Is this book part of a series or a standalone?

This novel serves as the first entry in a series featuring investigators Ivan Lucic and Nell Buchanan, though it is written to function as a standalone story that can be read independently.

Does this book have a different title in other regions?

The novel is published under the title Treasure and Dirt in some international markets, so readers should be aware that these are the same book.

Has this book been adapted for the screen?

A six-part television series titled Treasure and Dirt, based on the novel, was produced and released in 2026.

Opal Country

Hardboiled Mystery

Language: English

Synopsis

In the desolate outback town of Finnigans Gap, police struggle to maintain any semblance of order. Thieves pillage the opal mines, a religious sect recruits vulnerable young people, and a billionaire does as he pleases. Then an opal miner is found crucified and left to rot down his own mine.

Sydney homicide detective Ivan Lucic is sent to investigate, assisted by inexperienced young investigator Nell Buchanan. But Finnigans Gap has already ended one police career and damaged others, and soon both officers face damning allegations and internal investigations of their own. As events from years past take on startling new significance, their only chance at redemption is finding the killer.

Opal Country opens Chris Hammer's Ivan Lucic & Nell Buchanan series, and is published in Australia as Treasure & Dirt.