Murder on North Terrace A Petticoat ..., Lainie Anderson
Murder on North Terrace A Petticoat ..., Lainie Anderson
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Murder on North Terrace: A Petticoat Police Mystery
Book 2

Author: Lainie Anderson

Series: Petticoat Police Mystery #2

Narrator: Edwina Wren

Unabridged: 9 hr 50 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 09/30/2025


Synopsis

The indomitable Miss Cocks and Ethel Bromley return for Book Two in the bestselling and charmingly cosy Petticoat Police Mystery Series, inspired by one of Australia's first policewomen.

Adelaide, September 1917. Six months after solving the Dora Black case, Kate Cocks and Ethel Bromley are back walking the beat. The city is unsettled. Winter won't leave. Soldiers are returning from the Front with broken bodies and troubled souls. And now a powerful board governor has been found dead in the Art Gallery - dumped beneath a scandalous nude painting that has attracted both pious outrage and record crowds.

When Ethel receives an anonymous tip, she's elated at being seconded to the Detective Branch. The murder goes to the heart of Adelaide's elite, where this society girl is in her element. Miss Cocks is left grappling with six o'clock swills, shadows in alleyways and a brutal assault on a schoolgirl. She needs Ethel to catch her killer, and quickly.

Alas, murder in Adelaide is never a simple affair . . .

Inspired by the true story of Australia's pioneering policewoman, Kate Cocks.

'Immersive, well-researched period detective fiction with a pioneering crime-fighting duo whose contrasting methods and personalities add drama and social complexity to each mystery they tackle' THE AGE

'A captivating mix of history and invention, with an unforgettable real-life heroine at its heart. I loved it' VIKKI WAKEFIELD, author of To the River

'There's morality, art, history - a really engaging read. It's quite extraordinary' ABC THE BOOKSHELF

'Compelling . . . Anderson skilfully blends truth and fiction. It touches the heart as well as the mind - while inspiring a desire to play history detective' THE CONVERSATION

'Vivid. Refreshing. Propulsive and engaging. These books are such fun, and perfect for anyone who loved Sulari Gentill's Rowland Sinclair series, or Robert Gott's William Power and Titus Lambert books' READINGS

'All the genius of the perfect cosy crime: characters to fall in love with and sumptuous attention to detail, blended with gruesome death and bleak truth. Thank goodness Kate and Ethel are back' MICHELLE PRAK, author of The Rush

About Lainie Anderson

Lainie Anderson OAM has worked with Adelaide's Sunday Mail, Melbourne's Herald Sun and London's The Times. After being awarded a Churchill Fellowship, Lainie published her debut novel Long Flight Home in 2019. In 2024, Lainie completed a PhD on Kate Cocks - the inspiration behind the Petticoat Police Mysteries. Lainie is a board member of the History Trust of South Australia, the vice-president of the History Council of South Australia and sits on the SA selection committee for the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust. She was SA's 2023 Emerging Historian of the Year and in 2026 was awarded a Medal of the Order of Australia for her service to community history. Murder on North Terrace is the second novel in the Petticoat Police Mystery series, following The Death of Dora Black, which was longlisted for the 2025 Indie Book Awards for Debut Fiction and the 2025 Margaret and Colin Roderick Literary Award. Lainie lives in Adelaide with her husband Max.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Nicola on November 12, 2025

4.5 stars The second book in the Petticoat Police series follows Kate Cocks, the first female police officer to be paid the same as her male colleagues. Kate and Ethel, Adelaide’s trailblazing women constables, are back—this time investigating a murder at the art gallery in front of a controversial p......more

Goodreads review by Sarah on September 03, 2025

I thoroughly enjoyed this follow up to The Death of Dora Black, which picks up 6 months after the first in the Petticoat Police series. Kate Cocks continues leading the Womens Police Branch in Adelaide, where the tiny team consisting of Kate and Ethel are dealing with the everyday frustration of bei......more

Goodreads review by Anna on November 14, 2025

I loved being back in the world of Kate Cocks..as well as her 5 foot cane..I adored Ethel and her hat and ‘loveable ying to Miss Cocks aloof Yang’ I was completely captivated by the murder and the assault on 15 year old Nellie..I feel as though I’ve walked the streets of 1917 Adelaide (be it through......more

Goodreads review by Jade on November 28, 2025

Ethel hurried on, dearly wishing she'd had time to gather 'evidence" (some might call it gossip) from Auntie Connie. 'You would also know, sir, that it's officially the Board of Governors of the Public Library, Museum and Art Gallery of South Australia, which dates back to when they were all under t......more

Goodreads review by Brooke on October 01, 2025

Happy Publication Week to Murder on North Terrace, the second book in Lainie Anderson’s fabulous Petticoat Police Mystery series. Inspired by Kate Cocks, the first female police officer in the Commonwealth to be paid the same as her male colleagues, it was a compelling historical crime read. Six mont......more