1
of
1
Carved in Blood
The stunning new Hana Westerman thriller from the award-winning author of BETTER THE BLOOD
Series: Hana Westerman
Brief Description
The gripping new thriller from the award-winning author of Better the Blood and Return to Blood. In the depths of the bleak New Zealand winter comes the rising of Matariki – a sacred constellation in Māori culture, heralding a time of new beginnings. For former Detective...
Read More
Format: Paperback / softback
$2899
Unit price
/
Unavailable
AVAILABLE WITH SUPPLIER
Ships from our Auckland warehouse within 4-6 weeks
Found a better price? Request a price match
Carved in Blood
$2899
Unit price
/
Unavailable
Latest News
Vanya Insull (aka VJ Cooks) visits Book Hero
We were lucky to have a visit from popular foodie, home cook and baker Vanya...
Is the newest Jack Reacher one of the best?
Our favourite crime solving, bad guy beating nomad is back and Lizzy and Edd were...
Heartstopper's Alice Oseman visits Book Hero
We were so excited to have Alice come to visit Hero HQ, as huge fans...
Shirl and Lizzy Review The Starving Bride
Catherine Chidgey does it again with another incredible novel that will have people talking for...
New Releases to add to your TBR this week (19th October)
One of my favourite sci-fi authors has a new book that I cannot wait to...
See moreA gripping new case for Hana Westerman, New Zealand’s best investigator, from the award-winning author of critically acclaimed crime debut Better the Blood.
Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and
still learning, it may not be perfect - your
feedback is welcome!
Description
The gripping new thriller from the award-winning author of Better the Blood and Return to Blood.
In the depths of the bleak New Zealand winter comes the rising of Matariki – a sacred constellation in Māori culture, heralding a time of new beginnings. For former Detective Senior Sergeant Hana Westerman, life is good: her work in her hometown of Tata Bay is going well, the community is thriving, and her daughter Addison is getting engaged.
But this Matariki brings unwelcome change. When Hana’s ex-husband Jaye walks into an Auckland liquor store and directly across the path of a gunman, their family’s hard-won peace is shattered.
With the stakes at their highest, Hana finds herself picking up a path she thought she’d never return to. Desperate for answers, she rejoins the police to help scour the city for the unidentified shooter. But as the investigation progresses, she finds herself unprepared for the darkness of the world she is entering.
A darkness much closer to home than she knows.
‘Marries a crash course in Māori culture with a gripping mystery… The good news is that Westerman will be back’ The Times, Best Crime & Thrillers of 2025
‘Cogently plotted and well-written, this novel brings a new perspective to Māori culture’ Belfast Telegraph
‘With Australian thrillers doing well right now, New Zealand’s hot on their heels’ Peterborough Telegraph
Series: Hana Westerman
View all-
Carved in Blood
Tenacious Māori investigator Hana Westerman returns in this stunning new thriller from the award-winning author of Better the Blood. In the depths of the bleak New Zealand winter comes the rising of Matariki – a sacred constellation in Māori culture, heralding a time of new beginnings. For former Detective Senior Sergeant Hana Westerman, life is good: her work in her...Paperback$3100Elsewhere:$3799Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
Better the Blood
Better the Blood is described as 'a compelling, atmospheric page turner with an authentic insight into Māori culture' by Val McDermid. A DETECTIVE IN SEARCH OF THE TRUTH. A KILLER IN SEARCH OF RETRIBUTION. A CLASH BETWEEN CULTURE AND DUTY. THE PAST NEVER TRULY STAYS BURIED. WELCOME TO THE DARK SIDE OF PARADISE. Detective Senior Sergeant Hana Westerman is a...Paperback$2300Elsewhere:$2699Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
Return to Blood
FROM THE AWARD-WINNING AUTHOR OF BETTER THE BLOOD COMES ANOTHER CASE FOR NEW ZEALAND'S BEST INVESTIGATOR, HANA WESTERMAN. ‘Another cracking, page-turning journey into another culture’ VAL McDERMID Two murders. Two decades apart.One chance to get justice. Hana Westerman has left Auckland and her career as a detective behind her. Settled in a quiet coastal town, all she wants is a...Paperback$2500Elsewhere:$2899Unit price /UnavailableBackorderShips mid November -
Carved in Blood
The gripping new thriller from the award-winning author of Better the Blood and Return to Blood. In the depths of the bleak New Zealand winter comes the rising of Matariki – a sacred constellation in Māori culture, heralding a time of new beginnings. For former Detective Senior Sergeant Hana Westerman, life is good: her work in her hometown of Tata...Paperback$2899Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
Return to Blood
FROM THE AWARD-WINNING AUTHOR OF BETTER THE BLOOD COMES ANOTHER CASE FOR NEW ZEALAND'S BEST INVESTIGATOR, HANA WESTERMAN. ‘Another cracking, page-turning journey into another culture’ VAL McDERMID Two murders. Two decades apart. One chance to get justice. Hana Westerman has left Auckland and her career as a detective behind her. Settled in a quiet coastal town, all she wants is...HardbackSold Out
Book Details
INFORMATION
ISBN: 9781398536821
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Ltd
Format: Paperback / softback
Date Published: 15 January 2026
Country: United Kingdom
Imprint: Simon & Schuster Ltd
Audience: General / adult
DIMENSIONS
Spine width: 23.0mm
Width: 130.0mm
Height: 198.0mm
Weight: 250g
Pages: 384
About the Author
Michael Bennett (Ngāti Pikiao, Ngāti Whakaue) is an award-winning screenwriter, director and author. His first book, a non-fiction work telling the true story of New Zealand’s worst miscarriage of justice, In Dark Places, won Best Non-Fiction Book at the 2017 Ngaio Marsh Awards. Michael's second book, Helen and the Go-Go Ninjas, is a time-travel graphic novel co-authored with Ant Sang. Better the Blood, the first Hana Westerman thriller, was shortlisted for the Jann Medlicott Acorn Prize for Fiction/Ockham New Zealand Book Award, as well as for the Audio Book of the Year at the Capital Crime Fingerprint Awards and Best First Mystery Novel at the Barry Awards. It was also longlisted for the CWA John Creasey New Blood Debut Dagger and was a finalist for Best Novel at the 2023 Ngaio Marsh Awards, where it won the award for Best First Novel. Return to Blood, the second novel in the acclaimed series, won the Ngaio Marsh Award for Best Novel in 2025. Michael's short and feature films have won awards internationally and have screened at numerous festivals, including Cannes, Toronto, Berlin, Locarno, New York, London and Melbourne. Michael is the 2020 recipient of the Te Aupounamu Māori Screen Excellence Award, in recognition of members of the Māori filmmaking community who have made high-level contributions to screen storytelling. He lives in Auckland, Aotearoa (New Zealand), with his partner Jane, and children Tīhema, Māhina and Matariki.
Also by Michael Bennett
View all-
Carved in Blood
Tenacious Māori investigator Hana Westerman returns in this stunning new thriller from the award-winning author of Better the Blood. In the depths of the bleak New Zealand winter comes the rising of Matariki – a sacred constellation in Māori culture, heralding a time of new beginnings. For former Detective Senior Sergeant Hana Westerman, life is good: her work in her...Paperback$3100Elsewhere:$3799Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
Better the Blood
Better the Blood is described as 'a compelling, atmospheric page turner with an authentic insight into Māori culture' by Val McDermid. A DETECTIVE IN SEARCH OF THE TRUTH. A KILLER IN SEARCH OF RETRIBUTION. A CLASH BETWEEN CULTURE AND DUTY. THE PAST NEVER TRULY STAYS BURIED. WELCOME TO THE DARK SIDE OF PARADISE. Detective Senior Sergeant Hana Westerman is a...Paperback$2300Elsewhere:$2699Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
Return to Blood
Two murders. Two decades apart. One chance to get justice. Hana Westerman has left Auckland and her career as a detective behind her. Settled in a quiet coastal town, all she wants is a fresh start. The discovery of a skeleton in the dunes near her house changes everything. The remains are those of a young Māori woman who went...Paperback$3500Elsewhere:$3799Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
Things That Make White People Uncomfortable
Michael Bennett is a Super Bowl Champion, a three-time Pro Bowl defensive end, a fearless activist, a feminist, a grassroots philanthropist, an organiser, and a change maker. He's also one of the most scathingly humorous athletes on the planet, and he wants to make you uncomfortable. Bennett adds his unmistakable voice to discussions of racism and police violence, Black athletes...Hardback$6400Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 2-3 weeks -
Pathfinders
There are few Aboriginal icons in White Australia history. From the explorer to the pioneer, the swagman to the drover's wife, with a few bushrangers for good measure, Europeans play all the leading roles. A rare exception is the redoubtable tracker. With skills passed down over millennia, trackers could trace the movements of people across vast swathes of country. Celebrated...Paperback$4499Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
Return to Blood
FROM THE AWARD-WINNING AUTHOR OF BETTER THE BLOOD COMES ANOTHER CASE FOR NEW ZEALAND'S BEST INVESTIGATOR, HANA WESTERMAN. ‘Another cracking, page-turning journey into another culture’ VAL McDERMID Two murders. Two decades apart.One chance to get justice. Hana Westerman has left Auckland and her career as a detective behind her. Settled in a quiet coastal town, all she wants is a...Paperback$2500Elsewhere:$2899Unit price /UnavailableBackorderShips mid November -
Diving and Subaquatic Medicine
Considered an essential resource by many in the field, Diving and Subaquatic Medicine remains the leading text on diving medicine. It is written to fulfil the requirements of any general physician wishing to advise their patients appropriately when a diving trip is planned. It is also useful for those accompanying diving expeditions or when a doctor needs to assess and...Hardback$31200Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
Diving and Subaquatic Medicine
Considered an essential resource by many in the field, Diving and Subaquatic Medicine remains the leading text on diving medicine. It is written to fulfil the requirements of any general physician wishing to advise their patients appropriately when a diving trip is planned, for those accompanying diving expeditions or when a doctor is required to assess and treat anyone who...Paperback$14600Unit price /UnavailableAvailableShips in 4-6 weeks -
Return to Blood
FROM THE AWARD-WINNING AUTHOR OF BETTER THE BLOOD COMES ANOTHER CASE FOR NEW ZEALAND'S BEST INVESTIGATOR, HANA WESTERMAN. ‘Another cracking, page-turning journey into another culture’ VAL McDERMID Two murders. Two decades apart. One chance to get justice. Hana Westerman has left Auckland and her career as a detective behind her. Settled in a quiet coastal town, all she wants is...HardbackSold Out -
Helen and the Go-Go Ninjas
Helen and the Go-Go Ninjas is an eco-warrior's journey to save the world in this multi-layered, award-winning dystopian graphic novel. Kidnapped by time-travelling ninjas, Helen is thrust into the year 2355 - a ruined future with roving gangs and 'Peace Balls', giant humming devices that enslave and control people's minds. The Go-Go Ninjas have one goal - to destroy the...PaperbackSold Out
More from Crime & Thriller
View all-
New ReleaseKing’s Ransom
Five innocent hostages. Five private investigators. A fiendish ransom game. Has Detective Sam Speedman met his match? A fast and deadly Matthew Reilly thriller. A DARING ABDUCTION The richest man in the world has been kidnapped. Along with four of his children. THE DEADLY CHALLENGE The kidnapper's demand: the five best private detectives in America must come to the missing...Paperback$2999Elsewhere:$3499Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
New ReleaseThe French Illusion
Bestselling author John Grisham delivers a new gripping, suspenseful page-turner about aParis honeymoon gone horribly wrong - and the nightmare that follows. After Paul and Chelsea Tanner's fairytale wedding, their future is full of promise. But their honeymoon to Paris takes a dark, shocking turn when they are kidnapped while on a day trip to the French countryside. Who would...Paperback$3199Elsewhere:$3799Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
New ReleaseKing’s Ransom
Five innocent hostages. Five private investigators. A fiendish ransom game. Has Detective Sam Speedman met his match? A fast and deadly Matthew Reilly thriller. A DARING ABDUCTION The richest man in the world has been kidnapped. Along with four of his children. THE DEADLY CHALLENGE The kidnapper's demand: the five best private detectives in America must come to the missing...Hardback$4499Elsewhere:$4999Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
New ReleaseChain Reaction
Jack Reacher, \"the coolest continuing series character\" (Stephen King), returns in a brand new, pulse-pounding read from Lee and Andrew Child. The world’s bestselling hero is back in a brand new, high-octane adventure! ‘She knew that finding Reacher would not be easy . . .’ Washington DC. General Susan Turner needs help from the only guy she knows will get...Paperback$2999Elsewhere:$3800Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
New ReleaseThe Family Cross
In the gripping new thriller in James Patterson's globally bestselling series, Alex Cross faces his most personal case yet as a ruthless conspiracy targets Washington's most vulnerable... and his own family. Discover the latest gripping thriller in the globally bestselling Alex Cross series - now the inspiration for the original series CROSS on Prime Video starring Aldis Hodge as Alex...Paperback$3199Elsewhere:$3800Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
New ReleaseThe Heights
In The Heights by #1 Sunday Times bestselling author Sir Ian Rankin, murder comes to London's most exclusive high-rise - and every resident is a suspect... MURDER COMES TO LONDON'S MOST LUXURIOUS HIGH-RISE: AND EVERY RESIDENT IS A SUSPECT. The Heights: a gleaming, high-end high-rise looming over Hyde Park. Newly built from steel and smoked glass, it is a billionaire's playground offering sumptuous suites...Paperback$3199Elsewhere:$3799Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
New ReleaseDeath Row
With all hope of an appeal fading away, the fate of a condemned murderess takes a shocking turn in a breathtaking short story from the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Housemaid! A thrilling novella from #1 New York Times bestselling author Freida McFadden! Death is coming for her… unless she finds the truth first. Talia Kemper is on death row for murdering...Paperback$2299Elsewhere:$2400Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
Signed Copy19% offDying Days
Award-winning writer delivers a pulse-pounding espionage thriller. Missing soldiers, MI6 secrets and European partisans collide in a deadly game where the lines between lies and reality are fast disintegrating. In the dying days of the Second World War, a new conflict is about to ignite. May, 1945: After fighting to liberate Europe from the Nazis, Tito's Yugoslav Army and Allied...Paperback$2600Elsewhere:$3699Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
19% offNew Release
Fury In Death: An Eve Dallas thriller (In Death 63)
In the new crime thriller from the bestselling author, Lt. Eve Dallas journeys into the darkness where murder is born… NYSPD homicide detective Eve Dallas has seen a lot in her time but even she is shocked by the savagery of a beating which leaves a wealthy biotech executive dead in his home office. The victim’s corpse is so mangled...Paperback$2600Elsewhere:$3799Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
19% offNew ReleaseTom Clancy Pressure Depth
Jack Ryan Jr leads a team of divers in a race to beat the Chinese Navy to a weapon of terrible destructive power in the latest entry in the #1 New York Times bestselling series. Jack Ryan Jr. is on Guam to work on a project for Hendley Associates. It's a perfectly ordinary insurance matter, but trouble finds the Ryans...Paperback$2600Elsewhere:$3799Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
10% offNew ReleaseThe Country Road Murders
From the Sunday Times bestselling author comes a pulse-pounding thriller about justice, vengeance and the roads that lead us home. No one gets this big without amazing natural storytelling talent - which is what Jim has, in spades — LEE CHILD Cross Rivers is the kind of small town where everyone knows your name – and your secrets. Silas Tucker...Paperback$2700Elsewhere:$3800Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today -
15% offEvery Lake
Scary stories are fun... until your life becomes one. When Alice was fifteen, her father killed Mia Heywood in their lakefront cottage before vanishing into the trees. At least that's what the locals think happened. Over a decade later, Alice has lost her job as a journalist, she's going through an expensive divorce and she desperately needs to sell the...Paperback$2800Elsewhere:$3799Unit price /UnavailableIn StockShips today
Why buy from us?
Book Hero is not a chain store or big box retailer. We're an independent 100% NZ-owned business on a mission to help more Kiwis rediscover a love of books and reading!
Service & Delivery
Our warehouse in Auckland holds over 100,000 books, toys, board games and puzzles in-stock so you're not waiting for your order to arrive from overseas.
Auckland Bookstore
We're primarily an online store, but for your convenience you can pick up your order for free from our bookstore, which is right next door to our warehouse in Hobsonville.
Our Gifting Service
Books make wonderful thoughtful gifts and we're here to help with gift-wrapping and cards. We can even send your gift directly to your loved one.
Crime & Thriller lists from the team
Explore our curated lists from our heroes to find your next read!
-
![]()
![]()
![]()
Lizzy's listCrime & Thriller
Thriller Novels for the Spooky Season
I love that my local book club always chooses a thematic book for October to fit with Spooky Season, but instead of...View the list -
![]()
![]()
![]()
Lizzy's listCrime & Thriller
Classics for the Crime & Thriller Reader
Here are some classics that are perfect for someone who already loves a crime & thriller novel - the fathers (and mothers)...View the list -
![]()
![]()
![We Need to Talk About Kevin]()
Lizzy's listCrime & Thriller
Thriller Novels that Won't Leave Lizzy's Brain
These are the books that Lizzy almost wishes she could forget about because they've ruined something for her - whether it's making...View the list -
![]()
![]()
![]()
Shirl's listCrime & Thriller
Shirl's Crime & Thriller Picks
I've always loved a good crime and thriller read! Here are a few of my favourites from past and present that have...View the list -
![]()
![]()
![]()
Lizzy's listCrime & Thriller
Lizzy's Top Kiwi Crime/Thriller Writers
Looking for your next Crime/Thriller pick? We have some amazing authors right here in Aotearoa doing everything from releasing amazing spine tingling...View the list -
![]()
![]()
![]()
Hannah's listCrime & Thriller
Gripping Crime and Thriller Books
From the fast paced and stressful to the laborious and creepy, this is a selection of some of my favourite crime and...View the list
