Return to Blood by Michael Bennett proves that Better the Blood was no fluke, and it may have set the Hana Westerman thriller series as a favourite of mine among crime thrillers, not only as a New Zealand read, but on an international scale. There is something so engrossing and sharp in these stories that makes the whole read so immersive and engaging, and I hope more thriller readers add Better the Blood and Return to Blood to their reading lists.

After the perils of a case that landed much too close to home, Hana Westerman turned in her badge and abandoned her career as a detective in the Auckland CIB. Hoping that civilian life will offer her the opportunity to rest and recalibrate, she returns to her hometown of Tātā Bay, where she moves back in with her beloved father Eru. Yet the memories of the past are everywhere, and as she goes for her daily run on the beach, Hana passes a local monument to Grace, an old classmate, who was murdered more than twenty years ago and hidden in the dunes overlooking the sea. A Māori man with a previous record was convicted of the crime, although Eru never believed he was guilty. When another young woman’s skeleton is found in the sands, Hana soon finds herself in over her head again. Investigators suspect that this is Kiri Thomas, a young Māori woman who disappeared four years ago, after battling years of drug addiction. Hana and her daughter Addison are increasingly captivated by the story behind this unsolved crime, but without the official police force behind her, Hana must risk compromising her own peace and freedom if justice is to be served.

The character dynamics, interactions, and relationships continue to develop, making for great threads of tension and emotional connection throughout the action of the case. I really like the choice of showing the range of perspectives of interest here, as I mentioned in my Better the Blood review. Hana is a strong, intriguing character with her own layers and complexities, but the added interest and twists of other characters and their conflicts make the read all the more gripping. It all ties together, and the tension rides along at such a great pace, it really makes reading Return to Blood so easy.

The Māori connections are still strong, not only through Hana’s perspective and interactions with her whānau, but in the inclusions of te reo for everyday things; birds, plants, fish, buildings, cultural customs like tā moko, tangihangi, and karakia. These little, seemingly simple and casual uses of te reo make the read feel so much more rooted in the place and space while also educating the reader. It is undeniably a New Zealand story, but it is one that invites you to learn and understand the everyday instances of language use. As a Kiwi, it also inspires me to use the language more often, to expand my daily experiences by incorporating te reo Māori into my life.

I am wholly invested in this story world. I need to know what happens between Addison and PLUS 1, what Hana choses to do wit a lot of life decisions, what big case will come across their radar next, and I desperately need to know when the library will receive more copies of the next book Carved in Blood so I can read it sooner. I think Carved in Blood will be the one that tips my hand and has me doing another book buy before the middle of the year – a PhD milestone celebration purchase, perhaps?