon, \u003ci\u003eThe Australian\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cbr\u003eOut on parole after serving over eight years in prison, Sera Olin can't shake her past. As a child travelling around America, her charismatic father introduced her to a life of crime, easy cons and fixed card games before they escaped to Australia to go straight-but walking the line isn't that easy for Sera. As she tries to settle into an honest life in Sydney, all she wants is to see her estranged daughter, Lena. But Lena is grown up now, and involved with people far worse than Sera understands. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWhen Sera is drawn further into the quagmire of Lena's choices, she is forced to confront the possibility that a mother's sacrifice might not be enough.  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eSet in the bleak underbelly of Sydney, \u003ci\u003eJust Like the Night\u003c\/i\u003e is a gripping exploration of loneliness, conscience and the ties that bind.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'Michael Tasker writes lean and crisp, perfect for the shifting and dangerous and unsettled world inhabited by Sera in\u003ci\u003e Just Like the Night.\u003c\/i\u003e It is a tumultuous tale of hard choices, shifting ideals, and the weight that must be carried to scrap your way toward redemption.' Michael Farris Smith, author of \u003ci\u003eLay Your Armour Down\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eDesperation Road\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'Sydney's bright, indifferent edges frame this controlled and inescapable noir. This is lean, exacting prose with teeth. A belter.' Robert Lukins, author of \u003ci\u003eLoveland \u003c\/i\u003eand \u003ci\u003eSomebody Down There Likes Me\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'A propulsive, searing portrayal of one woman's desperate attempt to turn her life around. Tasker writes with an honest, unwavering eye and razor-sharp prose in this compelling tale of Sydney's underworld. Just Like the Night shows just how dangerous life can be when you're close to the edge.' Mark Brandi, author of \u003ci\u003eEden \u003c\/i\u003eand \u003ci\u003eWimmera\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'Tasker's deep dive into Sydney's underworld is also a forensic examination of the perilous lengths to which familial bonds can be stretched. A gripping, dark story of desperation.' Michelle Wright, author of \u003ci\u003eGood Boy\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'There is an irresistible momentum to Tasker's storytelling. It's like an undertow that doesn't let go of you until it's done. The man knows how to write. A book that will stay with you a long time, from one of the most talented writers on the contemporary literary scene today.' \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cb\u003eMichael Sala, author of\u003ci\u003e The Restorer\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'It's rare to find a new angle in Australian crime fiction but Michael Tasker has achieved this. No historic unsolved disappearance in an outback town, instead Tasker delivers a tale of a family of grifters and con-artists alternately looking for a score, or the telltale signs that it's time to run. Character-driven crime in a style as spare and crisp as the felt on a blackjack table. Double down on this one and win big.' Dave Warner, author of \u003ci\u003eWhen It Rains\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003ch4\u003eDetails\u003c\/h4\u003e\u003cp\u003eISBN13: 9781761473678\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eFormat: Paperback \/ softback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eNumber of Pages: 336\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eEdition: \u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePublication Date: 04 Aug 2026\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePublisher: Allen \u0026amp; Unwin\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003ePublication City, Country: Sydney, Australia\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eDimensions (cm): 23.4(H)x15.3(L)354\u003cbr\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWeight (gm): 354\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch4\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h4\u003eMichael Caleb Tasker was born in Montreal, Canada and has lived in New Orleans, Buenos Aires, Sydney and elsewhere. He earned a PhD from Newcastle University, focusing on the existential roots of noir, and has worked as a journalist, ranch-hand, lecturer, and currently manages an art supplies store. Author of the short-story collection \u003ci\u003eAll Gone Now\u003c\/i\u003e, he currently lives in Adelaide, with his daughter.\u003ch4\u003eReviews\u003c\/h4\u003e","brand":"Michael Caleb Tasker","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49077107294425,"sku":"9781761473678","price":34.99,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0502\/9530\/8441\/files\/9781761473678.jpg?v=1786457077","url":"https:\/\/www.arielbooks.com.au\/products\/just-like-the-night-9781761473678","provider":"Ariel","version":"1.0","type":"link"}