An exciting new voice arrives on the New Zealand literary scene this March, with Kiss of Death, the first-ever historical legal thriller to be published in this country. Wellington author Stephen Tester began his working life as a barrister, but his love of history led him into secondary school teaching and writing in his spare time. The result is a fast-paced and fascinating courtroom drama featuring a young female lawyer in the early days of the “Empire City”, at the end of World War I.

Lorna McDougal is the only female barrister and solicitor in Wellington. Treated with contempt by her male colleagues, she devotes her time to feminist activist causes and frequently clashes with members of the reactionary “old guard” — male and female alike. Lorna’s big moment comes when the Armistice Day celebrations turn into a major event for the Spanish flu. The legal fraternity is decimated and Lorna is one of the few litigation lawyers still standing.

Wellington in 1918 was a bustling metropolis of 100,000 people, nearly all of whom turned out for the Armistice celebrations on 12 November. These celebrations became a super-spreader event for the Spanish flu and that forms a powerful — and very Covid-reminiscent — backdrop to the story. Thousands of revellers crowded the city to celebrate the end of the Great War, but only a few days later, the streets were deserted except for grocers’ lorries converted into ambulances, or post office lorries transporting the dead to Karori Cemetery. Meanwhile, hundreds of women volunteered as nurses in temporary hospitals such as at St Patrick’s College.

When a rich flu-ridden socialite seeks to end her loveless marriage by kissing her convalescing husband, the infection spreads through his ruined lungs which are already ravaged by German mustard gas on the western front, and Lorna is instructed to act for the Crown in the resultant murder trial. The main courtroom setting in the novel still exists much as it was then, and is now known as the Old High Court in Wellington.

This is a compelling read, both funny and poignant, and touches on themes that have major relevance to our society today. But while the author enjoys a chance to satirise Edwarrdian high society, he also gets down and dirty in the rough backstreets of the Aro Valley, addressing issues from poverty to gay rights. It’s a memorable story and bodes well for this new talent.

Kiss of Death is published by Heritage Press on 14 March 2024. You can preorder it on our website here.

Available in good bookstores nationwide.